Pick a car for me! Please!

[AAGALL]

I'm needing to replace my current work car. I get an allowance of 45p per mile for all business miles and regularly do more than 10-12k miles a year (business) and overall around 25-30k in total - including personal and commuting use.

I have around £5,000 - I can stretch to 'maybe' £6-£7k at the upper most. As you can imagine I would like to spend the least amount however do not begrudge spending money on something I will use literally every day.

The criteria -

I am in two minds to go for petrol, like a small turbo, however I don't mind diesel and currently run one.

This will be my 'office' it has to have a nice interior and comfortable and reasonably practical - I carry a lot of equipment so need a decent sized boot. Can be hatch/coupe/saloon/estate or even 4x4 as I do tend to cover country lanes and down farm tracks and ruts due to work.

I do mainly a-b and country lanes no motorway work and cover 100 mile round trips.

I do appreciate handling and power- enough to enjoy and also overtake tractors, lorries etc.

Don't mind auto, although would prefer a manual if I had the choice.

Reliability is paramount! It must start and take me around with tedious efficiency.

...and that's it really. From the shortlist the 'perfect' or rather ideal car is an Audi A6 allroad 2.5 TDI - as it is a car but with 4x4 clearance, nice interior, lots of room - but there's no way I'm spending £5k on one with a 2.5 tdi engine and air suspension!!

The other thought well from a reliably view is a Lexus IS diesel saloon?

I've seen a Jeep Patriot CRD - quite cheap (both in price and interior!) but seems to offer a pseudo SUV

Even considering a Subaru Legacy but can find diesels.

Or should I just bite the bullet and get a trusty E90 320d SE saloon...?

Please help with your suggestions!

[Soupie69uk]

Subaru Forester if you do not mind the interior.

Other possibilities Alfa 159, BMW 5 series?

[Resolutionary]

AAGALL said:

From the shortlist the 'perfect' or rather ideal car is an Audi A6 allroad 2.5 TDI - as it is a car but with 4x4 clearance, nice interior, lots of room - but there's no way I'm spending £5k on one with a 2.5 tdi engine and air suspension!!

I currently have a C5 Allroad, albeit the 2.7T version, and I've gotta say it's superb at everything you'd expect from a high-end estate. The ground clearance is fantastic and it wafts over speedbumps effortlessly with the air suspension, especially on standard 17" wheels and chunky tyres. Reviews on these cars are a little negative on the whole, with many people reporting reliability issues, but if you find a good one with relatively low miles and a sizeable history, you could do very well for sub £4k on a diesel version (mostly auto / tip transmissions though). That said, the 2.5Tdi is said to achieve just 35mpg combined..

Alternatively, and keeping in mind your requirements, you could also consider other estates from the VAG collection, including the C5 A6 which is available in a host of engine specs including 1.8T, 1.9TDi, 2.5Tdi etc, but without the potential pitfall of air suspension. B6 A4 / Passat variants could also be worth a look.

P.s: I'm quite biased towards a quattro equipped Avants as they tend to offer such good performance / comfort / gadgetry for money. £5k is a healthy budget for what you have in mind.