Best 12Kish, 3-4 yo all-rounder- helping a mate.

[XMified]

Hi folks,

My bandmate has had enough of his 11 plate Insignia- think he was sold a bit of a lemon by Arnold Shark and has been permanently put off both Vauxhall and the aforementioned Mr Shark.

He's now in the market for a new car and seems keen to buy outright. As stated above, probably around 10-13k and a few years old. He has a baby, and plays music for a living so needs a bit of space for gear, nothing massive- but folding seats essential if the boot isn't big.

He likes a sporty appearance so no Agila/Juke type vehicles. I'm guessing we are looking at saloons/hatches/estates.

No money pits!

He mentioned that he'd been looking at A3 and 3 series because "he couldn't think of anything else". Made me wonder about the popularity of these- he's no badge snob, but seemed to default to these because he is not a petrolhead and didn't think of anything else brand-wise.


All help welcome! I don't know this market at all which is why I am asking.
For my eyes the current Mondeo looks very good?

Edited by XMified on Monday 13th May 11:29

[WCNFSL117]

The Mondy is a good shout, it's very spacious and practical. Downsides are it's just a bit dull, and slightly on the thirsty side. They depreciate like hell though almost exponentially.


Finding a good condition 3 Series touring F31 shouldn't be too hard, or even the previous generations E61 could save him about 2-3K, depending on what kind of mileage you go for.

Skoda Octavia VRS might be worth looking at too.

• edited first sentence

Edited by WCNFSL117 on Tuesday 14th May 15:58

[underphil]

Mazda 3 Sport ?

[Summit_Detailing]

Assuming he doesn't want anything smaller than the current Insignia, the following would be what I'd go and sit in and drive -

Superb (estate or hatch)
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

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

E-class
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

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

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

Or a very left field option - Infiniti Q50
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Obviously annual mileage and typical journey types dictate which engine would be most suitable.

cheers,

Chris

[Terzo123]

If he likes the A3, a cheaper alternative would be a Seat Leon. The 1.4 act engine is a cracker.

[ZX10R NIN]

Right now the Infiniti Q50's are a very good shout:

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

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

If you want a petrol then a Mondeo Titanium with the X Pack would be the pick:

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

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

[XMified]

underphil said:

Mazda 3 Sport ?

I was thinking that yesterday after looking around for him.


Many thanks for all of the suggestions chaps.

[ilikejam]

ZX10R NIN said:

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

Looks really good with that wheel and colour combo (something I never thought I'd say about a silver Mondeo)

[ninjag]

ilikejam said:

Looks really good with that wheel and colour combo (something I never thought I'd say about a silver Mondeo)

Aye that caught my eye as well, makes it look a lot more premium.