My VW Polo diesel dilemma
Discussion
There you go. Hope that got your attention. I have resubmitted this post due to lack of interest with a more catchy title in the hope that you can help me with my car buying dilemma!
I need to replace my 2008 VW Polo diesel imminently as I bought it on a PCP and have to hand it back. I have recently got married and my wife is expecting so I would prefer something a bit larger with 4/5 doors. Not quite ready for a diesel estate yet though! Ideally, I would like something spacious, comfortable, safe, fast, reliable and fun, with a few more toys that wouldn't disgrace itself on a track. I would prefer petrol as I no longer do a lot of miles but don't want something too ruinous to run as petrol was a lot cheaper the last time that I had a petrol car (although I am not anti-diesel). My preference is with a manual although I would not rule out an automatic. Newer cars that interest me that I might be able to afford such as the Abarth 500/Swift Sport/MINI Cooper S would be too small and larger cars in my price range too boring. My financial priorities now lie elsewhere, so I would rather spend up to £6k and buy something outright. Any ideas?
I have thought about something from the VW group. I like the mk1 Octavia vRS and it has a huge boot (but it is a Skoda!), Leon Cupra Rs are quite expensive and a friend has had lots of problems with his Leon and I have also considered another mk4 Golf GTi with the 1.8 turbo engine. I used to have the 2 litre version which I liked but had a lot of problems with (although mainly with the crappy engine). I like the MG ZT V6 which has a certain presence in a dark colour but would worry about it being out of action due to having to wait for parts. I like German build quality and find Fords a bit plasticky so although a Mondeo ST220 would sound like a reasonable solution, it doesn't really interest me. Ditto an Impreza. I have tried one and not really my thing!
Last nights Top Gear knocked me off course as they were finding a solution to a similair problem. The Mercedes 190 Cosworth interested me the most (although May's example wasn't the best). I have always fancied a Mercedes but none of the ones that I like have been in my price range. I have never thought about one of these but I liked it. A proper 80s icon! The Sapphire was probably the best car there but for the same reasons given before I would not consider one. It is an iconic car but I could not quite bring myself to spend that much money on a Sierra saloon (the 3 door bewinged version quite another matter)! The E36 M3 saloon is probably the least loved M-car but what a performance bargain and it is still an M car. Having said that, as the programme showed it would be too easy to buy a pup and although my E30 325i felt bombproof, I understand that the E36 is not so! Does the VANOS not also go wrong on these at huge expense? Not sure about insurance and although I consider myself to be a good driver, it could end in tears as my fastest car to date has been a front wheel drive VR6.
The car will be my daily driver and although I do have a garage, will probably live outside. I also live in a small village on top of a hill in Gloucestershire 15 minutes from any major roads (not sure how effective a powerful rear wheel drive car would be in the snow but I don't want an off-roader).
So it looks like a Skoda, an MG or a Golf. Or a 190 Cosworth or an M3? Am I being silly and selfish to contemplate spending the same money on a 15+ year old car which will probably be less reliable, more expensive to run and less safe. What's the best option? Have I overlooked anything?
I need to replace my 2008 VW Polo diesel imminently as I bought it on a PCP and have to hand it back. I have recently got married and my wife is expecting so I would prefer something a bit larger with 4/5 doors. Not quite ready for a diesel estate yet though! Ideally, I would like something spacious, comfortable, safe, fast, reliable and fun, with a few more toys that wouldn't disgrace itself on a track. I would prefer petrol as I no longer do a lot of miles but don't want something too ruinous to run as petrol was a lot cheaper the last time that I had a petrol car (although I am not anti-diesel). My preference is with a manual although I would not rule out an automatic. Newer cars that interest me that I might be able to afford such as the Abarth 500/Swift Sport/MINI Cooper S would be too small and larger cars in my price range too boring. My financial priorities now lie elsewhere, so I would rather spend up to £6k and buy something outright. Any ideas?
I have thought about something from the VW group. I like the mk1 Octavia vRS and it has a huge boot (but it is a Skoda!), Leon Cupra Rs are quite expensive and a friend has had lots of problems with his Leon and I have also considered another mk4 Golf GTi with the 1.8 turbo engine. I used to have the 2 litre version which I liked but had a lot of problems with (although mainly with the crappy engine). I like the MG ZT V6 which has a certain presence in a dark colour but would worry about it being out of action due to having to wait for parts. I like German build quality and find Fords a bit plasticky so although a Mondeo ST220 would sound like a reasonable solution, it doesn't really interest me. Ditto an Impreza. I have tried one and not really my thing!
Last nights Top Gear knocked me off course as they were finding a solution to a similair problem. The Mercedes 190 Cosworth interested me the most (although May's example wasn't the best). I have always fancied a Mercedes but none of the ones that I like have been in my price range. I have never thought about one of these but I liked it. A proper 80s icon! The Sapphire was probably the best car there but for the same reasons given before I would not consider one. It is an iconic car but I could not quite bring myself to spend that much money on a Sierra saloon (the 3 door bewinged version quite another matter)! The E36 M3 saloon is probably the least loved M-car but what a performance bargain and it is still an M car. Having said that, as the programme showed it would be too easy to buy a pup and although my E30 325i felt bombproof, I understand that the E36 is not so! Does the VANOS not also go wrong on these at huge expense? Not sure about insurance and although I consider myself to be a good driver, it could end in tears as my fastest car to date has been a front wheel drive VR6.
The car will be my daily driver and although I do have a garage, will probably live outside. I also live in a small village on top of a hill in Gloucestershire 15 minutes from any major roads (not sure how effective a powerful rear wheel drive car would be in the snow but I don't want an off-roader).
So it looks like a Skoda, an MG or a Golf. Or a 190 Cosworth or an M3? Am I being silly and selfish to contemplate spending the same money on a 15+ year old car which will probably be less reliable, more expensive to run and less safe. What's the best option? Have I overlooked anything?
We have a ZT v6 in the family. Its a great car as far as Im concerned. Plenty of room, looks great, good amount of power and fairly rare on the streets depending where you live. The handling is great, Im sure I read somewhere that it is classed as one of the best handling front wheel drive saloons out there at the moment but dont quote me on that.
Like any other car of course it has weaknesses and 'niggles'. The inlet manifold butterfly valves could break meaning the whole inlet has to be replaced, costing a couple of hundred.The timing belt is a big job. I have been quoted 400-600 to change the three belts and tensioners.
Like any other car of course it has weaknesses and 'niggles'. The inlet manifold butterfly valves could break meaning the whole inlet has to be replaced, costing a couple of hundred.The timing belt is a big job. I have been quoted 400-600 to change the three belts and tensioners.
k this! 
white_goodman said:
Thanks Mike. As I said. A ZT in a dark colour like X-Power Grey does have a certain presence. I don't think that the brighter shades suit the car so well. When do the belts need changing?
I have a 2001 ZTT 190 as my "run it till it drops" car. At 128k miles its showing NO signs of dropping. It'll do 200k easily I reckon. Still on original clutch. Only just changed the original exhaust. Service every 15k miles - main dealer prices are silly cheap. Belts need doing at 90k but to be honest the ones that came off mine were like brand new! I've heard on the forums that MG massively over engineered the belts and that they are actually good for 200k. Aside from normal servicing and tyres I've changed one coolant pipe (the plastic one in the V) and 4 tail lamp bulbs. I also did the lower engine tie bar (I damaged it by accident) but that was two bolts and the second hand part cost me £20.
My parking sesnors packed up this winter, but thats just another £20 for the bits off e bay and about 1 hour to change them all.
I did kill the head gasket but that was entirely my fault as I continued driving the car for an hour after it overheated badly when the coolant pipe mentioned above was leaking (was in a hurry and didn't / couldn't stop) Still, even then the engine kept running quite well on 5 cylinders! Main dealer fixed it without issue.
I have been told that parts supplies are not a problem - I can believe it cos I haven't needed any!
Handling is great. I average 29.4 mpg. Mines Solar red and looks good imho, but the dark ones look very sinister stylee good, especially the pre facelift models with the real metal chrome wire grilles.
They are quite possibly the best used car secret on the planet.
Well, here's the thing, never ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever buy a car based upon a Top Gear script aimed at cheap laughs. As Clarkson said on something I saw recently "You believe that as much as I believe what I write".
I sympathise with the Mercedes smiting but it is still a rusty 80's car and parts for thenm are ferociously expensive. A friend of mine just scrapped a Merc of similar vintage rather than pay for a new electronic distributor which had malfunctioned.
I sympathise with the Mercedes smiting but it is still a rusty 80's car and parts for thenm are ferociously expensive. A friend of mine just scrapped a Merc of similar vintage rather than pay for a new electronic distributor which had malfunctioned.
wrt the ZT. Are the 1.8 turbos worth a punt as well. Not much in it in terms of raw performance figures or is the V6 superior? I am in agreement that the pre-facelift model looks better but the saloons with the huge wings look hideous. The lip spoiler is far more in keeping with the rest of the car.
white_goodman said:
wrt the ZT. Are the 1.8 turbos worth a punt as well. Not much in it in terms of raw performance figures or is the V6 superior? I am in agreement that the pre-facelift model looks better but the saloons with the huge wings look hideous. The lip spoiler is far more in keeping with the rest of the car.
I have no experience of the 1.8T, but I would not be overly confident buying a ZT with that engine. The larger capacity K-series' do not have good a reputation to begin with, and then adding forced induction into the mix... (Not sure if they have uprated internals?)I bought a black zt 190 a fortnight ago and have just clocked up a thousand miles. Not the fastest car in the world but the grip and handling are v impressive. For the money its superb. Haven't heard of any parts issues either 
I've also been in an st220 and they're great card too but a bit more expensive.
I've also been in an st220 and they're great card too but a bit more expensive.Gassing Station | General Gassing [Archive] | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff