Best motorway car?
Discussion
Willy Nilly said:
I used to do 500 miles a week in a Skoda Favorit on top of an average of 62 hours a week work. The drive wasn't an issue. Not sure why any modern car wouldn't manage 90-120 minutes or so a day.
You would think sowouldnt you but the standard seats on my 64 plate 3 series are pants.Best seats I ever had were in my Ford Probe 20 years ago they were fantasticComfort (ultimate HydroActive+3) power from a really nice V6 and Style, plus under budget
Zero is better for long trips every day
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...
Zero is better for long trips every day
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...
Edited by Stickyfinger on Sunday 14th February 22:46
usuallysafedriver said:
Sorry £6000-7000, but could stretch a little further if needs be.
500m/week*46=23000m/yearWhat's that budget for? A week, a month or a year?
Factor in tax, insurance, depreciation, fuel, maintenance, repairs and costs in case your car breaks down.
If you can live with investing a bit more in service and breaking down every now and then, without missing too much if you can't continue your journey on the same day (and likely a couple of days longer), then you should be fine with buying a car that has seen 100k mls already. When you own the car for four years, it will likely see 200k mls on the odo. Repair intervals will get shorter in between.
The cheapest option will likely start north of £300/month - before you care for personal preferences with the car.
minimatan said:
Dan_1981 said:
I do over 800 miles a week up and down the motorway in this. Done over 110k in 2.5 years.
Returns 55mpg at 75 mph, does about 680 - 700 miles to a tank.
Only big cost I've had was the dpf failing at 170k.
Heated leather, Bose speakers, cruise. Comfortable and quiet. I paid £5750 when I bought it so you should get same age for lots less or much newer for your budget.
Care to share the model designation and engine type for the uninitiated ?Returns 55mpg at 75 mph, does about 680 - 700 miles to a tank.
Only big cost I've had was the dpf failing at 170k.
Heated leather, Bose speakers, cruise. Comfortable and quiet. I paid £5750 when I bought it so you should get same age for lots less or much newer for your budget.
I can give a second vote for a Saab 9-3, I use mine mainly for motorway runs and it ticks a lot of boxes on that front.
Very comfortable, plenty of room (I'm 6'1), being diesel it's great on fuel and wafts very nicely. Only owned mine for the last 3-4 months so can't comment on long term use.
Anything that's diesel, spacious and a 6 speed I suspect would do you well. When I was looking at mile munchers (sub £1,500) I considered Saab 9-3s, Audi A4s, Skoda Octavias etc.
Very comfortable, plenty of room (I'm 6'1), being diesel it's great on fuel and wafts very nicely. Only owned mine for the last 3-4 months so can't comment on long term use.
Anything that's diesel, spacious and a 6 speed I suspect would do you well. When I was looking at mile munchers (sub £1,500) I considered Saab 9-3s, Audi A4s, Skoda Octavias etc.
Patrick Bateman said:
Riley Blue said:
Almost two years ago. It's an October 2003 car so an early D3 model. Other than routine maintenance, I've spent about a grand on bodywork and a transmission fluid change. A few niggling little thing have needed attention, cost me less than £600 to fix. It does 25mpg on a long run - not so good round town though.
Hard to complain at that.I'm led to believe the gearboxes on these don't have the reputation that the D2 had.
I'm amazed no-one seems to have suggested a VW Phaeton yet?! Probably one of the most over-engineered vehicles ever, and therefore I imagine one of the most serenely pleasant places to spend many motorway miles. There's even one on here for your budget: http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/v...
As others have said, aside from the obvious comfy seats and driving position, I would say adaptive cruise control should be a must - it makes the whole motorway experience so much easier.
I'd also recommend an original Range Rover Sport, mine was great on the motorway, but they're not cheap to run in any way, shape or form. Great visibility, comfort and refinement, though!
As others have said, aside from the obvious comfy seats and driving position, I would say adaptive cruise control should be a must - it makes the whole motorway experience so much easier.
I'd also recommend an original Range Rover Sport, mine was great on the motorway, but they're not cheap to run in any way, shape or form. Great visibility, comfort and refinement, though!
As a former owner of 9 Saabs and 4 Skoda/Seats I would say when operating well the Saab 9-3 definitely feels the more premium. However, in my experience as a long term proposition I have to say the Saab may prove to be an expensive option. The later GM Saab 9-3 had the complications of a premium car but with the build quality of a mainstream (Vauxhall) product. I am sure many have had relatively little trouble with theirs but I can only speak from personal experience. Also, my dad was in the trade selling Saabs until 2007 so I really do have an insight into these cars.
A much safer bet would be a 9-5 in my experience, but ultimately for a long-term proposition I would go Skoda/Seat every time.
A much safer bet would be a 9-5 in my experience, but ultimately for a long-term proposition I would go Skoda/Seat every time.
Merc E-Class W211 face lift (post 2007) estate - I've just picked up a mint 320 CDi for a bit more than your budget but others are around for less with a few more miles on them. Decent turn of speed if you get the 3 litre diesel, masses of room, supreme comfort - lot of gadgets and very safe. Mine is showing approx 600 miles range on a full tank and on the Myway yesterday got up to 38MPG which isnt bad for a big thing like this with a decent amount of power and torque..Just make sure its got a full service history with Merc or a specialist and everything worrls electrically..and dont get the pre-face lift version with this problematic braking system and other faults.
Good luck!
Good luck!
I have been doing Tyneside to Colchester (1000miles a week on avg incl other usage) for some 30mths now week in week out and after my TT was written off I swapped to my A6 (C6) 2005 55 plate 3.2 petrol, returns in the region of 38mpg sat on the cruise and is a nice place to be, I do a set of rubber every 25k miles and other than servicing my only expense has been a wiper motor (£300 fitted) and an emissions light from manifold vacuum tubes that was £15 to sort
I would vouch for the Audi A6 (C6), it's a simply magnificent motorway car. I recently drove mine to the Alps and back, over 500 miles with only a lunch break and a quick petrol stop and I arrived as fresh as a daisy without even a sore bum. Mine has the 4.2 FSI V8 which makes it go rather well but it still does over 30mpg on motorway runs, I averaged 30mpg going skiing (four-up with luggage and winter tyres, 80mph most of the way then driving up the mountain in the snow). I was contemplating selling it but I've realised there is nothing that would come close to it's all round abilities for the price so I'm keeping it 
.
.Audi's shake your teeth out on anything more than dead smooth tarmac.
Drive a selection on various roads with comfort in mind.....you WILL choose the Citroen C5x7.v6 with the Hydo-Active+3 (the same suspension as the C6 and has the Jag engine)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uXF0PcsQAo
It LAUGHS in the face of AirBags !
Drive a selection on various roads with comfort in mind.....you WILL choose the Citroen C5x7.v6 with the Hydo-Active+3 (the same suspension as the C6 and has the Jag engine)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uXF0PcsQAo
It LAUGHS in the face of AirBags !
Edited by Stickyfinger on Monday 15th February 18:38
Personally, I would spend half that amount and buy a well-sorted E39 530d Sport. Auto if you want the more relaxed ride, but the manual would be the more reliable choice.
I've had several E39 530d, and they are sublime motorway mile munchers. Solid interiors and a nice place to do long journey in. I used to get 600 miles on a tank when commuting.
If you can stretch to a bit more, then a an E60 535d M Sport would fit the bill. Not as frugal as the E39, and there are lots to go wrong, so make sure you get one that's had money spent on it. Even that used to give me 500+ miles on a tank.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2003-BMW-530D-SPORT-AEGE...
Or, like a previous poster stated - an S Class diesel. An immaculate W220 would be well within your budget, or, a high mileage newer W221.
I've had several E39 530d, and they are sublime motorway mile munchers. Solid interiors and a nice place to do long journey in. I used to get 600 miles on a tank when commuting.
If you can stretch to a bit more, then a an E60 535d M Sport would fit the bill. Not as frugal as the E39, and there are lots to go wrong, so make sure you get one that's had money spent on it. Even that used to give me 500+ miles on a tank.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2003-BMW-530D-SPORT-AEGE...
Or, like a previous poster stated - an S Class diesel. An immaculate W220 would be well within your budget, or, a high mileage newer W221.
Stickyfinger said:
Audi's shake your teeth out on anything more than dead smooth tarmac.
Drive a selection on various roads with comfort in mind.....you WILL choose the Citroen C5x7
No they don't (not all of them anyway). My SE spec A6 is very comfortable indeed though I've not tried the S-line version with brick springs and big wheels. I'm willing to believe a Citroen C5/C7 may well have a plusher ride but all things considered I'd rather have a large Audi (not that I have anything against Citroens).Drive a selection on various roads with comfort in mind.....you WILL choose the Citroen C5x7
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