Estate Cars - should it be these difficult?
Discussion
I'm after a new (to me) family estate car having owned a number of hatchbacks previously. I have a budget of around £12k and am looking for a car around 6 years old, probably a diesel with around 50-70k miles. I've looked at Skoda Octavias, 6 cylinder E9x BMW's and Audi A4 S Line Avants.
Based on the premise that it's a used family car, should I be lowering my expectations of finding one that hasn't got scrapes across the tailgate, dings and scratches in most of the doors and chunks of interior plastics missing or broken off?! From the cars I've viewed and the numerous cars I've called dealers about, it appears symptomatic that owners leave significant gaps between servicing, misplace service invoices, drive for months without a valid MOT or lose documents such as the V5C.
My preference is to buy privately if possible and ideally find a car with a decent proportion of main dealer or reputable independent service history. Rant aside; what other cars should I be considering?
I'd say that based on my experiences of buying used cars of around that age and milage it sounds about right. Don't forget that estate cars are workhorses so are less likely to be cherished by their owners, especially if they transport kids. Young children can make a hell of a mess in the back of a car 
un1corn said:
I got bored of looking for an E90 after 8 months of searching.
The spec on them was consistently pathetic.
I think the best one I saw was a 335d, cloth interior, no nav, xenons, or anything of note, and a manual box.
Expect increasing numbers of poorly specced cars as leasing becomes more common. Adding options to a lease deal very quickly increases the monthly cost. The spec on them was consistently pathetic.
I think the best one I saw was a 335d, cloth interior, no nav, xenons, or anything of note, and a manual box.
Unless you're a badge snob, have you thought about an Insignia Estate (technically Tourer)? Huge inside, well built (now), very well equipped and you can get a newer one in your price range, so less likely to be beaten up. A quick look has a 2011 Sri with the decent 160 BhP CDTi and 51k at a shade under £10k...
Good shout on the Honda Accord, Volvo, Mazda and the Subarus - I'll look into these in more detail. I don't consider myself a badge snob, but I've not had very good experiences with Vauxhall previously. A combination of silly mechanical issues plus the pretty horrific depreciation is enough to make me give them a wide berth.
I've just had another call with a dealer asking for more information on one of his cars he describes as having 'excellent paintwork'. I asked the seller to clarify if the marks in the rear bumper I thought I could see in the pictures were a reflection, or indeed scratches in the paintwork... 'it's a used car that's five years old'. That's fine but don't describe it as 'excellent'.
I know the right car will come up and I'm not in a massive rush but I get the impression this is going to take longer than I thought.
I've just had another call with a dealer asking for more information on one of his cars he describes as having 'excellent paintwork'. I asked the seller to clarify if the marks in the rear bumper I thought I could see in the pictures were a reflection, or indeed scratches in the paintwork... 'it's a used car that's five years old'. That's fine but don't describe it as 'excellent'.
I know the right car will come up and I'm not in a massive rush but I get the impression this is going to take longer than I thought.
I'm looking at one of these: http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/a...
Super sexy sport estate, best looking there is.
Super sexy sport estate, best looking there is.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff