Another Spec Me Thread

[Sonea Fifer]

In my defense this is my first spec me thread

My wife is looking to replace her 2014 Ford Focus Titanium X Sport with a budget in the region of 17K. The requirements are:

Newer than 2014.
Diesel - we're covering around 1800 miles per month and looking for 50+ MPG
Manual gearbox.
Just as many toys (heated seats / cameras etc) as the Focus

We are looking at reliability as the main contributing factor and we're aware with a budget such as this there's quite a substantial range to choose from however narrowing it down is proving problematic hence this thread . . . .

 

[Sonea Fifer]

Many thanks for all the replies so far guys

Obvious Trolls are obvious . . . .

Back in the day we did look at BMW M3's as we both liked them. However that was almost 20 years ago and circumstances have changed since then.

We had been looking at the Audi A3 / A4 and the BMW 4 Series but are unsure of the reliability or any known faults with these vehicles. Another Focus is a good shout and I believe the newer ST comes in a diesel variant.

Thank you [TW]Fox as we hadn't considered offerings from Skoda - we will look into these as well.

 

[Sonea Fifer]

Not my intention, amended my post to keep the thread on topic. Sometimes people are not aware of "alternatives" that may seem way out of spec, but could actually be viable.
Either way post updated with an in spec suggestion.

Thank you for the updated edit

Also have a look at:
Volvo V40 D4
Golf 2.0 TDi
E-Class Coupe 220D

Thank you also for the alternative suggestions though I'm thinking a Mercedes within our budget would be a slightly older model with higher mileage. Given the mileage my wife is doing per month I'm guessing this wouldn't be an option.

 

[Sonea Fifer]

maybe a dodge viper? definitely will retain their values even if you're putting moon miles on them..../s

Many years ago (in my youth) I recall sitting at the traffic lights in my 1992 Imported Pulsar GTI-R with a massive Jasma exhaust thinking to myself how fast, loud and cool this was . . .

Then a red 8.0L (?) Dodge Viper drew up alongside me reminding me of my place

It did sound amazing though.

how come you're averse to automatic

I'm not averse to automatics but my wife is! Have you ever tried advising a woman of the most suitable car for her requirments when one of the choices is an auto and she has driven manual all her life!

Many thanks everyone for all the suggestions (even the crazy ones) threads like these remind me why the OcUK forum collective is such a gem for advice and information. I'm thinking we'll narrow down to a few choices before test driving and hopefully purchasing.

Will update when the new purchase has been made

 

[Sonea Fifer]

Yes, as a matter of fact I have.

The result was... a manual gearbox.

And I rest my case . . . . . .