Best big and specced for £1500

Teledude · 16 Jan 2006 at 00:47

Needs to be comfy for 4 people with plenty of luggage space
cruise at 100 nicely (I do a lot of driving to and from amsterdam)

and just generally not a rust bag for the money...

Not "really" after a mondeo... something more like an old 5 series? Or will they be pants for the money?

[TW]Fox · 16 Jan 2006 at 00:50

Teledude said:
Needs to be comfy for 4 people with plenty of luggage space
cruise at 100 nicely (I do a lot of driving to and from amsterdam)
and just generally not a rust bag for the money...

Hmmm, you'd get a nice, newish Mondeo for that money with all the comfort you need - cruise, leather, AC, the works. Reliable as well.

Not "really" after a mondeo...

Errr, oh. Damn.

something more like an old 5 series? Or will they be pants for the money?

You could buy a 15 year old BMW I suppose, but don't forget, its still going to cost the same to run, if not more due to replacing worn out parts, as it did when it was considerably more expensive.

Adz · 16 Jan 2006 at 00:52

3.0l Omega Elite

Big, comfy, fast once it's moving, incredibly well specced, cheap and not a Mondeo as specified.

Teledude · 16 Jan 2006 at 00:53

Anything other than a mondeo similar value though? Vectra? 406? V40? Passat? etc?

Or am I just going round in circles because I cant find a nice ghia x within 5 miles

[TW]Fox · 16 Jan 2006 at 00:54

Vectra is horrible, 406 is pretty good actually - great diesel engines, reasonably reliable but can be plagued with niggly faults.

Get a good Omega and they are fantastic cruisers - better than the Mondeo. Problem is that finding a good Omega is hard - most of them are hugely unreliable, cost a fortune to fix, and interestingly is, or at least was, the most broken down car found on German Autobahns. Ooops.

Teledude · 16 Jan 2006 at 01:01

top of the mondy list

http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/WW...urce=0&photo=1&sort=3&ukcarsearch_full=SEARCH

or top of the ommy list

http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/WW...urce=0&photo=1&sort=3&ukcarsearch_full=SEARCH

Both look well specced and generally sound but obviously can't tell without a viewing...

I presume there both similar with insurance, fuel etc?

Adz · 16 Jan 2006 at 01:04

My Omega was an awesome cruiser - you could flick the cruise on at 120 and it would just waft you along in absolute comfort. Dual zone climate control, heated leather, auto dimming mirror...

Horrific in the bends though - possibly due in part to the P6000s but the amount of understeer was ridiculous. Quite literally zero steering feedback either, far too much assistance. Not a drivers car.

My old omega: http://www.ocuk-motors.co.uk/gallery2/main.php?g2_view=core.ShowItem&g2_itemId=236

Fuel consumption....sub 20mpg around town, 30 on a run if you can stick to 80mph. That's for the auto - manuals are rare. Insurance surprisingly cheap for the group.

Edit: Just to clarify, Omega 3.0 vs Mondeo 2.5 Manual, I'd take the Mondeo

.

Teledude · 16 Jan 2006 at 01:04

Im fed up of spending out £100+ a month keeping my A4 roadworthy and drivable hence asking btw

*hopes he can flog it for £1500*

[TW]Fox · 16 Jan 2006 at 01:04

Omega is more expensive in terms of fuel but only just. I wouldn't be happy with a cheap Omega, I'd want an excellent one and not one with 'a huge stack of history' ie long list of repair bills becuase its obviously one of the many duds

Just a nice, well looked after one with a decent service history rather than a huge wadge of bills for various repairs..

Personally, this would be top of my list to view:

http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/WW...category=CARS&channel=CARS&id=200601220567560

Looks like a Ghia not a Ghia X though.

Teledude · 16 Jan 2006 at 01:12

Im leaning towards the Omega but have no idea why.... But there seems to be a lack of nice ones! Mondeos are in abundance nationwide! Need to drive both methinks...

Teledude · 16 Jan 2006 at 01:14

Adz said:
Edit: Just to clarify, Omega 3.0 vs Mondeo 2.5 Manual, I'd take the Mondeo .

Why?

Im after a cruiser more than a "drivers" car tbh - the more PAS the better imo

Adz · 16 Jan 2006 at 01:20

Teledude said:
Why?

Im after a cruiser more than a "drivers" car tbh - the more PAS the better imo

Better to drive, probably more reliable, certainly cheaper parts - only real downside is lack of space and perhaps stability at very high speeds. Definitely drive both though - a lot of people adore Omegas. It's a *lot* of car for very little money.

Teledude · 16 Jan 2006 at 01:24

Is there anything that could cause a £1500 omega to kill itself if not looked after/changed?

You guys got any basic performance stats for the mondy and the omega?

I dont like struggling to keep up with superminis from the lights but am def. not a boy racer

Adz · 16 Jan 2006 at 01:26

Head gasket is a problem on the 3.0l Omega, then there's the auto gearbox... both would be pretty much terminal unless you're a mechanic. The way I look at cars for this kind of money is whether or not I can afford to lose the purchase price of the car. If you can and something serious happens, you can just flog it on eBay for whatever you can get and buy another

.

I think the official 0-60 for the 3.0l Auto Omega is about 9 seconds but that's due to the auto gearbox, it's a lot quicker once it's moving. I did have some acceleration vids somewhere, I'll try to dig them out tomorrow.

V6 manual Mondeo is sub 8 seconds to 60 if you can drive

.

Edit: 210bhp for the Omega, 170bhp or thereabouts for the Mondeo but the Mondeo is appr. 300kg lighter.

Teledude · 16 Jan 2006 at 01:32

The question is will some numpty pay £1500 ish for a 95 A4 that Ive spent £600+ on?

New brakes, tyres, PAS leak fix are the major fixes...

Or am I going to be counting sheep?!

Adz · 16 Jan 2006 at 01:35

Depends on condition, mileage and spec but taking a quick look at AT, £1500 sounds quite reasonable

.

Don't be under any illusions though, if you want a big V6 saloon for this kind of money, you have to be able to treat it as a throw-away car or have the money or skills to fix it should something expensive go wrong. If you want cheap motoring, you want a 4 cylinder.

[TW]Fox · 16 Jan 2006 at 01:35

Ah, so you've first hand experience on why old prestige cars for 1500 quid are bad ideas

Teledude · 16 Jan 2006 at 01:38

I don't mind spending money but having been reading this forum far to much, it does appear I could get so much more for my money

jpmonkey69 · 16 Jan 2006 at 10:29

Teledude said:
Needs to be comfy for 4 people with plenty of luggage space
cruise at 100 nicely (I do a lot of driving to and from amsterdam)
and just generally not a rust bag for the money...

Not "really" after a mondeo... something more like an old 5 series? Or will they be pants for the money?

Rover 620Ti / 623Gsi / 820Vit / 827 for the win!

djbenjo · 16 Jan 2006 at 15:35

Or even a Vitesse