Renault Laguna Estate- Station Car

[Mangante]

I am looking at buying a Laguna Estate as a station / tip car for around 2.5k - 4k. Can anyone give me some pointers as to what to look for?
Most cars have in excess of 70k on the clock and some have mentioned having cam belt changed. Any help would be appreciated.

[HellDiver]

Mangante said:

Can anyone give me some pointers as to what to look for?

Not a Laguna.

[Hedders]

Especially not a £4k one.

My sister recently bought a used one for £9k, a year later could not sell it so my dad gave her £4.5 and six months later could not sell it so traded it in for a couple of thousand on a jag.

No one wants them.

[james_tigerwoods]

Buy a Passat.

Or a Vectra.

Or a Mondeo....

[Mangante]

james_tigerwoods said:

Buy a Passat.

Or a Vectra.

Or a Mondeo....

Can I get one of these for the same money?

[Gad-Westy]

Mangante said:

james_tigerwoods said:

Buy a Passat.

Or a Vectra.

Or a Mondeo....

Can I get one of these for the same money?

or if you can't, then get a slightly older example. Everybody I know who has owned a last shape Laguna has had endless problems. Maybe for £1000 they're worth a punt but not at £4k.

How about an Accord?

Edited by Gad-Westy on Tuesday 24th August 16:21

[james_tigerwoods]

Mangante said:

james_tigerwoods said:

Buy a Passat.

Or a Vectra.

Or a Mondeo....

Can I get one of these for the same money?

I can't comment for a Vectra or Mondeo, but a B5.5 Passat should fit that budget.

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1921300.htm
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1855565.htm
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1722018.htm
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1800605.htm

ETA - A B5 (pre face lift) can be had for about £2k - they don't look as pretty and aren't specd as well, but can be had for about £1-3k.

Edited by james_tigerwoods on Tuesday 24th August 16:24

[andy400]

Gad-Westy said:

How about an Accord?

I had an Accord 'Aerodeck'. Utterly unbreakable and quite a nice drive. Never serviced it except for one new air filter, one set of plugs, and two oil changes. 110,000 miles when it went (sad day, did I make the right decision?), the only thing that failed was the boot gas struts, which I replaced for £15.

[patmahe]

I'd agree with the sentiments above, I considered one a year or two back, they are just crap in a lot of ways, you'd be buying a lot of hassle.

[Mangante]

james_tigerwoods said:

Mangante said:

james_tigerwoods said:

Buy a Passat.

Or a Vectra.

Or a Mondeo....

Can I get one of these for the same money?

I can't comment for a Vectra or Mondeo, but a B5.5 Passat should fit that budget.

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1921300.htm
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1855565.htm
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1722018.htm
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1800605.htm

ETA - A B5 (pre face lift) can be had for about £2k - they don't look as pretty and aren't specd as well, but can be had for about £1-3k.

Edited by james_tigerwoods on Tuesday 24th August 16:24

These are nice pics of a saloon....!!

[HellDiver]

My car is what you might call a "station car". 1 mile commute, maybe a few miles at lunchtime, it takes rubbish to the tip, it moves furniture, it carries the groceries. It starts first time every time, it does 34mpg round town and 40mpg on the motorway. It's a 2005 1.8 petrol Mondeo LX.

I paid £4995 for mine in January, and that was from a Ford dealership. It's very possible to get similar cars for £4k and still have change.

[james_tigerwoods]

Mangante said:

james_tigerwoods said:

Mangante said:

james_tigerwoods said:

Buy a Passat.

Or a Vectra.

Or a Mondeo....

Can I get one of these for the same money?

I can't comment for a Vectra or Mondeo, but a B5.5 Passat should fit that budget.

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1921300.htm
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1855565.htm
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1722018.htm
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1800605.htm

ETA - A B5 (pre face lift) can be had for about £2k - they don't look as pretty and aren't specd as well, but can be had for about £1-3k.

Edited by james_tigerwoods on Tuesday 24th August 16:24

These are nice pics of a saloon....!!

Ahem. Oops - Sorry - They do exist though...

ETA - The last saloon looks a bit odd...

Edited by james_tigerwoods on Tuesday 24th August 16:36

[flakeypaul]

PH hates Renault.

The end.

[MrLou]

flakeypaul said:

PH hates Renault.

The end.

For a reason.

[Mangante]

Guys thanks for all the help, I have started looking at Fords as they seem pretty bullet proof.

[plg]

If you want a true station car, ie, a tank that will get door dents, etc, try a Volvo 850 / V70 or a Saab 95. Loads of space, will go around the clock and can be pretty cheap to insure.

[flakeypaul]

Mangante said:

Guys thanks for all the help, I have started looking at Fords as they seem pretty bullet proof.

If you look at the mondeo - check to see when it's rear subframe bushes were least done. They are a weak point and can be replaced but if the frame is rusty it too has to be replaced - cost me £350. The handbrakes cables stick too wiping our the rear brakes and calipers - best to replace the cables before this happens!

Edited by flakeypaul on Tuesday 24th August 17:47

[Hedders]

MrLou said:

flakeypaul said:

PH hates Renault.

The end.

For a reason.

My last runabout was a mark 1 laguna and it was plagued with electrical issues, luckily someone drove into it for me.

[Mangante]

flakeypaul said:

Mangante said:

Guys thanks for all the help, I have started looking at Fords as they seem pretty bullet proof.

If you look at the mondeo - check to see when it's rear subframe bushes were least done. They are a weak point and can be replaced but if the frame is rusty it too has to be replaced - cost me £350. The handbrakes cables stick too wiping our the rear brakes and calipers - best to replace the cables before this happens!

Edited by flakeypaul on Tuesday 24th August 17:47

Thanks for the tip.

[anonymous-user]

MK1 Laguna's are generally OK (for a frenchie), but I wouldn't touch a MK2 with a bargepole. I bought one last year as I thought I was getting a lot of car for my money. Turned out to be the most unreliable, worst build POS I have ever owned.

Ended up selling it on eBay as spares or repairs as I got sick of fixing it every week.

As has been said already get something, anything else but don't get a Laguna (or any french car for that matter).

Edited by anonymous-user on Tuesday 24th August 19:27