Recommend me an auto

Trojan

I'm looking for recommendations for what automatics to look at. I'm thinking of a budget of up to around €10k. 

I'm driving about 100km/day, split into 4x 25km mixed country & town. The occasional longer trip of around 200km once a month. 

I'm wondering if at this budget I'm better off spending less, as I'm not seeing a huge difference between cars at the €10k range and those closer to €5k. I'm pretty open regarding options, just a strong preference for auto and it absolutely must have AC. 

I was driving an A6 3L Quattro and I loved it but I’m also being gently encouraged to consider smaller cars 😂

I've noticed some Lexus CT200Hs popping up in my searches, good car?

Any recommendations?

hoodie6029

The Lexus are good but much smaller than your A6. Those and Prius would be what you could look at. Quite a different drive from a Quattro but they still have great acceleration.

User1998

I would normally recommend a Prius too but considering your coming from an A6 I’m not sure if you’d like the idea of a Prius. What about a Lexus IS300h? You should just about be able to get one within budget if you buy private. They are bulletproof cars.

bazz26

Volvo S60?

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/volvo-s60-automatic/37048557

Mad_Lad

Automatics cause more fuel consumption and can give issues.

I would avoid CVT ( prius exception ) they are cheap crap and they are horrible to drive really and they can give a lot of issues due to lots of friction on the chain.

Torque invertor is probably the oldest and most reliable of them all but far thirstier.

Ford's Power Shift or Dual clutch has been known to give issues.

If that 3.0L Audi is multitronic I would avoid this as it was known to give issues.

The VW group DSG is pretty reliable but has been known to give issues too, the oil needs to be changed the oil every 60,000 Kms. If it's not known whether this has been done, I would change it anyway.

The CVT in the Prius is probably the most reliable of them all because it uses 1 of the 2 electric motors to propel the car so it's much more simplified but you get that horrible CVT driving experience.

The prius is a sound car, over engineered, at least that was the case with the MKII 2007 I had, there were taxies in North America with over 400,000 Miles on them, 643,000 Kms.

The Prius gearbox oil was fill for life oil, there's no such thing so it needs to be changed and I was glad I did mine because the mechanic told me it was black, the electric motors use this oil to keep them cool so the oil should be free from contaminants that can damage the electric motor coils.

The lexus uses the same powertrain as the prius so it's very reliable.

As with any car, higher mileage older cars can give issues, manual is best and simplest and cheapest to fix as it gets old with high miles.

Trojan

Those Lexus CT200H look quite decent, and preferable to the Prius if I'm honest. I really do prefer the automatic, had the E39 525i, 9-5, and most recently the A6.

I'd consider the Volvo if it was comfortable, I haven't driven one before but the 9-5 was okay but not great. (I've been told the Volvo is closer to a Ford than a Saab under the badge).

I know - thanks to folks on this forum several years ago - that the Quattro 3L A6 was not multitronic, it was Tiptronic, at least the one I had which was the C6 model.

I'm still very tempted to look for another one of those, it was a fantastic car to drive and very few trips to the garage. Can anyone tell me if the following model (2011 or so) A6 3L diesel is as bulletproof?

Thanks for the responses folks.

_Kaiser_

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122179002#Comment_122179002

I have a 2012 A7 - 3L TDI.. fantastic machine. Had 2 of the A6 C6 models myself (a 05 and 10 - also 3L TDI) so I know what I'm talking about.

If you've been told to go smaller you'll struggle if used to the comfort/power/quality of the A6. Maybe an A5/A4 with a decent trim? 3L is rarer in those but they do exist.

prawnsambo

Just a word of warning about those 3.0l V6 engines. The timing chain is for life, so in their wisdom, Audi decided to put that at the back but didn't permanently seal the cover. Just used the standard cover and gasket which will eventually start leaking. It's an engine out job to replace the gasket, so the choice is to do that or just live with the leak.

trindade

With your budget, I think your best option would be Honda Fit. This is the only car that you can get with this amount of money that is extremely reliable, cheap to maintain/run, automatic, small but pratical/spacious at same time and it's not too old. You probably can get a 2015.

The cons: Not very powerfull (quite boring) and the insurance is not the cheapest (should be cheaper than your current car).

Trojan

A family member in the UK is selling a 2010 or 2011 Audi A6 Quattro auto with about 140k miles on the clock. Is it worth importing a car of this age from the UK? Any recommendations?

bazz26

No, I'd say. That probably has old Euro5 compliant emissions which would mean you will be screwed in VRT. You then have to pay VAT and customs duty on top due to Brexit.

The taxes are designed to make importing old diesel cars like this unattractive.

User1998

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122202121#Comment_122202121

Absolutely not. Probably the worst possible car you could attempt to import. Even if you got the car for free it would barely be worth it.

_Kaiser_

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122202782#Comment_122202782

I'd have to disagree - my last A6 was a 2010 facelift with 410,000km on it when I changed. Plenty of life in those cars if they're looked after.

Buddy Bubs

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122202900#Comment_122202900

He was talking about the cost to import one, not a reflection on the car itself.

A 2010 diesel Audi would cost as much to import alone (on top.of UK purchase price) as to just buy one here

User1998

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122202923#Comment_122202923

Exactly. VRT & Nox way too high

hoodie6029

Max nox charge or €4,500 odd on any pre-Euro 6 diesel. Saw a lovely 1994 diesel Xantia on gumtree a few months ago. Bargain but it was 8 months shy of 30 years old so uneconomic to import.
It’s a race against expanding ULEZ in the UK and the 30 year flat VRT rate here. But that’s a topic for another thread….

Trojan

Thanks folks, appreciate the feedback.

Turns out it’s a 2013 3L Quattro estate. The reason I know about it was just happened to be visiting them this weekend.

Lovely car. But that total import cost does make it unworkable.

User1998

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122203096#Comment_122203096

You could have parked it up for 8 months. No late fees once the car is over 30 years old

hoodie6029

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122205623#Comment_122205623

DAMN IT! So I’d have gotten the flat rate and no Nox charge even though if I’d brought it in when they would have been due? Just turning up late let’s me avoid that?

User1998

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122205732#Comment_122205732

Yes, €200 flat rate and no Nox charge regardless of how long the car has been in Ireland. Technically there can be late fees, but it only works out at 20 cent per day and isn’t enforced for vintage cars.

hoodie6029

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122205926#Comment_122205926

Time to set up an alert on gumtree so! Thanks for the info 👍

Trojan

I had a look at an IS300h but it looked fairly rough - there’s no decent ones in my price range. I also looked at a Corolla hybrid - it was 2016 but was fairly grim place to be and had been broken into at some point.

I went for a CT200h in the end. It’s in very good nick - had some small bits that the dealer sorted before delivery.

One issue they missed I only noticed when I got home - there’s a low key battery warning. How much hassle is it to sort this out? Enough to be worth going back to them or just handle myself?

User1998

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122256258#Comment_122256258

Check Youtube and find out how to change the key battery

FurrySlippers

Not sure if the CT key battery fob behaves like some other lexus fobs, but my ES fob died, and while you can get into the car with the physical key, I couldn't turn off the alarm. Thankfully I was close to home, and herself came with the spare key.

Youtube will teach you how to change it. It is easy.

All Lexus are bomb proof, and very pampering. You're worth it.....

kanuseeme

Done the youtube search to change the battery, use the key to pry the cover off, it did not work, turns out the key was different on the inside.

hold the key as you would a remote and use your thumb to slide the cover off,

My battery lasted only 3.5 years from new.

User1998

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122257962#Comment_122257962

You have to start the car for the alarm to turn off. Same in every other car

FurrySlippers

But unlike an audi we had, there is no "hold the key here, and start the car" option...

Trojan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122258043#Comment_122258043

This nearly got me. I was trying to pry it off like the videos showed and nearly broke the fob.

Saw your comment and had it open in 2 seconds. Cheers!

The CR1632 batteries are a PITA to find. I tried 2 Tescos, 3 Centras, a pound shop, 2 phone shops, 2 computer shops, a CEX, Amazon (no battery shipping) and finally ordered online here paying double because of shipping.