Another 'spec me a new car' thread...

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Soldato
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No longer riding an Italian
Righty...

Having decided not to spend a large amount (to me) on a car, following the death of my Golf GT, I purchased a diesel Saab 9-3 (55 reg) for 2.7K in November.

Roll forward these past 5+ months, and it's been an eventful ride with this car - promises of it being serviced by the dealer, then not, an electronic steering lock that wouldn't release - resulting in a recovery and a 'fix' from the dealer (disconnecting the battery and supposedly "updating the software"); and now a nice big error about stability control failure!

So I've decided to be rid of the Saab, and will spend a bit more to get something nicer - so it'll soon be car shopping time!

Firstly, my commute is halved now - ~30 miles a day, so a petrol motor is just as welcome as a diesel; the latter still in my mind as me and the wife often drive somewhere nice over the weekend - so good MPG for those trips would be nice (though not essential).

Budget is 6-7k - hoping to get at least £1,800 for the Saab on trade in (104k miles, 1.9 Tid Sport).

I've mentally shortlisted a few cars within the 05-10 reg: a 200 bhp Clio (think that was 07-08 reg), Octavia VRS (06-08), Civic Type R (shape after the bread van one), BMW 325 E90, BMW 330 E90, Citroen DS3 (150bhp), Seat Leon FR, Seat Ibiza FR...

Basically, the doors are flung open, and I need to pick a few to focus on - so wondered if anyone had some ideas on anything else to look for/avoid - or experience of the ones I have listed?

Thanks for any advice :)
 
What are you actually after? You've got a mix of hot hatches, bog standard hatches and premium saloons/coupes. Your Saab is certainly a better car than that Citroen!
 
iaind said:
What are you actually after? You've got a mix of hot hatches, bog standard hatches and premium saloons/coupes. Your Saab is certainly a better car than that Citroen!
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That's just it, I'm not sure - hoping that hearing people's experiences may help shape my choices.

I had an E46 320Cd before my Golf GT - really enjoyed the rear wheel drive, the looks etc, but found it a tad dull to drive after commuting in it for 3 months...

A 3 litre 6 cylinder BMW is certainly something I've considered, but looked at the others, as alternatives. Saloon, hatches, estates... All would be considered.
 
iaind said:
What are you actually after? You've got a mix of hot hatches, bog standard hatches and premium saloons/coupes. Your Saab is certainly a better car than that Citroen!
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Why, because it's a Citroen (now DS)? Or because that particular engine (THP) is made of chocolate?
 
I had an octavia vRS mk2 for 2 years. At 78k I sold it on. I'd taken it to a specialist after a lot of problems. They identified that it needed a full engine rebuild and a new ECU at just 78k. They also told me they'd had many cars in with the same engine from audi/vw/seat etc with similar issues to mine and told me to get rid of it asap.

Mine dropped from max oil to min oil over every tank of fuel and towards the end got extremely hard to get moving because the car would just shut off unless I gave it a hell of a lot of revs to get it moving. It would also shut off several times even on the shortest journeys at the end, when moving. Even though I enjoyed the way it drove (when it worked) and it was good on fuel, it was by far the worst car for reliability I've ever had. Although I'm sure someone (possibly iand ;) ) will come to defend its credibility in a moment, there were threads on briskoda with fairly similar problems to mine as well as the other VAG group forums. I'd steer clear of that engine because although you can get a good one, you also have more of a chance of ending up with a horror story than most cars. The only way I managed to sell mine was because I traded it in and they didn't try to start the car when valuing it.

The same TFSI engine is used in the leon FR you're considering.

Personally I'd go with a civic out of those on your list. Reliable, high revving and still quite a modern looking car, even now.
 
Do you have particular requirements for getting stuff lugged about? Do you cycle for example or have any kids?

What about how much you can spare for maintenance and general running costs?

Is using the 6k for a deposit on something an option?

Must admit that if you put your cash in my hand I know where I'd go out of the options you've suggested (3 series) however having owned two they have their practicality limitations and can throw some expensive fits. Though any car can!
 
Scort said:
Basically, the doors are flung open, and I need to pick a few to focus on
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Typical Motors response already included in your question :D

On a serious note though - Mk2.5 Focus ST is in budget, as are either ST220 or 2.0 Ecoboost Mondeos.
 
mccarf said:
I had an octavia vRS mk2 for 2 years. At 78k I sold it on. I'd taken it to a specialist after a lot of problems. They identified that it needed a full engine rebuild and a new ECU at just 78k. They also told me they'd had many cars in with the same engine from audi/vw/seat etc with similar issues to mine and told me to get rid of it asap.

Mine dropped from max oil to min oil over every tank of fuel and towards the end got extremely hard to get moving because the car would just shut off unless I gave it a hell of a lot of revs to get it moving. It would also shut off several times even on the shortest journeys at the end, when moving. Even though I enjoyed the way it drove (when it worked) and it was good on fuel, it was by far the worst car for reliability I've ever had. Although I'm sure someone (possibly iand ;) ) will come to defend its credibility in a moment, there were threads on briskoda with fairly similar problems to mine as well as the other VAG group forums. I'd steer clear of that engine because although you can get a good one, you also have more of a chance of ending up with a horror story than most cars. The only way I managed to sell mine was because I traded it in and they didn't try to start the car when valuing it.

The same TFSI engine is used in the leon FR you're considering.

Personally I'd go with a civic out of those on your list. Reliable, high revving and still quite a modern looking car, even now.
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Spooky indeed!

I wont irrationally defend it to the hills, but I did have a good one and lots of other people do too. I'd personally take the risk so that to avoid high revving vtec stuff, but it depends on your priorities
 
If you got put of the saab by a few electrical niggles i would discount the Clio straight away.

Likewise if you had trouble servicing and fixing a couple of faults the e90 probably isnt the best idea either as they do need to be looked after.
 
TBH, there's probably nothing on that list thats inherently more reliable than the car he has. They all have potential for issues
 
I had a DS3 THP for a few years. It was just OK, nothing special at all. As already said they seem to have serious issues with the THP engine. There is lots of threads on the owners club with people needing new engines after only a year or so.

Mine was fine mechanically, a few faulty sensors but that was about it.
 
Thanks for the replies folks - liking the look of the Type R FN2, will also bear in mind the comments above when looking at other possibilities.
 
For 6-7k you'd get a Leon with the newer 2L TSI engine rather than the TFSI. Same as the difference between the mk5 gti and mk6.
God knows if the TSI is supposed to be any more reliable though. :confused:
 
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