2 Months to find next car, a luxobangerenomics thread! - advice welcome

traco

Right, I've been thinking about this for ages and posted this thread (Linked for background but not required readring )a short while back, plus I'm an avid lurker on the bagernomics thread and the luxobarge one.

So my 97 Passat Estate with 200k miles is going to go. It's taxed till 02/14, NCT due this month which I expect will pass and if so hopefully I'll net €500 for it on donedeal.

Thought about jumping way up in years but when looking at the numbers plus the fact that my round trip to work is over 100kms everyday with trips around the country regularly I just can't see the point of it. This is why I'm deciding to remove deprciation from the equation as much as possible.

So after coming full circle I'm looking at 02/03/04 models, must be diesel around the 3k price bracket. Run it for 2 years possibly longer and repeat. This would free funds for a "toy" or something much more "special"

So looking at:
Merc E220 CDI W211
Saab 95
Volvo V70 2.4D

Bascially I want luxury, comfort, quietness so I can make calls, cruise etc. Exec standard I suppose. I could go Accord, Mondeo, Passat route but have done that and want a comfortable motorway cruiser thats safe, won't cost a fortune and trying to keep the tax around 1k mark.

Estate is preferable but not an absolute necessity and I'm going to start test driving a few to see what they are like.

I'd appreciate feedback about know problems, anything to watch for and any other suggestions that I should consider. So there you go - what will I be driving in Feb 2014???

Bigus

Why rule out 530d or 320 cdi etc

Bigus

Taxed til next sept according to advert asking 3650 could come in close to budget

http://cars.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/mercedes-benz-e320-avantgarde/5698729

serious3

one word.....jaguar!

traco

I'd seen that 320CDi, looks fantastic.

I was hoping to keep the tax down as I already shell out 1450 per year on an ML, adding another 1800 takes it to €3,200 per year.

If I do buy something special its going to be 1800 in tax but I'd only have it on the road for 3/6 months but thats still anything from 500-1000 per year.

So adding another 3.0 would have me paying them between 3.2k and 4k per year for motor tax depending on the toy scenario.

So I'd really like to keep it as low as possible cos I don't want to be looking at a round piece of paper thats worth more than the car if possible.

Guess I'm getting cynical and bitter in my old age

traco

serious3 wrote: »

one word.....jaguar!

S type is nice but aren't they all 2.7 (see my tax bitterness disease above),

I'm also not sure about space as I was only in one once and thought it was a little small, I'm 6'4" so don't want to be crampedin anything but I will check one out to be sure.

I tried a 09/10 Accord estate and found that a little on the small side compared to the passat

wildefalcon

V70. Proper estate, decent seats, no status symbol baggage, safe. The 2.4 d is a decent enough engine, and can be retuned for more spirited usage. They do eat front tyres, though.

traco

wildefalcon wrote: »

V70. Proper estate, decent seats, no status symbol baggage, safe. The 2.4 d is a decent enough engine, and can be retuned for more spirited usage. They do eat front tyres, though.

Cheers - been reading good things about them.

Duly noted about the front tyres but auto gearbox has appeared a few times as a potential issue. Have to say they are well up there as listed in the first post.

wildefalcon

Autobox only needs the fluid changed every 80k miles to be ok - it's a commonly used unit, but Ford, sorry, Volvo, decided that it was "Sealed for life" and of course that was the end of them at 100k miles.

They can come with a nice 6 speed manual, and AWD if you can find one.

Also 5 series BMW? Audi A6? Lexus? Peugeot 607 may be a real cheap option, almost the definition of a luxobarge!

ian87

I bought an 04 e60 530d recently. Smooth as can be. SE spec but on 18in alloys so one could expect it to be harsh but not at all.. I do 100km a day round trip too and spend about 60 a week on diesel. My old 08 320d managed about 50 a week. I'm seeing on the trip comp an average of about 45mpg. Granted mine is a manual, the auto wouldn't fair as well. I reset the mpg gauge on Monday morning. After 100km with a mix of n road, motorway, tiny bit of r road and a tiny bit in city stop/start traffic the gauge was reading 47.8 mpg. I wouldn't rule high tax out if you are still going to achieve good economy.
Also you mention a "toy," would a big engined, tidy handling car fulfill both needs perhaps?

serious3

traco wrote: »

S type is nice but aren't they all 2.7 (see my tax bitterness disease above),

I'm also not sure about space as I was only in one once and thought it was a little small, I'm 6'4" so don't want to be crampedin anything but I will check one out to be sure.

I tried a 09/10 Accord estate and found that a little on the small side compared to the passat

i've a 2.5 s-type, i,m 6' 1" and average build, i fit in with loads of room to spare if you are near galway you're welcome to try it on for size

traco

@ian87 - Had an e39 2.2i BMW and it was great car along with a 318i, 328i and M3 Evo. 530d is a great car and have driven a few but maybe cos I've done the BM thing its not catching my attention. If I was going to go that route I think I'd go 730d but then the running costs jump considerably. My objective with this exercise is to get the most comfort with the lowest cost per KM while still in a luxury car.
The toy thats in my mind is a rare animal from 2003/2004, I'm only aware of 2 that have been on the market recently so even finding the right one at the right possible will be a whole other challenge that could take some time.

@serious3 - I'm down in Galway every few weeks so appreciate that, I've marked a few on done deal and might take alook at one and see how it goes.

I'll do some extensive googling on the weekend on those suggested and see what happens, might even take a test drive or two.

wandererz

You want "luxury, comfort, quietness so I can make calls, cruise etc. Exec standard I suppose."

This is what i just got in a 04 Jag X-type 2L Diesel Sport with one owner, half leather seats, sat nav, 95K miles for 3100 + approx 460 in VAT.

Perhaps check them out, it's got a Mondeo engine and other parts so not expensive to repair. There are a few things to look out for but great car nonetheless

traco

wandererz wrote: »

You want "luxury, comfort, quietness so I can make calls, cruise etc. Exec standard I suppose."

This is what i just got in a 04 Jag X-type 2L Diesel Sport with one owner, half leather seats, sat nav, 95K miles for 3100 + approx 460 in VAT.

Sound - I assume thats VRT and that you imported, I'd sort of ruled them out as I thought they'd be a little on the small side but will check them out.

I've two kids so need to be able to lug them and their crap around without having to move my seat all the time, that was my logic in looking at the larger models.

Duly added to the list, my metric test on the seating position is me being able to get in the back with the drivers seat where I'd be comfortable driving.

mfceiling

Skoda Superb?

http://cars.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/skoda-superb-06/6003223

traco

That superb is good value. Must check out the vrt on it. Just been updating a spreadsheet and the tax is the one factor that totally skews the cost per km. I'll post it shortly

VRT looks around 1200-1400

wandererz

traco wrote: »

Sound - I assume thats VRT and that you imported, I'd sort of ruled them out as I thought they'd be a little on the small side but will check them out.

I've two kids so need to be able to lug them and their crap around without having to move my seat all the time, that was my logic in looking at the larger models.

Duly added to the list, my metric test on the seating position is me being able to get in the back with the drivers seat where I'd be comfortable driving.

Sorry, meant VRT but technology changed it to VAT!

Take a look at some youtube videos to get an idea of space.

Here's one that seems to have cropped up in the past day:
http://cars.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/jaguar-xtype-diesel/6062369

Not the best pictures, probably not a sport version judging from the wheels but gives you an idea

traco

Just had a look on donedeal and a few Superbs there so should be possible to get a decent one. I've updated the spreadsheet and am really surprised at the impact the F'in tax has on annual running costs.

Two screenshots below to show the difference that a post 2007 low tax model makes to the cost per km. I've linked the actual spreadsheet at the bottom and hopefully I've made a mistake as I really thought the 4k older car would have saved a lot more than it is. Perhaps depreciation needs adjusting. as you can see the luxo barge just dose not work at this mileage.

18K UK Import - 2010/2011 Passat / Superb


2008 Superb


Link to excel file - change figs in blue to mess around

commited

Be careful of the early W211 models, known to be absolutely plagued with issues. The facelift model is meant to be very reliable though but obviously more expensive.

It seems like you get decent use out of your car, doing at least 35k/year, so while the tax is a pain it isn't as significant as your other costs, especially considering the value in larger engined cars in Ireland.

Saab 9-5s are stunning value at the moment but this thread screams e39 - great parts support, great value, outstanding build quality, good looks and great engine choice. I know you've already had one but 3-4k can buy a top quality one. A manual 530d can return surprising economy (I used to average 45mpg) but an auto 525i/530i can be bought for far less, fit a decent quality LPG system (if a filling station is convenient) and you get diesel economy with petrol refinement.

Btw - Service costs @ €600 is very ambitious, remember most of the cars you are considering have higher parts prices than your Passat and are a little bit more complicated.

traco

I've been on two UK merc forums researching the W211, early ones had eletrical issues, more prone to rust and also the biggie being the Valeo rad issue which can do in the gearbox. A good inspection would sort out the rust concerns but a late 2003 early 2004 had procedures impelemented to address the rust, general consensus is that the elctrical issues would all have been worked out by now so the only one to be really careful about is the rad issue. Apart from that they appear very solid and capable of huge mileages.

As for parts I have full access to our warehouse and tools. I also have the use of the vans so I can search for parts and afford to have the car off the road for a few days if needed. Thats how I've been keeping the Passat going and as we use some good local mechanics anything that it has to go in for is usually just labour as I source the parts myself. The newer UK one would be more expensive as I'd consider keeping a proper service history on that in the hope of making selling it easier.

I'm nearly sorry I did that excel sheet now as its making that 08 Superb option very hard to ignore. Over three years that saving would be be a nice contribution to a third summer weekend car which is the ultimate goal. The superb was on my UK import list but hadn't considered one from 08 at all. Just goes to show that more heads are better than one.

Of course I could just keep the passat and concentrate on the other bus but that makes way too much sense :rolleyes: