Best Smoker Barges - 1 - 5 Large [Vol 3]

[Baryonyx]

mccrackenj said:

Has been for sale for several weeks now, started at £1995 and gradually coming down. The blue interior would really put me off, as would the white exterior if I was being picky. Pity.

This largely what puts me off. The white exterior will look tatty quickly and tend to show their age unless faultlessly cared for. The blue interior is the ugliest place to sit (next to red). Worst of both worlds.

[Patrick Bateman]

jonnydm said:

My LS could be heard if you put your foot down.

Tyre noise doesn't count.

[confused_buyer]

tombar said:

Re the lovely S500 featured recently, how do those old W140's drive? Comparable to a Lexus of the same vintage in terms of refinement etc.? What sort of 'economy' could I expect? I would be tempted to gas it, to make it semi-practical....

W140's drive very well if the suspension isn't too tired. They don't feel like they'll go round corners but they do and can actually be driven with quite indecent haste along a B road if desired. First thing to change as a quick and cheap thing to sharpen a high miler up is the steering damper.

Most I ever saw out of mine was about 26, sub-20mpg if running about.

Probably slightly below Lexus in refinement (despite the double glazing) but a nice place to be.

[confused_buyer]

A lex said:

Ideas thus far:

Saab 9-5 3.0 or 1.9 (2.2 is cack is it not?)
Volvo V70 / XC70 D5 (will struggle a bit with budget)
Volvo V40 2.0D (not really a barge any more :S )
Honda Accord 2.2CDTi
Audi A6 2.5TDI / All road (or even an A4)
530D (again leggy at budget?)
Jeep GC 3.1TD

Question is, am I missing anything obvious and what are ye gods own bargeists opinions?

(Currently leaning toward a 9-5 3.0 with a cheeky map up to 215bhp?)

The 3.0 diesel 9-5 has a lot of issues, personally I'd avoid it. Same goes for the Audi 2.5 - not a lot faster, less reliable and significantly less econmical than the 1.9 TDI 130 (which is they they are cheaper than the 1.9's - no one wants them). V40 is actually a 1.9d and uses the Renault 115bhp lump which is actually quite reliable in the Volvo.

Only ones which will actually give 40mpg regularly are the Saab 1.9, the two Volvos and the Accord. 530d will struggle to do 40mpg on a run as an auto (sub-30mpg around town) but will do more as a manual.

I'd add you will struggle to get a decent diesel estate with under 100k for £3k.

Edited by confused_buyer on Friday 4th May 08:44

[confused_buyer]

A lex said:

Thanks for the info. The 1.9 in the Saabs is the Fiat unit, which always got praise as used in the Alfa 156/159, so ill concentrate my search towards them. Did they make a 150 tune of the 1.9s in the Audi, or is 130 as good as it gets?

Yes, it is the FIAT/GM unit as seen in endless Vauxhall/Opels, FIAT's etc. It is OK when it works but check the dual mass flywheel, when the cambelt was changed and for EGR errors.

A6 only ever had the 130 which is good, it is more reliable than the 150.

[confused_buyer]

Oh, and I suppose if you liked your W140 a W210 E220/E320 CDI Estate should be on your list if you can find one without too many perforations.

[Motorrad]

A lex said:

Thanks for the info. The 1.9 in the Saabs is the Fiat unit, which always got praise as used in the Alfa 156/159, so ill concentrate my search towards them. Did they make a 150 tune of the 1.9s in the Audi, or is 130 as good as it gets?

AFAIK the 1.9 diesel was 130 only in the Audi. You don't want the 150 version anyway as it's less reliable and if you're not averse to a remap they'll both hit similar power levels.

I can see the logic you're using here re the diesel vehicle. I'm considering one as a hack as diesel is so much cheaper on the mainland.

[edo]

A lex said:

OK threadists, advice needed.

Im back in the UK at the start of June and will be using part of my holiday to change barges (oh how the missus was happy to hear that ). The Volvo has to go, mainly due to mileage and MPG but also because im becoming paranoid that the engine is about to st its pants and I want out whilst I still can!

The next barge does, unfortunately, have rather more criteria to meet, but the budget is also increased to about 3k (including whatever I get as a trade-in for the T5, which im hoping is about 1500quid).

Must be:

-Diesel (sob, sob I know - but im currently chucking over €800 a month down the neck of the Volvo, any diesel giving me more than 40mpg combined will halve my monthly bill, especially as the devils own juice is about 40ppl cheaper here in NL.

-Estate

Pref:

-Less than 100k miles
-<10yrs old
-I need a towing hook!

Ideas thus far:

Saab 9-5 3.0 or 1.9 (2.2 is cack is it not?)
Volvo V70 / XC70 D5 (will struggle a bit with budget)
Volvo V40 2.0D (not really a barge any more :S )
Honda Accord 2.2CDTi
Audi A6 2.5TDI / All road (or even an A4)
530D (again leggy at budget?)
Jeep GC 3.1TD

Question is, am I missing anything obvious and what are ye gods own bargeists opinions?

(Currently leaning toward a 9-5 3.0 with a cheeky map up to 215bhp?)

Allroad

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2012...

530d - slightly over your 10 year old requirement but very low miles and 1 owner

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2012...

Accord

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2012...

E Class

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2012...

Passat

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2012...

[hornetrider]

Surely the obvious answer here, if a 530D is being considered, is to go shopping with 3k, pick up a nice 530i and have a 1.5k fuel chest?

[manmaths]The consumption difference isn't massively different.[/manmaths]

Hell - I've seen this one and its very tidy - have a 2.5k chest:



http://www4.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

[nosuchuser]

I looked at an Accord when looking for a replacement for my V70R, found the Accord dull to drive, nasty plastics. Ended up with a 9-5 Aero

[Shaw Tarse]

Have a play on http://beta.pistonheads.com/home/used-cars

[richardxjr]

I've got similar requirements/budget to you A Lex, but would like AWD. I've ruled out troublesome diesels and want to avoid turbos altogether.

Legacy or Outback for me (Waiting for an 04-on in budget) and these do crop up with gas.

[richardxjr]

Having to trade-in is going to restrict you to traders so not so much bargain potential of course.

Still not diesel but do like the look of this though!



http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2012...

[RP1]

Best bet out your list would probably be the V40 (not much of a barge as you say though!) Avoid diesel 9-5's - the 2.2 is utterly gutless and rough, the 3.0 is prone to all sorts of maladies.

V40 offers a decent diesel engine, generally reliable and/or cheap to fix/maintain.
I've just bought an '02 T4 sport and am very impressed with it (ok so its a fair bit quicker than the diesel...)

However... the T4 when driven sensibly with mixed driving will do 35mpg and will crack 40mpg on a run. Though with diesel being cheaper over there its more of a saving than here in the UK.

3k should get you a very nicely kitted out 02/03 example probably with a fair bit of change... (make sure you get a phase2 example from 2001 onwards)

Couple of options:

http://www2.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
http://www2.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Edited by RP1 on Friday 4th May 09:58

[Shaw Tarse]

richardxjr said:

Having to trade-in is going to restrict you to traders so not so much bargain potential of course.

Still not diesel but do like the look of this though!



http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2012...

I liked that, until the dash,

[richardxjr]

Agree, nothing petrol will do what the Ovlov doesn't already do for you.

If it had to be diesel, I'd go for an E39.

[Fox-]

A lex said:

Using my best man maths:

Doing 1500-1600 miles per month in the Volvo at 22mpg average and 1.80per litre (or more for 98RON) = just under €700 per month.

Doing 1500-1600 miles per month in XXXX (Derv) at 40mpg average and 1.40 per litre = around €280 per month.

Doing 1500-1600 miles per month in XXXX (LPG) at 20mpg avrage and 0.80 per litre = around €310 per month.

So a €1500 petrol war chest gets eaten up pretty quickly (<5 months at any rate). Ive got some big summer trips coming up which will increase my mileage significantly over what I already do.

Ive been playing with petrol barges for the last 18months and it really is time to switch to derv.

You won't average 40 with an older 530d. I always found it to be about 7mpg better than my 530i in any given circumstance.

[richardxjr]

Trouble is, big mileage really doesn't work with barge fodder

With a small budget and c.20k mpa I'd plump for something like a 407 1.6HDI.

[confused_buyer]

Fox- said:

You won't average 40 with an older 530d. I always found it to be about 7mpg better than my 530i in any given circumstance.

Would generally agree. The auto does almost exactly 40 (well, the saloon anyway) on a motorway cruise but absolutely no more and significantly less in other driving. The manual, if you can find one, is quite a bit better and whilst it might not average 40 in mixed driving will get very close.

[confused_buyer]

A lex said:

Best rule 530D off the list then. The V40s are a tempting choice, the 53 Sport Lux posted above is a nice car I think.

Sport Lux's are quite nice and drive well (the earlier V40's are awful but the later ones are a whole lot better). They can do 50mpg+ on a run so certain score in the economy stakes.

I think you'll struggle to get £1500 for the T5 - px is more like £800 unless the dealer has a significant margin in whatever you are buying.