What to buy under $60k?
Discussion
Guys,
Given the the price of cars in Australia leaves rather less choice than if i was buying back the UK i thought i would get some more opinions for a replacement daily driver.
Current 2002 VY Commodore SS has got to go after a bout of dubious reliability and any feeling of enjoyment i once got from its cheep and cheerfull brand of v8 grunt having all but evaporated.
As such I'm shortly to be in the market for a replacement so looking for any ideas i may not have thought about...
Criteria:
Budget around $60k
No older than 2002
No more than 100,000Km (but pref much less if possible)
Must have leather, cruise, proper climate control, all the toys basically.
I would still like a v8 but a slightly more economical v8 than the 5.7 lump in the SS would be good.
Ideally easily convertable to lpg
Reasonably quick
Reliable....
At the moment i have been swinging towards a 2002-2003 Range Rover, quite fancy a 4x4. The Range Rover or possibly a Jeep Grand Cherokee are about the only ones i would consider however. Would rather grate my face than drive an X5.
Opinions please.
Cheers
Al
Given the the price of cars in Australia leaves rather less choice than if i was buying back the UK i thought i would get some more opinions for a replacement daily driver.
Current 2002 VY Commodore SS has got to go after a bout of dubious reliability and any feeling of enjoyment i once got from its cheep and cheerfull brand of v8 grunt having all but evaporated.
As such I'm shortly to be in the market for a replacement so looking for any ideas i may not have thought about...
Criteria:
Budget around $60k
No older than 2002
No more than 100,000Km (but pref much less if possible)
Must have leather, cruise, proper climate control, all the toys basically.
I would still like a v8 but a slightly more economical v8 than the 5.7 lump in the SS would be good.
Ideally easily convertable to lpg
Reasonably quick
Reliable....
At the moment i have been swinging towards a 2002-2003 Range Rover, quite fancy a 4x4. The Range Rover or possibly a Jeep Grand Cherokee are about the only ones i would consider however. Would rather grate my face than drive an X5.
Opinions please.
Cheers
Al
Hmmm, i did think about a E-Series HSV but after the SS i don't think i would go for another Holden.
M3s/540/M5 all outwith the price range in the age range i am looking at. You can just about get a 1998 M5 with intergalactic KMs on it for $60k but i don't want anything older than the 2002 SS i have at the moment.
Yeah, not sure about the whole 4x4 thing, we don't really need one for the high kerbs and speed bumps of Albert Park. I could justify it as aneconomical environmentally friendly choice however dropping the 1.3litres down from a 5.7 v8 to a little 4.4 v8 runabout Range Rover...
M3s/540/M5 all outwith the price range in the age range i am looking at. You can just about get a 1998 M5 with intergalactic KMs on it for $60k but i don't want anything older than the 2002 SS i have at the moment.
Yeah, not sure about the whole 4x4 thing, we don't really need one for the high kerbs and speed bumps of Albert Park. I could justify it as aneconomical environmentally friendly choice however dropping the 1.3litres down from a 5.7 v8 to a little 4.4 v8 runabout Range Rover...
Yeah, just seen a 2002 LS430 with 55,000km on the clock for $60k which looks like a possible option. The interior looks a bit cheap and nasty but that's probably just me comparing it to the Jaguar XJ8 i had in the UK so would need to see it in the flesh.
I'm not a huge fan of BMWs in general with the exception of the M5 so have pretty much ruled them out.
I'm not a huge fan of BMWs in general with the exception of the M5 so have pretty much ruled them out.
Hmm, Evo/Skyline might be interesting. Don't really need anything that quick as a daily driver since i have the TVR for fun but will have a look and see what's available.
I probably wouldn't have another Jag after my XJ8 went through 3 gearboxes in th space of 2 years, not exactly the most reliable vehicle on earth.
I probably wouldn't have another Jag after my XJ8 went through 3 gearboxes in th space of 2 years, not exactly the most reliable vehicle on earth.
Thats what put me off to...
I was >.< that close to buying an Evo 6...but with the KMS I do a week and with my intention to do trackdays and sprints on a monthly basis I just couldnt justify the running costs. I would have been servicing it every 3 months if not more depending on the use it got.
Can I ask what went wrong with the SS? What are the running costs like? I have fancied one as a daily cruiser for a while...
I was >.< that close to buying an Evo 6...but with the KMS I do a week and with my intention to do trackdays and sprints on a monthly basis I just couldnt justify the running costs. I would have been servicing it every 3 months if not more depending on the use it got.
Can I ask what went wrong with the SS? What are the running costs like? I have fancied one as a daily cruiser for a while...
Hmmm, Landcruiser definately also worth a look, will check them out. How would it be for day to day on road stuff compared to a Range Rover? I know it's a terrible cliche buying a 4x4 and then using it mostly in the city but realistically it would only be taken properly off road occasionally on holidays etc.
Re problems with the SS, just lots of little niggles - some of them related to a daft cow crashing into the side of it a while back and then the wheels being stolen the one time it was parked in the street overnight. Other than that just annoyances like fuel pump going, wheel bearing droning, battery dying, wierd check alternator warnings, aircon losing its gas, brakes fading to nothing after a spell of vaguely enthusiastic driving, etc etc etc. All things that could happen on any car but after having a series of them in the space of a year i'm just a bit over it.
Current thinking is coming down to, in no particular order:
Range Rover
Lexus LS430
Audi A8
Jeep Grand Cherokee
Landcruiser/Lexus LX470
Re problems with the SS, just lots of little niggles - some of them related to a daft cow crashing into the side of it a while back and then the wheels being stolen the one time it was parked in the street overnight. Other than that just annoyances like fuel pump going, wheel bearing droning, battery dying, wierd check alternator warnings, aircon losing its gas, brakes fading to nothing after a spell of vaguely enthusiastic driving, etc etc etc. All things that could happen on any car but after having a series of them in the space of a year i'm just a bit over it.
Current thinking is coming down to, in no particular order:
Range Rover
Lexus LS430
Audi A8
Jeep Grand Cherokee
Landcruiser/Lexus LX470
Edited by ariddell on Monday 21st January 10:59
Cars are just hideously expensive out here aren’t they... but... it never fails to pass the time searching Drive.com or Carsales for this kind of activity.
Personally, I would look at the Range Rover.. although, a quick search has revealed that you could get a 2007 Discovery 3 (SE Spec) for $59,990 which is a lot of 4x4 for the money... sticking with the "Buy British" thoughts and a personal favourite of mine is the Jaguar S-Type R and there is one for sale in Sydney for $67,990, as this is a private sale, pretty sure you could get this to $60K to meet the budget...
Then of course, there's always a Focus XR5... (ST in proper speak!)
Personally, I would look at the Range Rover.. although, a quick search has revealed that you could get a 2007 Discovery 3 (SE Spec) for $59,990 which is a lot of 4x4 for the money... sticking with the "Buy British" thoughts and a personal favourite of mine is the Jaguar S-Type R and there is one for sale in Sydney for $67,990, as this is a private sale, pretty sure you could get this to $60K to meet the budget...
Then of course, there's always a Focus XR5... (ST in proper speak!)
Edited by 7805 on Monday 21st January 22:37
Nah, I want something big and comfy, 4 door and 5 seat at least so hot hatches etc are out.
Elise all good, but i have the Chimaera for that purpose.. I did look at the XR6 Turbo and XR8 but you're right - too similar to the SS.
I do like the S-Type and an R would be ideal, just don't know if i would trust Jaguars again after the trouble i had with my last one. If i could find a late model, kitted up, low-km XJR x308 in black with black leather it could possibly sway me back so long as it came with a good warranty too.
What sort of experiences have you found with the RR/Discovery Kiwisr? I've heard of diff issues, airbag suspension problems and gearbox failures on the RR but mostly seem to have been sorted out by recalls/warranty claims earlier in the cars life.
Elise all good, but i have the Chimaera for that purpose..
I did look at the XR6 Turbo and XR8 but you're right - too similar to the SS.I do like the S-Type and an R would be ideal, just don't know if i would trust Jaguars again after the trouble i had with my last one. If i could find a late model, kitted up, low-km XJR x308 in black with black leather it could possibly sway me back so long as it came with a good warranty too.
What sort of experiences have you found with the RR/Discovery Kiwisr? I've heard of diff issues, airbag suspension problems and gearbox failures on the RR but mostly seem to have been sorted out by recalls/warranty claims earlier in the cars life.
Constant niggles really, electrics are one of the big problems, even on brand new models.
I had electric windows stuck in the down position, a dashboard failure, car just wouldn't start one day because of immobiliser, water ingress through the passenger side floor, lamp failures etc.
Generally the engines and transmissions are fine, it's all the surrounding stuff that fails. (which is why the Defenders are good because there is nothing on them).
I had electric windows stuck in the down position, a dashboard failure, car just wouldn't start one day because of immobiliser, water ingress through the passenger side floor, lamp failures etc.
Generally the engines and transmissions are fine, it's all the surrounding stuff that fails. (which is why the Defenders are good because there is nothing on them).
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