Life caught up to me - tough decision which estate car to buy 2nd hand

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ItsHim

ItsHim

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Well, seems the days of thinking about getting a pretty, small and agile fun car are definitely over and I'm stuck on getting a 2nd hand estate car for a very reasonable price ~ € 10.000

It's going to be a Diesel :scared: because I appreciate the torque from low-range combined with good fuel economy and cheaper fuel prices.

I narrowed my choice down to 3 cars:

Either a Toyota Corolla or Avensis. The latter I thought about getting only the top range Executive modell, and preferably the 2.2 litre model. Theses seems very hard to get in the Western part of Germany.

Or, a Volvo V40, though I'm not so sure whether I like the interior. I would buy it for its reasonable looks and the superb NCAP performance, but, well. Frankly I don't like the interior that much and am not entirely sold on the ride comfort.

I would very much appreciate any input and thoughts you might have.

Have I overlooked a good contender? Although I'm German, I'm not too fond of German cars myself, because in that segment, I rate them rather overpriced and under-equipped.

No need to feel sorry for me, you won't believe what go-faster-stripes can do to a car :nervous: :sly:
 
Anything wrong with a 130 brake Passat estate ? I had a saloon version and It ticked all my boxes.
 
ItsHim
Or, a Volvo V40, though I'm not so sure whether I like the interior. I would buy it for its reasonable looks and the superb NCAP performance, but, well. Frankly I don't like the interior that much and am not entirely sold on the ride comfort.
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Like the interior or not, the V40 in my opinion isn't a proper estate at all but more like a glorified hatchback. If you want a diesel Volvo with some proper room for that price it'll be a MkI V70, the MkII is smaller in many respects and both of them beat the V40 in pretty much every area except possibly the looks.
 
If I had to go for a diesel family wagon I would choose a 2002 BMW 530d Touring. I had a 330d which had the same engine and that was a great car.

But, seeing as you prefer non-German, what about a 2004/5 Honda Accord Sport Wagon 2.2 Diesel?

norm_10_Accord_Tourer_iCTDi_2003_Eu.jpg
 
Passat -

quite used to these cars, but they do come with a premium. I did some research and they tend to sell for the same price as the Avensis, but with considerable less "stuff". So I'd get a top of the range Toyota vs a standard Passat. The new one is quite decent, but the one I use sells for about € 40K. Blimey ;)

V40 vs V70 - yes, the V40 is more of a hatchback, but the passenger front seat folds flat, so that's something. I looked at some statistics, seems the V70s have more issues than the V40s. But maybe it's worth reconsidering.

The Honda? Well, I definitely will take a closer look! Thanls for reminding me of this car. BMWs are a bit too expensive from what I've seen, and you have to do a lot of comparison between the fitted extras. I'd like to save some money for a nice fun car. You know, when the wife isn't looking ;)

Thanks for the input so far! :D
 
Get the Volvo. Volvos last forever.
 
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You know you want to ;)

Nice to drive, I'd assume reasonably priced, and most importantly huuuge.
 
How about a Vauxhall, sorry Opel Vectra? You get a 2.2 turbo diesel version of that and usually come with decent spec. Or even an Astra?
 
My old man drives an Astra Diesel, they really managed to improve quality considerably and he's quite pleased with it. So, well, um. I don't want to become like my father ;) Hehe, same old story ;)

Ford, hm, haven't really related to them, yet. They do a rather preposterous hothatch. See, here I go, that's what really cought my eye. I've looked at a couple the other week but they were in rather poor nick. Bit hard to strike a bargain there.

Good lord, that's quite a dilemma, because in my heart of hearts I know I don't want such a car. Never did. But reason dictates I get one and maybe save just enough to get myself a decent little bugger for the occasional track day, too.

Well, next week I'll be off shopping around a bit.

Edit: The Honda could be something. A bit more expensive than I hoped, but the extras they come with are magnificent! Really worth doing some detective work I guess.

Thanks again folks, really appreciate it!
 
To further Jon's idea, and if you're a fan of Ford's more exciting models, you could strike a balance between the two with one of these:

Ford-Mondeo_ST220_Estate_2005_1024x.jpg

Mondeo ST TDCi estate. Good looks, decent pace, great handling, loads of space.
 
NissanSkylineN1
Get the Volvo. Volvos last forever.
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Volvos (read: V70 MkI and MkII) do. Cars with Renault engines and otherwise related to Mitsubishi Carismas (read: V40) don't.
 
I'd have to second the Opel Vectra. Despite the image issues, my cousin's is truly massive on the inside.
 
Not my specialised area but, have you considered a mini-people carrier? The Ford C-max or even the S-max, or what about a megane scenic etc etc.
 
Doesn't Subaru sell a diesel Legacy/Liberty/Outback in Europe?
 
Sertsa
Doesn't Subaru sell a diesel Legacy/Liberty/Outback in Europe?
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Mmm, but they've only been selling the diesels for the last 2 years, so I doubt they're quite within the OP's price range.
 
Sadly, Subaru Diesels are well beyond my reach. Mitsubishi Lancer estates got me hooked because of the interior and the price vs milage (they go rather cheap), and I could pretend there's an Evo hidden somewhere down there ;) , but 11 litres/100 km in city traffic? That's presumably the reason why quite a few low milage cars are offered second hand. And it would kill me because I will have to do quite some short trips, too.

I did consider people carrier, even a Skoda Roomster, VW Caddy, Dacia Logan, etc, but decided in the end to draw the line somewhere.

After browsing through the V70s on offer, they sell for a big lump of money and the milage they did is close to record breaking. I guess you can't really kill a V70 - and it shows in the price.

After putting it to you I realise more and more what a tough decision this is going to be.

I tried to fiddle with both my budget and my priorities, but it seems at the moment it just isn't a buyer's market for second hand cars. Damn thing is I need some space for stuff (not people), and the ability to tow a trailer once in a while. How on earth do other people do it? Cars are meant to be fun for Pete's sake! ;) I do have the bad habit of doing the maths, looking at TÜV/MOT statistics and general un-petrol-head things. Damn and blast my genes!


*** The End ***

After considerable scratching of various body parts I signed today for a 2nd hand Avensis 2.0 estate. Chassis and suspension are in great nick, interior needs a bit of work (and a new stereo, of course), engine is lovely with just the right trade-off between power and economy for my needs. Got it almost for a reasonable price.

I tried some cheaper Body Carriers, too, but that's just not me. I can see the appeal, but I wonder if the wife would get any funny ideas if she sees there's room for seven (remember James May? "You gave me the children, now get in the back!" Haha - larious ;) )

So, hopefully, all's well that end's well.

Cheers!
 
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