Sub £5K Economical Automatic Estate

[giblet]

As per title. Looking to replace my 2008 9-3 petrol Aero estate which I’ve had for almost four years.

Main reason being the running costs. Over £600 a year in tax and an average of 25.3MPG over 22k miles has become annoying. By the end of this year I will have spent more on road tax in 4 years than I did on buying the damn thing.

Wanting to stay around the same size. So far the diesel version of the same car is the front runner as it would have the same modern(ish) cons like heated seats, parking sensors and xenon lights. All the german stuff seems to be lower spec or way ropier condition and higher miles. Have I missed anything obvious?

[_Mja_]

I have a Seat Exeo which I have owned since it was a few months old / 3k odo. Now done 90k. I did the front discs and pads last week and the rear pads at 56k and that is it other than annual servicing and 1x cambelt.

You can pick up an end of the line one like mine (2013 sport tech estate - xenon, leather, bose etc) for 4-5k.

The auto gearbox is a mulitronic which is not known for being super reliable.

Tax is about £140 per year, easy 45mpg and that is my long term ave over 90k.

[giblet]

Forgot about the Exeo, will have a look into them. I guess it’s just an A4 in disguise.

[ZX10R NIN]

giblet said:

As per title. Looking to replace my 2008 9-3 petrol Aero estate which I’ve had for almost four years.

Main reason being the running costs. Over £600 a year in tax and an average of 25.3MPG over 22k miles has become annoying. By the end of this year I will have spent more on road tax in 4 years than I did on buying the damn thing.

Wanting to stay around the same size. So far the diesel version of the same car is the front runner as it would have the same modern(ish) cons like heated seats, parking sensors and xenon lights. All the german stuff seems to be lower spec or way ropier condition and higher miles. Have I missed anything obvious?

I'd go for it's cousin the Insignia:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202206086...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207117...

[Wheel_Turned_Out]

With my sensible trousers on I'm inclined to suggest the Kia Cee'd. Not as nice a place to be as your Saab, maybe a bit smaller load area too. But dependable, well built and you will be able to get a nice car that has been reasonably well looked after within budget.

[georgeyboy12345]

Yes, a diesel version of what you already have would be a good choice. The TTiD engines are good
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202206247...


Another Swedish choice would be something from Volvo, though a lot of the bigger stuff is very leggy & ropey, or they have the geartronic 'boxes, which I would avoid. So that basically leaves the V50, which is essentially a Ford Focus underneath, so could be a bit smaller than what you are used to.

The 1.6D DRIVe is only £20 a year to tax and gets mid-50s mpg. You might find it a bit slow though.
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202205306...

The 2.0D has a bit more go and I think is a bit more reliable to boot - that said, I have seen 1.6Ds with over 200k on them
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202206206...


This BMW E90 330d Touring looks nice. Since it's a 2006 model, it has the more reliable M57 engine in it, that should be able to do the same mileage it has already covered again. Interior isn't too bad, but I have a feeling it might smell of dog in there!
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202112300...


Finally, there is the Mercedes W204 C220 CDI that uses the same OM651 engine found in Sprinter vans, so should be very reliable.
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207127...

[markirl]

The reality of going from a v6 petrol to a 4 cylinder diesel will not be pleasant. I also had 3 9-3s over time - 2.0t, 2.0T aero and a 1.9tid model which was 6 months old at the time. While the tid was the shiniest, it was by far the worst car and the economy was terrible (37mpg and I did mainly motorway) for enduring the dagdagdag everyday.

Left field suggestion:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207067...
Tax is reasonable, great power, this particular one although its a cat N has great spec and probably room to negotiate. Everyone cries about the N53 but it's a great engine, I've had 40mpg on a run out of mine (albeit a manual).

Otherwise I'd be trying to get into a 6 pot diesel, the m57 & n57 in the 3 and 5 series of similar era are fantastic engines.

Otherwise v60 and octavia vrs DSG are worth a look

[giblet]

ZX10R NIN said:

I'd go for it's cousin the Insignia:

I can’t say that I’m a fan of the styling but will have a look into them

Wheel_Turned_Out said:

With my sensible trousers on I'm inclined to suggest the Kia Cee'd. Not as nice a place to be as your Saab, maybe a bit smaller load area too. But dependable, well built and you will be able to get a nice car that has been reasonably well looked after within budget.

They are a tad too small and not a huge fan of the interior

georgeyboy12345 said:

Yes, a diesel version of what you already have would be a good choice. The TTiD engines are good

Finally, there is the Mercedes W204 C220 CDI that uses the same OM651 engine found in Sprinter vans, so should be very reliable.

The C class is my pick, seems good for the money. Powered tailgate is a nice touch too. Will research them further. The 9-3 TTiD seem to be cheaper in comparison though

markirl said:

The reality of going from a v6 petrol to a 4 cylinder diesel will not be pleasant. I also had 3 9-3s over time - 2.0t, 2.0T aero and a 1.9tid model which was 6 months old at the time. While the tid was the shiniest, it was by far the worst car and the economy was terrible (37mpg and I did mainly motorway) for enduring the dagdagdag everyday.

Left field suggestion:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207067...
Tax is reasonable, great power, this particular one although its a cat N has great spec and probably room to negotiate. Everyone cries about the N53 but it's a great engine, I've had 40mpg on a run out of mine (albeit a manual).

Otherwise I'd be trying to get into a 6 pot diesel, the m57 & n57 in the 3 and 5 series of similar era are fantastic engines.

Otherwise v60 and octavia vrs DSG are worth a look

My current 9-3 is a 2.0T, higher tax bracket due to emissions. I wish it was the V6! Never owned a diesel but they seem to make sense financially now so I would have to look past the dagdagdag. Finding a clean non moon mileage VRS seems difficult for my budget

[markirl]

I really liked the 06 Aero 2.0T I had for a while and bitterly hated the 1.9tid that I had shortly after it - I suggest you at least go and have a critical test drive of one as, imho, the engine was the thing that made the 9-3 great.

It's a bit bigger than what you have but the facelift w211 Mercedes Eclass is a great wagon.

[Belle427]

I had an 08 Aero Tid and quite liked it, the engine has some decent punch and could be remapped to almost 200 Bhp if you fancied a bit more. Mpg was great too.
I’m currently keeping my eye out for a Ttid as I do fancy one but prices have shot up.
Others I’ve looked at are Merc C250 Cdi, BMW 320/325/330d.

[ninjag]

If you could up the budget slightly there's a nice Honda Accord which has the toys. It's a pretty quiet diesel engine if well maintained.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2022062370...

[giblet]

markirl said:

I really liked the 06 Aero 2.0T I had for a while and bitterly hated the 1.9tid that I had shortly after it - I suggest you at least go and have a critical test drive of one as, imho, the engine was the thing that made the 9-3 great.

It's a bit bigger than what you have but the facelift w211 Mercedes Eclass is a great wagon.

Was it that bad? To be fair the B207R in my current one isn't the best example so a diesel dagdag wouldn't be that much louder

Belle427 said:

I had an 08 Aero Tid and quite liked it, the engine has some decent punch and could be remapped to almost 200 Bhp if you fancied a bit more. Mpg was great too.
I’m currently keeping my eye out for a Ttid as I do fancy one but prices have shot up.
Others I’ve looked at are Merc C250 Cdi, BMW 320/325/330d.

I've seen a few TTiD autos for sale but prices seem to be all over the place, as do specs. Might be searching for a while

ninjag said:

If you could up the budget slightly there's a nice Honda Accord which has the toys. It's a pretty quiet diesel engine if well maintained.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2022062370...

Seems a bit sluggish in comparison to the Saab but I've always liked the Accords. Might view one locally

[markirl]

giblet said:

Was it that bad? To be fair the B207R in my current one isn't the best example so a diesel dagdag wouldn't be that much louder

Sounds like your mind is made up anyway, but as I said I suggest you test drive one with eyes wide open. I never found it economical enough for the sacrifice in refinement!

[giblet]

Mind isn’t fully made up, shortlist so far is the TTiD, C220/C250, Octavia VRS (budget creep) and the Exeo. Will try and view some cars locally and see how they compare

[nobrakes]

I wouldn’t discount a good car just because it didn’t have heated seats or parking sensors.

[giblet]

nobrakes said:

I wouldn’t discount a good car just because it didn’t have heated seats or parking sensors.

I've gotten used to things like that which is why I'm looking for the replacement to have it. Will be a daily shed so it's nice to have some creature comforts

[Martin_Hx]

giblet said:

nobrakes said:

I wouldn’t discount a good car just because it didn’t have heated seats or parking sensors.

I've gotten used to things like that which is why I'm looking for the replacement to have it. Will be a daily shed so it's nice to have some creature comforts

We have a 2014 (facelift) Insignia which we bought for 5K last year and its been great, does about 60mpg on a run (170 diesel).

Regarding kit, ours is an elite. I wanted decent headlights (Xenon) and parking sensors... these cars can be big and the sensors are very much welcome when parking!