Farewell Wobblybus

[otolith]

Well, that looks like the end of the Impreza estate shed - knocking noise, loss of power, complete loss of oil pressure, dead engine on the side of the M6. No oil in the engine, plenty outside it. Beyond economic repair, I think. Wonder what I'll get from the scrappy?

Next step is to decide on a budget for a replacement and go looking for wobblybus II. Doesn't really do enough miles to bother with diesel, and I imagine better value can be had from an unfashionably big engined petrol. Four wheel drive is desirable for winter hack / fishing shed duties, but a £1300 525i estate and a spare set of wheels has a certain appeal. Four wheel drive Audi estates seem unfortunately to be recognised for their usefulness and priced accordingly. Mrs Otolith is quite attached to the idea of another Impreza estate, this time with a turbo, or a twin turbo Legacy jobby. I'm also tempted, but this is meant to be a practical utility car. I suppose I should be thinking about front wheel drive estates from Ford/Vauxhall/Peugeot/etc, but I'm not sure I can maintain the interest. Hmm.

[jbi]

sticking with the subaru theme...

forester?

[otolith]

Forester is a possibility - is there good reason to take it over the Legacy/Impreza options?

[davepoth]

Better ground clearance, bigger boot.

[otolith]

To be honest, anything beyond the Impreza's off road ability would be overkill - needs to handle muddy, potholes farm tracks, not get stuck when parked in wet fields, etc. Doesn't need to be able to go greenlaning.

[anonymous-user]

Mazda 6 2.3 Sport 4x4 Estate! rare but good!

[sjc]

No better bargains than these at the moment, this one has all the toys,low miles and belts done.
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3429587.htm

[otolith]

MonkeyMatt said:

Mazda 6 2.3 Sport 4x4 Estate! rare but good!

Interesting, thanks. Couple on AutoTrader @ 2500-ish.

[otolith]

sjc said:

No better bargains than these at the moment, this one has all the toys,low miles and belts done.
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3429587.htm

That gets a "maybe" from the mrs. I've driven a 75, thought it was, erm, relaxing. Not necessarily a bad thing, that. What kind of economy do these get?

[sjc]

otolith said:

sjc said:

No better bargains than these at the moment, this one has all the toys,low miles and belts done.
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3429587.htm

That gets a "maybe" from the mrs. I've driven a 75, thought it was, erm, relaxing. Not necessarily a bad thing, that. What kind of economy do these get?

I've got a 2.5V6 auto for barge duties. Roughly 27 overall in mixed driving. Had 24 on a run.Got mine with 28k miles two years ago,now at 51K, been faultess other than a fan repair.

[PH lurker]

Not sure on you budget but suitable (usually) and available for £500 - £1500 are :
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3360746.htm BMW 328i Touring Estate (1997) 131,000 miles £1,100
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3433664.htm 1991 MERCEDES-BENZ E CLASS 230 TE Auto 7 SEATER Estate (1991) 145,000 miles £1,000
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2011... 2000 SUBARU FORESTER 2.0 AWD S-Turbo 5dr [LT] Estate Private Seller £500 151,000 miles
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2011... 1998 BMW 5 SERIES 523i SE 5dr Auto Touring
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2011... 1996 BMW 5 SERIES 520i SE 5dr Touring
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2011... 1988 LAND ROVER RANGE ROVER Vogue EFi Auto 4dr Estate

I think all are very much worth clicking the links.

[otolith]

Thanks Lurker, yes, those are the kind of cars I was thinking of. The Impreza was sub-£1000, but looking at those it might be worth spending a little more this time.

[PH lurker]

The '1998 BMW 5 SERIES 523i SE 5dr Auto Touring' linked has a price mix up . Still like all the others.

[anonymous-user]

otolith said:

Interesting, thanks. Couple on AutoTrader @ 2500-ish.

I spent ages looking for one but ended up buying an Accord as I just couldnt find one in the end!

[TheEnd]

PH lurker said:

The '1998 BMW 5 SERIES 523i SE 5dr Auto Touring' linked has a price mix up . Still like all the others.

oh yea.. c*nt...

It reminded me of this-
http://www.bmw.co.uk/bmwuk/bmwauc/details/0,,1156_...

hopefully the link will work!

[ShampooEfficient]

TheEnd said:

oh yea.. c*nt...

It reminded me of this-
http://www.bmw.co.uk/bmwuk/bmwauc/details/0,,1156_...

hopefully the link will work!

How bloody much!?

[Matt UK]

Left field choice, but I'd say old shape Lexus RX300.

Doesn't really do enough miles to bother with diesel - average around 23mpg, 28 on a run, 18 round town
I imagine better value can be had from an unfashionably big engined petrol - they built them well, but dirt cheap due to the 3.0 V6
Four wheel drive is desirable for winter hack / fishing shed duties - with the correct M&S tyres, there's not much beyond greenlaning they won't handle
This is meant to be a practical utility car - it is practical, but also nice and wafty to drive in a wobblybus sort of way

Just a thought

Edited by Matt UK on Sunday 4th December 02:16

[hidetheelephants]

Nissan Stagea prices are in freefall; you can get a good runner for that money. Economy slightly worse than your Impreza though, and slushmatic only at that price point. No danger of killing an RB25 unless you fit a turbo the size of a dustbin either.

Edited by hidetheelephants on Sunday 4th December 01:30

[otolith]

I'm not that keen on SUVs, but I must admit I have been in a Lexus RX300 and thought it was a very civilised way to travel. Must still be a few quid, though?

[*Kosta*]

Galant/Legnum VR4 thingy?