up to £7-8k 5 door fast(ish) family car? Golf GTI?

[LGriffiths88]

evening all,

another what car thread, so me and the wife are moving house and need to get a cheaper car than what i've got now (120d coupe).

i will be using her 07 mondeo diesel for commute to work (titanium x model so plenty of comfort there). so now we're in the need for a decent sized (enough boot space for pushchair (bugaboo chameleon 2 for the parents out there) and room in the back for our 4 year old and baby seat.

will need to be petrol (she doesn't warrant a diesel). want it to be fun enough for me to drive for a blast to the shops but ok & comfortable for her to drive on school run etc.

budget of 7-8k.
5 doors.
mileage up to 80k


here's all I can think of that can offer me the above...

MK V Golf GTI?
MK VI Golf 1.4 TSI (150bhp)
Audi A3 2.0 TFSI?
Octavia VRS?

my parents have a 1 series hatch and sometimes I don't think the boot will be big enough?

any other suggestions? is there any good lease deals about? fun, fast, practical and around £150-170 pcm?

cheers

[LGriffiths88]

interesting.... basically a focus aren't they?

also looking for cars to be 07-57 onwards

[LGriffiths88]

Nickbrapp said:

Focus St.

thought the ones in budget would be the mk2 and they only in 3 door?

[LGriffiths88]

ZX10R NIN said:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...

If it has to be a VAG product

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

Or if your looking at an Octavia then take a look at these:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

I do like the last generation of mondeo's. that suits practicality perfect. but don't know if the wife will fancy another mondeo... plus i'd be wanting to drive that to work being the newer mondeo haha

i do think she'd prefer the golf...but guess i'd have to ask her.... and go against what she wants as thats what us men do...

[LGriffiths88]

Mr Tidy said:

How about a 330i Tourer?

which model? e46 series or e90 series? i feel i'd have to go for sport/msport on them to give them the better looks. i can't see there being a 330i m sport e91 being in my budget though

[LGriffiths88]

ZX10R NIN said:

E90 325i M Sport
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

Hmmm interesting. Shown the wife and she thinks a hatch should suffice as we have the mondeo for lugging stuff around. So need a run around for her. Could a gti be too much for her to handle considering she's used to slower diesels?

Main thing is she likes the golf's. But it's a question of gti mk5 or gt tdi mk6.

[LGriffiths88]

Well when I've been following her places when we have different destinations , I've noticed she can be a little heavy on that accelerator.

Do both models come with parking sensors? Something we both need haha

When I shown her a GTI for sale last night her reply was "why does it have to be that? Why does it have to be fast?" Some women?!

Is the mk 5 gt tdi worth a look at to trick her? Have they got plenty of poke? I think the mk6 gtd is out off budget

[LGriffiths88]

Yeah! Maybe get the GTI and play dumb with her? I think (only looking from pictures) that the gt tdi mK6, looks a better place to be. Especially with the touch screen radio. I like to think she'd prefer the newer mk 6.

Also have looked at alfas and the wife doesn't want one due to their history. I've tried telling her but she's sticking to her guns.

I do like the a3's too. Especially with sportback and roof rails. Feel like id Need an s line there though. Which may push price out of range. What are the a3 2 litres like?

Edited by LGriffiths88 on Monday 30th March 11:28

[LGriffiths88]

Yeah! Maybe get the GTI and play dumb with her? I think (only looking from pictures) that the gt tdi mK6, looks a better place to be. Especially with the touch screen radio. I like to think she'd prefer the newer mk 6.

Also have looked at alfas and the wife doesn't want one due to their history. I've tried telling her but she's sticking to her guns.

I do like the a3's too. Especially with sportback and roof rails. Feel like id Need an s line there though. Which may push price out of range. What are the a3 2 litres like?

Edited by LGriffiths88 on Monday 30th March 15:17

[LGriffiths88]

kambites said:

Assuming you mean the non-turbo, it's VAG's standard direct injection engine as used all over the place. Not enormously quick (it's only 150bhp in a car weighing 1300kg) and as you'd expect from a naturally aspirated engine, needs to be revved fairly hard if you want to extract what performance it does have.

There's nothing objectively wrong with it, but it's not a particularly good blend of performance and economy. I actually found the 2.0 TFSI to be more economical when I test drove both (although admittedly the N/A was the A3 and the TFSI was the Octavia, which is lighter and probably more aerodynamic). I believe there is a 2.0 TFSI A3 which isn't the S3; that might be worth a look?

Edited by kambites on Monday 30th March 11:38

Think That's what I'd look at, the 2.0 TFSI Audi. Would be nice if Quattro was available. Another question is, is the premium worth the difference in terms of golf vs a3. Both being from the same "family" and all

[LGriffiths88]

Good point. I'm not one who goes into a car and feels the need to touch all the plastic. I think as long as the cockpit has some pleasing aesthetics then that's good. Decent Soundproofing is a must. I find that the mondeos soundproofing isn't all that great. I can't hold a conversation with rear passengers.

Will be a while before I go look at models. The wife is happy for us to petrol as we
Don't warrant 2 diesels with the miles she will be doing. GTI could be winning? Or maybe a modern TFSI golf? The 1.4 engine is it with 150 odd bhp?

[LGriffiths88]

At the moment our mondeo has leather/alacantra seats and must say they feel very nice. Don't think the cupra would be my wife's cup of tea. Maybe a bit to fast.

2 litre will be the max we can go for. 200bhp max. I had a 2.5 litre z4. But sold it not long after meeting her so she never got to drive it.

I guess the golf seems like the better all rounder of them all. Practical, spacious. Think I've just got to get my wife to try a GTI... Need a lot of luck. Knowing my luck, whichever has the biggest boot out of the cars we look at will win!

[LGriffiths88]

kambites said:

Have you considered spending a bit less on the car and getting your wife some driving tuition so you don't have to worry about the car being "too fast" for her?

"Here you go love... I've bought some driving lessons for you so you can drive faster cars..."
"Ohhh thanks.... I've got something for you too.... (Slap across the face)"

Best not, as the old saying goes... Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned

After having a chat with her last night she's now under the impression we need something bigger as when it comes to us wanting to replace the mondeo (due to age) it will have to be an s max size as we will have a bigger family then. Can't afford a car that size now. So that now means I may have to get a bigger car than a golf. A diesel too. As the s max would be petrol as it won't be doing the miles.... S-Max titanium x sport... But haha that's a few years away yet....well 3-4

[LGriffiths88]

She'd want leather seats and dont see many SE a3 with leather.

An mx-5 wouldn't be ideal with the run to work. 80miles a day.

And the fact we already have 2 kids (4 and 7 weeks) and we doubt we could get 3 child seats across a standard car. So by time baby number 3 comes we should be looking at an SMax.