Peter_in_Hungary

Or hire a car (over here) for a week and see how you get on

FenTiger

An automatic is one of the options I'm considering.

FenTiger

I've driven a LHD in Hungary before. It was okay but predictably I like anyone else was grabbing at the door instead of gear stick a few times.

duztee

I have kept my RHD.
Simple reason for me, I drive next to no miles, so I have a 10 year old car with only 30,000 miles on the clock.
There is no value in selling an as new car at a loss just to change driving position.
The roads here are generally straight and overtaking is not the issue that driving a LHD in the UK would be.

FenTiger

My Vauxhall Zafira is 8 years old. Only 25k miles on the clock. reason for low mileage is my wife doesn't like the car and finds it too big to drive. Also both parents are deceased and I'm not on speaking terms with my sister so there's no more monthly road trips to my home town 100 miles up north from Kent!

Some roads are pretty bad and having been a passenger in a friend's atleast 10 year old LHD I found the experience bone shaking bad and wouldn't want to drive too fast over bad roads!

Current value according to 'Buy My Car' is £3,500 ..... so ... probably would be better for me to keep it as long as possible until it's destined for the scrap yard!

It's perfect for transporting our two dogs and four passengers. Using the full 7 seats would be a squeeze for them though

fidobsa

Secondhand cars are expensive in Hungary but I think brand new ones are about the same price as in UK, so I would suggest you wait until you move then buy a brand new car in Hungary. As Peter says, it is easy enough to get used to the LHD, it just takes a few weeks of care when passing parked cars etc. If you bring an RHD and register it in Hungary it will have minimal resale value, as most Hungarians would not entertain the idea of driving a RHD. You should also think about what sort of car you will need, given the change of lifestyle. When you go to UK it can work out cheaper to fly and hire a car there rather than drive yours and go on the ferry / chunnel. I have had to take the car twice when going to re-decorate my cottage in Scotland but that was because I was taking a load of tools and staying for several weeks.

GBA77

I find second hand vehicles in Hungary (as well as other parts of Europe even Germany) obscenely expensive especially for what you getting. Then there is the language difficulty when you trying to establish its history, service record etc.

When you look for and find left hand drive cars in the UK they seem expensive as well. Plus you know they probably came from outside the UK and its history will be non existent.

A bit OT but imagine saying to the Hungarian equivalent of the RAC/AA/Greenflag chap, there's a good man, get this vehicle in the air and let me have a 30/50 point or whatever, purchase/safety check!!!!!

To the OP. Maybe something a bit robust? Not a tank but something with decent ground clearance - non of that low profile tire business - not for rural living. Something automatic is not a bad shout. It would depend on your lifestyle as well.Thats just my opinion.

Peter_in_Hungary

My LWB land rover station wagon purchased new 24 years ago (as detailed above on page 1) is now not much short of 500,000km on the clock. ......Nothing wrong with a tank !!

jam25mack

Ha ha!

To the OP, driving on the wrong side of the road and car (LHD) is easy to get used to. Just take it easy. I've been driving on the right for about 13 years now and actually have more hassles when back in the UK and driving on the left despite driving on that side for years.

If you're not going for 2 years just get a banger to get you by and then do the same when you arrive until you are used to it. Then get a nice shiny new LHD motor.

jetsam1

I am very wary of used cars in Hungary, more than a few times I've walked away as there was no history or the price was astronomical when you looked at the amount of KM on the clock..... I think people put up with a lot more here than in the UK.

Had no choice with the van as new they are very expensive but we pushed hard to go new with the car as we felt it was the only way to get a vehicle with any peace of mind (we have done 73,000 km in 2 and a bit years though), It was expensive but I have felt it has been worth it in the long run simply as I know exactly how it has been looked after......... Allright, it's just an Astra so nothing extravagant.........

Driving LHD in the UK hasn't been a problem and switching to LHD from RHD hasn't been a problem. I would hang fire as an 8 year old car isn't all that old and if it runs fine and has no issues I wouldn't be changing it for something which could be full of unknowns unless you have to. I would wait until you were in Hungary and then see what your budget is and look for something then.

scrubbedexpat142

"To the OP. Maybe something a bit robust? Not a tank but something with decent ground clearance - non of that low profile tire business - not for rural living"

Maybe the army can spare you one of these!

wolfi

I'm an Opel fan myself - many years ago I worked for them doing IT schooling and they told me that Vauxhall was reduced to just modifying the cars from LHD to RHD - everything else was designed in Rüsselsheim, they were very proud of it!
Drove Astra caravans for many years - the last of my cars I "sold" to my wife's son whose small family is happy with it!
Then I bought a Meriva A (in Germany), compact, enough room for the two of us (and the dog) and a bit higher, better outlook. And the Hungarians know how to do service on them, there are quite a few around ...
Even after they've been sold now to France ...
Analternative would be a Suzuki imho.

scrubbedexpat142

Ah, many happy memories of a 2.0 Rekord Berlina, circa 1980! Always fancied an Irmscher Manta.

FenTiger

My sister-in-law's husband has a Suzuki Grand Vitara. The seating seems a bit basic but then again I don't know exactly which model it is but it does have 4WD (I think). The boot's quite small, probably too small for two dogs!

A nephew has a Suzuki Swift which would be perfect if we didn't have any dogs!

FenTiger

In the mid-80's I had a Vauxhall Chevette and had to have a reconditioned engine fitted once the original engine reached 50,000 miles. No idea why. I never drove it hard although it did cover alot of miles. The interior was a shocking reddish colour, including seats, carpets, dashboard and all the plasticky bits around the car! I've no idea what prompted me to buy a car with an interior like that!