Have a 1.3 since new 14 plate now on 27k. 6 laps of the nurburgring and driven round europe to bed it in when it was near enough new :)

No issues, really good on fuel but feels a bit flat at times. I do want to map it but unlimited warranty puts me off doing it

m20-m32 all the same. just different ratios sets.
they all fail if they are the early type. :(

M32 is the problem box, I have one on the alfa

I thought the gearbox issues were only on the M32 boxes. That's not the greatest of selling points :(

Girlfriend has had a 1.3 cdti from new. 5 years old now on about 57000 and not had any issues with it.

i had a 1.3cdti, the 90ps one. was nippy for a daily but didnt like short stop start trips really wanted more than 10 miles at a time to get hot.
50+ mpg on short trips and 60+ mpg on longer runs.
only sold it a i had a work van and didnt need it.
08 plate with 18k, £6000 2 years ago.
just got to 40k and the m20 has failed.
if you do get a corsa be sure to check for noise 5th and 6th gears. also look to see if its had a new gearbox end case, if so it has upgraded bearings fitted.

That's pretty much bang on. It's finding one with the lowest mileage that's the hard part and the newer the better.

1.7 is the better.

Clio DCi?

Although fiesta is your best bet I'd say. 09-11 plate can be found with 50-70k for £5k. Is that too much/too old?

The fiesta is on its last legs now and will need a small fortune to fix for its next mot. So I'm on the look out for a newer diesel. It's has to be diesel as it'll be used for work which is a 70 mile round trip daily.

I've been looking at the mk7 fiesta zetec s tdci but they're pretty expensive. I really like the look of the "limited edition" styled corsa D but I've noticed they come in either 1.3 or 1.7 cdti versions. Which one is best??

I have a budget of around £5k max. Anything else I might not have thought of??