£5000 commuter
Discussion
I will shortly be moving jobs and will face a weekly 500 mile round trip commute.
The vast majority will be motorway (Plymouth to Bedfordshire) so a case of pointing in the right direction, setting cruise control and then shutting down 250 miles later!
Budget is circa £5,000 and I think the following count:
• Reliability – I don’t want to be changing bits out every 5 minutes.
• Comfort – quiet (double glazing?), really comfy seat, good stereo.
• Lights – xenon or better for those dark nights.
• Practicality – just me most of the time but may need to pick kids (10 and 8) up from school so 2 seaters out. Have family cars etc so that does not need to be factored in.
• Engine – fuel not important, mpg not overly important but 5+ cylinders as a 4 pot drone is not a thing!
• Drive – auto or manual and RWD / 4WD. Don’t like FWD even though it probably makes zero difference on the motorway.
My thoughts on what to do:
• Lexus GS 300 – have one now to do the current commute. Do I just keep this?
• Audi A4 / 5 / 6 – get a quattro version for added safety. Is the A5 quiet being a coupe?
• Infiniti – can I get one in budget?
• Mercedes C / E 320 / 350 or E Coupe – had an E500 which was great. The coupe looks good but is it as refined as a saloon?
• Volvo V70 / S80 – lots of good things heard.
Any pointers? Anybody selling one?
The vast majority will be motorway (Plymouth to Bedfordshire) so a case of pointing in the right direction, setting cruise control and then shutting down 250 miles later!
Budget is circa £5,000 and I think the following count:
• Reliability – I don’t want to be changing bits out every 5 minutes.
• Comfort – quiet (double glazing?), really comfy seat, good stereo.
• Lights – xenon or better for those dark nights.
• Practicality – just me most of the time but may need to pick kids (10 and 8) up from school so 2 seaters out. Have family cars etc so that does not need to be factored in.
• Engine – fuel not important, mpg not overly important but 5+ cylinders as a 4 pot drone is not a thing!
• Drive – auto or manual and RWD / 4WD. Don’t like FWD even though it probably makes zero difference on the motorway.
My thoughts on what to do:
• Lexus GS 300 – have one now to do the current commute. Do I just keep this?
• Audi A4 / 5 / 6 – get a quattro version for added safety. Is the A5 quiet being a coupe?
• Infiniti – can I get one in budget?
• Mercedes C / E 320 / 350 or E Coupe – had an E500 which was great. The coupe looks good but is it as refined as a saloon?
• Volvo V70 / S80 – lots of good things heard.
Any pointers? Anybody selling one?
SlowV6 said:
100% keep the GS300 and your money in the bank. Lovely quiet car with a good stereo - perfect for the job.
Used car prices are really high at the moment so £5k currently doesn't buy something as nice as it did pre-pandemic.
I think you are almost certainly right. Spend a few pounds on the old girl and thrash it up and down each week.Used car prices are really high at the moment so £5k currently doesn't buy something as nice as it did pre-pandemic.
500 miles a week is like 26,000 miles a year! If you have a Lexus GS300 that's going to cost you nearly 4 grand a year in fuel!
Then again, switching to something diesel powered for only £5k that meets your requirements, say like an old leggy Merc E350 CDI, will probably only save you about £700 over a year anyway. That could easily be wiped out when it decides to s
t its guts out resulting in a load of black smoke caused by failing injectors or blocked crankcase breathers causing it to go into limp mode and you being stuck doing 30 mph 200 miles from home.
Then again, switching to something diesel powered for only £5k that meets your requirements, say like an old leggy Merc E350 CDI, will probably only save you about £700 over a year anyway. That could easily be wiped out when it decides to s
t its guts out resulting in a load of black smoke caused by failing injectors or blocked crankcase breathers causing it to go into limp mode and you being stuck doing 30 mph 200 miles from home. junglie said:
I know you are all correct with sticking with the GS 300.
I reckon it will get 35 - 37 mpg on the route I will be doing. My F11 535d would do about 45 mpg under similar circumstances so really nothing much in it.
2.0 tdi 4 pots would do much better but 4 hours of misery each way!
I know I voted "stick" but the 2.0 tdi comment is still a bit daft. You barely even know what engine is powering you when trundling along at 70mph on a motorway if you are in anything vaguely modern and biggish. I would be happy to sit in my Mondeo Mk4.5 2.0tdci all day doing that as that is what it was made to do.I reckon it will get 35 - 37 mpg on the route I will be doing. My F11 535d would do about 45 mpg under similar circumstances so really nothing much in it.
2.0 tdi 4 pots would do much better but 4 hours of misery each way!
I absolutely agree.
A Mondeo / Insignia type diesel would be perfect by any objective measurement.
However, I would know what lurks under the bonnet whether I could hear / feel it or not!
I know that it is a ridiculous statement to make, and rules out loads of great car, but I have been spoilt by many smooth and creamy 6s and 8s.
2.0 tdis certainly have their place but they are just not for me.
A Mondeo / Insignia type diesel would be perfect by any objective measurement.
However, I would know what lurks under the bonnet whether I could hear / feel it or not!
I know that it is a ridiculous statement to make, and rules out loads of great car, but I have been spoilt by many smooth and creamy 6s and 8s.
2.0 tdis certainly have their place but they are just not for me.
junglie said:
I absolutely agree.
A Mondeo / Insignia type diesel would be perfect by any objective measurement.
However, I would know what lurks under the bonnet whether I could hear / feel it or not!
I know that it is a ridiculous statement to make, and rules out loads of great car, but I have been spoilt by many smooth and creamy 6s and 8s.
2.0 tdis certainly have their place but they are just not for me.
Before actually using one daily, a 2.0TDI seems like a horrible prospect. But on a mundane commute it really makes no difference and the fuel saving can be spent down the pub or towards a holiday instead. A week after buying it you won't even think twice about the engine other than at startupA Mondeo / Insignia type diesel would be perfect by any objective measurement.
However, I would know what lurks under the bonnet whether I could hear / feel it or not!
I know that it is a ridiculous statement to make, and rules out loads of great car, but I have been spoilt by many smooth and creamy 6s and 8s.
2.0 tdis certainly have their place but they are just not for me.
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