Looking for an Interesting Family Estate Car
Discussion
Hi
My wife and I are expecting our second child in April next year and I have decided that my days of pretending that I don't need an estate car are numbered. After a succession of relatively interesting cars: Mk1 MX-5; Fiat Coupe Turbo; VX220; Alpina Roadster S; and E90 330i - it's time for an estate!
My criteria would be: budget of around £15-17k; ideally around 5 years old or newer; average mileage (40-50k); manual; petrol.
I have considered most of the obvious options: A4 3.2; S4; A6 3.2 or 4.2; (briefly looked at the current) S6; 330i; 335i; 530i - but i am struggling to find any that fit all of the criteria above. Also looked at Passat R36 and Insignia VXR (both out of budget) and Alfa 159 3.2V6 (average performance).
One option that does fit the criteria above (although doesn't have a nice 6 or 8 cylinder engine) is the A4 2.0T (with 217bhp) and the possible addition of some engine remapping to make it more interesting. E.g. http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3220582.htm
So, are there any other options out there that I am missing and if not, what are people's views on the relative merits of the options that I have considered so far?
Grateful for any advice that you can offer.
Cheers,
John
My wife and I are expecting our second child in April next year and I have decided that my days of pretending that I don't need an estate car are numbered. After a succession of relatively interesting cars: Mk1 MX-5; Fiat Coupe Turbo; VX220; Alpina Roadster S; and E90 330i - it's time for an estate!
My criteria would be: budget of around £15-17k; ideally around 5 years old or newer; average mileage (40-50k); manual; petrol.
I have considered most of the obvious options: A4 3.2; S4; A6 3.2 or 4.2; (briefly looked at the current) S6; 330i; 335i; 530i - but i am struggling to find any that fit all of the criteria above. Also looked at Passat R36 and Insignia VXR (both out of budget) and Alfa 159 3.2V6 (average performance).
One option that does fit the criteria above (although doesn't have a nice 6 or 8 cylinder engine) is the A4 2.0T (with 217bhp) and the possible addition of some engine remapping to make it more interesting. E.g. http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3220582.htm
So, are there any other options out there that I am missing and if not, what are people's views on the relative merits of the options that I have considered so far?
Grateful for any advice that you can offer.
Cheers,
John
Lots of interesting options to consider - thanks.
The Legacy is one that I hadn't considered, but it does qualify for £460/yr tax.
I am not absolutely against diesel, just that I don't do that many miles a year (around 10k) and prefer the sound of a nice petrol engine.
Will have a look at all of the suggestions and let you know what I think.
The Legacy is one that I hadn't considered, but it does qualify for £460/yr tax.
I am not absolutely against diesel, just that I don't do that many miles a year (around 10k) and prefer the sound of a nice petrol engine.
Will have a look at all of the suggestions and let you know what I think.
Ok - after looking at many different options, I can't get away from the idea that a Merc C55 AMG Estate might just tick all of the boxes. It would have to be slightly older than 5 years and mileage might be at the upper end of what I would like, but it seems like an awful lot of car for the money. I have seen a few examples of 2005 cars, with about 50k miles for £12-14k.
Anyone have any experiences of the C55 - good or bad?
Anyone have any experiences of the C55 - good or bad?
Apologies for the delay in responding - have been a little busy elsewhere recently!
Many thanks to everyone for all of the interesting and helpful suggestions. After much tooing and frooing, I have finally settled on a new car to replace the 330i.
I have put a deposit down on a 2008 Deep Sea Blue Audi A4 Avant S-Line Quattro with the 3.2 V6 (261bhp) engine and a manual gearbox. Test drive next week and subject to everything being ok, it will be on my drive shortly after.
Granted it's not out there with some of the more special/fast/unusual options, but having tried out a saloon version of the same car locally it will be a worthy replacement for the current car.
Thanks again for all of your inputs.
John
Many thanks to everyone for all of the interesting and helpful suggestions. After much tooing and frooing, I have finally settled on a new car to replace the 330i.
I have put a deposit down on a 2008 Deep Sea Blue Audi A4 Avant S-Line Quattro with the 3.2 V6 (261bhp) engine and a manual gearbox. Test drive next week and subject to everything being ok, it will be on my drive shortly after.
Granted it's not out there with some of the more special/fast/unusual options, but having tried out a saloon version of the same car locally it will be a worthy replacement for the current car.
Thanks again for all of your inputs.
John
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