9/10K Budget for Family SUV/MPV. Suggestions/Advice?

[_andym]

Hi All,

In the interest of honesty I should probably start by saying I know very little about cars... Please don't judge me!

I'm hoping to get some advice/suggestion as the title suggestions for potential family SUV/MPV's with a budget of £9/10k. I've had a nosey online and I've gone with the idea of looking to get something as young as possible with as little miles as possible. I've disregarded 'french' cars and any that I wasn't 100% sure on their reliability, i.e. Dacia, Suzuki and SsangYong etc.

The current shortlist includes (ordered by price):

2014 Vauxhall Zafira 2.0L Diesel SRI (30k miles)
2015 Ford C-Max 1.5L Diesel Zetec (37k miles)
2013 Mazda 5 2.0L Venture Edition (28k miles)
2013 Ford Kuga 2.0L Diesel Titanium (35k miles)
2014 Hyundai ix35 1.7L Diesel SE (35k miles)
2015 Ford C-Max 1.6L Petrol Zetec (8K miles)

I'm based in Northern Ireland so pricing is probably slightly higher than mainland UK but those are the sort of makes/models that come to mind for the SUV/MPV style. As mentioned I've not really looked and Nissan or Peugeot etc as they seem to get a bad rep. Would I be wrong in thinking that?

The other option is to look at the likes of:

2009 BMW X3 2.0L X3 XDrive 20D M Sport A (61k miles)
2009 Audi Q5 2.0L TDI Quattro SE (89k miles)

Possibly higher spec makes but a lot older with a good lot more miles. I tend to try and hold onto cars as long as possible and average about 10k miles per year so I'm thinking with the first list I could potentially get a minimum of 7/8 years or so for the majority of them, that's the hope anyway.

Like I said though I don't know much about motors so was hoping someone could offer some advice that would make some sort of sense/logic.

Side note: The reasoning for an SUV/MPV is due to the 2 kids, prams, bikes, dog and all the other nonsense that comes with having a young family. The budget is based on paying off over 3 years, which would hopefully allow me the other 4/5 years minimum to then pay off something a bit more fun before having to revisit the idea of replacing this one.

Not sure if the above is all just ramblings or something that makes sense and someone can maybe relate to the scenario. Any advice/suggestion would be much appreciated.

Thanks,
.a

[Pistonheader101]

All good choices, however I would discount the Q5 and X3 from the list simply due to age.

[The Don of Croy]

Consider the Ford S-max too - great to drive, oodles of room and we'll kitted out.

[anonymous-user]

Mrs OB has a Kia Sportage and it's been great. Pretty quick, silly reliable, kids haven't wrecked the inside even though they climb all over it, cheap to service and insure, I am quietly jealous of it.

[_andym]

Thanks all, appreciate the replies. It seems my lack of knowledge wasn't too far off the right lines which is good to know. Now just need to work out if there is a car salesmen you can actually trust out there lol.

Speaking of which, any thoughts on best time to try and get a bit of cheeky discount/negotiation. Would before Christmas/New Year be the better time or early January when sales are maybe a bit slower? Or would it be worth holding off until late February/early March to see if this brings the prices down a bit with the new plate registrations?

@OpulentBob, I actually had a test drive in a Sportage, unfortunately this was before the Tax man decided he wanted a slice of my potential monthly spend, which reduced the budget from 12k to the 9/10k mentioned. This then limited the options available on the Sportage's locally, but yeah good call.

.a

[ninjag]

Suzuki are very reliable, especially petrol ones. I think the Vauxhall Zafira can also be relied upon...to go on fire?

You can get a 2015 Suzuki Vitara SZ4 with 13k miles on the clock for less than £10k.

Edited by ninjag on Sunday 16th December 22:40

[ZX10R NIN]

SUV wise the one to take a very good look at Jeep Grand Cherokee:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

More sensible options:

Kia Sorento KX-3

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Hyundai Santa Fe Premium

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

MPV wise I'd say the Mazda5 is a very good option:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

OR the S Max but they do hold their money well.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

[Terzo123]

Another vote for a Jeep Grande Cherokee.

I ran one for 2.5 years and it was great. Tax is expensive, fuel is expensive, but for its size it was fast, it was reliable and it was a great big thing to cruise about in.

[_andym]

Cheers for all the replies. As mentioned I’m in Northern Ireland so availability isn’t as good. Would love a Santa Fe but think they are a tad out of budget.

As mentioned plan is to get this one paid off as quickly as possible which might allow me then to look at something like the Santa Fe or sorento.

Will definitely be leaving it until after Christmas now so will see what the new year brings.

Thanks all,
.a

[ninjag]

Be very aware of the AWD system in the older Sorento and Santa Fe, especially if out of warranty. Notorious for breaking, even the dealership admitted it, and very expensive to fix because you can't get pattern parts for the AWD system.

[_andym]

Yeah wouldn’t have any use for the AWD so would most likely stay away from those.

Any issues with looking at diesels? I was reading another thread and people where saying to stay clear due to gov cracking down on them?

I’m 12 miles from work the majority of which is motorway/dual carriageway. Car sits in car park the best part of the day, then home and sits in drive way. Was trying to get some info on DPFs and whether I do enough miles and long enough distances. Which, I doubt I do. Less than 10k miles a year and very few journeys over 25miles or so. Petrol is looking the better option I think?

[flatso]

Too bad you’ve discounted french cars, a late model 2013-2014 top spec Espace ( Initiale) would be an amazing choice. A genuinely interesting people carrier that has had time to mature as the model was produced over 12 years. Its a well designed cruiser.
The S-max is a geat product.

[_andym]

I think I’ve got it narrowed down to two main options with a random left field entry for a third potential.

2015 Hyundai ix35 1.6GDI SE, 24k miles £10695
or
2015 Ford C-Max 1.6 125 Zetec, 8k miles £9995

I’m thinking the C-Max is the better option simply due to the low miles? Both from reputable dealers so I’d assume all is above board with genuine miles and descriptions etc.

A bit of a left field option though during my online searching. The wife currently drives an Astra SRI which is grand. We’d probably ideally like something bigger hence the 2 options above but I’ve seen a 2017 December reg Astra 1.4 16v design, 9k miles for £9999. The low mileage and younger car does appeal. Maybe even possibly manufacture warranty remaining as it’s only really a year old.

Any thoughts/advice?

p.s. I’ve decided to stick to petrols as I don’t do the miles to keep a diesel running well it seems?

Cheers
.a

[ZX10R NIN]

I'd go for the C Max it's the better car.

[Belle427]

Smax would fit the bill well, I find the crossover type suv are not great on boot space.
An estate is another option with roof racks for bikes etc, Mondeo seems highly regarded here.

[_andym]

So I know an old thread but was on posting about another query and wanted to close this off...

Long story short... I decided to push the boat (every boat I could get my hands on!) out and go for broke literally.

We decided my wifes car was going to pack it in soon as well so we are looking at getting both cars sorted around the same time. Took a little bit longer to get our ducks in a row but on the ball now.

Just picked up a 2018 Astra 1.0Turbo for my wife. She decided to go for a smaller car closer to what she was used to rather than the likes of the CMax or SUV style just for peace of mind parking etc.

I plan to go ahead and get a slightly nicer SUV than what was discussed above. Just wanted to say cheers for the advice and everyones input.

Ta,
.a

p.s. sorry if it's poor form to restart an old thread.

[ZX10R NIN]

Good to know you got sorted OP.