Forgive me mighty OcUK motors for I have sinned

Del Lardo

Del Lardo

Del Lardo

Soldato
Joined
8 Aug 2003
Posts
2,542
Location
Cambridge(ish)
I have gone out and bought a car without starting 27 'What should I buy' threads and documenting the whole process.

As punishment I expect a thread full of 'you should have bought xxxxx' posts so to help you out with your retrospective recommendations my requirements were:
- Automatic
- 15k/year mostly commuting Cambridge -> Reading/Heathrow during rush hour
- 35+mpg, in an ideal world 50+mpg but will to sacrifice mpg for some performance
- Budget £8k ideally, £10k realistically, up to £14k for the ideal car
- 4 useable seats
- Maximum of 7 years old & 80k miles (non negotiable)
- Lots of toys
- Leather
- 5-series size or above
- Multi year manufacturer warante available

So what did I look at (off the top of my head):
BMW 630i - Really liked it but rear seats weren't viable
BMW 5 series - Lovely car, fell asleep look at it. They just do nothing for me.
Mercedes E Class - I know it's a cliche but I've spent so much time sat in the back of one in Germany that I couldn't past it's Taxi reputation
Mercedes CLS - Couldn't get on with the styling
Skoda Superb - Drove one and it made be add RWD to the requirements
BMW 730d - This was a very close 2nd but too many reports of questionable reliability backed up by BMW wanting nearly £2000/year for the BMW approved warrantee
Volvo C30 - Fails most requirements but for some reason I've always had a soft spot
Audi A6 - Father has one so it's out
Jaguar XF - Loved the car but could only afford an early 2.7d and would have spent the whole time I owned it wishing I had got a 3.0d.
Probably many, many more having spent 6 weeks churning through Autotrader/Pistonheads.


So what have I gone out and handed over just over £10k's worth of debit card for.......

Well inspired by this thread this lunchtime I picked up a car which......

- Automatic - Yes
- 15k/year mostly commuting Cambridge -> Reading/Heathrow during rush hour
- 35+mpg, in an ideal world 50+mpg but will to sacrifice mpg for some performance - 35.8 on the drive home rising to 42mpg in town
- Budget £8k ideally, £10k realistically, up to £14k for the ideal car - Bit over £10k
- 4 useable seats - Yes, boot compromised but big enough for my needs
- Maximum of 7 years old & 80k miles (non negotiable) - 5 years & 3 months, 72k miles
- Lots of toys - Yes, I particularly like having an air conditioned bum
- Leather - Yes
- 5-series size or above - Yes
- Multi year manufacturer warrantee available - One year included, can add another two years for ~£1850


And some lovely photos from the dealer as I can do no better.......
https://dl.dropbox.com/u/1021083/Lexus/HighResImage (2).jpg

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/1021083/Lexus/HighResImage (5).jpg

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/1021083/Lexus/HighResImage (7).jpg

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/1021083/Lexus/HighResImage.jpg

Resize images please.

I really wasn't sure about the wood in the interior based on the photos but in the flesh it's acceptable and much less orange.

Obviously no BMW in terms of handling and not a car that likes to change direction quickly but frankly I don't care, not much fun to be had on the A1/M25/M4.

Straight line performance is LOL worthly



So 3 - 2 - 1, Ahaaaaa!
 
Haven't read the other thread but I do like the look of these.

Are you sure you got enough buttons in there? :)
 
What is it?. I know it's a Lexus 4 something but what type?. I've re-read the original post but maybe I just missed it.
 
I'm not a fan of these cars. I think Lexus are still quite far off the mark in terms of real quality, putting them behind the likes of Mercedes, BMW etc. That big patch of wood with the shifter and all the 70s-style switchgear on it just isn't befitting a modern executive car.
 
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