Workhorse / family car - what to buy!
Discussion
So I am looking to replace my ageing Kangoo with something a little more interesting. The kangoo has served me well over the last four years, and is great for carrying largish loads, and fitting in ladders, paint, large canvases etc. but now I am looking for something that's a bit more fun to drive, as well as being practical and capable of carrying decent loads, so criteria for my choice are
1. Estate or large capability for carrying equipment, must be able to fit in a 6ft extendable ladder!
2. Looks / is? sporty ( anything compared to the Kangoo looks sporty though )
3. Comfortable and has some toys, CD player, air con
4. Running costs not enormous, so no 4.2 litre V8's
5. Budget, £4k max
So these are the cars I have been looking at, although finding a decent one, or one without starship miles is very hard, also heard some horror stories with the Audi's costing fortunes to run, more to run than my 996 Turbo infact!
1. Ford Mondeo ST220 estate or hatchback, both seem large
2. Audi A4 / S4 - B6 ( 2.7 not 4.2 v8 )
3. BMW 3 series - wasn't a fan of these, not very comfortable....
So any suggestions, or advice form people that own any of the above? In truth I'd love a B6 Audi, the 2.7 litre engine would be superb, very quick, MPG would be appalling, which I could live with, but not the enormous running costs if things go wrong, and finding a good one seems impossible....
1. Estate or large capability for carrying equipment, must be able to fit in a 6ft extendable ladder!
2. Looks / is? sporty ( anything compared to the Kangoo looks sporty though )
3. Comfortable and has some toys, CD player, air con
4. Running costs not enormous, so no 4.2 litre V8's
5. Budget, £4k max
So these are the cars I have been looking at, although finding a decent one, or one without starship miles is very hard, also heard some horror stories with the Audi's costing fortunes to run, more to run than my 996 Turbo infact!
1. Ford Mondeo ST220 estate or hatchback, both seem large
2. Audi A4 / S4 - B6 ( 2.7 not 4.2 v8 )
3. BMW 3 series - wasn't a fan of these, not very comfortable....
So any suggestions, or advice form people that own any of the above? In truth I'd love a B6 Audi, the 2.7 litre engine would be superb, very quick, MPG would be appalling, which I could live with, but not the enormous running costs if things go wrong, and finding a good one seems impossible....
Legacy / Outback... not keen
E39 - aren't bimmers pricey to maintain?
Volvo, hmmm possibility?
Just seen a nice Audi A4 2.5 Quattro diesel / estate - anyone had any experience of these in terms of reliability and overall running. It's got over 120k on the clock, but has had cambelt done at 86k miles... £3.5k
E39 - aren't bimmers pricey to maintain?
Volvo, hmmm possibility?
Just seen a nice Audi A4 2.5 Quattro diesel / estate - anyone had any experience of these in terms of reliability and overall running. It's got over 120k on the clock, but has had cambelt done at 86k miles... £3.5k
Formal PH recommendation is the W124 mercedes estate if you need a load carrier
|http://thumbsnap.com/jIIGQf7O[/url]
If just four seater sought, then a remapped 330d is the choice.
|http://thumbsnap.com/DTgBDwf4[/url]
Failing that, an MX5 is the default option.
|http://thumbsnap.com/iZ1NGRlr[/url]
This should be "locked in" as a sticky
|http://thumbsnap.com/jIIGQf7O[/url]If just four seater sought, then a remapped 330d is the choice.
|http://thumbsnap.com/DTgBDwf4[/url]Failing that, an MX5 is the default option.
|http://thumbsnap.com/iZ1NGRlr[/url]This should be "locked in" as a sticky
The 2.7 S4 was a B5 shape which although still looks good on the outside has aged on the inside.
My money would be on an 220. I looked at one recently... 2007, silver, roughly 50/60k miles I think. Spotless condition and obviously had the full recaro interior etc. 5k. A garage down the road had basically the same car but the tdci for nearly 2k more!
Lot to be said for a mondeo st. Really miss my old one...
My money would be on an 220. I looked at one recently... 2007, silver, roughly 50/60k miles I think. Spotless condition and obviously had the full recaro interior etc. 5k. A garage down the road had basically the same car but the tdci for nearly 2k more!
Lot to be said for a mondeo st. Really miss my old one...
danp said:
Honda Accord Type-S estate?
Yes this. I have an accord gen7 estate with the 2.4 engine in. 189bhp is enough and it handles okMine is EX spec so is full of toys, electric heated everything, but for you OP, imagine walking up to the car, canvas or ladder slung across your arms, fiddling for the keys and then LIFTING the tailgate.
Nope, one press of a button and the electric motor does that for you.
Ok I know the 5 series touring does this too, but the mechanism is renowned for being made of chocolate and it breaks, constantly. Hondas just don't!
dank said:
Legacy / Outback... not keen
E39 - aren't bimmers pricey to maintain?
Just seen a nice Audi A4 2.5 Quattro diesel / estate - anyone had any experience of these in terms of reliability and overall running. It's got over 120k on the clock, but has had cambelt done at 86k miles... £3.5k
In my experience, BMWs and Audis are broadly similar in terms of maintenance costs (3 series vs A6)E39 - aren't bimmers pricey to maintain?
Just seen a nice Audi A4 2.5 Quattro diesel / estate - anyone had any experience of these in terms of reliability and overall running. It's got over 120k on the clock, but has had cambelt done at 86k miles... £3.5k
dank said:
So I am looking to replace my ageing Kangoo with something a little more interesting. The kangoo has served me well over the last four years, and is great for carrying largish loads, and fitting in ladders, paint, large canvases etc. but now I am looking for something that's a bit more fun to drive, as well as being practical and capable of carrying decent loads, so criteria for my choice are
1. Estate or large capability for carrying equipment, must be able to fit in a 6ft extendable ladder!
2. Looks / is? sporty ( anything compared to the Kangoo looks sporty though )
3. Comfortable and has some toys, CD player, air con
4. Running costs not enormous, so no 4.2 litre V8's
5. Budget, £4k max
So these are the cars I have been looking at, although finding a decent one, or one without starship miles is very hard, also heard some horror stories with the Audi's costing fortunes to run, more to run than my 996 Turbo infact!
1. Ford Mondeo ST220 estate or hatchback, both seem large
2. Audi A4 / S4 - B6 ( 2.7 not 4.2 v8 )
3. BMW 3 series - wasn't a fan of these, not very comfortable....
So any suggestions, or advice form people that own any of the above? In truth I'd love a B6 Audi, the 2.7 litre engine would be superb, very quick, MPG would be appalling, which I could live with, but not the enormous running costs if things go wrong, and finding a good one seems impossible....
I'd suggest that a 3 series is pretty small in the back, even in estate form. Not sure you'd get a 6' ladder in there.....1. Estate or large capability for carrying equipment, must be able to fit in a 6ft extendable ladder!
2. Looks / is? sporty ( anything compared to the Kangoo looks sporty though )
3. Comfortable and has some toys, CD player, air con
4. Running costs not enormous, so no 4.2 litre V8's
5. Budget, £4k max
So these are the cars I have been looking at, although finding a decent one, or one without starship miles is very hard, also heard some horror stories with the Audi's costing fortunes to run, more to run than my 996 Turbo infact!
1. Ford Mondeo ST220 estate or hatchback, both seem large
2. Audi A4 / S4 - B6 ( 2.7 not 4.2 v8 )
3. BMW 3 series - wasn't a fan of these, not very comfortable....
So any suggestions, or advice form people that own any of the above? In truth I'd love a B6 Audi, the 2.7 litre engine would be superb, very quick, MPG would be appalling, which I could live with, but not the enormous running costs if things go wrong, and finding a good one seems impossible....
If you could find a manual one of these it would be perfect. This one doesn't look to shabby mind
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b...
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b...
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