Law /
Buying a car in Poland or Germany? [36]
Agree with Roger on Renault Thalia. Sadly for those west of the Oder River Thalia was not available on their posh markets, but Thalia is essentially a Clio in the saloon (sedan) version... I own a 2006 petrol with LPG and the smaller 1.2L engine (actually it is 1149cc)... I must say this car is a steal for city driving and if you look at the listings you could find many sell offers still from first owners... Also, it seems popular with the older
emeryci crowd who tend to not abuse and take reasonable care of their cars... it is not a bad city car, I would much rather drive it than say a Fiat Panda or similar puny, the suspension is comfortable enough as one would expect from the French... The bad part is being a budget car put together in Turkey the fitting of the door is just awful - just look at the gap between the door where it meets the roof. The biggest design faults are the lack of a secure drink holder and the noise from the windows at speeds >90km/h... this also applies to Clio of same generation, the problem being the door window glass not being flush enough with the surrounding frame... The only issues I have had so far were a random battery drain (fixed) and not very durable wheel bearings - I had already replaced the rear one after only 80k (but paid 100pln including labour) and now start to hear a familiar noise from the front... I am not too worried tough as the parts are dirt cheap (Renault in general), the insurance is dirt cheap, and it is also dirt cheap to run with the LPG conversion... and it starts on contact, has air con, huge boot space for size, steering wheel radio controls, 4 doors, ABS, superb breaks, is light and easy to drive in city, also quite narrow... and here's the best part: being apparently one of the ugliest cars ever sold, you need not worry too much about it being stolen or other as I imagine it is top of the
obciach list for the
karki and other
szpanery... ;-)
Forgot to add one other advantage is the raised ground clearance - for that reason it is great for the dirt roads outside of the city...
