SUV esque something, under warranty and sub 20k... hybrids?

[Davie]

Morning,

My turn to ask for some thoughts on this as it's outwit my comfort zone!

Father in law is looking to buy something ASAP.

Budget is around £20k
Would prefer raised height
Automatic / DSG / CVT
Mid sized
Not continental drift esque performace
No 21" alloys and over zealous tech
Leaning towards a petrol
Sub 10k a year

He's seen a ex demo Dacia Duster Hybrid, I'm a bit vague on the exact spec details however from my perspective (and his) there's a slight fear of the unknown once it's outwith manufacturers warranty, though I think I'm correct in saying Dacia can be extended to 5yrs now? It also seems particularly slow, 0-60 in 14 secs and whilst he's not Jackie Stewart, he does want something that isn't hard work to keep up with normal traffic.

His car history, it may shed some light... he had a Merc C-Class estate then drove his Vivaro for years (ex tradie) and t hen bought a 2012 XC70 D5 which destroyed it's clutch last year (he fixed it, should have just kept it IMO!) and then latterly he's had a T5.1 Transporter camper that he's just sold. Hence, he likes something basic, practical, higher up and and liked the DSG in the Transporter hence auto is preferred.

His biggest concern is repair costs / issues outwith a warranty period, hence he's being tempted by the likes of Toyota and Kia with longer warranty. He'd buy new but realistically needs something pre-registered or ex demo as he's not prepared to factory order something.

I honestly thought he was going to buy a sheddy Yeti / Caddy etc to run about in but he's decided he wants hassle free. He's considered a smaller hatch but he needs something a bit bigger - VW T-Roc has been mentioned and so has a Tuscon.

Pretty broad brief but as said, not a market segment that I'm particularly well versed with

[Silvanus]

The extended Dacia warranty is actually 7 years if serviced through approved network, look up Dacia ZEN warranty.

It's worth noting that the outgoing Duster was the highest rated car during the last Driver power survey. Dacias are generally regarded as pretty reliable and pretty well screwed together, although they are of course fairly rough and ready and you won't find acres of soft touch plastics, form over function with the possibility of the odd squeak or rattle.

My Logan was absolutely used and abused and never put a foot wrong despite doing things it really wasn't designed to do. I know quite a few foresters, farmers and agents that use Dusters as their work vehicles and all couldn't recommend them enough.

It might also be worth looking at the Jogger Hybrid as their a a few nearly new/demos about, although it's more jacked up Estate/crossover than SUV.

We really wanted the new Duster but recently ended up in a situation where we needed a new car ASAP. We tried most of the similarly priced competition (lease) and ended up with a Renault Symbioz, wife's choice as she drives it the most. Really really wish we'd been able to hold out for a Duster or Bigster.

[66HFM]

Toyota Rav 4 or the Suzuki equivalent (Across?)

[Davie]

Silvanus said:

The extended Dacia warranty is actually 7 years if serviced through approved network, look up Dacia ZEN warranty.

It's worth noting that the outgoing Duster was the highest rated car during the last Driver power survey. Dacias are generally regarded as pretty reliable and pretty well screwed together, although they are of course fairly rough and ready and you won't find acres of soft touch plastics, form over function with the possibility of the odd squeak or rattle.

My Logan was absolutely used and abused and never put a foot wrong despite doing things it really wasn't designed to do. I know quite a few foresters, farmers and agents that use Dusters as their work vehicles and all couldn't recommend them enough.

It might also be worth looking at the Jogger Hybrid as their a a few nearly new/demos about, although it's more jacked up Estate/crossover than SUV.

We really wanted the new Duster but recently ended up in a situation where we needed a new car ASAP. We tried most of the similarly priced competition (lease) and ended up with a Renault Symbioz, wife's choice as she drives it the most. Really really wish we'd been able to hold out for a Duster or Bigster.

That's great, cheers!

He won't be remotely bothered about class leading ride quality or the latest tech, he's spent years driving an old Vivaro so it's very much function over form. Having looked at the new Duster, I think I'm right in saying that the only automatic option is the hybrid... which he was initially sceptical about (as was I) as he was worried about potential repair costs but if there's a 7yr option, that changes things a bit as he'll be happy to follow the service requirements with whatever he buys.

Maybe worth a look, though they do seem really quite slow on paper... but I suppose it'd very much depend on how that transfers on to the road. Nothing a test drive won't answer though.

Regarding the 7yrs warranty, I'm possibly being thick here but it says up to 7yrs but the wording seems odd:

https://www.dacia.co.uk/maintenance/dacia-zen.html

Am I right in thinking after 3yrs, if you get it serviced by Dacia you get another year... then that rolls on year on year up to 7yrs? It's not 7yrs warranty as such, but it's 3 years then every annual service thereafter, they extend it by another year and so on?



Cheers

Edited by Davie on Tuesday 29th April 14:20

[Huzzah]

I think the new duster hybrid is around 10s to 60, my old 1.0 tce is around 13sec. It feels OK, because of the midrange.

[nickfrog]

Is an Xceed too small?

[Jazoli]

You can get a new (pre reg) Ateca 1.5 DSG from Carwow for £23k, it’s a lot of car for the money.

And yes I’m obviously recommending my own car!

[nickfrog]

^ that's a blinding deal, particularly with the 5 year warranty.

[steve365]

I'd take a look at a Vitara, in top spec SZ5 1.4 Boosterjet (and potentially Hybrid after 2020). Whilst the auto variant isn't DSG, I found it perfectly respectable and performance stronger than expected. As you'd expect, they have an excellent reliability reputation.

[Pica-Pica]

Honda Jazz?
The 0-60 is about 9.6 seconds, but the 0-30 is probably a better measure given electric motor at lower speeds.

[Silvanus]

steve365 said:

I'd take a look at a Vitara, in top spec SZ5 1.4 Boosterjet (and potentially Hybrid after 2020). Whilst the auto variant isn't DSG, I found it perfectly respectable and performance stronger than expected. As you'd expect, they have an excellent reliability reputation.

As decent as the Vitara is, it's definitely showing its age now and feel very dated. Not the most practical compared to the competition either.

[ZX10R NIN]

Kia XCeed 4:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202504091...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202504121...

If you drop to a 3 you'll get a 2024 car which means it'll be warrantied until 2031:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202504261...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202406100...

[nickfrog]

^ I wouldn't get the hybrid though, it's slow, unpleasant and compromises boot space. 1.5t might be a better choice.

[Davie]

Looks like he's since got himself sorted with a 2023 Duster 1.3 automatic (so last of the older shape) with extended warranty from the dealer plus he's going to get it serviced with Dacia and thus "should" get their warranty up to 7yrs old too. He's happy with it and I agree, seem to suit his needs - automatic, decent size, pretty basic motoring and fake off road stance so with suitable all seasons tyres, will be fine for the odd off road fishing trip. Wasn't that clued up on these but 130bhp / 184lb/ft so "should" be ok for what he needs - seems quite a punchy little engine given it's size.

Have strongly advised he goes over it with a fine tooth comb before signing on the dotted line.

Appreciate the input. Was hoping he'd get a C7 RS6 Avant but such is life...

Edited by Davie on Wednesday 30th April 13:02

[steve365]

Silvanus said:

As decent as the Vitara is, it's definitely showing its age now and feel very dated. Not the most practical compared to the competition either.

Whilst I agree it's getting on a bit, given the OP's requirement for lack of hassle/repairs - I'd still pick one over any VAG alternative (despite the higher 'perceived quality' of the interior) and probably Mazda too. Going for an SZ5 trim makes it dead easy to get one with decent spec. With the Xceed, whilst I liked it, felt barely any higher than a regular hatch, if that's important.

[nickfrog]

steve365 said:

With the Xceed, whilst I liked it, felt barely any higher than a regular hatch, if that's important.

It's exactly half way between a Ceed/Golf hatch and a Sportage/Tiguan SUV in terms of ride height. Probably not coincidentally.