A daily estate for circa £5k?
Discussion
I have made a thread about this before, but my situation has changed and I need further ideas. Previously a stand out recommendation was a civic idtec estate. One thing I like is the flat load area with no lip to contend with, yet I can't help but feel a 1.6 would be a bit gutless when really called upon. I can push the boat to £8k if I must, but i'm equally happy to spend £3k on a shed.
So criteria:
- 2014 onwards
- estate
- biggest load space possible
- Low to zero road tax
- I'm not against buying cat D or N to keep the cost down.
Are cars with in excess of 150k ticking time bombs? I've spotted some Mazda 6 estates that meet the criteria but have 140-150k on them. However, £3.5k for a newish motor sounds very appealing.
So i'll start the list:
- Civic idtec
- Mazda 6 skyactiv-d
So criteria:
- 2014 onwards
- estate
- biggest load space possible
- Low to zero road tax
- I'm not against buying cat D or N to keep the cost down.
Are cars with in excess of 150k ticking time bombs? I've spotted some Mazda 6 estates that meet the criteria but have 140-150k on them. However, £3.5k for a newish motor sounds very appealing.
So i'll start the list:
- Civic idtec
- Mazda 6 skyactiv-d
I had similar criteria last summer, and ended up buying a 2014 Insignia ‘techline’ estate with 89k for £5k, facelift version so half decent interior. 2.0 CDTI with recent cambelt & water pump.
Been a good car so far, covered approx 6k miles, gives around 50mpg average over a tank, but have seen 63 on a long motorway run. £30 tax. Comfortable, even the mrs doesn’t mind driving it!
Had the dreaded oil seal done as a precaution when I bought the car as read about many engine seizures due to this.
The Mazda 6 was also on my radar, but the diesel engines are even more troublesome than the insignia it seems!
Been a good car so far, covered approx 6k miles, gives around 50mpg average over a tank, but have seen 63 on a long motorway run. £30 tax. Comfortable, even the mrs doesn’t mind driving it!
Had the dreaded oil seal done as a precaution when I bought the car as read about many engine seizures due to this.
The Mazda 6 was also on my radar, but the diesel engines are even more troublesome than the insignia it seems!
Edited by mrpbailey on Thursday 23 February 22:26
High miles don't need to be an issue, if the car has been maintained correctly. I'm not a huge fan of the long service intervals (18,000 miles +), unless you're doing that a year, and even then on higher milage cars it's still better to change the oil every 10,000 miles IMO. You're probably better with a manual gearbox, again, unless you know the history. FWIW my last 2 cars have had over 150k on the clock and been fine.
No anything more than 10 years old isn't getting a look in.
Just spotted this:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302033...
Am I asking for trouble?
Just spotted this:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302033...
Am I asking for trouble?
That engine isn't particularly well regarded for it's reliability so i'd probably stay clear. The rest of the car is great so I really wanted one it'd be the petrol which is pretty bombproof.
Not sure on prices but a mk8 Accord with the 2.2 could be worth a look. Reliable with plenty of power and good to drive.
I'd still struggle to look past thr civic though, the 1.6 is a lovely engine to drive and is capable of some truly spectacular fuel consumption figures. Drive one before you discount it.
Not sure on prices but a mk8 Accord with the 2.2 could be worth a look. Reliable with plenty of power and good to drive.
I'd still struggle to look past thr civic though, the 1.6 is a lovely engine to drive and is capable of some truly spectacular fuel consumption figures. Drive one before you discount it.
mrpbailey said:
I had similar criteria last summer, and ended up buying a 2014 Insignia ‘techline’ estate with 89k for £5k, facelift version so half decent interior. 2.0 CDTI with recent cambelt & water pump.
Been a good car so far, covered approx 6k miles, gives around 50mpg average over a tank, but have seen 63 on a long motorway run. £30 tax. Comfortable, even the mrs doesn’t mind driving it!
Had the dreaded oil seal done as a precaution when I bought the car as read about many engine seizures due to this.
The Mazda 6 was also on my radar, but the diesel engines are even more troublesome than the insignia it seems!
To echo this above, we bought a 2014 facelift "elite" estate last Aug, it was on 130k miles, now on 140k miles and its been faultless.Been a good car so far, covered approx 6k miles, gives around 50mpg average over a tank, but have seen 63 on a long motorway run. £30 tax. Comfortable, even the mrs doesn’t mind driving it!
Had the dreaded oil seal done as a precaution when I bought the car as read about many engine seizures due to this.
The Mazda 6 was also on my radar, but the diesel engines are even more troublesome than the insignia it seems!
Edited by mrpbailey on Thursday 23 February 22:26
We also had the oil seal done and gear box oil changed (auto).
Snow and Rocks said:
That engine isn't particularly well regarded for it's reliability so i'd probably stay clear. The rest of the car is great so I really wanted one it'd be the petrol which is pretty bombproof.
Not sure on prices but a mk8 Accord with the 2.2 could be worth a look. Reliable with plenty of power and good to drive.
I'd still struggle to look past thr civic though, the 1.6 is a lovely engine to drive and is capable of some truly spectacular fuel consumption figures. Drive one before you discount it.
I've done a bit of reading and it seems that diesel issues are mainly down to people doing several short journeys and not allowing dpf regen to finish, which causes excessive fuel in oil, and also egr coking up the inlet. That doesn't sound too bad at all, unless there's something I've missed?Not sure on prices but a mk8 Accord with the 2.2 could be worth a look. Reliable with plenty of power and good to drive.
I'd still struggle to look past thr civic though, the 1.6 is a lovely engine to drive and is capable of some truly spectacular fuel consumption figures. Drive one before you discount it.
Mk8 accord production ended 2012. So that's a no.
Civic noted. It's on the list.
goldar said:
No anything more than 10 years old isn't getting a look in.
Just spotted this:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302033...
Am I asking for trouble?
Most Mazda's love to rust, nothing makes me believe the slightly newer ones are any better. Just spotted this:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302033...
Am I asking for trouble?
goldar said:
No anything more than 10 years old isn't getting a look in.
Just spotted this:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302033...
Am I asking for trouble?
Yes you are asking for trouble. I would avoid anything Euro6 and with £600 spent on a DPF clean something clearly isn't right. Just spotted this:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302033...
Am I asking for trouble?
I40, Passat, Insignia, Fiat Bravo would be on my list, although they would need to be manual.
If you can stretch the budget to 6k you'll get some good options with sensible miles for1k more.
SRI Nav:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302194...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202301103...
I'd give the Mazda a miss.
SRI Nav:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302194...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202301103...
I'd give the Mazda a miss.
ZX10R NIN said:
If you can stretch the budget to 6k you'll get some good options with sensible miles for1k more.
SRI Nav:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302194...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202301103...
I'd give the Mazda a miss.
These are a lot of car for your money - with regular servicing there must be years left in them. SRI Nav:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302194...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202301103...
I'd give the Mazda a miss.
The Civic Tourer is the correct answer for your strict criteria, it has 624L boot which is 9 litres less than a Superb, some of the estates are under 500L which is not far off an MPV. With £0 road tax and a potential 60 plus mpg. If it really is too slow, then get a remap, they are low friction torquey engines.
Mazda 6? Rust and turbo problems no thanks. All the VAG stuff is the 1.6 tdi and you have the emissions update to contend with too, Honda made a really good engine with the 1.6, do check around underneith for rust, they aren't really well protected especially around the wheel wells. Better than most though, nothing some bilt hamber UC won't sort out.
At £5k in this day an age, having a reliable car which won't throw you a £1-2k bill should be your priority, Honda have that one covered, the usual checks apply, any neglected car even Honda won't be without problems.
Mazda 6? Rust and turbo problems no thanks. All the VAG stuff is the 1.6 tdi and you have the emissions update to contend with too, Honda made a really good engine with the 1.6, do check around underneith for rust, they aren't really well protected especially around the wheel wells. Better than most though, nothing some bilt hamber UC won't sort out.
At £5k in this day an age, having a reliable car which won't throw you a £1-2k bill should be your priority, Honda have that one covered, the usual checks apply, any neglected car even Honda won't be without problems.
We are on a similar journey.
The searches seem to come back to a Skoda. A good few 14/15 plate Octavia with 150k ish at £6k
The age limit seems rather arbitrary, is there a firm reason why?
This one ticks all our boxes, save the boy racer blue colour. https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302244...
The searches seem to come back to a Skoda. A good few 14/15 plate Octavia with 150k ish at £6k
The age limit seems rather arbitrary, is there a firm reason why?
This one ticks all our boxes, save the boy racer blue colour. https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302244...
You mention you want a large boot space, but what about rear seat space? The civics are not very big in the back for child seats etc, length of the car is around half a metre shorter than the Insignia.
Most threads of this type get reccomended to look at Insignias and Mondeos.
Mega mile Audi A6 another option:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302194...
Cat S Passat:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302214...
Most threads of this type get reccomended to look at Insignias and Mondeos.
Mega mile Audi A6 another option:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302194...
Cat S Passat:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302214...
Excellent feedback.
Why should I avoid something euro 6?
I don't want anything over 10 years old as I feel that that is the point where a car starts to become old. My experience of course. Yours may differ.
There's also ulez to contend with. The little differences in design between a vehicle that's 15 years old to one that's 5 years old also make a difference. So I want something as new as possible. 10 years is the cut off.
How would a superb compare to a civic, octavia, insignia or otherwise? Are they within budget/criteria?
Someone above mentioned a 15 plate octavia with 150k is within budget. A 13 plate E class with similar mileage is also within budget. Is there any reason to go with the passat over the e class?
Rear seat space isn't too much of a concern. 99% of the time it will only be me in the car. I don't have kids. But the bigger, the better.
That cat s Passat looks nice. I have no issue with cat n, but cat s puts me off because you don't know what was damaged or how it was repaired.
I knew a guy who ran a bodyshop, he bought and sold accident damaged cars. I heard one story of him replacing a roof - he cut out all the strengthening ribs and did not put them back. That alone makes me steer clear of anything with structural damage.
Why should I avoid something euro 6?
I don't want anything over 10 years old as I feel that that is the point where a car starts to become old. My experience of course. Yours may differ.
There's also ulez to contend with. The little differences in design between a vehicle that's 15 years old to one that's 5 years old also make a difference. So I want something as new as possible. 10 years is the cut off.
How would a superb compare to a civic, octavia, insignia or otherwise? Are they within budget/criteria?
Someone above mentioned a 15 plate octavia with 150k is within budget. A 13 plate E class with similar mileage is also within budget. Is there any reason to go with the passat over the e class?
Rear seat space isn't too much of a concern. 99% of the time it will only be me in the car. I don't have kids. But the bigger, the better.
That cat s Passat looks nice. I have no issue with cat n, but cat s puts me off because you don't know what was damaged or how it was repaired.
I knew a guy who ran a bodyshop, he bought and sold accident damaged cars. I heard one story of him replacing a roof - he cut out all the strengthening ribs and did not put them back. That alone makes me steer clear of anything with structural damage.
Edited by goldar on Sunday 26th February 20:19
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