Fed Up Looking

[Bozrog McGurk]

Hi guys new member need some pointers mainly because everything I like is either a money pit or outwith my budget .

So Mr PPi conjured up a few bob my way and as my Passat (Willi) got scratched by some prick with a shopping trolley in Sainsburys I`d rather spend my hard earned that I didnt know about on a comfi car than spend £500 on a paint job for Willi hes 2003 ,100,000 miles and about a £600 trade in if Im lucky .

Commuting to work see`s me hit 4k max a year which is diddley squat in the grand scheme of things throw in a golf trip or 2 to Ireland and the West Coast Of Scotland its 7k if it is that in a year now comes the options you tell me if my choices are naff spot o3 whatever ,my budgets £5k but could go to £6k if need be choices are either

1, Merc E 320 cdi Avantgarde all singing and dancing sun roof or no sun roof now theres a question Comand sat nav ,Ive heard out glow plugs flaps etc etc I know heehaw about cars but have a quality mechanic on hand if needed

So do I buy older more miles at say £3k or buy younger 2008 for £6k or something inbetween

2. Audi A6 SALOON 3.0 TDI SE Quattro 4dr

3.BMW 530 or a 6 series 630ci

4. Lexus LS 430 and S class were briefly looked at but they do look a bit big

I figure my daily trip to work will have a small dent financially fuel wise the 2 trips a year will take a hit but hey your only here once .
Ive a clean licence aged 51, 25 years + no claims looking for a quality ride that wont shaft me in the pocket or do I buy another VW its doing my head in,Ive been at it for 3 weeks now , not to fussed with insurance and road tax I know these things can cost I just want a reliable one (I know so does everyone else) so fill your boots and point me in the right direction , E Bays a no no right ,
Thanks for reading this faaf cheers for the replies

[bearman68]

Jab 3.0 diesel V6? XF - seems quite nice.
Not sure the Germans are the top of the heap reliability wise - but everything is relative, and in absolute terms they are prob OK. Personal favorite is the BMW 5 series, but not sure that's in budget.
3K is a tricky value I think for a luxury car. Cheaper and a E39 would prob suit the bill (love 'em), and more for more money, you'll find a Jag, or maybe a F10.
I wouldn't personally go for a Merc, as they seem impossible to diagnose electrically. (too complicated).
Lexus seems like a decent shout, but I've always been underwhelmed by NA petrol performance.
What about a Volvo? - these seem pretty decent.
Ford are making some good stuff, but I'm not quite sure that up market enough from the car's you've mentioned. But you'll certainly find a 2009 Mondeo is reliable enough,and will takes the miles with a degree of comfort, if not outright luxury.

[Andy-gozd1]

Have you looked at personal leasing at all?With your mileage per annum i'm sure you could find something you like.

[Bozrog McGurk]

Thanks for posting guys I looked at the Volvo s80 and the Mondeo as I said Ive been round the block and its more the what will go wrong scenario and how to prevent it you mention electrics with the Merc its something else with the BMW must sdmit the Merc floats my boat so does the Lexus so its down to those unless a real bargsin grabs me thanksfor the chat

[ZX10R NIN]

With a Maximum of 7k per year I'd buy a petrol:

Mercedes E500 with the 7 speed gearbox

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

E350 Avantgarde 7 Speed

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

E320 Avantgarde 5 Speed 65k FSH

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...

[angels95]

Make the most of your low annual mileage and treat yourself to a petrol CLS. A nice CLS500 would fall well within budget.

[bearman68]

I would be horribly non inclined to gamble with the Merc. To put this in perspective, I'm an auto electrician. I fix lots of cars every week with complicated electrical issues. BMW is complicated, but at least laid out in a logical manner. Merc is all over the place. A C220 the other week had an airbag light on, and thus failed it's MOT. Top quality diagnostics will not communicate with the unit, so I don't know if it's a comms issue, or an airbag system issue. Looking at the wiring diagram, there are 10 ECU's between the diagnostic port and the airbag. Ten FFS. I must check each of those 10 for power and ground, each of those 10 for comms signal in and out. Prob 90 minutes for each, maybe more.
Depending on where the problem is (and it's always on the last unit you check), that's maybe 15 hours just to check the comms to the airbag ECU. Once I get there, I then have to fix the issue. An airbag light is therefore over 600 quid to fix.
I wondered if I was doing it wrong, so I passed it to a colleague, who promptly refused to look at it, because he won't touch Merc. Of course it's your money, but that's a game of roulette in my mind.

[ZX10R NIN]

To counter that I've had lots of Mercedes & not had a problem getting a diagnosis when I've had minor issues but then again I use a specialist with all the computers that can find faults, my air bag light coming on was due to a faulty wire in the seat they found it within 10 minutes.

So OP I'd recommend one you'll find a good few on here that own them so feel free to fire off any questions you may have.

[bearman68]

I'm not saying that a single individual case is not straightforward to diagnose. What I am saying is there is a uniquely inherent complexity in the system design. It is a complexity that precludes straightforward diagnosis in the event of partial failure, and for that reason I would be very nervous about a used car with that system onboard.

[Sargeant Orange]

Something doesn't sit right here.

You want to swap what sounds like a perfectly fine Passat (with a few scratches) for another high mileage, similar age, potentially more ruinous Mercedes/BMW & you're relying on a PPI refund to fund the change?

I think you'll get better help if you're up front about the reason for the change. Do you want more luxury, more toys, or is it about the image? If so people won't be linking you to a volvo.

Is it about the fun factor? If so I'm sure people can link you to some fun petrols.

Or do you just fancy a change?

[Bozrog McGurk]

Hi guys still looking this forum has give valuable info on what to look for with all those sharks out there

I did make a major boo boo last week tho, I saw a BMW 530i Diesel , 87,000 £3495 it had @ M54 engine which meant heehaw to me at the time , that is till , I was informed it was a great deal.
Anyway it was all subject to my mechanic giving it the thumbs up I went and had a goosey and liked it , arranged for my guy to give it the once over on the Saturday morning , never left a deposit naive I know but Ive always bought from people I know or the odd garage, text Friday night sold well pee`d off lesson learned tho.


Cheeri

YNWA

Edited by Bozrog McGurk on Sunday 19th February 19:00

[Bozrog McGurk]

Sargeant Orange said:

Something doesn't sit right here.

You want to swap what sounds like a perfectly fine Passat (with a few scratches) for another high mileage, similar age, potentially more ruinous Mercedes/BMW & you're relying on a PPI refund to fund the change?

I think you'll get better help if you're up front about the reason for the change. Do you want more luxury, more toys, or is it about the image? If so people won't be linking you to a volvo.

Is it about the fun factor? If so I'm sure people can link you to some fun petrols.

Or do you just fancy a change?

All 3 mate, nothing French or Italian I did have a Renault years ago still bare the scars .
I fancy a change comfort & toys ,some fun petrol's sound good 2.4 or 3.0 L

Edited by Bozrog McGurk on Sunday 19th February 19:06