What car - advice needed please

[gv1.3]

Hi,

The GF has a celica and I have an MR2 and now that we are going to get a couple of dogs we were thinking of getting rid of one of them (Celica muhahaha) and getting something that can carry stuff and is comfortable for doing mileage as it wil have to cover 100+ miles per day potentially.

I am probably going to go for a diesel estate but was wondering if anyone had any advice or input to share on what would be a decent machine to consider?

So far I have been eye balling 520D BMW estates and Audi A6 estates but Audis seem to get very bad scores for reliability and I want something that is going to run with minimal issues.

I havent decided on a price range so far but it will be somewhere between E13,000 and E35,000. I have seen 2008 5 series BMW's for E10,000 but with high mileage. Also considering a range rover or BMW X5... any of these cars particularly reliable?? Thats my biggest area of concern.

When diesel engines get to 100+ thousand is there any significant maintenance that will need to be carried out on them.

Also I was considering an automatic box, do these have a typical lifespan before they start giving up?

I have never owned anything newish and am used to maintaining my own cars. I had new diesel cars before but they were company cars so I didnt have to worry about them. Would I be able to work on a 5 series engine for example or are they a nightmare that you need specific electronics to diagnose faults and turn off fault lights etc?

Thanks for any info you have.

 

[corofin12345]

caldina? not new but a fine car and best of both worlds.. anything new will cause headaches and big bills when something goes wrong, and it normally does these days

 

[Texx]

Toyota Avensis 2.0ltr Diesel (the 2.2ltr goes well but is rather thirsty), personally I wouldn't be looking at anything else.

 

[gv1.3]

Dont think the Caldina would be an option, I think it would be heavy on juice, the MR2 is extremely thirsty.

I had a 2LTR Diesel D4D avensis before and it was a great car but it wasnt the most comfortable machine in the world. It was very basic inside and didnt even have an armrest. Is there a specific model that has a decent spec list?

Thanks for feedback.

 

[Texx]

IIRC top spec is the T-Spirit and a auto transmission is only an option for the 2.2 diesel. I don't think any Avensis comes with a raised centre arm rest, though there may be a dealer or aftermarket solution that would tick that box. A good friend of mine has an Auris SR180 with the 2.2 diesel engine, for a diesel it really doesn't hang about but it's also seriously crap on fuel at around 36-38mpg, the 2.0 diesel is supposed to be much better at around 50-55mpg (plus road tax in the UK is £30 a year).

The only other option I would suggest is a Mazda 6 Sport, though I don't think an auto transmission is an option with the 2.2 diesel engine.

 

[triple j]

me and the woman just got our second diesel audi its a a4 b6 1.9 tdi, with the bmw and audi u are going to have things like sensors going stupid things like that, i think the are good cars more the audi as long as u keep on top of things,

 

[laskt9]

Do not get a ranger rover. They are junk. At least here in the states. I would be they're not any better there

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I927 using Tapatalk 2

 

[WallaceGlanza]

I've got an E46 330d saloon - brilliant car, so good my mate's going to look at a 330d tourer tonight.

Cracking engine, very smooth and torquey and even sounds good (6 cylinder). If you do consider a beemer the 30d is much better than the 20d barely any less efficient (my average over probably 3k miles is 48.1mpg on back roads and dual carriageway) and pulls much nicer without sounding stressed in the slightest.

Beemer's are great cars for the relaxed driving and the more spirited when the urge comes!

Mine is just over the 100k now (I've done 11k since I bought it 6 months ago) and had no problems, I did a couple of "preventative" maintenance things - swirl flap removal, oil separator change and egr bypass. I needed to change the driveshaft flexible coupling as it was getting worn - but that was more down to my driving!

I was concerned it may not be easy to work on but it is.

 

[yaristurbo]

Vw diesel estate, best buy of my life so far

 

[SupaStu]

My Bro just bought an Audi A4 Avant estate 2.0 Turbo (petrol), nice wagon. Remember when you put wet/dirty dogs in the back, how much cleaned, how concerned you will be with new car cleanliness!

What about a pickup, like nissan pathfinder or navara? not sure on reliability though. Land Cruiser is always good as well.

 

[gv1.3]

interesting input from everyone, thanks very much.

Not really precious about my car getting dirty Stu so that wouldnt bother me much. Dont mention Nissan Navara!!! ahhhhh my brother had one and it ate three engines, they are heaps of shite. The timing chain is a known issue which Nissan wont acknowledge but which has killed many a Navara.

Thanks for the info Wallace - I really like the drive and comfort of a BMW but fear the costs of fixing one if it goes horribly wrong.

 

[starletsy]

I've got a new VW Passat as a company car it's not an auto but it goes pretty well only the 2l but is doing 55 to the gallon on avarage. It's done 25K in under a year and i've not had any bother yet. Depends on how much of a badge snob you are but there is always an Octavia VRS?

 

[sx_turbo]

dont be scared about costs of repairs,

with the way technology is today, sensors on bmw's and mercs audi's etc cost as little as for a ford focus,

some garages charge more for the servicing because of "prestige" but its really not that much these days, part of the reason is that bmw sells more 3 series than ford do mundanos.

audi's and vw's skoda's seats etc all share the same tech and sensors and mechanical items.

my knowledge is from working in a motor factors dealing with the trade,

 

[cameroon95]

What about a honda accord 2.2 cdti sport? Sure it aint the bling that a BMW has but im sure it would be much more reliable?

Im looking at getting one next year after I sell my DC5 in order to save some cash for a bit.

 

[Gryzor]

I'd go looking at an automatic jeep .. Landcruiser, M-class , X5 . Something that has room for a couple of dogs and enough to pull a trailer for the odd track day

 

[www.glanza.co.uk]

What about an Alfa Romeo 159 Ti Sportwagon? Great looking, comfy cruiser, and with a ECU remap, they fly whilst being frugal where necessary. Don't know what the rear space is like as have never looked, but should be OK unless you've got Great Danes...

 

[malcolmgt]

mates mum had a bmw 318d estate, was plenty tourque and lots of room even with the dog in the boot.

what happened to your glanza? nice to see you back online Dylan

 

[WallaceGlanza]

interesting input from everyone, thanks very much.

Not really precious about my car getting dirty Stu so that wouldnt bother me much. Dont mention Nissan Navara!!! ahhhhh my brother had one and it ate three engines, they are heaps of shite. The timing chain is a known issue which Nissan wont acknowledge but which has killed many a Navara.

Thanks for the info Wallace - I really like the drive and comfort of a BMW but fear the costs of fixing one if it goes horribly wrong.

I was actually very surprised at how cheap - and readily available parts are, especially the wear and tear items. For instance I'm about to do my brakes (the discs have never been changed after 100k of driving and the front pads just once) for the whole lot; front discs and pads, rear discs, pads and handbrake shoes it's £240! That's pagid parts too so not cheap shit.

The only expensive things are the big parts ie turbo £1k (for the later 330d it's an electronic controlled variable vane one and can't be rebuilt) and clutch £800 (dual mass flywheel needs changed at the same time). But otherwise I was pleasantly surprised at the parts. My mate bought that touring I looked at with him, 156k miles and still pulls like a freight train.

Oh and with a remap the later 330d does 50mpg whilst putting out 250bhp and 380 ft lb/500Nm......

 

[GT-TD04]

Cousin of mine got a 05 320D (new model) a while ago and I have to say I was very impressed with it. Its 177bhp (factory figures) and use an m-sport auto gear box. Now I'm not sure if the gearbox is any different but the brother was in it and he reckons its a nice cruiser with plenty of power and torque and loads of comfort. He's had it about 8 months now and nothing has gone wrong with it.

The thing about high mileage diesel's is while the engine is good for a couple of hundred thousand miles the parts around it (altenator,water pump,oil pump etc) start to wear down and need to be replaced

 

[maj]

ive got a nissan x trail which is amazing for dogs as the back of the car is hard plastic so you can just wipe it down and it comes up new