£4-7k, comfy, stylish, quick, and good on fuel....

[JohnsMCS]

I’ve been looking at anything from MK1 Skoda Fabia VRs’s, to Mercedes C220 CDI’s. I really don’t know what to get.

I do around 20-25k miles per year so the car will ideally have less than 80k miles on the clock as I’d like to keep it 4 years or so.

I really like the idea of a petrol for reliability and driving experience but the cost of commuting just goes crazy. I would happily have something like the new Auris Hybrid to keep myself in a petrol, but they’re sadly out of budget and the older models don’t have a very nice interior (or exterior!!)

Any suggestions on a petrol car with reasonable power that isn’t crippling on fuel costs? Local dealer has a 1.2 tsi Skoda Rapid black edition which looks really nice and I’d imagine be nippy and comfy, but I’ve heard some horror stories about the engine...

Not completely averse to a diesel as long as it’s reliable enough to keep until it dies, negating the probably terrible residuals of diesels in the near future.

Thanks

John

[Lukas239]

A nightmare position to be in but having been in a similar one...

At that sort of mileage, diesel makes a lot of sense and savings. The difference between 35mpg and 55mpg (petrol & diesel respectively) with current fuel prices over 20k is ~£1200 a year. Enough to justify the possibility of the extra diesel repair costs (which, IMO are slightly blown out of proportion).

In my finest ZX-10NIN impression;

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2019...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2019...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2019...

All quick examples. Alternatively, lower your budget to 2k and take the shed approach, fuel becomes less important.

[ZX10R NIN]

Great options above but with your budget I'd go for this:

CLK320cdi Sport the drivetrain is pretty much bulletproof & with the low miles (£3985 over 25k) & they also come with orthopedic seats to add to your comfort over those 25k's.

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

CLK220cdi Sport as above both aren't as good as more modern cars but there reliability is second to none (£3593)

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

I'd also say with those miles I'd want an auto, obviously the Mondeo Titanium X is the go to car if the two above are a bit too heavy on fuel.

Titanium X The first one qualifies for a warranty for life which is an added bonus considering your annual mileage (£2901):

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

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

508 Allure 5 year Warranty available on the first one (£2901)

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

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

Insignia SRI with Leather (£3105)

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

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

Mercedes C220 Sport (£2901)

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

Jaguar XF 2.7 Premium Luxury (£3889)

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

Exeo SE Tech

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

I'd take the 320 over all of them or if you need four doors then the XF would be the picks if you don't mind an extra £800 odd in fuel for the extra refinement.

Yes you can buy an Auris but I wouldn't want to spend time in one of those compared to any of the above plus the saving on fuel would be minute (£2746) compared to the spec pace & generally relaxed nature of all the above.

If you're doing 25k a year I'd go diesel, forgot to add all the above have less than 60k (most have less than 50k) so you can comfortably run any of the above for the next four to five years with the potential for borkage being low.

Edited by ZX10R NIN on Tuesday 5th February 10:47

[nobrakes]

I’d try and avoid anything with ‘Sport’ on the boot lid and maximise the tyre wall profile.

It’ll prove a more comfortable drive and tyres will be cheaper.

[Jamescrs]

Something like this Volvo S60 T3, very reasonable on fuel on a run for a petrol, massively comfortable inside with great seats and all the mod cons you could want (I have the estate version in T4 guise as my daily) I personally think the S60 is a great looking car and very reliable.

I should add though I do think diesel makes more sense at your milage

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

[JohnsMCS]

Thanks for your reply’s everyone.

Perhaps I’ve been silly to discount diesel with the mileage I do...

I really like all of the above suggestions and I wouldn’t necessarily have thought of those!

Do you have any first hand experience of the Mercedes 7G or Ford powershift gearboxes at all?

[ZX10R NIN]

JohnsMCS said:

Thanks for your reply’s everyone.

Perhaps I’ve been silly to discount diesel with the mileage I do...

I really like all of the above suggestions and I wouldn’t necessarily have thought of those!

Do you have any first hand experience of the Mercedes 7G or Ford powershift gearboxes at all?

Yes I do i have had a CLK320 cdi Sport & the 7 speed really suits the car it's a reliable unit that needs a fluid & filter change (around £200-250 with an Indy specialist) every 40k, they're very smooth if you test drive one & it's not then walk away, also it may feel a bit slow to pick up this happens if it's in comfort as it's pulling away in 2nd select sport & it'll pull away in 1st.

My Mondeo has the Powershift box & it works well the fluid change on this is around £400 & has to be done by someone who has the proper equipment, it's the same as the ones listed above.

I have to say the Vignale is a cracking car very well made & it's perfect for eating up the 210 engine is pretty smooth for a four cylinder diesel the interior is a very nice place to be (not quite as good as the Germans but close enough especially when consider the price/age/spec) but if it wasn't for the ULEZ I would still have my CLK diesel as it was a better car the extra grunt & smoothness as well as everything being that bit better.

The way when all the windows are dropped & roof open it feels like a convertible the seats are better plus I prefer coupes the standard infotainment isn't the greatest but the sound quality is good, I replaced my head unit with a Pioneer SPH DA230 which brought the car up to date.

[Omegatt]

@ ZX-10NIN Following on from your suggestions above, would I assume something like this based on the same Merc underpinnings would be a good choice for someone looking for comfort speed and the ability to lug some big loads from time to time ?

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

Seems a heck of a lot of car for the money , the product of a very niche offering from Mercedes I guess

[ZX10R NIN]

They're good cars but due to there 4WD system means that these drink diesel at the same rate as an E350 E Class plus they are fugly

My recommendation would be an E Class it's better on fuel (even better than the CLK due to the longer gearing) than the R Class.

Avantgarde

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

Sport

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

[Omegatt]

Fugly indeed Thanks for info

[ZX10R NIN]

Omegatt said:

Fugly indeed Thanks for info

Lol indeed but you can't see it once you're inside they are but if you want to lug loads & don't mind the fuel then the R Class is a lovely place to be try to find the LWB one for that extra bit of comfort grace & pace.

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

VS an E Class Estate

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

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

[carguy143]

I paid £3900 for a 2007 Mondeo Mk4 Titanium X 2.0 TDCi 140 in 2015. It had done just over 100k at the time and is now on 175k as I travel around 25000 miles a year..

Bar standard servicing including timing belt it's had a new aircon radiator, track rod end, both front suspension top mount bearings, a front wishbone, rear trailing arm bushes and an exhaust. Fuel economy wise it does about 40-55 Mpg depending on traffic and how i drive it. Comfort wise it's been great and has never let me down without warning for any of the above. The boot is huge as is the interior. The shape of the car makes parking easy for something this size and parking sensors aren't really needed in my opinion.

The cars above are the mk4.5 with different engines (albeit still Peugeot). If you go for one of the newer automatics, a Powershift, just budget for it needing a gearbox oil change every couple of years which I believe is about £200 or so.