New Car Ideas Wanted - Driving 60 Miles a Day

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Soldato
Joined
14 Jul 2007
Posts
3,443
I'm at the beginning of the thought process for changing my car and was looking for some ideas for what to get next, I'm a bit out of my comfort zone so any help is much appreciated.

Current situation.
I currently own a 56 plate Nissan 350z GT , 60k miles and a 55 Plate Astra Sport 2.0 Turbo, 40k miles.

I live 2 mins from my work and 5 mins from my fiancé and all my driving is really non essential.

Future
Im getting married in December and will be moving approx 25 miles from my work therefore will be driving 50 ish miles per day. We will be living here for a year initially but if it goes well will be staying so the drive distance will remain beyond that.

I'll be selling both cars and getting one car to replace them. My wife to be doesn't drive.

As we will have just paid for the wedding and honeymoon, plus the costs of moving house etc I dont want to spend more than the value of selling my two cars if I can help it. I obviously need something quite economical but at the same time as I will be spending more time in the car daily Id like something that is comfy and can still shift a bit, probably 5 door and with a reasonable boot but thats not a deal breaker.

I have literally no experience of buying this type of car nor do I know whats available within budget. Reliability and a few toys would be nice, bit of luxury would be nice, BMW or Audi would be nice but I have no clue as to whether ticking all boxes is possible or unrealistic! Alternatively I could buy something for next to nothing just for the year and review at the end of that time but Id rather have something I enjoy driving from the start.

Suggest away folks!
 
Skoda superb or something, Mondeo maybe. Big and comfy, usually with big enough engines but less outlay required in the short term while you're buying a house. German premium can wait a year until you're fully settled.
 
I don't think you need anything too barge-y for that distance, it's not that far really. I do the same and have just come from a massive wafty barge to a mid size hatch and it's fine. That said if you're after a bit of comfort and spec then you can't go wrong with a mondeo
 
I dont really like the look of the Skoda although I have read they are very good cars. Mondeo would be ok at the higher end of the range.

The "commute" isn't much by normal standards but to add a bit of flesh to the bones I live in a pretty remote area on an island and will be going from staying in the main town to the norther part of the island. In our terms it a HUUUUGEEEE change (lol :D ) whereas in reality I appreciate to most of you guys a half hour journey to work is luxury!!
 
[TW]Fox;29924730 said:
Budget?
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Roughly what I can get from selling the two cars, which I guess is a bit of a moveable feast. Both cars are in good nick and low mileage examples.

Nissan 350Z GT pack 2006 with 60k
Astra Sport 2.0 Turbo 2005 with 40k

Could spend a bit of cash of top if absolutely essential but given my circumstances right now with wedding etc Im trying to keep outlay to a minimum or not at all.
 
Sounds like plenty of cash - say £10k just for a number?

Mondeo would be fine, I would probably spend a couple of grand less on one tbh depending on which engine you're trying to get I to.

If the budget gets you there (and this will depend on what the other two are really worth) and you're happy enough with a focus size of car I'd look at the new shape Leon 1.4 tsi. It looks like £10-11k gets you there, you'll be in a pretty much current generation car and I'm fairly sure the tensioner issues have now been resolved

Edit - new A3 might be doable too which is a pleasant enough car
 
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I've got a new shape Skoda Superb as a company car, it is awesome. I do about 90% motorway and it glides along in comfort.

I highly recommend it, why waste money on a "premium" german brand when you can get extreme value from Skoda?

Is Audi, BMW really premium at the 30k mark? I'm not sure it is, given that you have to add a fair amount of options to beat Skoda
 
TBH even Seat have good interiors these days. My sister has a newish Leon FR and it's as good inside as VWs I've been in. Same engines too.
 
Haha, Im afraid the 350z has to go. Had my fun with it and cost me very little over the years of ownership so I can't complain.

Sounds like there are plenty of options out there but tbh Im not even sure what my two cars are worth! I really created this thread as my first step to gauge and views people have. That Volvo looked quite nice too, Im guessing being a Volvo its pretty bullet proof. Doubt my two cars are close to the £10k mark though.
 
Yeah I said originally that an Audi or BMW would be nice but perhaps i'd be a bit concerned that given my budget I'd be looking at the wrong end of the market for these or at something of an age that would be quite dated. Again Im just not sure though.
 
I'd keep the Astra and sell the Nissan then keep the money for a rainy day or towards another car when the Astra is done. TBH just sell one and keep the other if you like them at the end of the day you could sell both and get a lump of dog poo.
 
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Yeah I said originally that an Audi or BMW would be nice but perhaps i'd be a bit concerned that given my budget I'd be looking at the wrong end of the market for these or at something of an age that would be quite dated. Again Im just not sure though.
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You want cheap, you don't want German.

I have to say my mate really rates Volvo cars. Especially their customer service. :)
 
Doogles said:
I'd keep the Astra and sell the Nissan then keep the money for a rainy day or towards another car when the Astra is done. TBH just sell one and keep the other if you like them at the end of the day you could sell both and get a lump of dog poo.
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I would but my needs have changed. I could do with 5 doors and possibly a bigger boot. The Nissan is not practical in any way for doing that journey and generally being more useful transport. I actually dont find the Astra hugely economical or wildly practical either but obviously it is compared to the Z!

I think I have rainy days covered with other money and thats why I really only want to use the money generated from the sale of the cars rather than putting a lot of cash on top.
 
helpimcrap said:
You want cheap, you don't want German.

I have to say my mate really rates Volvo cars. Especially their customer service. :)
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Yeah I hadn't really considered Volvo until this thread so thats something to think about.

Im in this horrible place where Im going to be downgrading hugely in "fun" terms after the Nissan so I know Im looking at decent cars and thinking "meh" which is unfair. My circumstances have changed so I have to change with them! Would still like something at least a little nippy if possible though.
 
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