Comfy Mini-Barge

[j4r4lly]

I'm thinking about replacing an older Focus runaround which is our second car, with something more interesting.

Other regular car is a Kuga Hybrid and I have classic and a performance car tucked in the garage for fun.

The Focus has been an excellent "do it all" car, so we are looking for something similar but with a bit more comfort and luxury, somewhere that's nice to sit and has a feelgood factor and is a decent all round driver too.

This would be a second car for both me and Mrs J4 to drive, so needs to be something that's not too big, too expensive to own, something nice to tool around in and is a second car to the Kuga, so won't do big miles.

We don't want another SUV/Crossover, diesel, estate or hatchback and I'm not interested in an out and out performance machine, as I have one of those already.

Budget is £20-25K and we are looking at no older than 2019.

We've narrowed it down to Mercedes C-Class, BMW 3/4 Series and Jaguar XE. All would be petrol and ideally automatic.

Looking at cars for sale there seems to be plenty of choice of the Germas, though the Jaguars are a bit thinner on the ground.

They all seem to offer much the same package with decent specification, nice interiors and similar running costs and I guess we have to drive a few of each to see which we prefer. Jaguar is top of the list at the moment.

Does anyone have any experience with any of these cars, recommendations or warnings of things to look out for?

Also, any other similar cars we should consider?

Thanks. J4.

[anonymous-user]

Have you considered the Lexus IS or ES?

[j4r4lly]

Pickle_Party_247 said:

Have you considered the Lexus IS or ES?

No, but I've just had a look and the styling is a bit challenging to me.

Looks as if only the IS 300 meets my age/price criteria so will have to add it to the list and have a look at one in the metal.

Good suggestion.

Thanks.

[CivicDuties]

Infiniti Q50

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202310173...

[j4r4lly]

CivicDuties said:

Infiniti Q50

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202310173...

That's interesting....

Hard to tell but sizewise looks more E-Class or 5-Series?

[macron]

Q50 is C class, Q70 is E sized.

Volvo S60 fits the bill. T5 petrol, Inscription Plus or R Design is angrier. Again look for the plus for more gadgets.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2023071998...


I asked similar recently, only other suggestion was a Guilia Veloce, nice but too nickable and seats let it down for me

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

ETA I need to sell before I can buy, I would like the XE dash and ambience, in the S60 body, the XE, as all reviews say, has poor boot space and a cramped rear cabin. Drives well though, not as crisp as the 3, which I find too competent to be anything but dull. None are perfect, Volvo insisting on controls through a big screen is not everyone's cup of tea, and the auto can be dimwitted, although it's much less of an issue in the petrol, more of a prob with low powered diesels or bigger cars (in the S90).

Edited by macron on Tuesday 21st November 12:48

Edited by macron on Tuesday 21st November 12:49

[CG2020UK]

If going a 3 series highly recommend going the new G20 model with your budget.

Quite the evolution and truly fantastic cars!

320i is the sweet spot of the range and really all the car you need.

[j4r4lly]

CG2020UK said:

If going a 3 series highly recommend going the new G20 model with your budget.

Quite the evolution and truly fantastic cars!

320i is the sweet spot of the range and really all the car you need.

I previously had the E30, E36 & E46 3-Series, all with the straight 6 engines. Fabulous cars.

I'll have a closer look at the latest model 320.

Thanks.

[j4r4lly]

macron said:

Q50 is C class, Q70 is E sized.

Volvo S60 fits the bill. T5 petrol, Inscription Plus or R Design is angrier. Again look for the plus for more gadgets.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2023071998...


I asked similar recently, only other suggestion was a Guilia Veloce, nice but too nickable and seats let it down for me

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

ETA I need to sell before I can buy, I would like the XE dash and ambience, in the S60 body, the XE, as all reviews say, has poor boot space and a cramped rear cabin. Drives well though, not as crisp as the 3, which I find too competent to be anything but dull. None are perfect, Volvo insisting on controls through a big screen is not everyone's cup of tea, and the auto can be dimwitted, although it's much less of an issue in the petrol, more of a prob with low powered diesels or bigger cars (in the S90).

Edited by macron on Tuesday 21st November 12:48

Edited by macron on Tuesday 21st November 12:49

I did have a look at Volvo but the interior, other than the seats, doesn't impress me. I'm really not keen on having to prod a screen everytime I want to change something.

I had seen that the XE was compromised on rear and boot space but that doesn't bother me, as in the last 3 years of owning the Focus, no one has ever sat in the back. We use the Kuga for load lugging and if we need rear seat space as it's quite generous and the leg room can be increased by sliding the seats back and forth.

I did look at the Alfa and have owned a few over the years (155 1.8 TS, 156 24V V6 and 147 2.0 TS) but my wife wasn't keen as she has a negative perception around Italian build quality.

Interesting that there are no mentions so far of the C-Class which I quite like.

[AmyRichardson]

j4r4lly said:

Interesting that there are no mentions so far of the C-Class which I quite like.

Odd more like; if the mini barge experience is your goal and you don't mind modern MB interior & UI, and can live with a 4-pot, then it's probably the best of the lot. They didn't go touch-screen/haptic crazy until 2020, which is positive.

The W205 is also pretty spacious, I (6'1") recently did a couple of hours in the back of one (behind another guy c.5'10") and I didn't want for leg room - my F31 would have done noticeably worse.

[j4r4lly]

AmyRichardson said:

j4r4lly said:

Interesting that there are no mentions so far of the C-Class which I quite like.

Odd more like; if the mini barge experience is your goal and you don't mind modern MB interior & UI, and can live with a 4-pot, then it's probably the best of the lot. They didn't go touch-screen/haptic crazy until 2020, which is positive.

The W205 is also pretty spacious, I (6'1") recently did a couple of hours in the back of one (behind another guy c.5'10") and I didn't want for leg room - my F31 would have done noticeably worse.

I can live with the 4-pot from the performance perspective as it looks pretty decent and it keeps the running costs down. I have a V12 and a V6 in the garage to scratch that itch, so this is more about a comfortable, refined way to waft about with a dose of reasonable practicality thrown in.

What's the interior refinement like with the 4-pot powertrain? They seem resonably muted when I've seen/heard them out and about.

[ZX10R NIN]

If the rear seats are an issue then what about the RC300h:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202307039...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202211251...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202309222...

The Q50h is a very good car I have family & friends with them, with no issues for over 5+ years.

[j4r4lly]

ZX10R NIN said:

If the rear seats are an issue then what about the RC300h:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202307039...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202211251...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202309222...

The Q50h is a very good car I have family & friends with them, with no issues for over 5+ years.

Thanks for taking the time to post up the links.

I'm really not sure about the styling on these, particularly the front end. It's another car that I'd have to see in the metal to see if it improves it.