Buying a 3 year old upmarket estate

[John-4xo95]

The time has come for me replace my long serving MG ZTT190.

I tend to buy a 2 or 3 year old car then keep it for ages (5 years at least)

These days I’ll probably end up with an 3y.o. ex-PCP car as there are many on the market.

I’m considering a prestige / near-prestige estate car : Mercedes C-Class, Jag XF Sportbrake, Mazada 6, Volvo v60, Mondeo, etc


But…… due to the complexity of these cars is owning one from 3 to 8 years old just going to be a money pit i.e. hitting be ‘peak unreliability/ repair cost’?

How does this bear out in practice?

Any thoughts / recommendations?

(I don’t mind a few minor things not working and minor repairs but I want to avoid major bills).

Should I take the plunge, go newer (i.e. 1 y.o. or ex-demo) or even spend a couple of grand bringing my ZTT back up to scratch?

[LayZ]

My recommendation: last of the line W212 E class with the 350 CDI engine. Proven, and a proper Mercedes.

[ZX10R NIN]

To be honest most cars of this ilk are pretty reliable which you go for depends on your needs, do you want diesel/petrol? Annual mileage? Auto/Manual? Your budget will dictate what's are the best options.

[John-4xo95]

My annual mileage is around < 10K; not much in the week but some long weekend / holiday trips bring the total up.

Due to low mileage and DPF issues I'm inclined to go for a petrol with manual (but these a rare for this type of car);

Budget: I can stretch to low 20s but I'll only spend that amount if I'm getting something that's value for money and will last. Other will probably spend around 15.

[ZX10R NIN]

Finding a Manual with this type of auto is more normal:

Mondeo Vignale I have one of these (in diesel form & really cant fault it) there's a defiant step up from the Titanium especially with a lighter interior.

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

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

Mazda6 Sport Nav

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

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

V60 T4 Design Lux

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

Skoda Octavia VRS good cars but I'd always buy the Mondeo as it's the imo better car in terms of drive & spec.

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

[Scrump]

LayZ said:

My recommendation: last of the line W212 E class with the 350 CDI engine. Proven, and a proper Mercedes.

That is what I have and would also recommend it.

[pb8g09]

BMW 330D F31. Can easily get a low mileage and high spec with change from your budget.

[Jon18299]

pb8g09 said:

BMW 330D F31. Can easily get a low mileage and high spec with change from your budget.

This. My last car was a 330d estate and it was great.

[Poppiecock]

LayZ said:

My recommendation: last of the line W212 E class with the 350 CDI engine. Proven, and a proper Mercedes.

With the added bonus you can do airport pickups in your spare time!

[Poppiecock]

pb8g09 said:

BMW 330D F31. Can easily get a low mileage and high spec with change from your budget.

A 530d (F11) will be about the same price and is light years ahead on comfort and refinement.

[Mr E]

The E class is now nearly 10 years old. I’ve run it for a few years now. The roof issue was the only serious unexpected bill.

At some point it’ll bankrupt me I’m sure.

[andyalan10]

You seem in two minds about how much space you want.

C-Class and V60 are much smaller than Mazda, Mondeo, XF.

I had a ZTT-190 2 cars ago, on my second V70 since. Much as I loved its looks, character and handling the Volvos have been in a different league for durability.

If you are seriously considering the XF try and find the discussion on here recently about the last of the old shape being rather better quality than the new model, which is a shame because it could be my "realistic dream" car.

I wouldn't worry about newer cars being more expensive/difficult to maintain at a certain age. People have said that every Volvo estate since the Amazon has been "not as good quality as the last one" but my second V70 (phase 3) has been cheap to maintain and reliable so far (owned from 132,000 to 181,000 miles). With your ownership style (similar to mine) I think independent garages and owners just keep coming up to speed with newer cars and known faults and fixes or workarounds

Unless you are seriously space constrained I'd be looking at 5 series/E class/V70 rather than the smaller ones, just seem to be more attractively specced examples around.

[Poppiecock]

andyalan10 said:

Unless you are seriously space constrained I'd be looking at 5 series/E class/V70 rather than the smaller ones, just seem to be more attractively specced examples around.

Very much this - the difference in price between a 3 series and 5 series when you match the specs. is very small indeed. Lots of stuff that's an option on a 3 comes as standard even on the 'poverty' 5-series SE.

[Jag_NE]

Have a look at one year old cars. They tend to be pretty good value in my experience vs a three year old equivalent.

I’d also second a 330d. Perfect all rounder and with the new shape just out there will be some value out there on the old shape.

[Jamescrs]

I think as said above you need to consider how much space you need so people can give an effective recommendation.

My personal circumstances are that my daily drive is a Volvo V60, it's a very good car and 90% of the time is all the car I need for practicality but having just come back from 2 weeks in Cornwall with the wife and two young kids I'm now wishing I bought a bigger class of estate car such as V70, E class or 5 series type size or probably a Skoda Superb.

My V60 was literally full to bursting on the journeys down to.cornwall and back up and it would have been far more comfortable in a bigger class of estate.

[pb8g09]

Poppiecock said:

Very much this - the difference in price between a 3 series and 5 series when you match the specs. is very small indeed. Lots of stuff that's an option on a 3 comes as standard even on the 'poverty' 5-series SE.

330 is bit faster than the 530

[ninjag]

John-4xo95 said:

My annual mileage is around < 10K; not much in the week but some long weekend / holiday trips bring the total up.

Due to low mileage and DPF issues I'm inclined to go for a petrol with manual (but these a rare for this type of car);

Budget: I can stretch to low 20s but I'll only spend that amount if I'm getting something that's value for money and will last. Other will probably spend around 15.

For the XF Sportbrake I would be looking at either the x250 3.0d or X260 2.0 petrol. Avoid X260 diesels. Personally I find the x250 nicer inside and the ride is very smooth even on our roads.

For BMW I'd be looking at the 5 series rather than 3 series. I found the interior a considerable step up and far more expensive feeling. It wasn't as nimble feeling but the whole car felt more substantial and nicer for touring. Plus I hate stuck on infotainment screens.

Can't comment much on Mercedes but my experiences with the CLS, GLE and S Class have been rather underwhelming and disappointing. The E Class estate does look very nice inside though.

[NewUsername]

ZX10R NIN said:

Skoda Octavia VRS good cars but I'd always buy the Mondeo as it's the imo better car in terms of drive & spec.

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

The only thing i'd say here is that the Mondeo is the same class as a Superb, the Octavia the Focus, so not really comparing apples with apples.

[ElectricSoup]

Petrol and manual? Skoda Superb. Go for highest spec/trim and it's a lovely car.

[ritch]

I'm biased, but would suggest a 340i estate, I'm sure you could get a private sale around the top end of your budget.