Car search is over, and the winner was....

Stallingrad

As some of you may know I've been car hunting for a while to replace the wifes Grand Scenic. Top of the wish list was a more 'car like' drive, refinement and comfort. It was quite a journey, we looked at the following cars:

Insignia Tourer – Super refined 1.6 diesel, felt good to drive and solid on the road. Let down by uncomfortable front seats and road noise, which knocked it off the list.
Tucson - Sooo overrated, average in every way. Looks nice though. Small boot.
i40 wagon – Smooth drive, huge interior and lots of toys. Let down by far to much road noise.
Passat – Very nice, very rounded package but not impressed with gruff 1.6 diesel, also very bland inside and out and almost impossible to find an estate.

Around now we decided the car had to be a auto.

Renault Kadjar Auto 1.5d auto – Impressive in many ways, quiet, comfy, nice tech. Let down by small boot and questionable build quality. I drove a few and every one had rattles, some of the creaking trim was unforgivable on a new car.
Skoda Octavia estate 2.0d auto – Very nice, practical and spacious, a bit bland but pricey for a decent spec with DSG.
Skoda Superb 1.6d DSG– Much more like it, loads of space, huge boot, very sharp styling, felt a very modern package all round. Lovely DSG but again mated to a gruff 1.6 diesel, 2.0 much better but pricey.

Around now we gave up on diesel.

Auto, petrol? Hens teeth but hello? Skoda Superb 1.4tsi, 150bp DSG. 2016 SE spec in the UK or around €22k cleared, similar model here new is €33+. Outrageous value for money and arguably all the family car you ever need. A bit of searching finds a number of 2016 all around the same mileage, selected one and collected it last week. People may question the sanity of a petrol when there are so few here (double digit sales v 1000's of Superb diesels) but we hold onto cars for about 5 years, and at the end of the day, it feels so much more refined that any diesel, and that is what we were looking for all along.

Impressions? Unbelievable car, so refined and quiet, very fast, economical so far, fabulous build quality on par with 5 series. Great infotainment and spec, adaptive cruise makes long distances a breeze. I could not be more impressed, its shades my B7 Passat in almost every way and I now want one for myself. The wife could not be happier, fees like an upgrade from economy to first class.

Thanks to everyone who advised along the way, it was much appreciated.

PGE1970

well wear.

Any pics?

How was the buying/import process?

Stallingrad

The process was painless enough. It was a long day and a lot of traveling (dealer was Southern England) but well worth it for the saving. Transferred the money before traveling after detailed discussion with the dealer re condition, a walkaround and photos. The car was as described and could pass for new. It was for this reason that I went with a main dealer and a young car in order to minimise any hassle. VRT next, Revenue don't have the exact car on the system so a bit unclear, the car will be assessed next week and I will have to await their verdict, but I expect it to be around €4K.