New PHer! On the hunt for a fast estate...

[Alex_Mulvenna]

Evening all! Long time visiter, first time poster!

I'm currently on the hunt for a nice, cheap, comfy, quick estate. Requirements are as follows
- able to achieve 30-40mpg regularly
- be comfortable for long journeys
- be fast enough to keep my inside "boy racer" happy
- be reliable for daily use
- petrol, turbo preferred - no dirty diesels thank you very much
- and perhaps most importantly - be cheap!

I have around £1000 to play with. What can people recommend?

Thanks!

[MorganP104]

With your requirements in mind (budget included), it's got to be a Subaru Legacy estate.

That, or an Audi A4 Avant (B5), with a chunky V6. Or, pushing your luck, an A6 Avant (C5).

Alternatively, a straight-six BMW 5-Series Touring (E39). You might also find a six-equipped 3-Series Touring (E46), though many of the petrols in the E46 were of the 4-pot variety

[Alex_Mulvenna]

MorganP104 said:

With your requirements in mind (budget included), it's got to be a Subaru Legacy estate.

That, or an Audi A4 Avant (B5), with a chunky V6. Or, pushing your luck, an A6 Avant (C5).

Alternatively, a straight-six BMW 5-Series Touring (E39). You might also find a six-equipped 3-Series Touring (E46), though many of the petrols in the E46 were of the 4-pot variety

I'm not that keen on getting anything too...German to be honest. It needs to be cheap to maintain should anything go wrong, and with my experience so far of German cars, I'm a bit put off them!

[jagnet]

A Saab 9-5 Aero should be high on the list given those requirements.

[InitialDave]

I think the 9-5 Aero is the best option if you want something that can be deservedly called quick at that price.

[CharlesdeGaulle]

Saab 9-5 or a V70 would do what you're after. Any car can hit you with a big bill though. You also have to be realistic about the mpg you'll get from an (inevitably) older fast petrol-engined car.

If you want something mainstream, a Mondeo would be hard to beat.

[Alex_Mulvenna]

InitialDave said:

I think the 9-5 Aero is the best option if you want something that can be deservedly called quick at that price.

jagnet said:

A Saab 9-5 Aero should be high on the list given those requirements.

I was actually very close to buying this week's SOTW 9-3 Aero but he sold it before I got the chance to go look at it, rather annoyingly

[MajorMantra]

CharlesdeGaulle said:

Saab 9-5 or a V70 would do what you're after. Any car can hit you with a big bill though. You also have to be realistic about the mpg you'll get from an (inevitably) older fast petrol-engined car.

Yep. And nothing 'fast' with five or six cylinders is going to meet the mpg requirement at that budget, a turbo 4 (Saab or similar) might, just.

[CharlesdeGaulle]

MajorMantra said:

Yep. And nothing 'fast' with five or six cylinders is going to meet the mpg requirement at that budget, a turbo 4 (Saab or similar) might, just.

It's a bks requirement - turbo petrol estate making 30-40 mpg for sub-grand. Something has to give.

[Berkshire bred]

As others have said saab did some fairly quick estates but I don't know what you can get for your money. Also maybe worth looking at volvo as id have thought they have some decent offerings although again might not be in budget.

[Mr E]

jagnet said:

A Saab 9-5 Aero should be high on the list given those requirements.

This.