Changing to a 5 door for around 16K ?

sparkie1984

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hi all,

Currently have a 2 door BMW 1 series but with a little one on the way I would ideally like to get a 5 door or an estate.

I'm thinking of moving away from BMW because I feel I can get more for my money.

Main things are:

- relatively new
- low mileage
- manufacturers warranty
- look sporty (I have a M sport at the mo)
- preferably have a decent amount of go as I like my cars and enjoy having some power.
- gadgets and techy toys a must!
- we do a lot of miles a year (up to 20k sometimes)
- wondering whether to move away from diesel due to impending hatred towards it??

I have seen any in person yet but looked at:

- latest shape mondeo, seems well specced and can be got with a 2 litre petrol turbo which seems to offer fairly similar performance to my 120D - should age well ish as it seems to be designed as an executive mile muncher?

- Peugeot 308 gt, again seems well specced, can be had with a pretty powerful petrol engine (200bhp) can be had pretty new so plenty of warranty. I'm concerned at how well it will age? And build quality?

- Renault megane - well specced but build quality? How well will it age? Also from a colleague I hear their after sales are an absolute debacle.

-seat Leon - a VAG group car so should be ok quality, again will it age well?

- Ford Focus- they do a ST diesel which seems pretty sporty, not sure on other engines and wouldn't really want an ST petrol model.

Any other recommendations? Or does anyone own any of the above?


Many thanks
 
Octavia VRs Estate?
 
Hadn't even thought of them! Will check them out thanks
 
Golf GTD, or bigger the Octavia VRS estate. Not as quick or as nimble as the Golf but a seriously good and spacious estate.
 
With that mileage and the current political situation a diesel is almost certain to be cheaper. And everything newer than 2014/2015 is Euro VI anyway so the propaganda doesn't apply.

VW have been struggling with build quality lately but I don't know whether that applies to SEAT and Skoda as well.

We're just getting rid of a 64 plate Renault Zoe which has been flawless, other than several damaged tyres (which is likely just a run of bad luck).

Have you looked at the Mazda 6 and DS 5? Both are nice cars with 175/180PS diesel options. The latter really needs to be the DS-branded model, the original (prettier) Citroen branded one had poor suspension that they fixed with the rebrand. The DS 5 is more gadgety but the Mazda 6 is more sporty.
 
I've just put a deposit down on a Volvo V40 Cross Country with the newer D3 engine (£0 road tax, 0-60 7.9s) in SE Nav spec but with leather seats. Feb 2016, so a 65 plate (but not the new look that has 'Thors Hammer' headlights), 14K miles on the clock......£14.5K after including cost of retrofitting rear parking sensors.
 
Thanks for the recommendations so far guys!

Quite like the look of the newest shape Skoda octavia but I am struggling to find one in budget.

I had a brief look at the Volvos, not 100% on the interior, perhaps I need to check one out in person?

Mazda 6 I know someone with and he loves it actually, We did look into a Mazda 3 a year ago before getting the Beemer so I guess that would be another good one to check into!

I keep switching between an estate or a "sporty" but 5 door hatchback.

I will check out the Golf, never thought of them as I find them a bit safe and boring but still worth a look I think.
 
Had a look at a few different cars at the weekend and have taken a liking to the Mazda 6 and the Mondeo.

Kit on both seems to be pretty generous and I think they will cope with our many trips to the coast pretty well!

I also think I will have to temper my expectations regarding power because I can get a much better car for my money going for something moderately powerful 150-180 bhp range. Although I did find a 230bhp ford mondeo.

Only hatchback left to check out is the Peugeot 308 but I am not holding out much hope.

I am also wondering whether to look at a petrol if one suits rather than just diesel exclusively because whilst we do pretty high mileage up to 20K majority of it is short trips with probably 10 trips to the coast a year, but hopefully a petrol will perform efficiently on a long run.
 
I also think I will have to temper my expectations regarding power because I can get a much better car for my money going for something moderately powerful 150-180 bhp range. Although I did find a 230bhp ford mondeo

Ford have always sold high powered mondeos in diesel and petrol, there's a 2.2 diesel with 197bhp and a 2.0 petrol with 237bhp. The sporty ones are rarer though, they have made ST and V6 versions but I don't know if any are in your budget.

Only hatchback left to check out is the Peugeot 308 but I am not holding out much hope.

What didn't you like about the DS 5? Not sufficient sporty-looking on the outside?

And on the subject of Peugeots and 2.2 engines, have you had a look at the 508 GT? I don't think it's particularly sporty to drive but it's 200bhp and top of the range so it gets all the toys.

I am also wondering whether to look at a petrol if one suits rather than just diesel exclusively because whilst we do pretty high mileage up to 20K majority of it is short trips with probably 10 trips to the coast a year, but hopefully a petrol will perform efficiently on a long run.

It's always worth working out the numbers and the Mazda 6 is closer in efficiency than some. I think you'll find you'll be paying at least several hundred more for a petrol though, which would be a pretty hefty tax to impose on newish clean diesels.
 
Ford have always sold high powered mondeos in diesel and petrol, there's a 2.2 diesel with 197bhp and a 2.0 petrol with 237bhp. The sporty ones are rarer though, they have made ST and V6 versions but I don't know if any are in your budget.

Havent had any pop up on my looking around, however have seen the one 2.0 petrol turbo which is 237bhp but again haven't seen any more since.



What didn't you like about the DS 5? Not sufficient sporty-looking on the outside?

I did check it out but not really a big fan of the looks of the car full stop.

And on the subject of Peugeots and 2.2 engines, have you had a look at the 508 GT? I don't think it's particularly sporty to drive but it's 200bhp and top of the range so it gets all the toys.

Hadn't even heard of these before and I think they actually look pretty good! may try and check one out on my travels.



It's always worth working out the numbers and the Mazda 6 is closer in efficiency than some. I think you'll find you'll be paying at least several hundred more for a petrol though, which would be a pretty hefty tax to impose on newish clean diesels.

yeah true enough, I really fancy taking the 2.2D 178bhp Mazda 6 out for a test drive.

I also wouldn't mind trying out a 150bhp Mondeo with the 1.5 turbo petrol engine just to see how well it fares because I believe the tax is really low on that engine.

The 237bhp Mondeo is £220 a year in tax though!!!!
 
Thanks for the recommendations so far guys!

Quite like the look of the newest shape Skoda octavia but I am struggling to find one in budget.

I had a brief look at the Volvos, not 100% on the interior, perhaps I need to check one out in person?

Mazda 6 I know someone with and he loves it actually, We did look into a Mazda 3 a year ago before getting the Beemer so I guess that would be another good one to check into!

I keep switching between an estate or a "sporty" but 5 door hatchback.

I will check out the Golf, never thought of them as I find them a bit safe and boring but still worth a look I think.
Leon FR 184 estate or hatch. Easily in budget and the same as a GTD bar soft plastics and a LOT cheaper.

My hatch goes back Friday and I'm gutted :( it is the second best car I've owned. The MX5 is the best.

Superb estate Tech 150 coming in the next two weeks though and used are excellent value. Just not sporty.
 
I will look into one, thanks
Boot on estate is massive and tech packs were about 99% of all sold and had sat nav and LED headlamps.

Seriously good through the gears, over 50mpg average since I got it two years ago. We have hatch but boot bigger than the A3 and cheap to service etc.

If you're able to get past badge perception I think you'll be impressed.
 
Boot on estate is massive and tech packs were about 99% of all sold and had sat nav and LED headlamps.

Seriously good through the gears, over 50mpg average since I got it two years ago. We have hatch but boot bigger than the A3 and cheap to service etc.

If you're able to get past badge perception I think you'll be impressed.

I have no issues with a Seat, I had an Ibiza cupra back in the day and loved that little pocket rocket :)

Also very nearly pulled the trigger on a seat Leon cupra R a few years back.

I will check them out thanks
 
The 237bhp Mondeo is £220 a year in tax though!!!!

Eh, that's a small part of the running costs. At 20,000 miles a year a 2.0 Mondeo is going to cost you just over £3k a year in fuel, around £800 more than the Mazda 6 diesel.

The Mazda 6 itself is going to cost you a good £600 more per year than the most efficient cars you can get at that sort of size like a Civic 1.6.
 
Ouch I didn't realise that the Mazda faired so badly.

Saying that though I wonder how it compares to my current BMW 120D? Probably about the same as they're around the same power. Although the Mazda is heavier I guess.
 
I have no issues with a Seat, I had an Ibiza cupra back in the day and loved that little pocket rocket :)

Also very nearly pulled the trigger on a seat Leon cupra R a few years back.

I will check them out thanks
They're understated in looks too imo. People say it's a poor man's golf but I think the golf is a bit more in your face - which is fine if you like that!

Octavia VRS is a bit more expensive, but again quite nicely equipped and styled in the last shape before the facelift hitting showrooms now.

VAGs cheap brands are decent for the money! Leasing my superb has been criminally cheap.
 
Leon FR 184 estate or hatch. Easily in budget and the same as a GTD bar soft plastics and a LOT cheaper.

My hatch goes back Friday and I'm gutted :( it is the second best car I've owned. The MX5 is the best.

Superb estate Tech 150 coming in the next two weeks though and used are excellent value. Just not sporty.

Think you might have just found my next car! Been looking at all sorts but the FR hatch ticks a lot of boxes!
Any bad bits to watch out for?
 
Think you might have just found my next car! Been looking at all sorts but the FR hatch ticks a lot of boxes!
Any bad bits to watch out for?
The last owner. Mainly munching front tyres! Check the servicing obviously, but they can go on a long life 18k service.

In two years, not missed a beat. Genuinely. If you can get one with auto wipers and headlights, bonus.

Avoid any that don't have the tech pack. 150 bhp diesels and petrol FR don't have independent rear suspension.

Pretty nails all around imo. If I could have leased an estate I would have!
 
What deal did you get on the superb?
£256 down, £256 a month for 23 months. 10k miles a year.

2.0 SE Technology 150bhp estate with metallic paint. Equipment is insane for the price really and the boot space is bonkers!
 
Good deal.
It would appear all the cheap leases on these have done wonders for the 2 year old resale prices.
 
Good deal.
It would appear all the cheap leases on these have done wonders for the 2 year old resale prices.
Yes it was about 800 cheaper over two years than a normal deal for the Superb.

Used prices are usually 20%-25% down on rrp as lease tends to be 25% ish of same price over two years.
 
The lower powered FR 184 (just) is 0.6s quicker to 60 than the Focus ST diesel - but the ST diesel does at least look identical to petrol.

FR quite understated in comparison!
 

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