Efficient 4WD for £2-5k?

[Hawk51]

Suggestions please for a 4WD for £2-5k that doesn’t cost the earth to run?!

Currently have an old high-mileage A4 S line 2.5l estate
Need something that’s cheaper to run! A4 has to have E5 and does 30mpg on most drives (rural, >20mins); it’s costing me £200 in petrol a month, plus the occasional things that need fixing, so it’s blown my budget every month for 9 months now! I’d love to keep it, but I can’t afford to :-(

Must haves:
4WD
Cheaper to run (I don’t need speed/big engine but used to cars that are nice to drive)
Reliable, Safe
Reluctant to go too small as I do use the estate boot a lot, but would consider smaller as it’s just for one adult and one child most of the time.

Nice to have:
Tow bar option? Would like to use current set-up for tow bar mounted bike rack but obviously not essential.

I know the budget isn’t big, but current car has gobbled up a lot of what I had set aside to put towards the next one, and I’ve been unable to save up given its running costs. Catch 22!

So far I’ve thought of:
SKODA Yeti or Octavia
Subaru Legacy (Outback, Forester)
Suzuki sx-4 s-cross
Dacia duster laureate

What else should I have on my list?

[Smurfsarepeopletoo]

Fiat Panda 4x4

[loskie]

Sedici or SX4

[mintmansam]

I’d go smaller if it’s normally 2 occupants and fold the rear seats down.

Sadly MPG is closely tied with mass, driveline effiency and aerodynamics, all which a 4x4 typically does poorly

I’ve heard of a few Suzuki swifts with 4x4, the above mentioned panda, you can get a 2.0tdi a3 Quattro (too low?)

You haven’t mentioned the need for 4x4 is it for ground clearance? or traction? As a lot of 2wd vehciles with good ground clearance and some 4wd cars with poor ground clearance but excellent grip

Your journey time 20mins is quite short to get full oil temp / good MPG really your always going to have 5 mins of poor mpg. I’d definitely stick with petrol.

Edit
Just seen one of those Suzuki swift for £3k with combined mpg of 53 on autotrader. It’s not got the ground clearance of a fiat panda in this guise

https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/suzuki/swift/...

Edited by mintmansam on Sunday 19th December 08:03

[ExPat2B]

Not a good time to buy.

Van availability is poor, and prices high, and it has driven a lot of workmen into practical estates, driving up prices.

Its a bit over budget, but I saw this and thought it was perfect for the job :

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202109267...

[AndrewT1275]

A petrol Subaru will cost a bit more on fuel but you will more than recover that difference in reduced repair and running costs. They are built for reliability but servicing and parts are very reasonable too.

I've had my Outback for over 5 years and not had to spend anything other than regular servicing. In that time it's dealt with pretty much everything you could throw at a car and it's not missed a beat.

Not sure what the diesels are like and for your mileage they might make little sense but fuel economy is obviously better.

If outright size isn't an issue then an XV could be an alternative.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111259...

[Hawk51]

<EDIT TO ADD>
4WD is because it needs to be able to cope with narrow/steep muddy/icy country lanes.

[Hawk51]

Smurfsarepeopletoo said:

Fiat Panda 4x4

Any idea what these are like on longer drives e.g. motorway runs? Although most of our journeys are 20-45mins, some will be longer and faster. Wondering if I’ll find the power of this frustrating given my previous cars!

[ZX10R NIN]

Do you need or do you want 4WD because the biggest savings you can make in fuel & maintenance costs are through going RWD or FWD & a good set of winter tyres.

4WD wise I'd look for the best Ford Kuga you could find:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111229...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202110309...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111189...

Hyundai Santa Fe reliable robust

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202109187...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202110289...

Freelander2's are a car that gets overlooked, not the best on fuel for a diesel but a good robust car:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111269...

Kia Sorento

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111089...

CR-V EX

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202110299...

Leftfield Citroen C Crosser these are the same car as the Peugeot 4008 & a Mitsubishi that I can't remember:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202110138...

FWD Estates.

1.8 SRI Insignia

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111239...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111269...

2.0d

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111300...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111029...

[sam.rog]

Avoid a diesel Subaru. Prone to engine failure at 100k.
A good legacy or outback is a fantastic car but not cheap to run. Some parts are difficult to get but icp and AUTODOC have most. Subaru prices are high.
They don’t tend to have body rust issues like other Japanese cars of the same vintage.

Subaru definitely spent the budget on mechanicals rather than interior soft touch plastics.

The 3.0 is superbly smooth and powerful enough but likes a drink. My average over the last 3k miles is 21mpg. Inner Manchester driving. I can see 32 on a run on the motorway. The smaller engines aren’t much better at fuel economy.
Tax is £600 a year. I think post 2006 have this banding.

The auto is bulletproof as long as its fluids are flushed regularly.
The manuals suffer diff failure at around 100k the autos don’t.

They eat arb bushes at an alarming rate. Consider them a service item, but they are cheap enough an easy enough to replace.

Electrics are extremely reliable and should cause no issues.

If its a spec b then the dampers can fail or knock. Replacement from Subaru are astronomical. The bilstein b8 front and b6 rears are pretty much the same as oem and £600 instead of £1800 from subaru.

PAS can be noisy. Replacement o-ring can fix, rubber hoses get hard and cause air leaks causing the pump to be noisy.

Other main failures are rusty fixtures and fittings as with any old car. Hose clamps disintegrate when touched ect.

Edited by sam.rog on Sunday 19th December 09:26

[cayman-black]

This looks good value.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202109227...

[fflump]

ZX10R NIN said:

Do you need or do you want 4WD because the biggest savings you can make in fuel & maintenance costs are through going RWD or FWD & a good set of winter tyres.

Unlike continental Europe too few in this country bother changing out of summer tyres. I've been stuck behind a tractionless BMW X6 with low profile rubber in a carpark covered in packed snow. We eventually pushed him out whereas my 400 bhp RWD saloon made zero fuss of purely due to being on winter rubber.

That said, if treacherous conditions are the norm 4WD AND proper tyres is the way to go!

[RVB]

ZX10R NIN said:

Do you need or do you want 4WD because the biggest savings you can make in fuel & maintenance costs are through going RWD or FWD & a good set of winter tyres.

/\ This /\

4wd, including 'Haldex' types adds drag to the drivetrain and a couple of hundred kilos to the vehicle, causing the car to be noticeably less economical than its front-wheel-drive counterparts.

'Grippy' mud/snow tyres unfortunately also have a mpg penalty. But it's unlikely whatever you buy will come fitted with them, so that's another £400+.

The cost-to-change / depreciation could easily add up to a lot more cost than continuing to run your existing car.
Spending £3k to save 3p per mile means you have to drive 100k to break even.

[georgeyboy12345]

I really think the Dacia Duster is the best solution. Here's a nice 1.5 dCi
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202104261...


Ford Kuga 2.0 TDCI Zetec
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202110309...


Mitsubishi ASX 1.8 TD
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202110148...


A couple of Skodas

Yeti 2.0 TDI
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111280...

Octavia 2.0 TDI Scout
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111049...


And as a bonus, a TwinAir Fiat Panda - the only petrol engined model here so will be ULEZ compliant, which will make it slightly easier to move on. Have a test drive of one, they are surprisingly roomy. They are also turbocharged and lightweight, so don't feel too gutless. Not what I'd call fast, but then neither are any of the others! Edit: It actually has a better power:weight ratio than the Duster, Kuga and the Yeti!
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202110078...

Edited by georgeyboy12345 on Sunday 19th December 13:01

[Hawk51]

This is the sort of cruel treatment my car gets &#128563;It needs to be able to cope with heavy clay mud, and icy country lanes. I often load big things into it (secondhand furniture, in this case loads of branches, posts, wood etc).

Maybe a more economical car doesn’t exist for my requirements &#128556;

[sam.rog]

A subaru outback on decent tyres would be ideal for that. But financially you’d be no better off imo.

[ZX10R NIN]

Hawk51 said:

This is the sort of cruel treatment my car gets ??It needs to be able to cope with heavy clay mud, and icy country lanes. I often load big things into it (secondhand furniture, in this case loads of branches, posts, wood etc).

Maybe a more economical car doesn’t exist for my requirements ??

In that case have a purge on your A4 put 1-2k aside & sort all the niggles you can for that money, a good service/terraclean then remap it you'll see better fuel economy.

[Gtom]

Nissan x-trail?

I used to use my dads 136bhp 2.2 dci and that would nudge 35mpg on a steady run. With winter tyres and selectable 4wd it was good in snow and the seats folded flat in to the floor.

[ooid]

Land Cruiser Colorado

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202112130...

Rav4

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111049...

RX300 (the most handsome!)

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111249...

[fflump]

ZX10R NIN said:

Hawk51 said:

This is the sort of cruel treatment my car gets ??It needs to be able to cope with heavy clay mud, and icy country lanes. I often load big things into it (secondhand furniture, in this case loads of branches, posts, wood etc).

Maybe a more economical car doesn’t exist for my requirements ??

In that case have a purge on your A4 put 1-2k aside & sort all the niggles you can for that money, a good service/terraclean then remap it you'll see better fuel economy.

Maybe a set of smaller wheels would improve traction even more?