£8k - Practical, comfortable, estate daily / commuter

[LandyManSam]

Hi all - looking for suggestions for a new wagon.

I commute 76 miles 5 days a week, and need a good all-rounder;

- Comfortable - I'm coming from an old W220 S-Class, so I like my comfy seats & appreciate a car that rides comfortably.
- 40mpg on my A road/Motorway commute would be the minimum - 45/50 would be good.

I've noticed that early F11 5 series Touring have dropped down within budget with mileages of approx. 100-120k... I absolutely love the look of these and have read good things... but I'm not sure if I would be better off getting a newer/lower mileage Passat or Mondeo estate. Any thoughts?

[ZX10R NIN]

I'd go for either a nice low mileage 2.2 Titanium X Sport these are great cars very underrated:

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

2.0d

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

Or an E Class Mercedes:

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

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

Last of the line E60:

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

Personally when you're doing 20+k a year I'd be trying to find as lower mileage comfortable car as possible.

[Evanivitch]

Octavia Lauren and Klement.

[LandyManSam]

Cheers for the replies. My dilemma is that for £8-9k I could get into something like this 2011 F11 520d;

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

But for the same money could have a basic 14 plate Passat or Mondeo estate with less miles...

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

I've not driven any of these, but would the F11 be that much more of an accomplished / satisfying vehicle to own to justify the age and mileage penalty?

[ZX10R NIN]

Between the 520d & the 2.2d TXS would be a tough call I think I'd go Ford but it would be close, test drive them to see which you prefer.

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

Here's a readers thread on the Mondeo:

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Edited by ZX10R NIN on Monday 16th April 23:23

[Shiv_P]

You are really scraping the barrel for an F10/11 & will get a car with no spec/a dog. I personally wouldn't do it and would go for a mondeo as ZX suggested or skoda superb

[tickedon]

Depending on the size of car you need, a Volvo V60? Seats are super comfortable, mpg good, good choice of engines, and should be within your budget.

[Danxr46]

maybe a BMW 320D Touring - returns 55-65mpg depending and nippy enough. cheaper being a lower model and plenty to pick from so can get a good spec. If something more refined then the 330D with the 6cyl engine.

[LandyManSam]

Well, I ignored most of your advice and went to test drive a nearby F10 520d auto and was highly impressed by it!

In particular, the refinement and ride comfort were the most pleasant surprises, closely followed by the way the 8-speed auto shifts so quickly and yet imperceptibly. In so many ways, it is far more impressive than my W220 S320 CDI which is only 5 years older (admittedly a generation behind), and supposedly 1 rung up the executive ladder. The 184bhp 2.0d is certainly adequate, and feels a lot closer to the 204bhp 3.2 I6 in the S-Class than I expected.

So I think that's made my mind up... I can't see myself enjoying a Mondeo or Passat as much as I did the F10.
Just need to find one in the right colour (anything but silver!), spec (Auto, wide nav, heated seats as a minimum), and haggleable down to around £8.5k.

This has caught my eye; https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Seems a good spec (even seems to have the variable damper control option that many rave about), good colours and reasonable miles. The only thing that doesn't look quite right to me are the wheels; apparently they are an original F10/11 style, but don't look quite right to me? I thought perhaps they have the wrong profile of tyre fitted?

[AllyBassman]

Those wheels don't look original to me...

Also, it has the N47 engine which i'd avoid if possible. They have been known to snap their chains.

Edited by AllyBassman on Thursday 26th April 13:04

[GreatGranny]

Think the wheels suit it even if not original.

When we bought our V60 there was one of these in the same garage.

More money, older and higher mileage but I was very tempted.

Went with my head in the end :-(

The 8 speed gearbox is meant to be very good but not sure on the reliability of that engine.

[LandyManSam]

I think the F10 would be one of those cars that I look forward to getting into every morning; and will keep looking over my shoulder at when walking away after parking up. It just feels to have more of that 'special' or 'feelgood' factor, compared with the slightly newer VW/Ford/Volvo etc. that I could buy with the same money.

I'm aware of the potential timing chain issues on the N47. I've not seen too many reports of actual failed chains though - especially when you consider there are probably half a million of them on the road in total. It also seems to be strongly linked with missing oil services.

Ref. the wheels, I've decoded the VIN on that estate, and it was originally specced with Style 328 (18") wheels, http://www.bmwstylewheels.com/bmw/328 -
which I much prefer the look of, and no doubt would prefer the ride quality on. The ones fitted currently appear to be Style 281 http://www.bmwstylewheels.com/bmw/281 which may be 18 or 19"... they look like 19s to me.

Edited by LandyManSam on Thursday 26th April 14:13

[ZX10R NIN]

The engine is the question mark but if you want it buy it & have the fix done before it has a chance to fail.

[LandyManSam]

There are some early 525d (3.0) models available at around the top of my budget with comparable miles - would that be a much safer bet engine wise? I would be taking a hit fuel economy wise, but if it pays off in long term reliability it would be worth it I suppose. Not to mention the extra poke and 6 cylinder smoothness?

[AllyBassman]

LandyManSam said:

I'm aware of the potential timing chain issues on the N47. I've not seen too many reports of actual failed chains though - especially when you consider there are probably half a million of them on the road in total. It also seems to be strongly linked with missing oil services.

Edited by LandyManSam on Thursday 26th April 14:13

That's the long and short of it! I've got a 2011 N47 engined car, it's had oil changes every 10k, i've got every faith in the engine... famous last words!

At 100k miles, I would be budgeting for a chain replacment for peace of mind, especially if you're planning to keep it for a while and you don't know how the car has been serviced/treated in the past!

[LandyManSam]

AllyBassman said:

That's the long and short of it! I've got a 2011 N47 engined car, it's had oil changes every 10k, i've got every faith in the engine... famous last words!

At 100k miles, I would be budgeting for a chain replacment for peace of mind, especially if you're planning to keep it for a while and you don't know how the car has been serviced/treated in the past!

I think that as with most serious mechanical car problems, forums always seem to make them appear disproportionately worse than they actually are.

That said, do you know if the 3.0 N57 in the early 525d has a good 'internet reputation'? It seems hard to find much opinion on them as it was so quickly replaced by the twin turbo 2.0 525d.