Boring Estates!

TripleT

TripleT

TripleT

Soldato
Joined
24 Oct 2002
Posts
9,654
Location
Manchester City Centre
Hi,

It's finally come time for me to change my car. I love my car but have longed for something big and comfy for a while but because I use it so little (talking less then 500miles in 6months) I couldn't justify it. But come March I will be moving to our house we've previously been renting out so naturally will be driving more. Added to that we've just got married and babies and dogs are on their way so a large estate would be nice (we also go camping often so this would be useful then too).

So which big large estate would you get? Budget of £10k - £15k.

Priorities are, big, preferably an auto but not essential, comfy, decent engine - can be petrol or diesel. When I say this what I mean is not horrific on fuel as depending on what happens with my job I may be doing 10k miles but I also may be doing closer to 20k and I intend to keep this car for 5years plus.

I'm pretty lost, so far I've been looking at everything from Audi A6 2.7TDi, Volvo V70 D5, Sokda Octavia vRS, VW Tourag's, Mondeo Titanium X's etc. As you can see all vastly different with different running costs, purchase prices etc so I'm just after some peoples opinions on what they would do for a large family hack?

Cheers
 
I might be biased, but you get a lot of car for the money with an A6, and for something large, reliable, and comfortable, it's been excellent. Not sure I'd bother with the diesels though seeing as you don't seem overly fussed on petrol or diesel choice.

The diesels (whilst not bad, certainly in 3.0 form) are more expensive, and more prone to faults. Get a petrol one :)
 
Was hoping you'd post as I do like the A6. They are huge but what's the 2.0T engine like in them? I don't fancy the 3.2 as it seems to drink like a fish and not offer that much (why I was leaning towards to 2.7). Also am I right in thinking that there were two different types of automatic gearboxes in these?
 
There were a few options for transmission, CVT (not available on all engine/drivetrain configurations IIRC), the tiptronic auto, and the manual.

The 3.0 is the pick of the diesels if you must go that route, but the 2.0T isn't that bad once remapped. In it's standard state of tune (170PS), I found it to be a little (but not bad really, just in comparison to my 330d and Leon Cupra R) sluggish. I had it remapped to an estimated 210-220~ PS and it's like night and day for driveability.

Economy wise I typically see between 42 and 45MPG on a long motorway run (whilst sticking to no more than 75MPH), and around 28-30MPG on my daily use (which is around 5 miles across town, but not too much stop/start, only a few sets of lights). All in, I've averaged 34.7MPG since owning the car.
 
Do you want to be sensible or not?
If not, blow the whole budget on an E Class or E60.
Although you could be semi-sensible and get an E320 CDI or 530d.

..or get a 550i :D
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3349424.htm

The E Class and V70 are cavernous, the E60 not so much.
The Mondeo has a massive load space too, but then you end up with a Mondeo.
 
I've just noticed that you're quite close. If you do decide to go down the A6 route and either would like a closer look at mine, or any help in adding equipment to it then just give us a yell.

They are pretty well specced from standard really, but there are a few choice additions that make the car that little bit better day to day. I for one couldn't cope without the AMI (Audi Music Interface) for connecting to media players/iPods/etc so I added that the week I bought it.
 
mjt said:
Do you want to be sensible or not?
If not, blow the whole budget on an E Class or E60.
Although you could be semi-sensible and get an E320 CDI or 530d.

..or get a 550i :D
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3349424.htm

The E Class and V70 are cavernous, the E60 not so much.
The Mondeo has a massive load space too, but then you end up with a Mondeo.
Click to expand...

Wouldnt bother with an E60 unless you want a nasty interior and irritating bills for the next 5 years, remember, its a longterm purchase.
 
If your going the diesel A6 route then forget the 2.7 and get the 3.0. The 3.0 is only marginally less MPG but has significant more power. I used to own an A6 Avant 3.0TDI and it was a great car.

Some things i'd note on it...
* Its bloody big in avant form, both in length and width. I never bumped it etc, but be aware.
* Id definately get the tiptronic (NOT CVT) transmission (IIRC the only option on the 3.0TDI). Great for wafting and still good when overtaking with S mode etc.
* I got about 34mpg avg out of mine during ownership with probably 50/50 town/motorway driving. I never got more than 44mpg on a run.
* If you get the 3.0; its got an 80 litre tank. Enjoy your £110 fill ups :D
* The 4WD is excellent and I would absolutely recommend it. I never ever got stuck in mine and I took it out in some treacherous conditions.
* Tyres are ~£180 for non-premium branded and ~£220 for michelins as fitted OEM. mine lasted 25,000 mls.
* I got £19k for mine to a specialist dealer when I sold it last year. Was a 58 plate S-Line avant with loads of options and daytona pearl paint. Nice car. I think they retailed it at 22k. Late last year dealers were knocking £7k (without really haggling!) off A6 Avants in preparation for the new model arriving so bear this in mind when buying one.
* In terms of options, then i'd recommend the AMI, Bose, Nav, Privacy Glass and black kit as those options i mine i most valued.
* If you can get the Le Mans, not the S-Line. Its got the 19s which make it look far better IMHO and more desirable from a resale POV. Downside is worse ride quality...
 
mikeh501 said:
If your going the diesel A6 route then forget the 2.7 and get the 3.0. The 3.0 is only marginally less MPG but has significant more power. I used to own an A6 Avant 3.0TDI and it was a great car.

Some things i'd note on it...
* Its bloody big in avant form, both in length and width. I never bumped it etc, but be aware.
* Id definately get the tiptronic (NOT CVT) transmission (IIRC the only option on the 3.0TDI). Great for wafting and still good when overtaking with S mode etc.
* I got about 34mpg avg out of mine during ownership with probably 50/50 town/motorway driving. I never got more than 44mpg on a run.
* If you get the 3.0; its got an 80 litre tank. Enjoy your £110 fill ups :D
* The 4WD is excellent and I would absolutely recommend it. I never ever got stuck in mine and I took it out in some treacherous conditions.
* Tyres are ~£180 for non-premium branded and ~£220 for michelins as fitted OEM. mine lasted 25,000 mls.
* I got £19k for mine to a specialist dealer when I sold it last year. Was a 58 plate S-Line avant with loads of options and daytona pearl paint. Nice car. I think they retailed it at 22k. Late last year dealers were knocking £7k (without really haggling!) off A6 Avants in preparation for the new model arriving so bear this in mind when buying one.
* In terms of options, then i'd recommend the AMI, Bose, Nav, Privacy Glass and black kit as those options i mine i most valued.
* If you can get the Le Mans, not the S-Line. Its got the 19s which make it look far better IMHO and more desirable from a resale POV. Downside is worse ride quality...
Click to expand...

Not too sure on privacy glass, I sit in the front not the back, and only notice that I've got privacy glass when I wash the car. The AMI is a relatively simple retrofit, so that wouldn't be a deal breaker for me. One of the most bizarre specification oddities is that APS (Audi Parking System, or PDC) is an optional extra, and given the length of the thing, I'd be inclined to find one with APS (preferably APS+, but APS is easily upgradable to graphical display). The only options I really wish mine had were the electrically folding wing mirrors and auto-dimming rear-view mirror pack, and Xenons (not overly fussed about not having the cornering lights/swivel, but the normal Halogens are pathetically dim). Xenons are a costly, and complex retrofit, and whilst I'm fitting them myself, I'd be looking for one that already had them were I buying again, I guess the purchase price of mine was the best reason to offset missing Xenons.

Also worth noting that the extended fuel tank was an option on all engines, mine has it for example (2.0T), and whilst the shock at the pump price is a bit :eek:, the fact that I get over 600 miles from a tank is a nice bonus... keeps me out of petrol station forecourts.

Oh, and tyres being £180 for non-premium branded? I had to get a replacement P-Zero Rosso last week (egg-shaped bulge appeared on the sidewall, and the other tyres are under 6000 miles old), and it came to £185. Whilst P-Zeros are not exactly the most high-performing tyre in the world, you can't argue that they are non-premium branded. You can get mid-range tyres for around £140-150.

Mine's a 2.0T S Line '57 plate (Feb 2008 car), in Daytona Grey.
 
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The current Mondeo is certainly big!
As previously mentioned why not have a look at one of the higher models - Perhaps a 1-2 year old titanium X 163 TDCI? No point buying new as you have so much value to lose. All imo of course :).
Even the ecoboost one?
Buying yourself a BMW or an Audi is going to be a couple of years older.
 
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Paradigm, I'm looking at getting an estate and an A6 is on my list. Can I have a poke around yours sometime?

You can see the MX-5 at the same time too :)
 
DRZ said:
Paradigm, I'm looking at getting an estate and an A6 is on my list. Can I have a poke around yours sometime?

You can see the MX-5 at the same time too :)
Click to expand...
Sounds like a plan, whenever you fancy it (other than any time between this friday and next saturday, as both me and the car will be in the French Alps).
 
paradigm said:
As said above, 80 Litres. The standard tank is 70 Litres IIRC.
Click to expand...

An extended tank option is rare enough, but one that only gives an increase in 10 litres? Odd. From what I can see there is no such option - 80 litres is the standard tank size, the previous generation car was 70 litres.
 
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