New car advice - budget 20k - 30k

top spin

Hi All

I am looking for some advice on a new car - budget reasonably flexible of between 20k - 30k - I am not big into cars - only learnt to drive in my 30s. My wife will be the main driver

Currently have an 07 Golf - and boot is too small for a growing family.

Car will mainly be used for short spin 10-20k a day - with a few longer trips down the country at the weekend .approx 10k a year in total mileage

Must haves are a big boot and open to second hand with less than 50k
I would be partial to a EV/Hybrid but wife would need a lot of convincing.
Anything to make driving easier park assist/ possibly an automatic as I am not the most confident driver would be useful

My wife would favour an SUV/Crossover

Any opinions most welcome as not too sure where to start

rocky

top spin wrote: »

Hi All

I am looking for some advice on a new car - budget reasonably flexible of between 20k - 30k - I am not big into cars - only learnt to drive in my 30s. My wife will be the main driver

Currently have an 07 Golf - and boot is too small for a growing family.

Car will mainly be used for short spin 10-20k a day - with a few longer trips down the country at the weekend .approx 10k a year in total mileage

Must haves are a big boot and open to second hand with less than 50k
I would be partial to a EV/Hybrid but wife would need a lot of convincing.
Anything to make driving easier park assist/ possibly an automatic as I am not the most confident driver would be useful

My wife would favour an SUV/Crossover

Any opinions most welcome as not too sure where to start

The Outlander PHEV would be in budget and is automatic

bazz26

Most of those SUV crossovers don't have a huge boot. If you need a big boot then an estate will offer more practical space than a SUV crossover. If you still prefer a crossover then the Rav4 hybrid is worth considering, boot is not huge but would still be bigger than your current Golf.

For example:
https://www.carsireland.ie/detail.php?ad_id=2098521&r=s.php%3Fm%5B%5D%3D88%26o%5B%5D%3D748%26f%3D3%26pp%3D50%26g%3D0

If you can convince her that an estate is more practical for space then an Auris Hybrid is well within budget:
https://www.carsireland.ie/detail.php?ad_id=2139054&r=s.php%3Fm%5B%5D%3D88%26o%5B%5D%3D1154%26f%3D3%26b%3D3%26pp%3D50%26g%3D0

top spin

rocky wrote: »

The Outlander PHEV would be in budget and is automatic

That looks like it would tick a lot of boxes - Are there grant for second PHEVs or is the price I see what I would pay?

It looks like a new version would be a bit out of budget

bazz26

If you import one from the UK then there is an EV/hybrid rebate included in the VRT figure.

I think there is a free home charger and installation if it's a plug in. There is a dedicated EV/hybrid sub forum here where they would probably answer those questions more accurately.

drunkmonkey

Peugeot 5008, all the space you need https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/peugeot-5008-1-2-active-130-bhp-petrol-7-seater/19943476
3008 if you think it's too big.

top spin

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Peugeot 5008, all the space you need https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/peugeot-5008-1-2-active-130-bhp-petrol-7-seater/19943476
3008 if you think it's too big.

Thanks Drunkmonkey - will check it out - The wife looked at the pre 2018 ones and ruled that out immediately - will look from then on.

drunkmonkey

top spin wrote: »

Thanks Drunkmonkey - will check it out - The wife looked at the pre 2018 ones and ruled that out immediately - will look from then on.

One of the chaps here made a review of one a few weeks ago..it's worth taking one for a spin.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1aH0hJ5vmg

top spin

I have done a bit more research and wondering about stretching the budget and waiting for the new Citroen C5 Aircross. Seems like it might tick a lot of boxes

Is there any downside in buying a completely new model car?

If it is a new car are the chances of negotiating a good price etc less than an older model?

DaveyDave

Golf Estate, DSG gearbox with park assist? Second hand Passat estate?

As mentioned, a lot of crossovers/small SUVs don't have a decent sized boot and some of them are lacking in room in the rear seats too. Some of them are a false economy.

ShadowHearth

top spin wrote: »

I have done a bit more research and wondering about stretching the budget and waiting for the new Citroen C5 Aircross. Seems like it might tick a lot of boxes

Is there any downside in buying a completely new model car?

If it is a new car are the chances of negotiating a good price etc less than an older model?

Finally c5 aircross is mentioned on boards. I was a bit shocked no one talking about it at all.
I myself doing a bit of digging on it. And if I will finally mature enough by 2020, and put away my boy racer gloves, c5 air cross will be a very strong option.
From what I learned it will be focused on comfort. That fancy suspension looks very interesting and if we know one thing about Citroen - they are animals at driving comfort.
Thing is, after doing some basic maths and comparing other models in Ireland vs uk prices, I figured out that a decent C5 aircross with a few options and decent engine will stand around 36-38k here.
I have time until 2020 and this model will mature enough to see how fancy suspension works in real life. Picking up 1-2 year old one moght be best option as frenche cars still lose theor value extremely fast.

Audioslaven

ShadowHearth wrote: »

Finally c5 aircross is mentioned on boards. I was a bit shocked no one talking about it at all.
I myself doing a bit of digging on it. And if I will finally mature enough by 2020, and put away my boy racer gloves, c5 air cross will be a very strong option.
From what I learned it will be focused on comfort. That fancy suspension looks very interesting and if we know one thing about Citroen - they are animals at driving comfort.
Thing is, after doing some basic maths and comparing other models in Ireland vs uk prices, I figured out that a decent C5 aircross with a few options and decent engine will stand around 36-38k here.
I have time until 2020 and this model will mature enough to see how fancy suspension works in real life. Picking up 1-2 year old one moght be best option as frenche cars still lose theor value extremely fast.

They are very comfortable but if it is anything like a C5 I had, I would not be in a hurry to go back to Citroen.. window regulators, switches, wiper motor, steering rack. I had to part with all this crap once the steering rack started to leak, so for reliability I would not touch Citroen.

troyzer

Crossovers are really small in the boot and back seat. Have to agree with the others here, it's somewhat of a false economy. They're basically hatchbacks with smaller boots and bulky bodywork.

top spin

Thanks for all the advice

The boot capacity of the new C5 - is apparently 580 liters what would put it on the bigger side of crossovers but still smaller than a superb estate or similar. I am somewhat swayed by the bells and whistles that seem to come with the Citroen but reckon trying to persuade the wife on an estate is probably the safer option

MarkN

troyzer wrote: »

Crossovers are really small in the boot and back seat. Have to agree with the others here, it's somewhat of a false economy. They're basically hatchbacks with smaller boots and bulky bodywork.

While some might not have bigger boots, they don’t have smaller boots.

ShadowHearth

Audioslaven wrote: »

They are very comfortable but if it is anything like a C5 I had, I would not be in a hurry to go back to Citroen.. window regulators, switches, wiper motor, steering rack. I had to part with all this crap once the steering rack started to leak, so for reliability I would not touch Citroen.

Citroen, pug and Renault are not same cars that were 15ish years ago. Their reliability went up by a lot.
I personally had 00" 406 and it was most reliable car I owned.
I would have no issues buying new frech car.

Audioslaven

ShadowHearth wrote: »

Citroen, pug and Renault are not same cars that were 15ish years ago. Their reliability went up by a lot.
I personally had 00" 406 and it was most reliable car I owned.
I would have no issues buying new frech car.

Well the one I had was a 2008 C5 brand new. I would have hated to be driving them before that if that's the case. The funny thing is that I have a mazda 3 with the 1.6 HDI and I never had bad engine issues like other go on about and the same for the Citroen but everything else around the engine gave me hassle on Citroen so I will never touch any french cars.

Too soft for me

The outlander is closer to a proper suv and especially in 5 seat has a very big boot so I wouldn’t be lumping it in with smaller stuff.

Shefwedfan

The Outlander PHEV is a proper SUV. So it is big and had a big boot. You will get a decent one with low mileage for about 20k. Do not buy the high mileage ones you see advertised all over internet. Dealers are buying them dirt cheap in UK and brought over.

Any of the crossover will have a similar sized boot to the Golf. Believe me I have tested the majority of them.....so Tiguan/Qashqai/Tucson etc etc will all have similar sized boots which wont be much bigger than eGolf

Majority of the BEV cars at the moment will not be bigger than your Golf. I went with eGolf because of the larger boot compared to others. Maybe the Ioniq would be worth a look?

PHEV and maybe a Merc C350 PHEV Estate or the C300 hybrid might be worth looking at.....

top spin

Thanks for highlighting the Merc C350 - I had presumed they would be all out of my price range

Doing a bit more research on PHEVs and seems like they aren't great value new in Ireland & the main aim is to import a recent used version from the UK gives greatest bag for buck - will read up on some of the threads on the EV forum on that

Shefwedfan

top spin wrote: »

Thanks for highlighting the Merc C350 - I had presumed they would be all out of my price range

Doing a bit more research on PHEVs and seems like they aren't great value new in Ireland & the main aim is to import a recent used version from the UK gives greatest bag for buck - will read up on some of the threads on the EV forum on that

I dont know, check around the C350 might not be out of range

top spin

Back again for a bit more advice as I am still yet to purchase a new car

I am pretty much down to the Peugeot 3008 GT Line and the Seat Ateca Xcellence - anyone own either with any particular pros and cons? They are both pretty much the same price. I am hopefully going to drive the Citreon C5 Aircross this weekend as it is just in showrooms - however I was in one in Spain a few weeks ago and not sure it will put a spanner in the works

Thanks for all the previous suggestions - test drove the Merc c350e and was a great car but boot was too small in the end. The new rav 4 was nice but found the pedal system a little confusing

Any opinions are much appreciated

drunkmonkey

Take the Mrs to the VW garage.... driving aids on a new golf are very practical and the media system is excellent. Maybe hold for a mk8. SUV's aren't as good to handle or easy park.