Talk me out of this idea...
Discussion
Wife currenty has the sensible MPV to cart all the kids (3) plus mates etc and her FRV does the job well enough.
I use a 2009 Golf TDi which is fine for my commute (through about 300 speed cameras) - I have another toy car for track days etc. But as of this month I am also going to have to carry 6+ on a regular basis for the school run. This means I either have to swap cars and drive the FRV on a regular basis, which I can't say appeals, or I swap the Golf for something else entirely which will seat the requisite number of people. Budget is £5k or thereabouts. After a miserable trawl through Galaxies/Alhambras etc, I thought about renewing an old flame. Several years ago a ran a 1994 W124 E280 estate for 2 years. I never used the seats in the boot, but I bought it for £1k, and sold it for the same 2 years later, it having cost me very little in maintenance. I loved the waftinesss of it, with the slushmatic auto and superb ride quality. It also had a decent turn of speed. Fuel economy wasn't amazing but I forgave it that because it was cheap as chips to buy and cost me little else. Good ones are now rarer to find, but I could cope with spending say £4k on an absolute minter because if I looked after it I think my money would be fairly safe.
So.... should I seriously ditch my Golf which is comfortable and economical (50mpg) for an old barge that does about 28mpg and will result in my kids taking the piss out of me? It's almost a modern classic (and insurance may well be cheaper if I can get classic insurance) and although I'll be spending twice as much on fuel I'll be paying hardly any depreciation and reduced monthly loan repayments as well. It's either that or prepare myself to pilot an FRV on a regular basis.....
Any other suggestions most gratefully received!
I use a 2009 Golf TDi which is fine for my commute (through about 300 speed cameras) - I have another toy car for track days etc. But as of this month I am also going to have to carry 6+ on a regular basis for the school run. This means I either have to swap cars and drive the FRV on a regular basis, which I can't say appeals, or I swap the Golf for something else entirely which will seat the requisite number of people. Budget is £5k or thereabouts. After a miserable trawl through Galaxies/Alhambras etc, I thought about renewing an old flame. Several years ago a ran a 1994 W124 E280 estate for 2 years. I never used the seats in the boot, but I bought it for £1k, and sold it for the same 2 years later, it having cost me very little in maintenance. I loved the waftinesss of it, with the slushmatic auto and superb ride quality. It also had a decent turn of speed. Fuel economy wasn't amazing but I forgave it that because it was cheap as chips to buy and cost me little else. Good ones are now rarer to find, but I could cope with spending say £4k on an absolute minter because if I looked after it I think my money would be fairly safe.
So.... should I seriously ditch my Golf which is comfortable and economical (50mpg) for an old barge that does about 28mpg and will result in my kids taking the piss out of me? It's almost a modern classic (and insurance may well be cheaper if I can get classic insurance) and although I'll be spending twice as much on fuel I'll be paying hardly any depreciation and reduced monthly loan repayments as well. It's either that or prepare myself to pilot an FRV on a regular basis.....
Any other suggestions most gratefully received!
te is beyond me anyway, but it'd be sad if we were all the same.
The w124 is a good idea, you can get decent ones for £2k still.
e.g. this 300, similar performer to the 280.
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C322237
e.g. this 300, similar performer to the 280.
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C322237
because I have too many points (I used to have Honda powered Elise...) and never bother having fun on her majesties highways any more - save it for the track car!Strawman said:
The w124 is a good idea, you can get decent ones for £2k still.
e.g. this 300, similar performer to the 280.
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C322237
That does look pretty nice actually. e.g. this 300, similar performer to the 280.
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C322237
I'd seen this one on fleabay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1996-MERCEDES-E280-AUTO-...
Fairly silly money but w124.co.uk would be asking north of £6k for something along those lines.
Strawman said:
The w124 is a good idea, you can get decent ones for £2k still.
e.g. this 300, similar performer to the 280.
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C322237
No way that is a £2.5K car. Bag maybe.e.g. this 300, similar performer to the 280.
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C322237
I drove a 300 TE for some time, mpg was stupid, ot single figures, often.
sold it to a guy who drove it to Tibury and put it on the first ship to Nigeria.
sday12 said:
I drove a 300 TE for some time, mpg was stupid, ot single figures, often.
sold it to a guy who drove it to Tibury and put it on the first ship to Nigeria.
Something was wrong with it then, I've driven a number of them, all saloons, and high twenties was normal over thousands of miles various roads/conditions.sold it to a guy who drove it to Tibury and put it on the first ship to Nigeria.
Strawman said:
Something was wrong with it then, I've driven a number of them, all saloons, and high twenties was normal over thousands of miles various roads/conditions.
I'd agree - got late 20's out my old E280. Unless you are in central London it's hard to imagine single figures. Just been having a look at V70's - I assume the D5 engine can cope with high miles. Quite like the look of them actually (look -it's all relative), not something I'd really considered before...
If you want to keep the waftability of the Merc, but move into the 21st century, the Audi A6 had a 7 seat option. That or the aforementioned Volvo would be my choice FWIW.
Considered the Volvo myself a while back but couldn't get away from the worry that the kids travelling backwards wouldn't be too happy. Ok for short 'school run' type journeys, but I reckon anything longer could result in a boot awash with vomit!
Considered the Volvo myself a while back but couldn't get away from the worry that the kids travelling backwards wouldn't be too happy. Ok for short 'school run' type journeys, but I reckon anything longer could result in a boot awash with vomit!
Edited by wiliferus on Saturday 1st September 19:52
wiliferus said:
Considered the Volvo myself a while back but couldn't get away from the worry that the kids travelling backwards wouldn't be too happy. Ok for short 'school run' type journeys, but I reckon anything longer could result in a boot awash with vomit!
Edited by wiliferus on Saturday 1st September 19:52
Facing backwards never worried them in the least, I have three children, and even when we didn't actually need them to sit in the 3rd set of seats, they wanted to, and would argue over who was going to.
I can certainly recommend the V70 - I got mine after running a diesel Golf GTi for a couple of years.
Kids love the rear-facing seats but what age/size are you needing to carry? Rearmost seats are a good match for 5-10 year olds at most and don't forget you'll have genuinely zero luggage space.
I'm getting a consistent 45mpg from my D5, topping 50 some weeks or when running winter tyres, and I love it - as a school run bus it's a great choice if you've got two kids who'll fit (up to 1.4m I believe is the official limit but I can go check if you want). My biggest concern used to be the hand signals drivers behind would see when our oldest was in the boot.
Kids love the rear-facing seats but what age/size are you needing to carry? Rearmost seats are a good match for 5-10 year olds at most and don't forget you'll have genuinely zero luggage space.
I'm getting a consistent 45mpg from my D5, topping 50 some weeks or when running winter tyres, and I love it - as a school run bus it's a great choice if you've got two kids who'll fit (up to 1.4m I believe is the official limit but I can go check if you want). My biggest concern used to be the hand signals drivers behind would see when our oldest was in the boot.
http://www.mtsv.co.uk/info/300EMG.htm
I love the car, I love the look of the dealer. I love the spec. I love the colour.
I can think of no reason not to purchase this.
I love the car, I love the look of the dealer. I love the spec. I love the colour.
I can think of no reason not to purchase this.
CampDavid said:
http://www.mtsv.co.uk/info/300EMG.htm
I love the car, I love the look of the dealer. I love the spec. I love the colour.
I can think of no reason not to purchase this.
Did you read the OP?I love the car, I love the look of the dealer. I love the spec. I love the colour.
I can think of no reason not to purchase this.
Should have mentioned earlier my V70 is on 152K miles and just keeps wafting on, in a diesel kind of way.
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