Lower Mileage or Newer Reg - advice please!

[grahamstobie]

Hi Folks

Just looking for a bit of buying advice. I'm trading in my Golf hatch, and looking for an estate. I've narrowed it down to two options:

BMW 320d, 2010 plate, 63,000 miles:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2013...



or an Audi A4, 2008 plate, 33,000 miles:

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


My question is - am I better to go for a newer car with higher mileage, or an older car with lower mileage? I do a lot of miles, roughly 18,000 miles a year, and want the car to last a few years, so am leaning towards the Audi - any thoughts/ advice?

Thanks for your help,

[crofty1984]

On condition, condition, condition.
Though mileage has the caveat as whether it's due a service soon that could cost a few bob. But a well looked after modern car shouldn't blink at doing 150-200k plus miles.

[SteBrown91]

The beemer. Such low mileage on that Audi the dmf and/or dpf will be ready to expire in a year or so time.

Best car I ever had (reliability)was a 2 year old fiesta tdci with 55k on the clock. 2 years and 30k later was still going strong

[BE57 TOY]

Everyone's going to tell you to buy on condition on PH, which kind of makes sense - have you been to see either of them yet?

[carreauchompeur]

If you're doing high mileage anyway then it makes no sense to buy a low mileage car at a premium.

[Willy Nilly]

get the list price for the 2 cars, then divide it by say 200,000 for the expected life in miles of the car them multiply it by the mileage. That might give you a better idea of which is the better value.

[grahamstobie]

Thanks for the replies. I've been to see both cars - both have FSH, both 1 previous owner, both are in good condition superficially (I'm not a car expert by any means...), if anything the Audi is in slightly better condition - I suspect because the BMW was previously a lease-car for BMW so has possibly not been treated as carefully - i.e. a couple of scratches and scuffs internally and externally. However both are nice looking cars, no major issues as far as I know...

[BE57 TOY]

Willy Nilly said:

get the list price for the 2 cars, then divide it by say 200,000 for the expected life in miles of the car them multiply it by the mileage. That might give you a better idea of which is the better value.

I wouldn't want to be running those cars at anywhere near 200,000 lol!

[sunnydude959]

I bought a 2006, 95,000 mile BMW X5 off PH classifieds, but it was very well looked after with 2 owners. The first owner was someone who worked at BMW Northampton, so all services were carried out by them. The 2nd owner bought it off them as a used car with 1 year's warranty, and had a few things done under warranty (so no short-cuts were taken, at all). I think the paint was paint-protected when new, still looks very good now!

So, in short, its all about condition as others have said.

To answer your question, OP, the BMW 3 series looks very good for its mileage! I think you'll have to physically see both though to be sure! Some cars can look very good in photos, but not very good in reality.

Edited by sunnydude959 on Sunday 30th March 20:29

Edited by sunnydude959 on Sunday 30th March 20:29

[p1tse]

I would ask which car rather than mileage

Which do you prefer the looks or drive off?

[Hooli]

BMW.

I don't like them but FWD is wrong & I refuse to pay money for it.

[BlueMR2]

It's about condition, but also check what service schedules are like, you don't want to buy something that needs a major service, a cambelt change and a new set of tyres without getting it at a good price.

Remember that most service schedules are mileage and time based so a low mileage car may still be due big bills for servicing.

[Condi]

SteBrown91 said:

The beemer. Such low mileage on that Audi the dmf and/or dpf will be ready to expire in a year or so time.

Best car I ever had (reliability)was a 2 year old fiesta tdci with 55k on the clock. 2 years and 30k later was still going strong

No reason why the DMF will go on it, it depends how its been used and cared for, rather than mileage.

And 85k for a fiesta is hardly something to shout about? My A4 currently has 182,000 on the clock and is going just fine!

Any modern diesel can get expensive, from what Ive seen, most seem to get bills around the 100-120k mark.

[yellowtang]

I'd have the BMW if I had to do 18k miles a year - it as a nicer interior and crucially it has Satnav and Bluetooth.

[McSam]

When you're looking at two entirely different cars, age and mileage really are irrelevant! Decide which you want first, and then worry about the details of which one.

But as it's been quite rightly said already, it's condition that should concern you. The best looked-after and most reliable car I've owned has been the one with the highest mileage (by far), it doesn't matter half as much as the market thinks it does. The fact that the majority of car buyers think the engine drops out of every car at 100k is fantastic, because it means those of us who are better informed can pick up faultless stuff way below its proper value!

Equally, some uncared-for dogs can be priced completely excessively just because they're 30k-milers..