[Closed] Estates - Passat 140tdi or BMW 520D? Need to decide quickly

Passat. I'd only go for the Beemer if it was one of the big engined ones.

Lancia Stratos.

Will add a few thousand miles & resell in a few months and would hope to get bulk of money back.

i might be tempted to shop at a lower budget?

if you need a good bmw tech. iridium in southampton or bartleys in totton are good. VW: go to monks, near lordswood.

Passat, not least as its at the lower price so you have less money tied up / at risk. If you think the BMW needs tyres now your potential buyer is going to think so too after you put on a few 1000 more miles. Passat newer. Only negative for the Passat is the colour, might impact ease of resale.

From what you've written, Passat.

My brain says 'If it's a stop gap the cheaper one', my heart says 'stop eating so much fatty food and go for the BMW, it will be more fun'

If in doubt, the red one.

The 520d isn't underpowered, it has 174bhp to the Passat's 140.

As for which car, The passat has a nicer interior, the BMW is bigger. It would depend on condition and spec for the BMW.

The BMW would be eligible for BMWs 6 plus plan, which means cheap servicing.

BMW, it will be more fun

EDIT Just seen @daffy's post 174bhp, that's quite impressive, my 2.7TDI V6 Audi was 177

The Passat will be on the PD engine yes? If so, there are quite a few known issues. Not saying it's a poor engine, just making you aware that you might like to Google re due diligence. Whatever you do, get the full history for both vehicles and check with main dealers (and others if you have records) etc what was done, especially with 100k on the clock.

apparently the beemer is the 163bhp (not 174) version the bloke told me, and of course said it was much more reliable than the later ones or 530d engine as he would

Two words: Electric handbrake. If it goes on the Passat its an expensive fix!

[url= http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/fs-honda-accord-tourer-ctdi-22-executive-great-biking-car ]This[/url] one? 😀

beargrease, I like Hondas but OH and offspring say they are old people's cars and wouldn't be seen in one, I don't care though, could you drop it off on Sat morning, only about 500 miles from where you are....

Well, a friend has a 520d (saloon mind you) he bought at around 80k and is now around 120k'ish.

He seems happy with it and having been in it & driven it, it certainly doesn't feel old or high mileage. As far as I am aware he hasn't had many issues either, other than the usual consumables.

@avon, it's hard to make a case that a Passat Estate is less of an old persons car than an Accord 😉 I had an Accord at 25, probably says more about me than the car though ...

Passat.

My brother had the same as you mention, only changed it when it got run into. Got a slightly newer one!

[img] [/img]

Accord is a good car- had a 54 plate for two years, no hassles.

Either could run with no costs (except fuel, tax and insurance) or go pop tomorrow...

I'd be inclined as a stop-gap to go for the cheapest.

If you do go for the bimmer, check out the swirl flaps.

I've had the earlier model of both, well, 100bhp pd Passat and 525d BMW (so probably irrelevant comments!). Both were quite expensive in terms of things going wrong when I first got them - Passat probably a bit better in the long term from that point of view. BM much nicer to drive on fast roads - Passat better round the lanes.

I'd go for the Passat on price alone.

I'm a BMW man, and I'd would buy the Passat if only keeping it for a few months. Cheaper, well thought of, new tyres. SOLD.

Passat all the way , 3 chaps I know have had major turbo problems after 110k ,one skipped its chain and took the complete engine

Got a 55 plate b6 passat. 1.9 mapped to 140 bhp. 130,000 and its going strong. Check round the number plate lights for corrosion. Its a known issue that vw will only contribute towards sorting. Bit disappointed really. Its not a bad car but nothing special.

Private or dealer?

Is the TDI 2.0 or 1.9? Not the BXE engine hopefully.

Both private, Passat is the 2.0 140, leaning towards that, like the one in pic above

Could you face the embarrassment of having a BMW on your drive?

I'd prefer the Passat. Easier to sell on? Try and aim to pay towards a PX price that way short-time you could change cars again with minimal pain (if that makes sense?). On the one-key, paranoia but check logbook loans.

I buy most of my cars privately.

I'd go BMW. The Passat has a number of issues which could prove very expensive. Personally I'd look for one of the later old shape Passats with the 1.9 130bhp engine - so much better built than the later version and a looked after 1.9pd is a great trusty engine. Loads of refined car for the money and cheaper than the 2 you're looking at 😉

Beemer, seems like a good price

I have a 2004 e61 525d, perfect workhorse for my use

BUT, it needs to have some toys in it - sat nav, Bluetooth, xenons, parking sensors etc

My 05 pd is sweet as a nut and was £1400. Highline. Full leather etc etc

As the other poster said 2.2cdti accord executive - cheap, reliable, and a Honda. 4-6 months driving a boring cheap car - 2 grand in your pocket

I'll sell you this one for £3250....

[img] [/img]

2.0 tdi Sport 140bhp DSG
131k miles
Service history / 9 months MOT
Electric windows /mirrors
Dual zone climate control
Electric heated seats
Full leather
Auto headlights & wipers
6 disc cd/mp3 player
Parrot Bluetooth handsfree
Steering wheel controls
Auto dimming rear view mirror
Hill hold, electronic handbrake
ABS/ESP/Traction control
Parking sensors
17 inch alloys

Good runner
A few marks and scuffs in relation to it's age, but generally a nice clean motor
Good tyre condition

Im also a BMW man / fan but I would go the Passat at this price point.

fwiw i has a 320d with the 163 engine & the turbo went after 57k...

Passat. Dull, but Google N47 engines. Our BMW 320d has one, would not have another.

ciderinsport - O/T are those bikes and rack within the weight limit for your roof/carrier? I'm sure my Thule etc had a limit of 35kg.

I would have the BM. I would imagine a car as big as a Passat with a 1.4 engine would struggle to pull your foreskin back, never mind maintain 70mph on the motorway.

Passat. Dull, but Google N47 engines. Our BMW 320d has one, would not have another.

Op is looking at an '06 which was M47 and like swirl flaps as mentioned. N47 didn't go into the 5 series until late '07 so should avoid the timing chain/crankshaft problems.

I would choose the 5 series every time.

Sandal, in that case, definitely a 5 series.

hooli - Member

I would have the BM. I would imagine a car as big as a Passat with a 1.4 engine would struggle to pull your foreskin back, never mind maintain 70mph on the motorway.

The Passat a 2 litre with 140bhp......

Sandal, in that case, definitely a 5 series.

I have a '08 N47 5 series that's had a full engine rebuild. I did a lot of research when it started rattling from the back of the engine bay!

I'm surprised no one has mentioned practicality. I looked at a 520d last year and a Passat. The BMW had a very small impractically-shaped boot which, if you're carrying bikes and stuff, would be a consideration.

[quote="Daffy"]...the BMW is bigger.
No it's not. The Passat has a huge boot and importantly the back window is quite upright so you get the full height across the whole boot. The BMW not only has a shorter (front-back) boot but also has a steeply sloping window making it significantly less voluminous.

We have two large-ish dogs and were in a similar car-buying dilemma a few years back, all of the BMW & Audi estates have surprisingly small boots with no headroom. We ended up with a '56 Passat. The alternative, perhaps surprisingly, was a Focus. That has an incredibly big boot for what is a smaller car.

Our Passat had a few teeting problems when we bought it but since then has been great. Electric handbrake was one of them. £200 for an exchange caliper, easy DIY fitment and despite what anyone tells you, you DO NOT need to go to a dealer to reprogram the car afterwards. Electric steering lock was another, a PITA but can be fixed for free if you don't mind some spannering. I think the only other thing was the boot handle acted up and needed a new unit. Not too bad.

FWIW I'm generally a BMW fanboi, I've had about fifteen of them over the years but I'm utterly convinced that BMW's build quality took a nose dive around 2000 and hasn't really come back again. My daily is a 2001 320td with 157k miles on it and it's been great. I had a 2003 530i that was a total lemon. My brother ran a 2008 335i for a while, lovely car, but absolutely appalling reliability, constantly going back for warranty work. It actually put him off cars ! He now has a '54 Golf GT and is chuffed to bits with how hassle-free it is.

I don't like VW handling though. The front always feels too soft to me.

<double post>

You should have said you were looking. I just sold my ML430 which almost fits your criteria

Passats are ace! Check out this bad boy! Didnt know there were weight limits for racks, only nearly lost ciderinsports bike on the motorway 😳

[img][url= https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8677/16129738221_7057e9d207_c.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8677/16129738221_7057e9d207_c.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/qzk8dR ]PC286388[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/people/47933770@N07/ ]T*inbred[/url], on Flickr[/img]

Edit - that othef one up there I put 100,000 miles on it with no issues whatsoever until some eejit ran into the front and wrote it off 🙁

As it is customary to suggest something other than the options given by OP, how about a Rover 75 estate/MG ZT-T diesel? It's a BMW lump so pretty decently engineered, and the cars themself are very well made.

Similar to OP, my old bangernomics car died so wanted a different bangernomics car with a view to keeping for a bit until something else came up. I ended up with a MG ZT-T 190. It's great, load of room, and it is very nice to drive. 13 years old and there isn't a panel out of alignment nor a single squeak from the interior. Probably the best made car I've owned so far, and I doubt I'll be in any rush to sell it.

Bonus is they're very cheap. Buy one and have £3k left from your budget, plus you'll not lose money when it comes time to sell later on in the year. Reasonable looking, too.
[img] [/img]

@40mpg, is that a bottle of cider sitting in the gutter?

is that a bottle of cider sitting in the gutter?

bearGrease - Member

@40mpg, is that a bottle of cider sitting in the gutter?

Yep mine - was needed after 4 hours of riding on the beach 😀

I'd go BMW. The Passat has a number of issues which could prove very expensive. Personally I'd look for one of the later old shape Passats with the 1.9 130bhp engine - so much better built than the later version and a looked after 1.9pd is a great trusty engine. Loads of refined car for the money and cheaper than the 2 you're looking at

Not especially helpful I know, but I gotta agree with this.

Got a 1.9Tdi 130bhp Sport Passat estate and its a fab car. They're well known for being much better made than the newer (Golf based) cars (just as the older 5 series were much better made than the newer ones).

I bought my car in a similar situation to yours, needing a reliable/practical car for 6 months, before a newer/company vehicle would be arriving. I've had it 8 months so far now and have delayed buying a company van as to be honest, the Passat is so good! If I sold it tomorrow I might lose £200 over the £1700 I bought it for, and in 8 months I've done 2 oil changes, a pair of tyres, and filled it with diesel numerous times and it's been superb.

Either of the 2 cars you're looking at could be great cars, or a costly mistake. If you have to buy one of those 2, buy based on condition and service history. If you're only keeping it 6 months, the one that's in the best condition with the better history will be easier to sell on at a smaller loss at the end of it.

Update: the VW seller decided not to sell and keep it, BMW seller wouldn't accept a (much) lower offer so in need of some wheels quickly I spotted below for sale just down the road for me, a 52 reg Honda CRV 2.0 Sport for £1200 with 110k miles, history, long MOT and when I drove off it had a full tank of petrol. I don't think it's going to be very economical though, a big lump with a petrol engine. All the gadgets work, drives lovely and already had bikes in the back no problem. Stop gap sorted until new van comes
[url= https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8659/15752249054_e6316c62e3_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8659/15752249054_e6316c62e3_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url]

Now that is a Top Gear ending.

Today we have the Beeemer with loads of powwwwweeeeeerrr but it's a bit expensive !!! And another German diesel super estate that's hard to buy.

But we wouldn't buy either we want an old Japanese suv.

And on that bombshell its time to end.

a 52 reg Honda CRV 2.0 Sport for £1200 with 110k miles, history, long MOT and when I drove off it had a full tank of petrol. I don't think it's going to be very economical though

If you're only keeping it 6 months, I'd bet that though it might cost you £200-300 more in fuel than either of the German estates would, it won't depreciate a penny whereas they would probably lose maybe £400-500 in that time...

So along with having £3k less cash tied up, sounds like win win from a money saving point of view!