My Dad's looking for a new car...

[benzoboy]

Dad's looking for a new car...

What should he buy?

Thread for suggestions...


It must be:
An estate/4x4,
Available in the U.K,
Under £10,000,
Under 5 Years old.

It must have:
Full/Half Leather,
Air Con,
CD Stacker,
At least a 2.0 Litre engine,
Room for his toolboxes.

The list so far is:
Rover 75 Tourer
MG ZT-T
BMW 5-Series Tourer
Renault Laguna Initiale Estate
Ford Mondeo Ghia X Estate
Subaru Legacy/Outback
Alfa Romeo 156 2.4TD Sportwagon
Audi A4 Avant
Audi A6 Avant
Volvo V70


He Currently Drives:
Ford Mondeo ST24 Estate*, 1999, Half Leather, Air Con, 6 CD Stacker, 2.5, Alloys.

Help would be much appreciated!


*A Mondeo is a british Ford Contour for you Americans

UPDATE 1: 1 New Car Added
UPDATE 2: 1 New Car Added
UPDATE 3: 3 New Cars Added
UPDATE 4: Requirements Changed

 

[Race Idiot]

Comedy option.

Grey import Nissan Stagea!

Seriously though, i'd reccomend a Subaru Legacy Estate.

 

[Pebb]

I would say:

Renault Laguna Initiale Estate

 

[G.T]

Out of the list you have, I'd go for the BMW 5-Series Tourer.

I would say:

Renault Laguna Initiale Estate

Well, unless you want to go back to the dealer with problems all the time and have flimsy build quality, this is the car...


Edit: The Subaru then, if not the BMW. 👍

 

[benzoboy]

Well, unless you want to go back to the dealer with problems all the time and have flimsy build quality, this is the car...

True, my Mum used to own a citroen pluriel and everything kept falling off!

 

[G.T]

True, my Mum used to own a citroen pluriel and everything kept falling off!

That's why you should avoid new-ish French cars. In fact, have they always been this flimsy and unreliable?

 

[benzoboy]

That's why you should avoid new-ish French cars. In fact, have they always been this flimsy and unreliable?

Not always though, ages ago Mum also used to own a 1996 Citroen Xantia and that was alright, pretty cool car if I say so myself! I miss the hydraulic airbag thingys

 

[benzoboy]

COME ON PEOPLE! Where are you? I'm pretty sure that there's probably lots more cars with all of the stuff mentioned above!

 

[Hell Raiser]

COME ON PEOPLE! Where are you? I'm pretty sure that there's probably lots more cars with all of the stuff mentioned above!

I'm not sure what else you have there in England,so I can help you with.If it's up to me i'd say go with the BMW 5 Touring 👍

 

[TheCracker]

Alfa 156 2.4TD sportswagon? - they have really crappy 2nd hand residuals, you could get a really well spec'd one for £10k

 

[Takumi Fujiwara]

I'd take the Legacy. AWD is a great thing to have, and I'll guess that it'll be a bracket or two lower in terms of insurance than the Bimmer.

 

[G.T]

Alfa 156 2.4TD sportswagon? - they have really crappy 2nd hand residuals, you could get a really well spec'd one for £10k

Again, you'll get reliability probems with an Alfa.

That's if your Dad doesn't mind an unreliable car that is.

 

[TheCracker]

Again, you'll get reliability probems with an Alfa.

That's if your Dad doesn't mind an unreliable car that is.

Both my dad and my step brother have recently had 156's and niether had a spot of trouble with them reliablity wise. They do tend to suffer more than most manufactures with 'new car niggles' - a fact compounded by the atrocious Alfa dealer network. However, if you are buying second hand, someone else will have suffered and sorted any early problems and you don't need to use Alfa details for maintenance when the cars out of warrenty.

 

[Young_Warrior]

Audi A4/A6 Avant Quattro. Volvo V70

Persoannaly Id go for the audi. For your money you would get a much better specced audi than equevilant bmw. The audi Avants also hold their value pretty well better than their saloon counterparts.

 

[Pebb]

Out of the list you have, I'd go for the BMW 5-Series Tourer.

Well, unless you want to go back to the dealer with problems all the time and have flimsy build quality, this is the car...


Edit: The Subaru then, if not the BMW. 👍

But then again the lastest one is more safer what would you rather have.

Saftey or bad build quality.

 

[Famine]

Best looker is the Alfa 156, but it's less practical, thanks to the small opening and sloping roof, than the saloon version. Oh, and don't bother with JTD crap - go GTA. There's about 7 in the UK.

Best car is probably a new-shape Subaru Legacy - but they have really strong residuals, so anything other than basic spec will be tough to get for less than £10k. But basic spec on Subaru isn't exactly basic - 2.5 engine is standard...

Can't go far wrong with the Volvo, or its countryman Saab (though the Saab is based on the Vectra).

If he liked the Mondeo, he could go for the Jaguar X-Type Estate, or a newer Mondeo Estate (ST220 is a damn good car).

 

[Pebb]

But then again Alfa's Customer Support is not that good in the UK.

 

[TheCracker]

Best looker is the Alfa 156, but it's less practical, thanks to the small opening and sloping roof, than the saloon version. Oh, and don't bother with JTD crap - go GTA. There's about 7 in the UK.
.

Forget the GTA - your not getting one of those, especially with the newer style nose, for under 15k and if you can find one cheaper - avoid it like the plague. The JTD, especially the more recent common-rail diesel has 175bhp and 284lbs.ft torque and is a 20v, 5cyl beauty. It does has marginally less boot space than the saloon, but is much more practical being a hatch-back (can't really call it an estate) with folding rear seats.

 

[TwinTurboJay]

Ford Focus Wagon / Estate / Shooting Brake !!!!!

 

[benzoboy]

O.K Guys, I have changed the requirements needed, you can now pick any 4x4 aswell

 

[1X83Z]

Ford Focus Shooting Brake !!!!!

Man - there's a term you'll never see again.

Was the 1995-2000 Ford Mondeo only sold as a five-door hatchback? Because in that case it isn't the exact twin of the Ford Contour, which was only sold as a four-door sedan. The Ford Contour was also sold as the Mercury Mystique.

The audi Avants also hold their value pretty well better than their saloon counterparts.

Except early A6s - you should see the deals you can get on old shape A6 wagons; thousands of dollars less than their sedan counterparts. It's crucial to remember, though, that the 1998 A6 wagon was the old shape, while the 1998 A6 sedan was the new shape; the wagon didn't convert until 1999. Still, 1999 and 2000 models are cheap.

 

[benzoboy]

Was the 1995-2000 Ford Mondeo only sold as a five-door hatchback?

No, my Dad's currently driving a '99 one and that's an estate

 

[Young_Warrior]

O.K Guys, I have changed the requirements needed, you can now pick any 4x4 aswell

By 4x4 do you mean like land rover 4x4 or audi quattro 4x4?

 

[benzoboy]

By 4x4 do you mean like land rover 4x4 or audi quattro 4x4?

Land Rover 4x4