I'm after a new car soon and would appreciate some opinions / advice.
I'm considering an estate for fishing trips or at least a decent sized hatch (only 2 people in the car normally so the back seats can be folded flat).
The obvious choices seem to be Volvo V50, or a Focus / Mondeo. The wild card is I like Audi A4 Avant's. I'm in two minds on whether the last choice would be a good idea as deep down I just want low running costs and the Audi would be 4 - 5 years older within my budget (6k, can go up or down depending on what I decide on really)
I guess first I would like peoples opinions on an 03 - 04 A4, is this a bad choice?
The next question is something that has probably been done to death on here, but all the bigger cars naturally tend to have bigger engines and I don't fancy fuelling a 2 litre petrol Mondeo with fuel prices as they are. Is a Diesel such a bad choice?
Here it is...I will likely only be doing 5000 - 6000 miles per year. I know this is WAY below what people will scream is the amount that makes a Diesel worth while, but my question to anybody willing to answer rather than hate on Diesels, is why not?
Pro's: More MPG, cheaper insurance, cheaper tax.
Cons: Slightly higher fuel costs per litre, slightly higher initial purchase price, higher repair bills if something was to break is something I think I have seen mentioned on here?
I'm looking for genuine advice rather than being flamed. I'm not against petrol engines what so ever it's just if petrol really is the answer I'll probably lean towards a 1.6 petrol Focus and make do with the smaller car!
Thanks
I'm considering an estate for fishing trips or at least a decent sized hatch (only 2 people in the car normally so the back seats can be folded flat).
The obvious choices seem to be Volvo V50, or a Focus / Mondeo. The wild card is I like Audi A4 Avant's. I'm in two minds on whether the last choice would be a good idea as deep down I just want low running costs and the Audi would be 4 - 5 years older within my budget (6k, can go up or down depending on what I decide on really)
I guess first I would like peoples opinions on an 03 - 04 A4, is this a bad choice?
The next question is something that has probably been done to death on here, but all the bigger cars naturally tend to have bigger engines and I don't fancy fuelling a 2 litre petrol Mondeo with fuel prices as they are. Is a Diesel such a bad choice?
Here it is...I will likely only be doing 5000 - 6000 miles per year. I know this is WAY below what people will scream is the amount that makes a Diesel worth while, but my question to anybody willing to answer rather than hate on Diesels, is why not?
Pro's: More MPG, cheaper insurance, cheaper tax.
Cons: Slightly higher fuel costs per litre, slightly higher initial purchase price, higher repair bills if something was to break is something I think I have seen mentioned on here?
I'm looking for genuine advice rather than being flamed. I'm not against petrol engines what so ever it's just if petrol really is the answer I'll probably lean towards a 1.6 petrol Focus and make do with the smaller car!
Thanks