SUV buyer advice needed
Discussion
Hi,
First post here and an attempt to get some advice regarding my next car. I'm only 23 but have a serious weakness for luxury SUV's, so much so that I've decided to buy one with my hard earned dosh. I know there are going to be numerous arguments against me buying such a vehicle (fuel consumption, size, image etc) but there isn't going to be anything to dissuade me from the type of car I want
I've got a budget of around £15k at the very max...anything under is a strong bonus but the cars I've been looking at all seem to scratch that figure. Currently I've narrowed it down to a few options but happy to listen to suggestions/advice. These are my thoughts so far, in no particular order:
E53 X5: By far the cheapest to buy but design abit dated. Insurance is £1300 though which nearly rules it out (nearly twice the price of alot of my choices here).
E70 X5: The best all rounder but also the most expensive...the cars in my budget are sometimes lacking heated seats or navigation which I really want.
Q7: Has a strong appeal but again is at the top end of my budget. I know they have a reputation for munching tyres too (as well as other high running costs).
XC90: A nice car and great value, but abit too pedestrian in terms of image for a 23 yo (superficial but true).
ML280: Probably the most 'sensible' car in terms of budget and running costs. My friend has an R Class so I have sat in a similar car a few times, but again worried about it lacking that extra something like some of the other choices here.
GL320: I know it's almost identical to the ML but the styling and rarity gives it a healthy dose of appeal, although it is just out of budget.
RRS: The Sport has a strong appeal despite the numerous faults I have read about; I'd want a HSE model and the early (2005/6) cars come into my budget but I'd be pretty worried about reliability costs! Would have to be a TDV6 too.
Disco 3: As much as I appreciate that the Disco is a great car I'm not keen; sat in one once and it just seemed far too plasticky inside. Also my neighbour has a Disco 4 that I've seen towed far too many times!
FFRR: My dream car (bar a G Wagen), TD6s are easily within my budget but I could just stretch to a TDV8. Am just worried that it will destroy my wallet (well more than the others here will).
All of these cars will have relatively high mileages, ranging from mid 80's up to around 110k on the FFRR TDV8's. I'm aware this is abit more risky but modern cars are more than capable of doing double that. My own mileage is currently around 6k a year (a mix of town and A Roads mostly) so I won't be piling on the miles.
Anyway sorry for the mini essay, any feedback is much appreciated and I will endeavor to answer any questions/respond (although as a new member I'm not sure how many replies I can post to begin with)
Thanks in advance!
First post here and an attempt to get some advice regarding my next car. I'm only 23 but have a serious weakness for luxury SUV's, so much so that I've decided to buy one with my hard earned dosh. I know there are going to be numerous arguments against me buying such a vehicle (fuel consumption, size, image etc) but there isn't going to be anything to dissuade me from the type of car I want
I've got a budget of around £15k at the very max...anything under is a strong bonus but the cars I've been looking at all seem to scratch that figure. Currently I've narrowed it down to a few options but happy to listen to suggestions/advice. These are my thoughts so far, in no particular order:
E53 X5: By far the cheapest to buy but design abit dated. Insurance is £1300 though which nearly rules it out (nearly twice the price of alot of my choices here).
E70 X5: The best all rounder but also the most expensive...the cars in my budget are sometimes lacking heated seats or navigation which I really want.
Q7: Has a strong appeal but again is at the top end of my budget. I know they have a reputation for munching tyres too (as well as other high running costs).
XC90: A nice car and great value, but abit too pedestrian in terms of image for a 23 yo (superficial but true).
ML280: Probably the most 'sensible' car in terms of budget and running costs. My friend has an R Class so I have sat in a similar car a few times, but again worried about it lacking that extra something like some of the other choices here.
GL320: I know it's almost identical to the ML but the styling and rarity gives it a healthy dose of appeal, although it is just out of budget.
RRS: The Sport has a strong appeal despite the numerous faults I have read about; I'd want a HSE model and the early (2005/6) cars come into my budget but I'd be pretty worried about reliability costs! Would have to be a TDV6 too.
Disco 3: As much as I appreciate that the Disco is a great car I'm not keen; sat in one once and it just seemed far too plasticky inside. Also my neighbour has a Disco 4 that I've seen towed far too many times!
FFRR: My dream car (bar a G Wagen), TD6s are easily within my budget but I could just stretch to a TDV8. Am just worried that it will destroy my wallet (well more than the others here will).
All of these cars will have relatively high mileages, ranging from mid 80's up to around 110k on the FFRR TDV8's. I'm aware this is abit more risky but modern cars are more than capable of doing double that. My own mileage is currently around 6k a year (a mix of town and A Roads mostly) so I won't be piling on the miles.
Anyway sorry for the mini essay, any feedback is much appreciated and I will endeavor to answer any questions/respond (although as a new member I'm not sure how many replies I can post to begin with)
Thanks in advance!
given that my current insurance for my 1.8 Astra is £500 I'm pretty pleased!All of these cars have the potential for big bills for both routine maintenance and breakdowns, personally I would pick the one you really want and search long and hard for the best example you can find in terms of history, mileage and warranty and take the plunge but make sure you can deal with a large bill if the worst comes to the worst. Bear in mind the more complexity the larger the potential bills.
You don't mention if your considering petrol in your post but on your mileage I wouldn't be looking at diesel - if you do the maths the additional cost of running a petrol v8 on 6k per annum vs the price to buy the diesel car in the first place may surprise you, bear in mind none of these diesels are economical.
Personally I would go FFRR - the interior is in a different league to the RRS, much nicer place to be IMO.
You don't mention if your considering petrol in your post but on your mileage I wouldn't be looking at diesel - if you do the maths the additional cost of running a petrol v8 on 6k per annum vs the price to buy the diesel car in the first place may surprise you, bear in mind none of these diesels are economical.
Personally I would go FFRR - the interior is in a different league to the RRS, much nicer place to be IMO.
Edited by mab1 on Saturday 5th October 20:26
The Moose said:
What about a Cayenne? With a Porsche warranty?
I have briefly considered the Porsche but the fuel consumption scares me! I know my annual mileage isn't that high but my car tends to be the family car vs my mum's Honda Jazz...so 20mpg on a run doesn't appeal too much :/ Anything with a warranty would be appealing though...V8RX7 said:
Personally I'd look at a V8 Grand Cherokee - they are RHD and frequently available on LPG
I have considered the Jeep in the past and could easily afford a low mileage diesel, but the interior and styling are a mega turn off. As for the LPG route my current car is actually a dual-fuel factory fit LPG Astra, but the system broke shortly after I bought it (from my Mum who owned it from new), so not a massive fan despite the potential benefits jdwright590 said:
I have briefly considered the Porsche but the fuel consumption scares me! I know my annual mileage isn't that high but my car tends to be the family car vs my mum's Honda Jazz...so 20mpg on a run doesn't appeal too much :/ Anything with a warranty would be appealing though...
Having owned a few modern 4x4's, the fuel bill is the least of your worries to be honest. When they're working (which is 99% of the time), they are outstanding places to be. However, when they stop working, the remedial work will, more often than not, throw up some eye watering bills. rallycross said:
Why at 23 would you want a Chelsea tractor?
I know I don't really have a 'normal' taste in cars despite being young and a big car buff...but I've wanted an SUV for as long as I can remember-it's a good job I don't live in the US otherwise I'd want something as tasteless and huge as an Escalade 
Forget this modern soft crap. You require one of these bad boys. Almost as good as the original shape Range Rover in terms of street cred( you are 23) but a fraction of the cost. Comfortable as f
k and if you can turn a spanner, a great way into home maintenance. Pretty bullet proof too. Nearly 400,000 Klms showing and still going strong!
k and if you can turn a spanner, a great way into home maintenance. Pretty bullet proof too. Nearly 400,000 Klms showing and still going strong!jdwright590 said:
something as tasteless and huge as an Escalade
You can get them over here but they are a bit outside your budget Judging by the 'high quality' 
interior on the things that is not such a bad thing:http://www.autotrader.co.uk/search/used/cars/cadil...
KTF said:
You can get them over here but they are a bit outside your budget Judging by the 'high quality' interior on the things that is not such a bad thing:
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/search/used/cars/cadil...
Is it bad that if they came in RHD then I'd be sorely tempted by one of the older ones? :O Judging by the 'high quality' interior on the things that is not such a bad thing:http://www.autotrader.co.uk/search/used/cars/cadil...
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff