Mondeo v Passat v Avensis - diesel

marzic

I am hoping my next car will finally break the 2008 barrier, so i would appreciate views on the cars listed, or other alternate but not anything smaller

2008 or 2009 diesel, max 6k budget,
Reliability and space is most important, drive quality not so much

Thanks
marzic

selectamatic

mk2 avensis diesel still available in 08 and will be the cheapest to buy and most reliable if you get a good one (be wary of ex taxis). Passats of that era are very unreliable. The mondeo will be dear and some of the tdci engines have reliability issues however they may have been solved by 2008 the 1.8 seemed to have been the most reliable of the ford diesels of the time. mk3 avensis will prob be out of budget.

colm_mcm

Mondeo would normally be the cheapest out of these. I'd be wary of a €6k 08 onwards Passat

nice_guy80

Mondeo by far the cheapest

you could get a decent enough one if you drive a hard bargain, and have cash to spend.

marzic

selectamatic wrote: »

mk2 avensis diesel still available in 08 and will be the cheapest to buy and most reliable if you get a good one (be wary of ex taxis). Passats of that era are very unreliable. The mondeo will be dear and some of the tdci engines have reliability issues however they may have been solved by 2008 the 1.8 seemed to have been the most reliable of the ford diesels of the time. mk3 avensis will prob be out of budget.

I was thinking the avensis which are all 08 in that price. I understand the 2.0 passats dont have a great name, are 1.9 any better?

The mrs has a 06 smax 2l tdci which only tips around town but its been reliable for the 5yrs she has it, and loads of grunt in 140 bhp - would the 1.8 mondeo be flat?

nice_guy80

marzic wrote: »

I was thinking the avensis which are all 08 in that price. I understand the 2.0 passats dont have a great name, are 1.9 any better?

The mrs has a 06 smax 2l tdci which only tips around town but its been reliable for the 5yrs she has it, and loads of grunt in 140 bhp - would the 1.8 mondeo be flat?

the mondeo 1.8 engine has issues with the wet belt

D Trent

Please go and test drive a Saab 93 150 break

It's a car that is bulletproof
Never had an issue with mine

selectamatic

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/2008-toyota-avensis-2-0-d4d-new-nct-today/12930067

something like this should offer you the best balance between value for money and reliability.

George Dalton

That Avensis is far too cheap to be legit.

Noccy_Mondy

As long as the timing belt (2 belts) has been done on the 1.8 tdci mondeo, there isn't much to worry about. If it's 08 that your buying then 95% are going to have over 100k miles (which is the interval to do the timing belt). Apart from that the Clutch and DMF is another expensive item (the case with all modern diesels). Rear bushings tend to wear too. That's all I think. The 1.8 is 125bhp in the zetec and above spec, and it's fairly lively considering how heavy the car is.

Don't know much about the other two cars, only that the electronic handbrake gives trouble with the passat.

pablo128

George Dalton wrote: »

That Avensis is far too cheap to be legit.

If you look closely at the nct cert, it has higher mileage on the previous test! And it's the absolute base spec too.

George Dalton

pablo128 wrote: »

If you look closely at the nct cert, it has higher mileage on the previous test! And it's the absolute base spec too.

To be fair it does appear to be a Strata, which is 2 levels above base spec. But my original point still stands.

selectamatic

George Dalton wrote: »

That Avensis is far too cheap to be legit.

far too cheap is an exaggeration tbf. Thers's plenty on DD for around the 4500 mark.
OP another option would be a 2008 skoda superb https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/skoda-superb-only-one-previous-owner-/12888966
spacious and generally reliable You would probably wanna be getting one closer to the 4500 mark aswell as again its an old design.

pablo128

George Dalton wrote: »

To be fair it does appear to be a Strata, which is 2 levels above base spec. But my original point still stands.

I am agreeing with you. Well apart from the spec. The only thing above the base model really is the front fogs. There's no such thing as a chrome pack on that model. I have a 05 T4 spec myself, and a mate has an 07 Aura which was the base model. That one advertised is identical to my mates apart from the fogs.

Mine has a centre armrest, dual climate control, auto wipers, auto dim rear view mirror, 17's, adjustable driver seat, 9 airbags, nicer seats, carbon effect dash trim, and it's not even the top model.

That's before we get to the mileage discrepancy too.

I forgot mine has the leather gearknob and steering wheel too.

George Dalton

selectamatic wrote: »

far too cheap is an exaggeration tbf. Thers's plenty on DD for around the 4500 mark.

All that proves is that Donedeal is full of cheap scrap. You just can't buy a decent 08 Avensis diesel for €4K.

George Dalton

pablo128 wrote: »

I am agreeing with you. Well apart from the spec. The only thing above the base model really is the front fogs

Maybe you haven't been exposed to the horrors of a good old Paddy Spec Terra. Hub caps, plastic steering wheel, wind up rear windows, nasty seats, need I say more :pac:

pablo128

George Dalton wrote: »

All that proves is that Donedeal is full of cheap scrap. You just can't buy a decent 08 Avensis diesel for €4K.

This is very true. I found plenty of dogs when looking for an Avensis for one of my brothers about a year ago. He opted for a petrol one in the end as we couldn't find a good diesel.

bazz26

Ownership on that Avensis only changed 1 month ago yet the reason for selling it is that the seller needs a 7 seater. Lol, must have had a family explosion in that month so. The rear lights on that Avensis are also from the 2003 to 2006 pre facelift model which would suggest they were replaced due to some sort a rear smack. Seller also has a second Avensis for sale. My spidey senses tell me that it's cheap for a reason.

bazz26

Aura would have been the base model on that Avensis and to be fair it had around the same spec as a Trendline Passat or LX Mondeo of the time.

George Dalton

bazz26 wrote: »

Aura would have been the base model on that Avensis and to be fair it had around the same spec as a Trendline Passat or LX Mondeo of the time.

Which were both equally depressing.

bazz26

Totally agree.

marzic

George Dalton wrote: »

Maybe you haven't been exposed to the horrors of a good old Paddy Spec Terra. Hub caps, plastic steering wheel, wind up rear windows, nasty seats, need I say more :pac:

Would you rather leave what you're doing in the back, to turn on ignition to let window down or just reach over and wind it down!
#showinmeage

George Dalton

marzic wrote: »

Would you rather leave what you're doing in the back, to turn on ignition to let window down or just reach over and wind it down!
#showinmeage

Touché :cool:

pablo128

marzic wrote: »

Would you rather leave what you're doing in the back, to turn on ignition to let window down or just reach over and wind it down!
#showinmeage

On these class of cars, no electric windows in the back usually means they are a low spec car in general.

That doesn't mean its a bad car though. If you are OK with a car with a lower spec, you can use it as a reason to beat down the asking price.

akelly02

D Trent wrote: »

Please go and test drive a Saab 93 150 break

It's a car that is bulletproof
Never had an issue with mine

are the 120 linear models reliable aswell?

colm_mcm

Not that it's a big deal, but the strata model Avensis gets rear electric Windows, alloys and fogs over the base model, which is called the Aura.

The Rape of Lucretia

George Dalton wrote: »

Maybe you haven't been exposed to the horrors of a good old Paddy Spec Terra. Hub caps, plastic steering wheel, wind up rear windows, nasty seats, need I say more :pac:

Thats what Irish buyers want, so good of the manufacturers to spec levels that appeal to a given market. All the doo-daas are still available for anyone who wants them to add on.
When you buy a new car, do you add on all the extras ?

D Trent

akelly02 wrote: »

are the 120 linear models reliable aswell?

I suppose they would be but when I test drove a 120 linear it just reminded me too much of my parents' Octavia which I just didn't like.
The 93 vector sport which I have now is just fun too drive and is very little maintenance considering the miles I drive.

selectamatic

Mk2 avensis will be the cheapest outta those three cars normally. However I was surprised by how cheap mondeos are considering that 08 model was still fairly young in production terms it's a poor enough reflection on resale value. A mk3 avensis will obviously be the dearest but that's because 08 was it's first year of production.

ofcork

colm_mcm wrote: »

Not that it's a big deal, but the strata model Avensis gets rear electric Windows, alloys and fogs over the base model, which is called the Aura.

Why did toyota bring back 4 spec levels for the mark 3 avensis?

bazz26

ofcork wrote: »

Why did toyota bring back 4 spec levels for the mark 3 avensis?

They rejigged the specs to offset the price increase over the old model and brought it into line with the likes of the Auris and Corolla trim names:

MkII Avensis:
Aura - front electric windows, electric mirrors, ABS, manual air con, remote central locking, steel wheels with plastic wheel trim.
Strata - Aura plus rear electric windows, front fog lights and alloy wheels.
Luna - Strata plus dual zone climate controlled air conditioning, traction control, power folding exterior mirrors, cruise control, auto wipers and auto dip rearview mirror, front and rear armrest and split folding rear seat.
Sol - Luna plus leather heated electric seats, larger alloy wheels and auto headlights.

MkIII Avensis:
Terra - front electric windows, electric mirrors, ABS, single zone air conditioning, front remote central locking, steel wheels with plastic wheel trim.
Aura - Terra plus front fog lights and alloy wheels.
Strata - Aura plus front and rear electric windows, bluetooth, power folding mirrors, auto dipping rear view mirror, rain sensing wipers, cruise control, light sensing headlights and dual zone air conditioning.
Luna - Strata plus rear view camera, half leather seats and push button start.

ofcork

Just to correct the strata has the touchscreen radio/reverse camera too,thats what bugged me from the outside there was no difference between aura/strata and luna.