Buying a car

strtdv

You'll not get anything terribly exciting but you can certainly get a car under 9 years old with under 80,000 miles for under £3.5k.

Options are:
Focus
Fabia
Insignia
Renault Scenic

I also saw a Twingo Renaultsport that looks like a laugh

I suspect the Scenic will be the most comfortable

breakstuff

Emp_Fab said:

I saw a Volvo S60 in the office car park last week.  Nice looking motor.  Reviews unfortunately criticise the ride quality, but the S80 gets lauded for it.  Not sure I need anything that big though.

So... my criteria this time are: Comfort.  Fuel economy.  Er... that’ll do for now!

I've got an S60 and the ride quality is perfectly acceptable. Mine has got 18" rims and it's still comfortable even with the terrible roads round here.

ICBM

strtdv said:

I suspect the Scenic will be the most comfortable

Yes, they are. I paid £4.2K for a seven year old, top-spec Grand Scenic with one previous owner, 80K on it in excellent condition with FSH. It's not only extremely comfortable, it's huge inside compared to its road footprint and enormously versatile. It's also been reliable - I've had it getting on for two years now and its only problem has been a stuck brake caliper.

But I have to admit it's brown...

RaymondLin

ICBM said: sew

strtdv said:

I suspect the Scenic will be the most comfortable

Yes, they are. I paid £4.2K for a seven year old, top-spec Grand Scenic with one previous owner, 80K on it in excellent condition with FSH. It's not only extremely comfortable, it's huge inside compared to its road footprint and enormously versatile. It's also been reliable - I've had it getting on for two years now and its only problem has been a stuck brake caliper.

But I have to admit it's brown...

Brown isn’t black, so it’s fine  

Emp_Fab

Whoever Lolled my post declaring my budget is a dick.

Oh and same as before - no bloody Renaults.

Or Fiats.

Or Lamborghinis.

ICBM

Emp_Fab said:

Oh and same as before - no bloody Renaults.

Or Fiats.

Or Lamborghinis.

In that case Peugeot. Get in quick before people realise they're now the most reliable brand in the UK and prices go up...

RaymondLin

Is the budget on TOP of the trade in value of the car?

Majorscale

I don’t want to go through this all again. Please stop!

RaymondLin

Majorscale said:

I don’t want to go through this all again. Please stop!

But it’s only 18 pages until 100!

TTony

Emp_Fab said:

Budgie said:

What’s the budget this time?

Dunno really...  not much....  say 3.5K ?

RaymondLin said:

Is the budget on TOP of the trade in value of the car?

Good point @RaymondLin ;

So, what car can we find for emp for £3.6k?

digitalscream

Emp_Fab said:

Budgie said:

What’s the budget this time?

Dunno really...  not much....  say 3.5K ?

Treat yourself.

No, seriously. Plenty of low-mileage diesels on there at 50+mpg, and comfort is pretty much their reason for being.

randella

ronnyb said:

the_jaffa said:

A Rover 75 sounds perfect for you

Somebody has lol'd this but it is actually a very good suggestion. Rover 75's were very well built and if you avoid the K series petrol engines which were prone to overheating and go for the 2 litre BMW diesel it would be a good buy. They are gaining a big following amongst classic car owners and the club for these is the fastest growing car club. The 2 litre diesel has no DPF's or EGR's to worry about either. 

The K series wasn’t so much prone to overheating but, if it did, there was a very small header tank for the coolant. If the coolant level had been left to run a little low (easy done with such a small margin for error) and the engine got hotter than usual, then it was new head gasket (and possibly head) time.

They were otherwise decent engines, and a lot of them have been modified to remove the stupid design flaw that was, no doubt, a function of Rover running on a design budget that wouldn’t buy an IKEA coffee table. 

octatonic

digitalscream said:

Emp_Fab said:

Budgie said:

What’s the budget this time?

Dunno really...  not much....  say 3.5K ?

Treat yourself.

No, seriously. Plenty of low-mileage diesels on there at 50+mpg, and comfort is pretty much their reason for being.

A mate of mine paid about £30k for one of these when they came out.
He loved it- I was never really a fan, but at the price they are now it seems a pretty decent option.
I wonder how parts supply is?

Budgie

The Jags seem like a hell of a lot of car for the price. 

digitalscream

Budgie said:

The Jags seem like a hell of a lot of car for the price. 

If I had Emp's budget and requirements, they'd pretty much be top of the list for me. The age is a slight issue, but anything at less than 60k miles will be absolutely fine, and the interior quality and fit/finish will be far higher than anything more modern for the same money.

TTony

IIRC the X or S type was based extensively on a Mondeo (being designed during Ford's ownership of Jaguar), so many parts should be available quite cheaply.

Definitely a lot of car for the money.

Possibly a bit too refined and classy for Emp though?

Stevepage

Do not touch a Vauxhall Insignia. I've never heard good things about them

m_c

randella said:

ronnyb said:

the_jaffa said:

A Rover 75 sounds perfect for you

Somebody has lol'd this but it is actually a very good suggestion. Rover 75's were very well built and if you avoid the K series petrol engines which were prone to overheating and go for the 2 litre BMW diesel it would be a good buy. They are gaining a big following amongst classic car owners and the club for these is the fastest growing car club. The 2 litre diesel has no DPF's or EGR's to worry about either. 

The K series wasn’t so much prone to overheating but, if it did, there was a very small header tank for the coolant. If the coolant level had been left to run a little low (easy done with such a small margin for error) and the engine got hotter than usual, then it was new head gasket (and possibly head) time.

They were otherwise decent engines, and a lot of them have been modified to remove the stupid design flaw that was, no doubt, a function of Rover running on a design budget that wouldn’t buy an IKEA coffee table. 

You are correct in that the K series wasn't really that prone to overheating, however the head gasket wasn't the best.
They would either fail because they did overheat, as they were prone to various minor coolant leaks, or due to age (it was very rare for them to last past 60-80k without needing a head gasket).

Landrover actually came out with a new MLS (multi layer steel - what pretty much every modern head gasket is) head gasket, and reinforced ladder frame that cured the distance limitation.

The K-series was a really advanced engine for it's era, with one of the best power to weight ratios for a naturally aspirated engine, however it was killed by Rover's unwillingness to fit a low coolant warning, or to adopt a new head gasket.

m_c

TTony said:

IIRC the X or S type was based extensively on a Mondeo (being designed during Ford's ownership of Jaguar), so many parts should be available quite cheaply.

Definitely a lot of car for the money.

Possibly a bit too refined and classy for Emp though?

X type was essentially a Mondeo with a different body and the option of 4 wheel drive.
I'd treat any like I'd treat a 12 year old Mondeo. I'd be looking very carefully for rust, as Ford were still using woeful rust coatings at that time.

JerkMoans

Sweet Jesus. This, again.