[Closed] What 6k diesel estate?

Why not just keep the Mondeo until you see the first sign of spendy problems and then get another Mondeo? They are a silly price for the higher milers with a great spec and as you'll know the overall driving and ownership experience is excellent.

Depends on what you see and what prices are like. I've been looking at Octavias and Passats and ended up with a Passat because I got a good deal.

For that price you wont beat an i40 for tech specs and space and be able to pick up at least a 63 plate @ around 60-70k miles.

I would agree - bung as much as you can a month into a savings account, and run the Mondeo until it properly dies / huge bill comes in.

I managed to do this with the Galaxy, and 8 weeks before MOT when it needed service, timing belt, new suspension bushes (all round), clutch bite suddenly moving, once had emissions warning light come on (I suspected full DPF after 160k), four new tyres needed (etc)....I dumped it as trade in and had already saved a good wedge towards new car.

Experience of trying to buy a big family car was: most people carriers were battered family sh*t heaps, that lacked servicing or care in their use. Really hard to find a good one. Passat was over priced, both Passat and Superb are less reliable than I would want. Mondeo was plentiful BUT, found that a few V70's were cheaper, particularly if you wanted the lower power, lower tax models...

So our new V70 was cheaper than a Mondeo to buy, longer service intervals and cheaper to work on apparently if it does go wrong. It is an absolute monster mile eater, more space than first glance you think, lovely comfort and cracking stereo. I dropped on the model I wanted (SE with winter pack, 136bhp 5-cyl stop start, 16" rims for £50 <span style="font-size: 0.8rem;">tyres) that costs £20 a year in tax... It has a small water leak on a radiator fitting, so our usual garage had it in last week. The garage owner wanted to buy it as he has a line of customers after that exact model - and he suggested £2k more than I paid...</span>

big diesel estates seem deeply unfashionable right now.

I just bought a really high spec subaru outback for ~£6k. there was a lot to choose from.

I've been considering a similar proposition but I'd be chopping in our diesel picasso for a petrol estate of some sort, I'm concerned about the new emissions tests at MOT.

I'm not into VAG cars, I've had a couple and they weren't actually that special, I'd consider another citroen myself (probably in the minority there) a C6 estate is actually quite a nice car inside with plenty of room.

And I did get a V70 (D5) for a week through work some years ago, which I really, really liked, just wondering how the petrol engined versions stack up now...

I was looking for another estate and ended up with an S-Max. It’s ace. Like a massive van with the seats down! Plus even I at 6ft can fit in the 3rd row of seats that pop out of the boot

munches front tyres though and it’s not particularly economical for a diesel

Petrol V70?

2.4 = older, sub 20mpg around town.

2.5T = faster, chuff me the tax and not great mpg

3.0t = wahoooo, but £550 tax and if you need to ask the running costs...

I have a v70 2.d diesel - amazing motor!

130k miles and still sweet as! Fast/semi economical 43mpg/tax is crazy at £380 per year tho, parts are cheap and easy to work on bar headlight bulbs which go pretty quick! Car is a 2005!

Skoda Fabia estate? Smaller 1.6 TDI engines are really economical and £20tax.

Passats mentioned above.

We've got one at work. Looks good on first glance, if I'd only had an hour or so test I'd have been convinced, apart from the stupid electric handbrake. But, heading down from Edinburgh to Northampton after about halfway the seat became really, really uncomfortable, same on the return journey, very unpleasant, many stops to walk about and get some feeling back into my bum and legs. Can do the same journey in my old Transit non-stop without any discomfort at all, and the Mondeo I had before it. And the wife's Toyota Yaris. Passat seats not as bad as an Aygo mind, but still rubbish.

Thankfully I hadn't just bought one on the basis of a one hour test drive only to discover on it's first big trip that I just couldn't live with it.

New Transit arrives at work soon, I'll be taking that next time I have to go more than about 100miles, not the Passat.

Anyway, moral of the story, whatever you choose get a big test drive if you can, or at least take a picnic and sit in it for a day.

Go for another Mondeo. At your price point its the best option by far. 6k will only get you the emissions fix VW diesel and I wouldn't touch that engine with a barge pole. I know cos I've had one.

Also been thinking of a mondeo estate when my focus packs up (2002 1.8tddi) which has been brilliant but required some welding for the first time this year.Are any models/engines more reliable than others out of interest? would like to avoid dpf's and dmf's etc if poss.

I stuck with Toyota again last year, don't think I'd have anything other than Toyota or Honda atm Fabia VRS was fun but I prefer a timing chain....and a duplex one at that...

My 2.2 RAV4 (if you look at a Toyota 2.2 get one that's had the engine recall...) done 3000 miles in June and didn't miss a beat returning 57mpg and no change in levels. 75K on the clock and paid £5500 last year with full main dealer SH.

Almost bought a Hyundai I40 estate with the 1.7 but they get an issue where if the DPF doesn't regen they dump fuel into the sump.... so walked away from that...

Anyway, moral of the story, whatever you choose get a big test drive if you can, or at least take a picnic and sit in it for a day.

One thing in particular I learned from my last job working for BCA, picking up a car in Cornwall, for example, and driving it for over 200 miles, then maybe another 100 or so the following day, you do find out which cars are comfy and fun to drive, and the little idiosyncrasies that can just drive you nuts! I’ve learned that these days, I find SUV’s much more comfortable, and that I really don’t like BMW’s.

big diesel estates seem deeply unfashionable right now.

I think people are more aware of how polluting they are.

There seems to be a shortage of petrol engines with decent power (150bhp range), reasonable economy and low tax. Therefore has to be diesel for the time being.

Avoid the vag 1.6 TDI, it's not got enough power for an estate (oroany bigger car) really imo. There 2l TDI is much more refined.

If memory serves me that is my old Mondeo (grey estate)? If so I hope it's been good to you.

I'd knock the Passat off personally. Ours has been throwing up some large unscheduled bills between 70 and 80k. I disagree with Andrewh on the comfort elements but seats are a very personal thing. I will concede my old Mondeo was more comfortable and drove better and the Passat boot is nowhere near as good.

The emissions fix has not been kind to the car either.

big diesel estates seem deeply unfashionable right now.

I think people are more aware of how polluting they are.

You give sheeple too much credit. Due to the confused messages they're receiving, they're apparently all stampeding in the direction of least resistance.

[edit] quoting really is utter dogshit here now isn't it?

but I prefer a timing chain

Tell that to friends who just had Avensis 1.8 timing chain part at 4yrs and 50k....

Saab 93 TTiD?

Handsome, comfy, powerful, good mpg and a huge boot.

I had a 06 Passat before my Saab. Those bloody electric handbrakes...

I went from a Mondeo to an Octavia and deeply disappointing it was with poor build quality, performance and economy.

As others have said another Mondeo. The Citroen C5 or 6 is also a good option. I’ve just bought a cheap C5 estate as a dog car and very impressed with it. At 10 years old everything works as it should and despite it being a bigger car than the Octavia it’s much more economical and the build quality is a step up too. I wouldn’t touch a VAG car again with short cam belt service schedules, at least with the Mondeo your looking at chain driven or with the Citroen 10 year belt change as it’s a combination of chain and belt.

My BIL Passat estate is currently knackered after the cam belt snapped even though it was dealer serviced. It has already been a money pit with other failures.

Don't get an i40.

There's a reason they have a 5yr warranty... it's to fix all the crap that goes wrong. Once the 5yrs are up the parts are very expensive.

My mondeo just needed a new exhaust gas sensor and a regen.    Expensive,   but hopefully good for a while yet.   Their software is a bit pish and tells you nothing useful.  The Bluetooth crashes.

Still its smart, and comfy and a great hauler of stuff so its staying for the noo.

The i40 is frantic, noisy and stiff like a toyota.

Skoda Fabia estate? Smaller 1.6 TDI engines are really economical and £20tax.

I have one, its fine..goes and stuff but its bloody gutless. I think its just over geared for fuel economy. Very easy to stall. Fine once over 30mph.

If it's a MK3 Mondeo TDCI, I'd just keep running it, didn't think there were too many compromises to ours of similar mileage. Only sold ours because it was just too big for the parking spaces where my wife works. In hindsight should have just let it get bashed up, wouldn't have affected it's value with that mileage. V50 and Octavia since have just been a bit rubbish in comparison and very little has as big a boot.

You'll get a nice Mazda6 estate for £6k.

As said above, run the Mondeo for as long as you dare, at the same time, start doing the searches. Perhaps use your criteria of diesel estate up to £6k and see what comes up? Then do some research using Parkers and honestjohn and any others you find useful, as well as here. Also worth mentioning to do a search for recalls and problems with your shortlisted models.

I got an 11 plate Seat Exeo 2.0 Tdi which is basically a 2004-2008 Audi A4 with a different badge, only it has the CR Tdi engine not the dreaded PD Tdi. Every single part I pulled out so far has the audi logos stamped in them. Much nicer than a Skoda, but as diesel prices are dropping, these can be had for relatively little money.

If posible I`d go for the facelifted model (2012 onwards) it has LED DRL and a bit nicer on the inside.

Some say there isnt much leg room for adults in the back and the boot isn't exactly huge. After a Mondeo these might be hard to get used to.

But overall I think these are very nice cars. Had a 63 reg passat before, I`d say the Seat isn't far off in comfort and build quality.

How about a nice 525d Touring?

Here's a 2007 facelift SE with xenons, leather, 99k miles for £5500.  Nice straight 6 diesel.

[url] https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-525d-SE-Touring/192583222867?hash=item2cd6dac653:g:x7wAAOSw1NJbNU50 [/url]

How about a nice 525d Touring?

Just budget to rewire the tailgate and replace/repair the alarm module as they *will* fail. Otherwise, I loved my E61.

Ford Galaxy. You can get under 100k miles with an 09 or 10 plate with 2l diesel for less than 6 grand. I picked up an 08 Ghia for £4k a few months back. Have put nearly 10k on it and has hardly missed a beat. Prior to that had 2 Mk3 Mondeo estates that I loved (albeit 1.8l petrol) and put best part of 80k on them. Galaxy is the bees though, soooo much space..

I had a 325D with that engine. Bought it a 90k miles and it never missed a beat in 60k miles of being driven like a Bimmer should be driven, average 45mpg too. I'd still be driving it now if some tit in a Punto hadn't punted me into an X Type on the M27.