Thanks for advice all. Off to view a Focus TDCI and a Seat Leon 1.9 Tdi soon as I can.
No brainer, move house, ride bike to work.
If only life were that simple...
I used to not understand people with long motorway commutes. Then I got made redundant from my job in Swansea with perfect 10 mile pootle along the seafront to work. There not being a lot of work for information scientists in Swansea, the best I could do was to find a (freelance) job in Cardiff. Luckily we are only in a rented house and are looking to move a bit closer to Cardiff. But my partner works in Swansea and drives round a lot as part of her job, so not fair to inflict extra driving on her (especially as she upped sticks and moved here with me when I got the now defunct job!). So 45 miles may become 35 miles but not a lot less for the forseeable future.
Get a mortgage? Having spent the time I was out of work living off what was going to be our deposit? As a self-employed first time buyer? In a twitchy housing market? With limited job security?
Like I say, if only things were so simple 🙁
Cut your fuel cost and convert whatever to LPG. LPG is half the price of petrol ~57pence/litre....
My opinion.
I think people recommending brands are kind of off the point and buying into brand loyalty. Cars last a long time if looked after. Whoever makes them. There are differences between brands of course, but the key thing is to look at lots of cars, private and forecourt, and buy based on service history, condition, miles and service history.
And the best thing to do is educate yourself. Find out how to check things and what to look for in general and for the model you are buying. And when you go to see a car, know what you'll pay up to and what issues shall make you walk away.
If you want cheap and reliable get an old (9yrs old +) Isuzu engined Vectra diesel. Simple design, cam chain and unfashionable = cheap for a good example.
Mondeo 2.0 TDDi, 115hp from about 51/02/52.
No fancy injectors to worry about, (TDCi's can be problematic). No timing belt (chain driven). Has DMF but despite the rumours these dont fail every week. Sump of fresh oil & a new filter every 6k will see silly mileages. We couldnt find a nice one so went for the TDCi, so far has been fine but is a second car for the wifes commute. Pick up one of the above for about £1.8k with about 100k, bank the rest in case DMF or turbo goes. (DMF about £600/Turbo about £600). Should see 150k easily. Local cab firm had a TDCi Mondeo at 270k when it was written off.
i've got a 99 mondeo diesel, on 180k, going strong, starting to die elsewhere but the engine is fine.
first clutch too.
Cars last a long time if looked after. Whoever makes them
I have to disagree. Some cars last longer than others. We used to have a Rover 214 that was M reg. You don't see ANY of these cars around any more. However you do see plenty of other cars from that age - often VWs and funnily enough certain Peugots. And lots more makes of course, those were two that spring to mind.
Certain cars and engines are prone to certain faults. For instance, my 2006 Passat has a BKP engine, some of which were equipped with Siemens piezo injectors which just are not that reliable. The mean time between failure (if you want a measurable statistic) is not as long as other injectors.
Agree with Mol (!) - some cars are just very very unreliable from new - take any Land Rover based 4x4 or early 00s Mercedes (when they were built in S America for a while)
VW also had a very bad patch when they shipped some production over to South Africa.
The old VAG 1.9TDi (pre PD/common rail) is nigh on indestructable.
I would look at an older A4 (around 99/00).
Lots of good advice on here.
Personally I think Fords look good on paper but poor build/component quality seem to let them down.
The 90bhp Octavia recommended is good but a tad dull to drive.
Nissan Primera 2.2 Di or DCi - 6spd box, camchain not belt, generally ultra reliable and 129 or 138hp along with reversing camera, satnav and electronic everything if you get the SVE.
THey're not fashionable so better value than most others.
Citroen C5 also underrated - get the 110bhp 2.0HDi (preferably with a new clutch/flywheel already fitted) and you'll get a lot for your cash. (on NO ACCOUNT get the 2.2HDi).
VAG PD cars are also pretty good - apart from the very latest, I think.
But +1 for Nissan or some other unfashionable make. At the lower end of the market you can save a ton of money by buying something that Jeremy Clarkson didn't like.
Why not the 2.2HDI? I did 60,000 trouible free miles in one a few years ago.
Why not the 2.2HDI? I did 60,000 trouible free miles in one a few years ago.
Don't get me wrong they're lovely things to drive but once you get into changing the diesel particulate filter and the EMF fluid it starts getting VERY expensive and annoying.
Better to get the 2.0HDi and chip it.
(by expensive I mean "Citroen expensive" as opposed to "normal expensive")
LPG it.
(awaits game of Who Has/Has Had the Highest Mileage Car Top Trumps)
Bought my merc sprinter at 235,000 miles, currently on 278,000 miles. Expect to keep it way beyond 300,000
Do I win?
I just bought a Rover 218 D . Fitted with an XUD engine , 1 owner 87K on the clock. For the pricely sum of £120 , out of MOT. Old boy thought it might fail so was prepared to scrap it. It went straight through the MOT with 2 advisory notes. Driveshaft boots starting to perish, and disc runout.
I drive a 242k Passat PD100. I get over 60 mpg and its a nice car to drive . seats have gone in the squabs tho and need replacing. .
I would try to find a Golf pd with history , although the Leon is a similar beast
Cars last a long time if looked after. Whoever makes themI have to disagree. Some cars last longer than others. We used to have a Rover 214 that was M reg. You don't see ANY of these cars around any more
Yes, do your homework. Those Rovers die because they aren't maintained properly. They suffer head gasket failure partly because of the engine design but mainly due to poor maintainance. A K series needs the coolant levels checked regularly and the coolant changed at the recommended intervals.
VAG products may present with their own problems at a similar age, but with their higher market value they are more often worth fixing. So more of them about into old age. The numbers of a model remaining on the road has many factors, not just the reliability of the car that left the showroom.
my alfa 156 JTD did 267,000 before i sold it, never had any trouble with it either, so much for alfa's being unreliable 😉
Dx
Just a thought ...why are you selling the two other petrol-powered cars? Might it be cheaper to keep and maintain one of those and rack the miles up?
Lots of good advice on here. Personally I'd go for as simple as possible (old Pug or Rover without DMF) or Jap or VAG. I have an 02 Focus TDCi 115 with 110k - it needed a DMF and clutch about a year and half ago, 80k miles I think. I sourced parts and got it repaired at the garage that I use and 'got away' with <£600 all in, including a service. The Ford stealer wanted (IIRC) c£600 for the DMF!
Have always gone for high mileage vehicles, firstly they are cheaper to buy, secondly, those expensive things that go when they get into 6 figures have been replaced already, for example, current car was 140000 when I got it, but had only 20k on the clutch and 10k on the turbo, chain driven, so no worries there.
High milers have often spent time on motorways too, so fairly low stress compared to town driving.
Some things do last well though, my hiace van had only gone through consumables like tyres, brake pads, filters and it's one weakness, bushings - bought at 140k also, sold at 250k for only £750 less 3 years later
I have 05 Focus Estate, with over 100,000 on the clock, drives like a new motor, serviced by the book, nothing has fell off, very pleased with it, only fault is the elecric boot release does not like water and stops working at times but you can unlock on the key
I have had 6 Pugs over the years 2x305 4x405 all have done over 100.000, one did over 200.000 miles in 3.5 years, that was a fantastic motor, one was dog from day one, 2, the heads cracked at about 30.000 (6 months old) but they were all fixed under warrenty.Recommend an old Pug to this day
Those Rovers die because they aren't maintained properly
What, all of them?
My point was that some cars you still see on the road at a high age, some you don't. It's very noticeable when you start looking. I reckon this is a good indicator of ultimate longevity of a car and reliability and ease of fixing when they do get old.
One could easily argue that having to constantly check coolant levels on a car is a design flaw and hence a factor in the reliability. We had an older 216 and a 214 - both we had to get shot of at about 90k miles - the first one the door hinge kept slipping and bent the wing; the second one the input shaft bearing on the gearbox started to go.
High milers have often spent time on motorways too, so fairly low stress compared to town driving.
Very true and more importantly they are less likely to have had their milage 'adjusted'. I got my current car second hand 5 years old with 24K on the clock and looked very hard at the history (MOT, Service etc).
Milage fine but a few weeks later the low pressure fuel line failed as a result of the previous owner having not replaced the energy absorber which stops excessive engine movement when idling in traffic (i.e in town) rather confirming the low milage is bad view. I'd only exchanged my old car as it had done 84K in 4 years and was starting to get expensive as various bits started failing (including a common rail line fracture which alone cost £500 in recover/repair costs for a £22 part).
I would not think swapping petrol for diesel makes much sense on a 70 mile a day commute for a 6 month period. Service costs tend to be cheaper for petrol cars (sweeping generalisation as it depends upon make/spec etc) and the fuel saving over 6 months (110 days) would be perhaps 25% lower - driving more economically could mitigate to a degree.
I bought a ;03 Mk4 Golf 1.9 TDi SE 100 for that sort of journey. On a motorway run it will do 55mpg all day long. Around the doors I get about 45mpg.
It's comfy, been reliable, touch wood, bar wear and tear. It is just below 150k and rising.
Can't fault it at all. The PD engine in the VAG range is the one to go for.
For value for money and newer car get a Fabia in the 100BHP 1.9
For extra extra value for money but street cred of a leper, get the Cordoba 1.9 TDI SE 130 - I had one, but got ripped off by Arnold C*** so engineered a failure to return it. - the Cordoba has the Fabia VRS engine in it PD130 so will still do 55mpg but also has some serious grunt.
