Time to move on, £4-5k and comfort. Dressed up family saloons?

Spamalot

Spamalot

Spamalot

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I’m selling the Prosche, it’s a nice car and I love it but with the miles I’m doing these days it’s really not an option. It’s on Piston Heads as we speak. It’s old, uncomfortable and fuel, tyres and repairs are costing far too much. At £1,000 a set of tyres every 10K miles that’s 10p per mile just in tyres. I could also use the extra money a down grade would give me as finances are little tight for now (new business, new staff, no salary, sisters that need looking after as my dad passed away before Christmas…).

I’m looking at doing around 18K miles this year in total.

What I’m looking for my £5k budget-

• Comfort
• Toys
• Economy both in fuel and repairs
• 40mpg would be nice
• Alright badge so it doesn’t feel like it’s to much of a step down from the Porsche (yes, I know it’s only a Boxster. Go on Mr Saxo VTR mock me for having a girls car :))​
This bought me back to the ‘try hards’ aka cars that look semi posh but really aren’t. Car’s that are cheapish to run but aren’t that dull or bland (all imo obviously)-

• S40 Sport, 1.8 or 2L Diesel, 2005 or newer
• 9-3 2003 Aero 2L Turbo (used to own on of these) or fast Derv
• Jaguar X-Type, 2L V6 or Derv​
I’d go for a £5k E46 330i but running through a few calculations today and the difference between a 30mpg average and a 40mpg average with the mile I’ll be doing is almost a £1000. Over three years that adds up.

I was thinking at this budget a solid petrol that could do high 30’s mpg would be a safer, and probably cheaper, bet than a derv that could do say 50mpg. Correct?

What would you suggest?
 
Dont get a diesel X type, thats going to just depress you mate honestly. So is the 2 litre one.

No 4WD, and not much guts, those are the things that make x types good.
 
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[TW]Fox;18216204 said:
How is a V6 Jaguar or a Saab Aero going to do 40mpg?
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Well they're not going to. I used to get about 33mpg average out of my Aero. Sometimes, when faced with a low budget, you have to compromise though.
 
Volvo S60 D5. Rubbish sports car, but a lovely comfortable waftmobile that can crack 40mpg. I replaced a 330i sport with one and don't miss the bimmer in the slightest.
 
It's got to be said that you won't be able to meet all your criteria as that's what everybody wants. If you could put your criteria in order of priority so we know how important they are then hopefully some decent suggestions will come out of it. IE, if economy @ 40mpg is top of the list then we can realistically rule out things like the X type 2.0v6. Also, what sort of driving will it be? That could change your choice of engines dramatically.
 
Mr_Sukebe said:
Volvo S60 D5. Rubbish sports car, but a lovely comfortable waftmobile that can crack 40mpg. I replaced a 330i sport with one and don't miss the bimmer in the slightest.
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This sort of thing, Link. I like that a fair amount, looks very comfortable, it's even got sat nav and it's a auto. What about reliability though with that sort of milage?
 
Spamalot said:
I thought these had potential for large bills? Would I not be better off getting an older, cheaper one with less miles?
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All modern diesels have the potential for large bills. I would rather have a newer one than a lower mileage one at this sort of budget.
 
Was going to suggest Volvo, my old v40 was averaging 32mpg with no particular effort for economy, that was a petrol 2.0.

It was reasonably quick, but no sports car. I would avoid the 1.8 as I'm sure it will feel pretty gutless. There's plenty with full leather, and even base models are pretty well equipped.
 
Spamalot said:
This sort of thing, Link. I like that a fair amount, looks very comfortable, it's even got sat nav and it's a auto. What about reliability though with that sort of milage?
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I get the impression that all high mileage diesel engines are potentially suspect, mainly because of their increasing complexity over the last few years. e.g. BMWs are known for injector faults above 100k and for turbo issues on the 2ltr diesels. So personally, I wouldn't buy the one in question.
From reading the Volvo forums over the last year, the two key things that have issues, are actually avoidable buy choosing the right car, i.e.
- DPF - Diesel particulate filter. This was fitted to the Euro iV model (2005 onwards) and if you don't take the car out for long runs regularly, is known to clog up and fail. It's a big bill. The older Euro III model doesn't have a DPF, i.e. problem solved. Easy way to tell, look under the bonnet. The Euro IIIs have a black plastic engine cover. The ivs have a silver engine cover.
- DMF - dual mass flywheel. As I understand it, these only exist on manual cars. So buy an auto, which is MUCH better suited to the car

As an ownership proposition, I've had zero reliability issues with mine. WarrantyDirects reliability index put the costs on par with a Mondeo/E46. So not as cheap as say a Honda Accord, but then you can't buy an Accord diesel auto at that age.
The seats are the best I've come across in any car. Incredibly comfortable. Legroom is definitely not a strong point, and is worse than an E46. Rear width (for lardy passengers) is better in the S60.
The other really naff thing is the turning circle, which is notorious for being rubbish. Frankly, doesn't really bother me that much, but if you spend all day parking in multi-story car parks, might really put you off.
The boot is 430ltrs, i.e. about 1/3rd up on an E46. They all have folding rear seats and at least mine has a front seat that will fold flat for very long loads.
The stereo is the best I've heard in a car.

Note that there variants include:
S - don't bother, doesn't have leather as standard
SE - do bother, does have leather (which is nicely done and seems to last well)

Then you have options like the winter pack (heated seats etc). Mine is an ex dem and seems to have had everything thrown at it, i.e. full leather, top level stereo, heated seats, electric drivers seat, dual zone climate, sunroof, towbar (good for the bike rack) etc.

I really struggle to think what I'd replace it with. A mondeo is cheaper, but unless you're talking about the latest version, IMO the S60 feels like a much more pleasant place to be.
 
The Jag xtype is comfy, you have the badge and the 2.0V6 performance was a million miles better than my old vectra. Dont know my MPG but i do an average of 320 miles a week at the moment and it only costs £55 in petrol.
 
Mr_Sukebe said:
I get the impression that all high mileage diesel engines are potentially suspect, mainly because of their increasing complexity over the last few years. e.g. BMWs are known for injector faults above 100k and for turbo issues on the 2ltr diesels. So personally, I wouldn't buy the one in question.
From reading the Volvo forums over the last year, the two key things that have issues, are actually avoidable buy choosing the right car, i.e.
- DPF - Diesel particulate filter. This was fitted to the Euro iV model (2005 onwards) and if you don't take the car out for long runs regularly, is known to clog up and fail. It's a big bill. The older Euro III model doesn't have a DPF, i.e. problem solved. Easy way to tell, look under the bonnet. The Euro IIIs have a black plastic engine cover. The ivs have a silver engine cover.
- DMF - dual mass flywheel. As I understand it, these only exist on manual cars. So buy an auto, which is MUCH better suited to the car

As an ownership proposition, I've had zero reliability issues with mine. WarrantyDirects reliability index put the costs on par with a Mondeo/E46. So not as cheap as say a Honda Accord, but then you can't buy an Accord diesel auto at that age.
The seats are the best I've come across in any car. Incredibly comfortable. Legroom is definitely not a strong point, and is worse than an E46. Rear width (for lardy passengers) is better in the S60.
The other really naff thing is the turning circle, which is notorious for being rubbish. Frankly, doesn't really bother me that much, but if you spend all day parking in multi-story car parks, might really put you off.
The boot is 430ltrs, i.e. about 1/3rd up on an E46. They all have folding rear seats and at least mine has a front seat that will fold flat for very long loads.
The stereo is the best I've heard in a car.

Note that there variants include:
S - don't bother, doesn't have leather as standard
SE - do bother, does have leather (which is nicely done and seems to last well)

Then you have options like the winter pack (heated seats etc). Mine is an ex dem and seems to have had everything thrown at it, i.e. full leather, top level stereo, heated seats, electric drivers seat, dual zone climate, sunroof, towbar (good for the bike rack) etc.

I really struggle to think what I'd replace it with. A mondeo is cheaper, but unless you're talking about the latest version, IMO the S60 feels like a much more pleasant place to be.
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Nice post. Was looking at getting a S60 in the next few months. Currently got a Mondeo mk3 2 litre diesel. Does what I need it to do but not the nicest place to be sat on long runs. Think a S60 would be a nicer place to sit.

How bad is the leg room out of interest. Im a very lanky 6 3" and have to have the seat all the way back, and nealry lowered all the way in the mondeo to get comfortable.
 
kidloco said:
Think a S60 would be a nicer place to sit.

How bad is the leg room out of interest. Im a very lanky 6 3" and have to have the seat all the way back, and nealry lowered all the way in the mondeo to get comfortable.
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Go for classic seats rather than the sportier option, I forget the official name but easey to spot, they are flatter looking rather than the slighlty more bucketed 'sport' version, AFAIK the vast majority have the classic seats anyway.

I'm 6'4 and have no issues at all, but I've only had estates rather than saloons, I assume the cabin is the same. The only issue at my height is if someone of similar height is sat behind me, as the drivers seat is farther back, they will be a little cramped.

By far the confiest card I've been In for long trips.
 
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Try a Nissan primera i have mine a year now and couldn't fault it , its a great car for crunching through miles and its very comfy
 
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