Faults:

Minor rust developed around the rear wheel-arches and bonnet front.

Rear wiper motor burnt out whilst trying to clear snow off window. (oops)

Gear lever spring broke, this meant it was difficult to engage 3rd gear as stick wasn't sprung to centre and flopped around in neutral.

General Comments:

Good spec for such a small old car with 5 speed gearbox, rev-counter, sunroof, posh velour seats and decent stereo as standard.

The car was quick due to the punchy 1.4 engine, (the same as in an XR2 but bored down to a 1.4 not 1.6)

Amazing handling, you got the impression you didn't need to slow down for corners, infact you could go faster and it just went round.

The car looked and went really well after a little work to cure the rust problem but sadly met its end in a traffic accident.

Faults:

Broken locks.

Jammed window regulator driver's door.

Speedo needs recalibrating.

Windscreen wipers are dodgy.

Head gasket has gone.

Pungent smell of petrol.

Rusty.

Exhaust box has blown.

The gears are crunching.

General Comments:

A useless car that is only fit for the scrap yard.

It is unreliable, a vandal magnet, uncomfortable and has air fix kit style build quality.

As a first car it has given me good driving experience, but I only paid £40 for it so I cannot grumble too much.

XR2 alloys make it look a bit meaner though.

Has had 9 previous owners so it has had a hard life.

Faults:

Very little considering it is an 'E' Reg.

One new sill (rusted through).

Rear a bit rusty.

Lets in a little water underneath your feet in heavy rain.

Other than that, not a lot!

General Comments:

For 957cc, it is quite nippy, as well as being very economical - about 45mpg and I live at the bottom of a big hill!

Very reliable; never broken down and always started!

Quite comfortable, even if 6ft tall.

Very cheap and widely available parts.

Cheap insurance, cheap tax.

They do tend to rust, old Fiesta's, so undersealing the car is recommended, as well as treating other patches quickly.

Overall a very good bargain @ £300. For young drivers a big recommendation is an old Fiesta.

Faults:

Mine was a lemon with a new radiator, and speedo within a year, and rust appearing on various seams with 3. I'm convinced this was due to using a pressure washer, DON'T!

Apart from that the gearbox started whining from about 10k, but never got any worse.

General Comments:

Engine, once warm, was thrashed mercilessly, but run on Mobil 1 and sounded better than most with half that, that have been used purely for shopping trips. Morale? Use a good oil, change more often than recommended and these old engines will easily do 100k.

Lovely fruity burble from the standard exhaust. Not quick, but fun, with firm suspension. Not very comfy on a long journey though.

Steering a delight! Light, direct and free of any horrible trendy assistance.

Faults:

Rust always forms at the front wheel arches.

Not very hard for people to break into, joyrider's favourite. Mine got stolen twice, once for the previous owner.

Awkward to start the engine when it's cold, wet or both.

General Comments:

Insurance is cheap. Running costs are cheap. Parts are easy to obtain.

Parking is quite easy.

Providing you take adequate security precautions, and rust prevention, it shouldn't give you much trouble. It performs quite adequately on the motorway.

Recommended for a 1st timer or for getting about around town.

This was my 2nd car. I now ride a Suzuki motorcycle.

Faults:

Offside sill corroded and arches are rotten.

General Comments:

Good car, nippy and good on fuel. Drop in a Piper cam, K&N air filter, Janspeed exhaust and it will greatly improve performance.

Faults:

Nothing. I only did 5000 miles in it but this still impressed me. However, on a car this simple there isn't much to go wrong on it!

General Comments:

A very basic and very slow car.

It's quick to 30mph, then forget it.

It has a rear heated screen when new as an optional extra, later it had a radio fitted. I think that says it all for comfort.

Couldn't fault the car for reliablity or economy though. This is a great car for first-timers too, it's easy to park and straightforward to drive with very low insurance.

Faults:

Welding required on front wheel arches, under battery and rear valence (possibly due to a previous accident).

CV gaters split.

Valve stem oil seals needed replacing (blue smoke when the engine was started from cold).

General Comments:

Although the car wasn't exactly trouble free, it was nice to drive, parts were cheap and it never let me down. Not stunning performance and the back end could be a unstable on the limits (I ended up pointing the wrong way on a roundabout once).

Faults:

Head gasket, lots of rust on both front wings and boot, ball joints go quickly as do the sills.

Engine becomes noisy unless flushed regularly, use synthetic oil and change every 6k at least.

General Comments:

A good fast car, great fun to drive and plenty of mods and parts available.

Change air filter, performance exhaust and will go fastish.