Another what car thread - 16.5k

hof1982

So, finally ready to purchase at long last.
Requirements as follows;
1. Diesel - doing >20k miles per year.
2. Comfort.
3. Sport spec if possible.
4. Space in the back for child seats.
5. Post 2008.

Have been looking at the likes of the following;
Www.cars.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/audi-a4-s-line-low-miles/7130624
and
Www.cars.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/honda-accord-idtec-2-2-180bhp/7124151

I understand that the economy of the A4 would be much better than the Accord but does anyone know what the Accords are actually like in terms of MPG? A friend of mine has an ES GT and reckons he is only getting high 30's although not on particularly long trips.

Cheers - hof

Idbatterim

whats the budget OP?

NIMAN

I'm going to take a punt at €16,500.

hof1982

16.5k, maybe a little more if the car is worth it.

marathonic

I had an almost identical thread to this yesterday - Accord Type-S or A4 S-Line.

I'd intended to go down to look at them tomorrow but know a person that does 'a bit of buying and selling of cars' that was going to be near there today. I got him to look at the Accord Type-S and went ahead and put a deposit down.

They are servicing it now and I pick it up next week....

hof1982

marathonic wrote: »

I had an almost identical thread to this yesterday - Accord Type-S or A4 S-Line.

I'd intended to go down to look at them tomorrow but know a person that does 'a bit of buying and selling of cars' that was going to be near there today. I got him to look at the Accord Type-S and went ahead and put a deposit down.

They are servicing it now and I pick it up next week....

Well ware with it. What swung it in terms of the decision? The type s are like hens teeth!

bazz26

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057233591

hof1982

Cheers bazz, given the type s are nigh on impossible to source, any other recommendations to suit the budget?

bazz26

VW Passat CC?

hof1982

bazz26 wrote: »

VW Passat CC?

Yes would certainly be interested but it would need to be the 5 seat version which means the budget would be stretched I would think. Think I'm correct in saying you currently drive one bazz? How do you find it?

bazz26

5 seater only came available since about mid 2010 so if you were open to a trip to the UK for one then I think it is doable on your budget. Even at that the middle seat is not very useful, it sits high and so not suitable for adults on a long journey as their head will hit the sloping roofline.

Regarding the car itself, well I had to have a new gearbox, clutch and flywheel fitted to mine last February and paid for my VW UK (I started a thread on it here if you do a search), due to a fracture forming in the gearbox which in turn damaged the clutch plate and flywheel. In fairness it's not a common problem on them and the car has not given any other trouble in the 12 months I've owned it and it's now 3 years old. Actually I had it on a rolling road and remapped a few weeks ago and this has liberated the car.

hof1982

bazz26 wrote: »

5 seater only came available since about mid 2010 so if you were open to a trip to the UK for one then I think it is doable on your budget. Even at that the middle seat is not very useful, it sits high and so not suitable for adults on a long journey as their head will hit the sloping roofline.

Regarding the car itself, well I had to have a new gearbox, clutch and flywheel fitted to mine last February and paid for my VW UK (I started a thread on it here if you do a search), due to a fracture forming in the gearbox which in turn damaged the clutch plate and flywheel. In fairness it's not a common problem on them and the car has not given any other trouble in the 12 months I've owned it and it's now 3 years old. Actually I had it on a rolling road and remapped a few weeks ago and this has liberated the car.

Good to know. I'd say the seat may be an issue. I'd have 3 in the back at weekends.

hof1982

In terms of buying in the uk, I'd be interested to hear from anyone who bought privately. Is it a no no? Would an RAC/AA inspection be enough piece of mind?

bazz26

Have no first hand experience of buying in the UK myself yet but unless you were buying something with the manufacturer's warranty left on it then I'd treat buying from a dealer as private too unless you plan to bring it back to the dealer via the ferry to fix. From what I've read the AA inspection is pretty comprehensive.

hof1982

bazz26 wrote: »

Have no first hand experience of buying in the UK myself yet but unless you were buying something with the manufacturer's warranty left on it then I'd treat buying from a dealer as private too unless you plan to bring it back to the dealer via the ferry to fix. From what I've read the AA inspection is pretty comprehensive.

AA or other inspection would be a must. UK looking like more of a suitable option I think.

Thanks for all the info - will update as soon as I have some definitive options identified.

hof1982

Anyone any thoughts on the following (apologies about the link - I cant post links due to the 50 post requirement, any chance a mod can fix for me?);
carzone.ie/search/BMW/5-Series/525D-M-S/201424224604026/advert?channel=CARS

Slightly different territory to the marks I had been looking at. I understand the 3 liter is not prone to the issues of the 2l post 08 model?

rwg

hof1982 wrote: »

Anyone any thoughts on the following (apologies about the link - I cant post links due to the 50 post requirement, any chance a mod can fix for me?);
carzone.ie/search/BMW/5-Series/525D-M-S/201424224604026/advert?channel=CARS

Slightly different territory to the marks I had been looking at. I understand the 3 liter is not prone to the issues of the 2l post 08 model?

http://www.carzone.ie/search/BMW/5-Series/525D-M-S/201424224604026/advert?channel=CARS

hof1982

Cheers rwg.

bazz26

Very nice car and the reliable M57 engine as opposed to the N47/N57 engines that suffer from timing chain failures. Decent spec too, it's a UK car so make sure to verify the low mileage with the service history. Price is a little on the high side for a private sale but post 2007 cars are rare enough to find and the appeal of only €750 for motor tax makes them sought after.

hof1982

bazz26 wrote: »

Very nice car and the reliable M57 engine as opposed to the N47/N57 engines that suffer from timing chain failures. Decent spec too, it's a UK car so make sure to verify the low mileage with the service history. Price is a little on the high side for a private sale but post 2007 cars are rare enough to find and the appeal of only €750 for motor tax makes them sought after.

Nice car alright. Could definitely live with 750 tax for the spec. Would have some reservations in relation to the auto. One of the lads at work has a 320d Msport 163 bhp and he had his engine pack up due to turbo failure. Any other known issues with the 3 litre? How is fuel economy ?

bazz26

Turbo failure is common on them because of a design problem with the turbo breather filter and owners don't read up on preventive measures to avoid this. Due to the design of the turbo breather filter it can get blocked which in turn starves the turbo of oil. The recommended action to avoid this is replace the original toilet roll shaped filter with the newer vortex type filter and housing (costs about €70). This elevates the issue to a large degree, however a lot of owners still prefer to replaced the newer type filter at every 3rd oil service for peace of mind.

Auto transmission is fine but it is recommended that the transmission fluid be changed at around 100k miles afaik. Other things to watch out for are the manifold swirl flaps, they have a tendency to brake off over time and get ingested into the engine which in turn kills the engine. Again most savy owners get these removed and replaced with blanks, not an expensive job either but highly recommended.

If the owner of that car is some bit of an enthusiast then I'd image they will be aware of these things and would have done them by now so these are questions to put to them. If the owner hasn't a clue what your talking about then chances are they are not done so budget for them.

hof1982

Also looking at (again, apologies for the links, still waiting to be able to post a link, anyone feel free to fix);
carzone.ie/search/Honda/Accord/2.2-I-DT/201422224290770/advert?channel=CARS
and
carzone.ie/search/Honda/Accord/150bhp-T/53914031743483450/advert?channel=CARS

Neither are the 180bhp type s, rather the 150bhp (effectively ES GT as far as I know). Anyone any thoughts on these?
The one in Wexford is on English plates but VRT is included in the price and it has a different set of wheels to the standard which is a plus as well as full main dealer service history.