ST220 or alternatives + Questions : )

[Peter450]

What are the running costs like on these compared to a standard 2 litre mondeo, clearly fuel is going to be more, but what about other stuff like servicing and insurance ?

As far as tax goes what year does the higher tax band kick in ?

Any other helpful tips re these cars ?? i seen them from between 3 and 4.5k for very tidy looking ones and am tempted i need something more practical than my current car but i dont want to go too sensible and the thought of a 3 litre v6 is tempting

Any alternatives to consider, i like the look of the 159, and that also has a v6... but 4 wheel drive and just a image of great complexity and expense is putting me off, i dont mind the fuel costs so much, or the tax but i want something reliable and something that is not going to have very expensive bits go wrong that then cost XXX to fix, hence why i think the ST220 ticks a lot of boxes

 

[Peter450]

I had not thought about a MPS Mazda, they are 4 wheel drive right ?? around 250 hp hmm

Ok so i done a quick tax check (thanks for link) it's gonna be around 280, so another 50 from what i'm paying now no biggie

Fuel i dont do a lot of miles so can handle spending a bit more on petrol

I seen the TDCI Mondeos and they look good, similar to the ST220, but for my miles sub 6k a year the extra complexity of an oil burner makes no sense

I guess the thing drawing me to the ST220 is the v6 engine under the hood, same with the 159, the MPS looks good but it's either 4 or 5 cylinders and if i'm going to put up with high fuel costs i'd rather get a v6 soundtrack to go with it

The Jag X type is another option, but i'm put off by the reliability issues, and i get the sense that i'm going to be paying jag prices for what is essentially a 4 wheel drive ST220 if i get the 3 litre sport version, and although 4 wheel drive is nice, i'm not sure if it's going to be be needed in a car with under 250 hp

 

[Peter450]

Yes thats whats putting me off the MPS, it looks good, and it's a bit faster, but more money, and no v6.... which is what i'm hankering for

No ones mentioned the Alfa 159 3.2 yet, whats the opinions on these, they look absolutely fantastic i must admit, the prettiest saloon car i have seen in a long long time, the interiors also look great

What i'm not so sure about is if there worth the extra 2 or 3 k over a nice ST 220 and if there going to throw up unexpected big bills

With the mondeo everything looks like it's going to be straightforward as it were, the v6 thirst aside looks a solid unit and the rest of the car is mondeo so i feel running costs petrol aside should not throw up to many surprises, the alfa on the other hand is a bit of an unknown quantity to me, anyone got any experience of these ???

 

[Peter450]

If you're interested in the ST220 because of the V6 sound you may be a little disappointed. It's so quiet, you can barely hear it inside the cabin. Quite a few owners (myself included) add aftermarket exhausts to make the experience a bit louder/sportier but it's still pretty tame.

While I don't expect it to sound like a v8 I will be disappointed if it sounds similar to a 2 litre one

What about an Audi A4 2.0T Special Edition

I like audis but I'd like a multi-cylinder power plant and as good and tuneable as that engine is it's 2 cylinders short of what I'm after

What about the 3.2 Alfa 159? These seem a fair bit more expensive and are a few years newer but how does it compare to an ST220 in terms of performance, fuel economy, tyres standard equipment?

I really like the look of the 159, performance looks to be about the same and it's a real looker, my only worry with one of these is it's a bit of an unknown quantity

Ive also thought about a 3 series as the 3 litre inline 6 looks a great engine, but I'm not really sure if I can get a good one without spending over 5k were as that would be more than enough for a nice 159 3.2 or ST220

 

[Peter450]

X Type Jags are nice cars, and my bro-in-law very nearly bought one last month.

What put him off was the worry of a dodgy transfer box and the fact that all of the cars we looked at had rather a lot of rust on the underside of the sills, and not just surface rust. I'd hate to see the state of the sills under the skirts. This was when we looked at cars up to 2004. Not sure whether later cars are the same.

6 cyl X Types have a cracking engine/exhaust note.

On paper the 3 litre sport seems a winning combination, ST220 engine, 4 wheel drive and a nicer interior.

But there seems so much negativity around the car, while the mondeo is widely regarded as being a good steer, I guess my worry with the jag is I'm going to get jag running costs, not ford ones even though the cars are very similar and I actually prefer the styling on the ST220

At the moment I'm kinda 70% in ST220, it looks a good car for what I want which is something practical but with a sporty spin to it

However I do really like the 159 as well but not really sure on it, on paper it looks great and the styling/interior is great + mag reviews are generally positive too. My issue with it is for such a lovely styled car why are there not more owners on here ? There seem plenty of owners of other sporty cars including the ST220 yet so far my questions re the 159 have been met with a tumbleweed blowing by....

Which has me worrying the 159 might have a similar issues to the x type, I,e reputation for poor reliability and build quality but premium car running costs, it's just so damn pretty though......and if it had the old style Alfa v6 I might just take the risk but its got a gm unit.......

Don't get me wrong I have nothing against it, looks a good engine on paper but having said that I don't want Italian car style bother if I'm not getting a fabulous Italian style engine....hence why I,m curious if anyone here has any experience of the 159 and if it,s bucked the Alfa reputation for poor build and reliability, it looks well engineered but I'd like some owner feedback if possible and if I go to an Alfa forum there'll just tell me it's fabulous

 

[Peter450]

Hmm

 

[Peter450]

The old 159 3.2 (GTA) is an awesome car, a drivers car. The newish one isn't.

I just had a look at some 156,s they look good, I must admit I completely overlooked them, love the old style chromed v6 but they are commanding pretty hearty prices 6k + for really nice ones not sure if the premium is worth it over a ST220 and the new shape 159 might not be as good a drive but it's much newer and can be had for similar prices this is turning into a much harder choice than I thought

E39 530i?

I'm trying to avoid anything older than 10 years, it's not set in stone but if I took an older car I'd be more inclined to go for a ford over a executive 5 series BMW with lots of expensive gadgets just waiting to go wrong

 

[Peter450]

They never did a 159 GTA. You are thinking of the 156...

I know it's such a shame this never happened, I remember reading rumours of a v8....that would have been something

 

[Peter450]

Given the marque, quality of the cars in question and my 2 year ownership of a Ford I would guess that the Mondeo would go wrong more often than the BMW would.

I've no doubt the BMW is the higher quality car it cost a lot more when new. But it will be older and when stuff goes wrong it will likely cost a lot more to put right things like suspension etc will likely be a lot nearer needing replacement in the BMW.

Both cars are nice with 6 cylinders and a decent power output, but the ford is newer with lower parts costs etc, the car is being kept outside and I would be surprised if the BMW worked out cheaper over 3 years