5k - 8k Sensible with Boot Space!

DampCat

DampCat

DampCat

Soldato
Joined
26 Feb 2007
Posts
14,177
Location
Leafy Cheshire
Alright, I know nowt about cars and being back at Uni had originally meant i was going to avoid gettign another car in the UK. However, the course i'm doing requires dragging a lot of equipment round and working on location which would be infinitely easier with an automobile.

I think i've narrowed down the obvious contenders but wanted to check that im not making a silly choice.

Criteria
£5k to £8k (can stretch a tiny bit if it's totally worth it)
Sensible with Boot Space/Lay down seats.
Insurance needs to be decently sensible for a 27/yo with clean licence.
Preferably 4 door, but a spacious 2 door (focus etc) might work.

I was thinking:
Mondeo (maybe an ST220 if insurance isnt rude)
Audi A4 (05 - 08)
Focus (08-09)
Volvo S40 (08-09)

and maybe a Mitsubishi Lancer? No idea on insurance on these. They're fairly bog standard cars in the UAE but it's probably different here.

What do you reckon? Am i looking in the right areas if i go kick some of these tyres?
 
My Ford Mondeo Estate does a wonderful job of transporting a 3000 watt PA system, mixing desk and several other pieces of gear.
Just a thought.
 
I immediately thought Mondeo Estate too. I'm not 100% sure what kind of 3 Series Touring you'd get for this money, but they might be a possibility. Wait for someone like Fox to clarify though.
 
peterattheboro said:
Do you actually want a car with around 200bhp?
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Just got a quote online for insurance on a 2007 3.0 V6 ST220 Estate, less than £550 for the year. I dont think that's completely unreasonable to be honest. So i suppose if i can get a 200bhp car with a bit of fun in it for a reasonable upkeep then, meh why not?
 
The Mondeo Estate was one of my first thoughts. I think i'd take a regular 4 door saloon over an estate if i could.. but i'm not completely opposed to the estate at all. The space would certainly be enough, anyway.

Good shout on the Octavia VRS. What's maintenence like on them? The boon with the Modeos, of course, is that parts are relatively modest in price.
 
DampCat said:
Just got a quote online for insurance on a 2007 3.0 V6 ST220 Estate, less than £550 for the year. I dont think that's completely unreasonable to be honest. So i suppose if i can get a 200bhp car with a bit of fun in it for a reasonable upkeep then, meh why not?
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You really want a pre March 2006 registered ST220 because the tax will be over £400 a year on the 2007 model unfortunately due to the band G coming into effect for high emmission cars from March 2006 onwards. Mine is a 2005 and tax is £260ish a year.
 
R220 said:
You really want a pre March 2006 registered ST220 because the tax will be over £400 a year on the 2007 model unfortunately due to the band G coming into effect for high emmission cars from March 2006 onwards. Mine is a 2005 and tax is £260ish a year.
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Holy ****, awesome advice, I hadnt even considered the new tax bands!
 
DampCat said:
That seems like an awful lot of car for the money. What should i be looking out for?
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There isn't really anything commonly wrong with them. With that one being a diesel, check for excessive vibration on idle (can be caused by dying injectors, or injectors that have melted their seals). Check for rust at the bottom of the rear doors too, as the rear door seals are particularly bad at letting road grime into the gap, so any slight stone chip will get eaten alive down there.

Other than that, just anything you'd check on any car, make sure all the electronics work (there are a lot of them).
 
paradigm said:
A6 Estate, http://pistonheads.com/sales/3690083.htm
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Yea, a 2.0 TDI 4 pot, a fantastic alternative to the Mondeo ST220.

I expect more from you than blind recommendations of whatever you have just because you have it :(

You'd be all over anyone else suggesting a 2.0 TDI in a thread with a 3.0 V6 on the shortlist.

There isn't really anything commonly wrong with them
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Thats not quite true with the 2.0 TDI is it? There are quite big issues with the injectors and doesn't it have a DPF, too?
 
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To be fair, his shortlist is mundane, with the ST220 put in with a caveat of it being "an outside possibility". Also, where do I own a 2.0TDI?

I was going to put up a similarly priced and mileage 3.2 FSI, but thought better of it, afterall, he's at Uni at the end of the day. However now that it's been brought up, the 3.2 V6 A6 Avant is available for the same price-range and has a glorious engine note :)
 
Hard to see by either the Octy Vrs for a reasonable amount of shove, reasonable economy decent space and reliability or an ST220 estate for a reasonable amount of shove and reliability coupled with a cavernous rear and great noise.

Buying the boggo petrol version of either would see you into a very new car too if that's a bonus to you.
 
Could he not get the 2.0T engine in the audi avant? Which is what you have paradigm...or so I thought. :p

When OP says Mondeo ST220, does he mean the diesel version - or am I thinking of a different car?
 
What's your predicted mileage DampCat? You should expect a considerably worse mpg figure from the ST220 vs the other cars on your list assuming they have "sensible" engines.

Your budget should fetch you a nice example of an ST220 though (if you can find one).
 
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