Need to buy a car as new job has no company motor. Estate for lugging bikes/kids etc, ideally spend less than £10k.

The Passat looks good for this, has anyone got any experience of suitability / reliability?

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Octavia would be the answer but because they are seen as the cheaper alternative demand has risen and they are now much of a muchness, according to the skoda garage i was talking to.

Octavia is also smaller. I have an 05 Passat Estate and its been great. The only disappointment is the gutless 2l petrol engine, but that’s my fault for choosing it.
Go for the Diesel and you wont go far wrong.

mondeo estates are cheaper, and probably just as reliable.

And definitely better cars to drive…

finding a diesel mondeo estate though is like hens-teeth still?

finding a diesel mondeo estate though is like hens-teeth still?

They were when I was looking as that is really what I wanted. Since then, there have been reports of problems with some of the diesel engines. It is a nicer car to drive, but I think the Passat is a more reliable unit.

Vectra Estate – horrible to drive but cavenous.

Had both, 2 Passat TDi’s Estates and currently have a Mondeo Estate (hatch previously)
The Passat is a better built car, feels more solid with a stronger feeling engine (bhp for bhp) and gives better MPG but servicing was more expensive. Brakes are move sensitive but more powerful overall. For the Mondeo it handles better, more fluid. The seats offer more support – for me with a bad back anyway – and there’s more interior space. The MT75XX gearbox feels better but be careful of the DMF/clutch, can go between 40-70k miles.
Having covered about 150K miles in each type over the last few years, I’d be happy with either. Just depends on deal you can get.

MT75XX gearbox feels better but be careful of the DMF/clutch,

How do you tell the difference? I mean is there a clear model year or spec that has each? Is it clearly defined (i,e, so you can avoid)

10k will get you a nice volvo v70. Best car ive driven. When mine dies it will be replaced with the same.

Sorry that should be MTX-75. I believe all MK3’s have the this (4 cylinder anyway) The dual mass flywheel is used to counter act the torque pulse of 4 pot 4 stroke’s especially diesels. I think all the diesels have them not sure about petrols. Some earlier cars may have a solid flywheel.

Ask on here Mondeo Forum

I thought that Ford had stopped using DMF due to their unreliability (writes a Ford DMF owner 😐 )

Avoid the Mondo! TDCI rubbish, clutch £1000 to replace.

‘Avoid the Mondo! TDCI rubbish’ – really? I’ve had numerous recommendations for the 130bhp one and am actively looking for one at the mo’. Currently running a 1999 1.8 petrol Mondeo estate that has had NO major probs since I got it when it was 2yrs old. (anyone want to buy a cheapish, reliable estate?)

Is the clutch £1,000 to replace? 😮

My Subaru cost £220+VAT!!! and Subaru’s are supposed to be ‘extortionate’ for parts?

Saab 93 Sportswagon 1.9 Auto Cracking car.

I’d concluded that Ford must have upped their game recently due to all the posts on here of people saying how good they are, then I spoke to someone who’s work uses a fleet of different models as staff cars(mondeos and focus’ (focii?) all <3 years old) who said they are regularly in for repair of faults and failures and it’s a running joke in their company.

mondeo estates are cheaper, and probably just as reliable.

Ask Zokes how good they are………. 🙄

I’ll apply the law of my dad- if my dad couldn’t kill his passat in 8 years, then it must have been pretty reliable. Never properly serviced, badly driven, run low on oil and water… He did manage to cripple it a bit by filling it with rain and then leaving it to go mouldy, that killed a lot of the electrics but it still drove. Poor thing.

AS above Passat is good and the octavia is based on the golf estate so smaller.

The engine to go for is the 2.0l tdi, plenty of pulling power.

Just pick what you fancy,they’re just load carriers.Have you considered the Honda Accord?

Had a Passat Tdi 110 for 3 years and 80k – loved it. Went to private car after that. Wanted the 130hp Passat estate, but no VW garage in my region would budge much on price as it was a new model, so I got an Audi A6 130hp Tdi instead (got a great deal on their new model). The A6 has been awesome too. I get 55mpg average, 65mpg on motorway runs. Same engine as a Passat. Variable servicing means that I go 20 months between services which are not that expensive anyway. Factoring in the long service intervals, this works out very cheap indeed.

I had a Mondeo diesel estate on hire (the previous model to the current one). It was a dog! The engine was not gutsy and the handling was unpredictable. By all accounts, the new model is a vastly better car, but i’d be sceptical about the powerplant.

IMHO the VAG 1.9Tdi is the finest midsized power plant around. Fitted to so many cars, it is a complete winner.

I’m very happy with the 57 reg passat estate I’ve had since December – got it for £9.5k with 22k on the clock. Just come back from visiting family down south, 600 mile round trip, and I wa saying to the wife how I’d happily tour across Europe in it.

And, if you do a bit of car DIY, the VAG diagnostics kit is very easily available on ebay, meaning servicing costs should be reduced (if a sensor is iffy, you will know, resulting in a cheaper repair outside the main stealer) then back to the stealers/indi garage for servicing – everyone’s a winner 😉

(especially when a garage want about £30 to diagnose a car)

Have a Tdi pd 130 engined Passat estate – brilliant!
Good mpg even around Devon lanes, comfortable when long trips with passengers in the back, I find it nippy too. Recommended
Q

Jontawn, is diagnostics really that simple? If it came up with a fault code for bank 1 sensor 2 Lamda sensor voltage low what do you change?

Most garages only charge for diagnostics due to the expense of the computers needed to diagnose modern day cars. I should know I currently have over 120k’s worth in my workshop.

I got run over by a Volvo, suggest you stay away from them.

Saab 9-5 Estate, huge boot space, comfiest seats ever and the can’t have shift. I’ve got mine heading towards the 200k mile mark.

if it comes down for ford or VW I would always prefer the VW. (I have a golf and wife has a cmax and there is just no comparison…)

if it comes down for ford or VW I would always prefer the VW. (I have a golf and wife has a cmax and there is just no comparison…)

passat 130tdi sport here, great car.
mate has a A6 2.5tdi and its very nice but it drink a bit more juice than mine.

My 130 bhp tdci mondeo gas nearly 125,000 miles on it (54 plate) original DMF & clutch, Never missed a beat

great car very much under rated, brill mpg’s too