Mid sized family car

tobsey

I'd say there is a similar thread but I've gone through 13 pages in the forum and I haven't found one. I hope the mods don't mind me starting another.

Basically I'm scrapping a 00 Astra Saloon that is a write off. I'm looking to get a decent sized family car, diesel engine, good mpg and obviously is in tax band A or B. I've had a look at a few and this is what I'm thinking.

Skoda Octavia 1.6tdi Ambiente. Haven't test driven it yet or discussed prices but I would be hoping to get the dealer down to about 18.5k. Not looking for any extras as I'm happy enough with what comes with the Ambiente package. So long as the test drive goes well I think this is the favourite.

VW Golf 1.6tdi trendline with alloy wheels and leather steering, gear lever etc. First price given of 20.5k but would hope to get the dealer down to 20k. Nice car and drove well in the test drive I took. It has the isofix car seat fixings which I'm impressed with. Looks very good and will hold it's value but the boot isn't very big.

Kia Cee'd SW 1.6d. The estate version of the Cee'd, very spacious and good specs, half leather seats, alloy wheels and a few other bits. Obviously 7 year warranty is a major plus, though they say it requires that it's serviced each year in a Kia garage and that would probably be expensive. Went to two different dealers and ended up at 18.3k. I'd be concerned about the sell-on value though.

I'm just wondering what people think of the above and if they can recommend any other options.

BostonB

For a family car, which is the biggest in the back, and has the biggest boot.

Piratez

Of the 3 you choose there would have to be the Golf for me. I would think it would be the best of the 3 and have the highest resale value.

Also didnt realise the golf came in a 1.6 tdi.

colm_mcm

ISOFIX is commonplace nowadays, wouldn't let that be a deciding factor, If you're going long term the Ceed may be a better bet than the Golf once you're out of warranty.

si_guru

How long do you plan to keep it? If it more than 3 years then surely it has to be the Kia - which is a nice car and has AirCon (do the others have AirCon?). That warranty has to be worth more than any slight difference in resale of a +4 year old car. Also in 4 or 5 years people will be hunting down the second hand kias for their warranty!!

R.O.R

tobsey wrote: »

Skoda Octavia 1.6tdi Ambiente. Haven't test driven it yet or discussed prices but I would be hoping to get the dealer down to about 18.5k. Not looking for any extras as I'm happy enough with what comes with the Ambiente package. So long as the test drive goes well I think this is the favourite.

With scrappage, that is an acheivable price including delivery & metallic. I'd be pushing for €18,000 and settle on €18,250.

tobsey wrote: »

VW Golf 1.6tdi trendline with alloy wheels and leather steering, gear lever etc. First price given of 20.5k but would hope to get the dealer down to 20k. Nice car and drove well in the test drive I took. It has the isofix car seat fixings which I'm impressed with. Looks very good and will hold it's value but the boot isn't very big.

Not sure on what the cost of the extras is, but €20,500 seems about right for a decent price. I'd be a bit worried about the resale of the Trendline, dealers seem to think it will be worth substantially less than the Comfortline in the future, and you'd also need to check if that is the 90bhp or 105bhp version.

If you aren't bothered about the badge, the Skoda offers much better value for money, along with the bigger boot.

tobsey wrote: »

Kia Cee'd SW 1.6d. The estate version of the Cee'd, very spacious and good specs, half leather seats, alloy wheels and a few other bits. Obviously 7 year warranty is a major plus, though they say it requires that it's serviced each year in a Kia garage and that would probably be expensive. Went to two different dealers and ended up at 18.3k. I'd be concerned about the sell-on value though.

I like the Kia's. Dash looks a bit cheap, but the engine is cracking and the specification is better than the Skoda.

Doesn't have to be serviced in a Kia dealer, despite what Kia dealers may tell you (block exemption), but it does have to be serviced to the Kia service schedule which involves replacing bits at much sooner intervals than they should be (think power steering fluid is to be replaced at the first service, or something strange along those lines). I have a funny feeling that the re-sale value of the Kia's isn't going to be as bad as everyone fears - but I wouldn't be betting the house on that.

tobsey wrote: »

I'm just wondering what people think of the above and if they can recommend any other options.

Others which are worth looking at would be the Ford Focus - basic Style model now has A/C, Bluetooth, Alloys and Fogs. €19,750 + scrappage should get you in to a metallic one. Engine is only 90ps, but its enough in a car that size.

New Astra is fairly nice too, but is going to work out more than the Focus to get the same spec, and I don't think it's worth it.

Even though it pains me to recommend a Renault, I think the Grand Megane (estate) for €15,000 kicks the ass of everything else as far as value for money goes. You might have trouble selling it on in a few years time, but you can buy an extended warranty for around €500 to give you peace of mind motoring while you have it.

R.O.R

R.O.R wrote: »

I have a funny feeling that the re-sale value of the Kia's isn't going to be as bad as everyone fears - but I wouldn't be betting the house on that.

A chap I know bought a Cee'd estate (sportswagon whatever ) new in 2008 with all extra's etc for €21000 straight sale. He was telling me earlier this week his friend bought a 2008 one second hand much the same as his own one for €11000 odd (closer to 11 than 11 and a half I forget the exact figure). Again it was a straight sale so screen price would have been a good bit higher than the 11 ish.

tobsey

RoverJames wrote: »

A chap I know bought a Cee'd estate (sportswagon whatever ) new in 2008 with all extra's etc for €21000 straight sale. He was telling me earlier this week his friend bought a 2008 one second hand much the same as his own one for €11000 odd (closer to 11 than 11 and a half I forget the exact figure). Again it was a straight sale so screen price would have been a good bit higher than the 11 ish.

I'd wonder what the mileage is. The warranty is 7 years or 150k kms. There's every chance that is 100k kms on the clock which makes a big difference. I'd only do 20-25k a year so would expect to get at least 6 years out of the warranty.

To be honest I wasn't too impressed with the test drive. It is nippy enough for a car of it's size but the steering just felt a bit wierd. I'm leaning towards the Skoda and if I like the way it drives I'll probably go for it. I'd prefer the Golf as it's a nicer looking car but I could see a case in three months time where I'm trying to pack a buggy and two suitcases in the boot and the thing won't close. I'll trade a bit of style for practicality I think.

Thanks for the reply all.

tobsey

tobsey wrote: »

I'd wonder what the mileage is.

Dunno to be honest, will ask him later if I see him

tobsey

Piratez wrote: »

Of the 3 you choose there would have to be the Golf for me. I would think it would be the best of the 3 and have the highest resale value.

Also didnt realise the golf came in a 1.6 tdi.

Yep. 105HP and still in tax band A. Reasonable bit of poke in it too i thought.

Zonda999

And i've heard so far as well that the 1.6tdi is extremely economical, much more so than the old 1.9tdi, make sure you get the 105bhp version if you go for the golf though, its also available in 90bhp form in that, its 105bhp only in the octavia, however! the 15k€ renault is definitely worth a test drive too though, it might feel the power deficit though, with nearly 20bhp less than the golf, and th spec of one that costs 15k might feel a bit spartan

RoverJames

RoverJames wrote: »

A chap I know bought a Cee'd estate (sportswagon whatever ) new in 2008 with all extra's etc for €21000 straight sale. He was telling me earlier this week his friend bought a 2008 one second hand much the same as his own one for €11000 odd (closer to 11 than 11 and a half I forget the exact figure). Again it was a straight sale so screen price would have been a good bit higher than the 11 ish.

RoverJames wrote: »

Dunno to be honest, will ask him later if I see him

Well the facts are a tad different to the above

- screen price was €14500
- mileage 56000km
- guy traded in a ten year old high mileage passat
- cost him €11700 to trade up

Apologies for the misleading info first time

R.O.R

Thanks for the clarification James.

Losing just over €5,000 in 2 years / 56,000km for an 08 car is pretty damn good. I've lost over that since 2008 on my (now) 5 year old Accord, with less mileage added.

GERMAN ROCKS

who makes kias engine for them. is it the peugeot/citroen diesel engine

Zonda999

GERMAN ROCKS wrote: »

who makes kias engine for them. is it the peugeot/citroen diesel engine

Afaik, its their own hyundai/kia engine, nearly sure its not the psa unit

bazz26

Kia/Hyundai make their own engine.

colm_mcm

Yep, it's their own engine, and a great one at that. Hyundai have a raft of new diesel engines coming in that will be even better. They're also dong hybrids.
Anyone who laughs at the Koreans are in for a shock. THe i40 and ix35 are gonna cnvert a lot of people, and given that Hyundai and Kia are headhunting VW staff, you can expect nicer interiors and details.

SO if you can get a nice looking car with a huge warranty for less money, why wouldn't you?

McSpud

tobsey wrote: »

Kia Cee'd SW 1.6d. The estate version of the Cee'd, very spacious and good specs, half leather seats, alloy wheels and a few other bits. Obviously 7 year warranty is a major plus, though they say it requires that it's serviced each year in a Kia garage and that would probably be expensive. Went to two different dealers and ended up at 18.3k. I'd be concerned about the sell-on value though.

I think face lifted model has just come on sale this week. Think scrappage deal has been reduced. Looks very like the Hyundai which I suppose not a huge surprise. Old model interior was horrible but i think might be changes in this model...

R.O.R

McSpud wrote: »

I think face lifted model has just come on sale this week. Think scrappage deal has been reduced. Looks very like the Hyundai which I suppose not a huge surprise. Old model interior was horrible but i think might be changes in this model...

I'm led to believe that there are only 35 C'eeds coming with the Bluetooth. Not sure if they are all C'eed, Pro C'eed or C'eed SW or a mix, but the rest that are on the way are not going to have the Bluetooth.

Looking forward to seeing the facelift. Still double take whenever I see a Pro C'eed, becuase I think they are a good looking car.

Guy:Incognito

Has no one put up the Diamond light for Saab Ed?

He's got a good deal for you on a nice estate tobsey

colm_mcm

Can scrappage deals on Grand Meganes even be got now?

Guy:Incognito

colm_mcm wrote: »

Can scrappage deals on Grand Meganes even be got now?

Not sure. If they are sticking stricktly to the "has to be deliverable by the end of the month" line, maybe not but sure they might want the sales.

We got our order in before the 31st so we're safe.:P

colm_mcm

What model did you order?

Guy:Incognito

Grand Megane 106 Tom Tom

It's the mothers new car. I merely assisted in the purchase

My first car (Clio) is being scrapped to make way

tobsey

R.O.R wrote: »

I'm led to believe that there are only 35 C'eeds coming with the Bluetooth. Not sure if they are all C'eed, Pro C'eed or C'eed SW or a mix, but the rest that are on the way are not going to have the Bluetooth.

Looking forward to seeing the facelift. Still double take whenever I see a Pro C'eed, becuase I think they are a good looking car.

The mid range Octavia has Bluetooth integration and ticks all the boxes I'm looking for. That and cupholders are two things that seem small but make a big difference when you spent a few hours a day in the thing. I'd go without alloys or metallic paint no bother, but I need my coffee!

Until I looked into buying an Octavia I never realised how many of them are out there. Good Christ they're everywhere. That nearly gives as much confidence as the Kia warranty.