Another spec me thread - for my Dad

iaind

iaind

iaind

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As above - a month ago he took delivery of a brand new A6 Avant (2.0 TDI 170 Le Mans with the CVT (multitronic?) gearbox) on the company car scheme. This is a bit of an odd choice of car for a lot of reasons - "wrong" engine, "wrong" gearbox etc etc, but in the world of company car tax, it was the best option. The gearbox for instance is the only auto on the 2WD version, the DSG is only on the Quattros which cost a fair bit more in tax because of increased emissions.

Anyway, the intention was for it to last the usual 3 years which would tie in with his retirement but, for reasons which arent worth going into here, he's taking early retirement in March 2010. So, he's going to need a car. The original thought was to just buy the A6, but his budget of £25k probably wouldnt buy the above car at 5 months old with 9k miles on the clock. It's also a bit big for his new requirements and the engine/gearbox combo make less sense when running the car privately. So he's probably going to give the car back and source something second hand.

Requirements:

- Executive estate (Dog means saloons arent practical)
- Preferably smaller than the A6 although A6/5 series etc are probably the upper limit size wise
- Petrol probably makes more sense due to much lower mileage
- Refinement, comfort and practicality outweigh performance.. for comparison the A6 performs just fine
- Automatic

He likes Mercs, he's considering a C class - although what does 25k buy and what are the engines to look at. He looked at these when looking for the company car and liked them, although he was looking at diesels.

My thoughts were a 330i Touring - is there anything obvious I'm missing?

So, bring on the usual random OcUK suggestions like an RX8 or 2 brand new Fiestas :D
 
If comfort is a priority I'd say the Merc C-class is a much better option. The suspension setup on the 3 series SE isn't great really.
 
Good point - I'm guessing in E90 terms the M Sport is the one to have, which is going to be quite firm.

Saying that, he's got an Audi at the moment which are always said to have overly stiff suspension and he's quite happy with it, primarily because the quality, seats and noise levels are very good.

I wonder if any Volvos are worth looking at, he always loved Volvo and Saab - although he's probably not going to end up with the latter :)
 
If you're going to make a joke Mondeo suggestion, don't do it to someone who owns one - if it had been an option then I'd have been the first to suggest it :p
 
Oh - one other consideration - running costs arent really an issue but reliability is - if that makes sense.

He's going to buy a workshop to be restoring old classics, so doesnt want to be fixing his day to day car in there :) But it doesnt matter if a service costs £400 rather than £200
 
E220/E320 CDI should fit the bill nicely, the C class is a little on the small side

Have you asked the question on the Audi, at least its a car that you know well.
 
Are the petrol engines on the E class not worth looking at? He doesnt need something that large inside, the dog's only a small boxer :)

I think it's a bit early to get a valuation for the Audi - I dont think he's that keen on keeping it anyway. Big lifestyle change and different financial requirements - he loves all the gadgets but would prefer something a bit smaller and petrol powered
 
Accord is a sensible option but he's much like me with Japanese interiors (it's probably where I get it from!). They look really good, especially these days, but when you look a bit closer at the details it all comes undone - flimsy handbrake, random switchgear from 1992 etc. 25k is also a brand new Accord so depreciation would be much steeper
 
Draeger said:
Volvo V70?. Pretty good value for money workhorses.
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He really liked the V70 until they facelifted it and got a blind man to design the rear lights. Still, aside from that they're a good opion - most seem to be the 2.4 diesel although that sort of negates the fact that petrols are cheaper to buy if they're almost all dervs :)
 
iaind said:
They're brilliant cars but I dont think its really what he wants. Plus its the same problem that 25k is nearly a brand new top spec car, so depreciation would be huge
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Fair point, I can understand the buying of the car that has already suffered the depreciation.

Having owned a V70 D5 Estate, I can recommend one also, they are great.

Howabout http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1236390.htm
 
Dr Who said:
Fair point, I can understand the buying of the car that has already suffered the depreciation.

Having owned a V70 D5 Estate, I can recommend one also, they are great.

Howabout http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1236390.htm
Click to expand...

2cc :D

Funnily enough, his last company car was an X-Type 2.0D, was OK but I dont think he'd have another one. If only because he's spent 3 years with one so wants a change
 
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