Options based on car allowance - circa £300 / month

[DickP]

Hi,

As some may have seen from a previous topic of mine, I had a mishap in the brief snow period a month or two ago. The result was my Focus 2.0 tdci mk3 required a replacement wishbone (replaced the pair), driveshaft and wheel due to a front nearside impact with the kerb.

Even after these works, there is a drive train fault that developed coincidentally at the same time as the impact. This may be as simple as a wheel bearing (although these thus far appear okay on checks including with a dial on the hubs), or may be the drive shaft intermediate bearing or potentially gearbox damage as a result of the force which put the slight bend in the nearside drive shaft.

I am now weighing up options before spending further funds on the Focus because I think it has the potential to be costing circa £2,000 in addition to the existing expenditure following the mishap. Likewise it may not cost anywhere near as much if it were say the wheel bearing, but being given a car allowance there is an expectation to have a working car rather than it being in the garage every other week chasing / trying to fix the problem(s).

The purpose of the Focus was to be relatively cheap, reliable and practical motoring which wasn't painfully dull and would support my outdoor sports (cycling, climbing etc.). I was planning to run the car for the next two to three years as I up until the incident I was averaging 24k annum mileage (on a pro-rata basis)

Prior to purchasing the Focus I had seriously considered alternatives of say purchasing a 25k miles Seat Leon ST FR 184, run this for two to three years and then sell on. I had estimated the end user costs but when all figures put into my spreadsheet the Focus option was significantly cheaper, important when saving for say a house deposit.

I also had a first generation Focus estate a few years ago, albiet the TDDI. That car was, in my opinion, far better than the third generation. I have also used and worked on the second generation which was also better, and have previously owned a mk3 Mondeo. The third generation Focus definitely has poorer quality materials in the cabin - a symptom of Ford's financial situation in the late 2000s I presume.

Based on the above, I would like people's thoughts on options if I were to trade-in the Focus for an alternative using on my car allowance (circa £300 / month). I think the Focus trade-in value is a minimum of £4,000 with it being a 2011 model on approx. 85k and the 2.0 TDCi.

Requirements are:
Relatively low maintenance cost
Relatively good mpg so 50+ mpg (if diesel, and not averse to petrol if economical enough)
Not painfully slow, therefore at least 9 seconds to 62mph as a basic figure (slightly better preferred)
Not painfully dull (i.e. no worse than the Focus)
Mileage approx. 24k per annum
Practical for being able to sling a road bike in without taking the wheels off etc.

During the week I can be commuting into the city so am in stop start traffic for 45-60 minutes, but also visit sites throughout the North West and go further afield at weekends for my hobby sports (e..g Wales, Scotland, Lakes). An automatic would be nice but I don't think they're best associated at the type of car I am looking for.

Thoughts and comments are welcome.

Thanks,

[ZX10R NIN]

If you don't mind spending around 8k you can land a car as good as the Focus & that won't be affected by any future ULEZ Zones too:

308

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

Astra Elite You'll have to check the reg to see which are euro6.

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

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

If you want to stretch & get something to last the next 4-6 years then 10k is the number.

2017 Model

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

Or a Kia Ceed 3

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

[DickP]

Hi

Thanks for the quick reply.

I did consider an Astra before the Focus as I had an Astra J estate 1.7 130 as my company car two jobs ago. I'll admit that as much as I cursed it at the time because of the woeful performance it was actually well screwed together (relatively) and didn't seem to suffer even though I gave it death.

They also looked pretty substantial underneath given the class of car... (thinking more OTT like Volvo than substantial just enough for what's needed like most cars)

What put me off them was the reports of gearbox failures however. Do you know any more about those issues?

Thanks,

[Shrimpvende]

I'd lease something like this:

https://www.selectcarleasing.co.uk/car-leasing/sea...

Petrol so immune from anything daft that might come into effect for diesels over the next couple of years, just about economical and quick enough and still a practical 5 door family car. Even with the mileage set at 25k PA it falls close to the £300pm budget at £321 ammortised. Although, if you paid the initial payment from the sale of your focus you'd be quids in at £297pm!

I lease a Skoda as a daily so fairly similar VAG car, I've now had it for a year and the quality has been excellent. Absolutely nothing has gone wrong and it's been great for what I've needed it for.

[DickP]

Hi

The drawback with that lease suggestion is the small hatch boot isn't it?

I would need the estate version to be able to give it consideration.

Thanks,

[ZX10R NIN]

DickP said:

Hi

Thanks for the quick reply.

I did consider an Astra before the Focus as I had an Astra J estate 1.7 130 as my company car two jobs ago. I'll admit that as much as I cursed it at the time because of the woeful performance it was actually well screwed together (relatively) and didn't seem to suffer even though I gave it death.

They also looked pretty substantial underneath given the class of car... (thinking more OTT like Volvo than substantial just enough for what's needed like most cars)

What put me off them was the reports of gearbox failures however. Do you know any more about those issues?

Thanks,

They're very reliable the gearbox is a proper automatic rather than a dual clutch which lowers any bork issues massively, in terms of reliability they're as good as anything else out there but they have a badge issue which is great for you as a used buyer, the Focus is the slightly better steer but they're decent enough.

[DickP]

Hi,

If it's a traditional automatic, does that mean it won't actually be that efficient then?

Thanks,

[ZX10R NIN]

No it's still efficient also a lot of companies that went down the dual clutch route are now going back to Autos as their proving to be a better long term option.