Car Suggestions - Around £10K

[xs2man]

I am ridiculously boring when it comes to care and fuel economy. I get silly amounts of enjoyment out of eeking great efficiency figures out of cars that probably shouldn't be that efficient.

The idea of 50mpg actual journeys on a £10k petrol hot hatchback is utter fantasy Acme.

Sorry - but it is. Topping 50mpg is something to be pleased with even in performance diesels let alone petrols.

Exactly. I was over the moon when I, not once, but twice, broke 50 mpg in my 530d. Twice. In 45,000 miles. In a diesel.

That said, I was also pleased as punch when I almost 28 mpg on a run in my S4. In fact, so pleased I even took a photo, lol. That is how impressed I was, and how pedantic I can be with these things.



Although, to be fair, I did once have it read over 50 mpg, but that was on the way down the hill from ski-ing...



But even though I do posess the ability to extract good economy out of cars that have no right to do so, I suspect, unless I am returning from another ski-ing trip, I can't imagine my ED30 ever doing 50 mpg. In fact, I can't really imagine it doing 40 mpg in the real world, on a real journey.

 

[Fluke?]

I've had a look at some but they are a bit slow aren't they?

Thanks!

7.5ish seconds 0-60 so got to be considered warm at least?

 

[[TW]Fox]

Exactly. I was over the moon when I, not once, but twice, broke 50 mpg in my 530d. Twice. In 45,000 miles. In a diesel.

Crikey I had it cracked on Day 2 of the LCI when it did 54mpg from Worcester to Cambridge

 

[Akagi]

I got (indicated) 73MPG on my way to work, and 73MPG on my way home today. That makes it 23MPG more boring.

Set to get over 800 miles out of this tank of diesel... Its like a game to me now... 638 miles into the tank, range still says 160 miles. Not sure how much fuel is left when the range reaches 0 but the internet suggests perhaps a couple of litres... Could be a 68MPG average tank this one... Average over the past 9000 miles is 59.6MPG.

 

[Skyboat]

You won't get 50 mpg on that ST-2 on an economy run. Not gonna happen. 45 is possible, definitely, but you'd want to drive it how it was meant to be driven everywhere so that figure will go out the window too

 

[xs2man]

Crikey I had it cracked on Day 2 of the LCI when it did 54mpg from Worcester to Cambridge

You have motorways and stuff down there. I have a lot of single carriageway a and b roads to negotiate before I get near a dual carriageway. If there is even one on my route.

 

[Duke]

I have a Golf MK5 GTI, my brother has a Focus ST of similar age. The best we'd get on the motorway ticking along on the flat would be 32-35MPG, the same as I got in my E46 323i. Maybe if you put skinny 16" tyres on and find a steep downhill section you'd get the unrealistic 50MPG you think you would get normally.

 

[chaparral]

Would also like a high fuel efficiency, maybe around 50mpg. Happy to sacrifice some power if this is possible?

Cheers

FOCUS ST-2 BLACK

Feb 2013

http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/ford/focus-st/ford-focus-c346-st-2-2013/6014324?v=c

But don't think it has any Parking sensors
But X3 previous owners seems very high for a 2013 car

I take this one back as Maybe it not a good idea

As my brand new 2016 focus ST is only giving me 20mpg..
(I was really hoping & expecting to get around 28mpg to 30mpg)

 

[wildest_jjk]

I think it's going to end up being a BMW for sure now. I'm not sure what would be the best for me though with £10K maybe a little bit more. I can see models in 1/3 and 5 series that I can afford but I would like bluetooth sat nav etc...

If the diesels are still quite nippy then I may as well just go with one of those?

Cheers all

 

[adolf hamster]

I think it's going to end up being a BMW for sure now. I'm not sure what would be the best for me though with £10K maybe a little bit more. I can see models in 1/3 and 5 series that I can afford but I would like bluetooth sat nav etc...

If the diesels are still quite nippy then I may as well just go with one of those?

Cheers all

50 mile round trip 3 days a week i'd say 320i/d myself, but then i was doing 44 miles 5 days a week (plus extra for social, that was just commuting). the diesel will be quick though, the petrol sacrifices fuel effeciency for bwaaaap.

with bmw be careful with the year, for the 3 series iirc it was 2011 when they added audio via bluetooth if that's important. you'll want msport trim for all the bells and whistles.

alternately, set aside a bit of cash, get an se and put an aftermarket radio in it (bearing in mind this is slightly trickier than in most cars), this is my plan as msports were well outside my budget.

Someone claimed 20MPG around town from a diesel Fabia, I was calling them out on it being BS. I wasn't trying to compare my car to a petrol hot hatch.

that would have been me, and with short hops, start stop etc that's what it comes out near (this is only the town driving not average), this is the mk1 fabia mind.

open road driving its closer to 60 and averaged between 54-56, but i've hit as high as 74 on a run once (just to see how well it could do)

the point was to emphasise how diesels aren't as economical as you'd think if all you ever do is run about town, on any decent amount of open road cruising the average will jump way up.

 

[xs2man]

you'll want msport trim for all the bells and whistles.

If by all the bells and whistles you mean bumpers, springs and black headlining, then yes. If you mean actual spec, then probably not.

M-Sport doesn't actually give you anything, spec wise, other than above. In fact, if you are looking at coupe's, then the M-Sport often gives you even less over a SE. If it's bits of spec you're wanting, then you have to go looking for it in a BMW.

It is sometimes the case with BMW though, that the original purchaser chooses spec over bodykit, so you can often find SE models with decent spec lists. But if the look of the M-Sport is what you are after, then it is worth holding out for an M-Sport. It is costly to retrofit the M-Sport bits.

As for fitting aftermarket stereos, yes, it won't be as easy as many cars. But have a look at retrofitting or upgrading iDrive. If you dont have the budget for pro nav when you buy the car (it is very much worth having pro nav), then it can be retrofitted, and the costs involved are often comparable to the increased cost in buying one with it already fitted. And you can often just go straight to the CiC iDrive retrofit, which is the newer version, often found in facelifts. In fact, there was a guy on here recently who retrofitted the latest NBT iDrive to their E39, so that may also be an option too. This means you don't HAVE to sacrifice other spec in order to get the right car, so long as you don't mind retrofitting it later.

 

[iaind]

I doubt anyone could complete even a carefully driven journey in any of these cars at 50mpg. It's a nonsense claim.

Heck I can only just manage it in a diesel!

It's a bizarre concept for me anyway. Acme seems to love his MPGz, loves talking about how he can get some ludicrous figure from a revvy Toyota hot hatch. What on earth is the point in driving a car like that if you want to spend your time with it drafting behind lorries at 56mph and changing up at 2000rpm?

For the amount it actually saves, it hardly seems worth it when you're sucking all of the enjoyment out of a car built mainly for enjoyment. 50mpg in some circumstances in a hot hatch is doable I'm sure, but life is too short to save £3 a week but never even have the turbo come onto full boost

 

[[TW]Fox]

with bmw be careful with the year, for the 3 series iirc it was 2011 when they added audio via bluetooth if that's important. you'll want msport trim for all the bells and whistles.

M Sport adds no bells or whistles. It's all cosmetic trim stuff except the suspension.

Most 320ds are devoid of many bells and whistles at all, especially M Sport ones where the previous owner prioritised bling over every other aspect

 

[wildest_jjk]

Just to be clear then guys, I am looking for a BMW with sub 7 second 0-60 which I think will put me at either a 125/325 and above. Please correct me if I am wrong on that.

If I am looking for a good spec and don't really care too much about cosmetics what do I need to look for on autotrader?

Thanks all for the help

 

[xs2man]

It depends on what you value really.

This one here has pro nav and leather, no xenons though, but that mihgt be a bit more difficult to find at this end of the market.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...searchad=new,nearlynew,used&logcode=p&adPos=3

It is a diesel though, but the 3.0L in 325d form, which would be just about right.

Here is a Touring, with business Nav, but less miles.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...searchad=new,nearlynew,used&logcode=p&adPos=2

Or, here is a 325i M-Sport Coupe, so has xenons, but no Nav. Decent miles for warranty purposes too.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...searchad=new,nearlynew,used&logcode=p&adPos=5

Basically, there is ALWAYS going to be a compromise somewhere with this budget. And at this point, I'd probably compromise the pro nav, and get it retrofitted. I'm sure Fox will confirm either way, but I think all the coupes had Xenons? If so, that is something I would be insisting upon personally. I'd much rather retrofit nav than xenons personally, if for no other reason than it lets you put in the latest nav unit. But then it might be a bit more complicated to retrofit all the extra features.

 

[wildest_jjk]

It depends on what you value really.

This one here has pro nav and leather, no xenons though, but that mihgt be a bit more difficult to find at this end of the market.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...searchad=new,nearlynew,used&logcode=p&adPos=3

It is a diesel though, but the 3.0L in 325d form, which would be just about right.

Here is a Touring, with business Nav, but less miles.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...searchad=new,nearlynew,used&logcode=p&adPos=2

Or, here is a 325i M-Sport Coupe, so has xenons, but no Nav. Decent miles for warranty purposes too.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...searchad=new,nearlynew,used&logcode=p&adPos=5

Basically, there is ALWAYS going to be a compromise somewhere with this budget. And at this point, I'd probably compromise the pro nav, and get it retrofitted. I'm sure Fox will confirm either way, but I think all the coupes had Xenons? If so, that is something I would be insisting upon personally. I'd much rather retrofit nav than xenons personally, if for no other reason than it lets you put in the latest nav unit. But then it might be a bit more complicated to retrofit all the extra features.

Thanks, if the nav is retrofitted how much does that cost?

 

[xs2man]

Last time I looked it was around a grand. But if you look for one with pro nav, it'll be at least that extra usually. So it doesn't make much sense to miss out on an otherwise well specced example that's just missing the nav. To me at least.

Best do your own research there though. I have always bought BMW's with pro nav, so never had to retrofit it. So I am unaware of all the ins and outs of the process. But at least if you are retrofitting, you might have the option of going for the NBT rather than CiC (or the much older CCC) iterations.

 

[[TW]Fox]

Just to be clear then guys, I am looking for a BMW with sub 7 second 0-60 which I think will put me at either a 125/325 and above. Please correct me if I am wrong on that.

If I am looking for a good spec and don't really care too much about cosmetics what do I need to look for on autotrader?

Thanks all for the help

A 325i/330i SE would be ideal. They are unloved because they don't have massive rims and a big bodykit so you can get a much newer/better spec version for your money. If you don't care about cosmetics this is the way to go.

 

[wildest_jjk]

Would this be the kind of thing discussed?

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201606185054646

There doesn't seem to be many options though.

 

[[TW]Fox]

Sort of, but the spec on that is crap and Business nav is awful with a tiny screen.

Saloon will be cheaper again than Coupe so is a better choice if you don't care about looks. Though you'll need to find one with optional Xenon's and facelift petrol 6 cylinder saloons are very, very rare.