New job... Car change... Any recommendations?

[andrewsmith]

Anything from VAG.

Insignia; they're meant to not that good. Friend had one as a courtesy car and it like a recording of Bonanza under the bonnet (petrol Auto), and it liked a drink

[Luckypants]

Before going for a VAG group diesel, check out their turbo problems. They have a particular issue with the turbo on their 2.0 TDi engines, so much so that the local main dealer keeps 3-6 turbos on the shelf in their parts department! These can fail at a young age and low miles, under 50K miles and around 3 years old.

Originally Posted by pinpoint_uk

How come you don't get a company car if you have to do mega miles?

It's a relatively small company, but instead of a company car they're happy to pay 45p per mile for the first 10,000 miles, and then 25p per mile thereafter.
If I'm aiming for an average of 50mpg, I'd be looking at around 12p a mile, and assuming I hit the 10k mark, that'd be approx £3,300 (over and above the fuel cost) towards car expenses, which isn't too bad.
(They will also pay for rail fare as an alternative too if it makes sense for a particular journey)

Originally Posted by Ch00

Who is paying for it? Who is paying for the running costs?
If its you then cheap as chips is needed.

Again, me - but I've been looking (and saving) to swap my car for a while now, so my budget for a car swap is healthy. It's just with the new job, it's made the change maybe a year or two sooner than I was planning on swapping, and changed the type of car I would've gone for.

Cheers for the rec's and info so far - keep them coming!

BMW 118D or 320D. Will eat the miles whilst being quiet and comfortable. Get an m sport if you can for better suspension, seats and spec.

Originally Posted by daddyjob

by the sounds of it you'll be doing lots of miles. So I would look at cars with long service intervals. You want your creature comforts as well as decent build quality. Personally, I would be looking towards the Skoda (Octavia), VW Passat direction in terms of bang for buck.

I don't believe in long service intervals. These are just ways car manufacturers bamboozal you into buying their wares. BMW's for example have gearbox and diff oil that should last the life of the car but if you've ever changed the oil, say at 75000 miles, then you'll see how much crap is in the oil. Change the oils and see how much better the gear change etc is!

Simple oil and filter changes at half the recommended mileage will increase the life and feel of the engine.

Originally Posted by Bibio

if i were doing mega miles i would look for something with an auto box and cruse control. much more relaxed to drive and a lot less fuss in busy town/city centres. you want to get to your destination feeling refresed not like you have just done a marathon. keep away from cars with noisy cabins, if you have to turn the music up to drown the road noise out it's no good.

i hate to say it but the mondeo is a fantastic car to drive and in my opinion is only one of two cars that ford actually make that are good. the other is the big galaxy.

depending on your budget i would plumb for a Jag diesel which is a dressed up mondeo and is surprisingly good on fuel.

good luck on whatever you decide.

Gonna argue with ya Bibio, just to give the other side!

Auto boxes tire me out as I'm not doing anything so I don't engage with the vehicle/drive/journey. Cruise control has a similar effect. All of this lessens my attention to the road.

Music invigorates me and if I'm in a car on my own it is up loud anyway so cabin noise is not a primary concern for me and wasn't, even when I was covering large distances every year.

I will however concede that the Mondeo is a good motorway car.

I would vote +1 to any German Car. Its not a vote against the Mondeo or anything like that cos I have not driven one.

Having done lots of days mountain biking/surfing/hiking, where I have driven 2+ hours to get there, ridden all day and driven home my Golf GT diesel was great all round very little driving related tiredness, about 48-50 mpg, no hanging around, I could get it up to about 57mpg if I drove with less right foot.

First car was a Montego estate diesel. Which was amazing at eating up the miles due to a very long gearing meaning it ticked over at 2000 rpm at 75, longer wheelbase made it very easy and predictable on the motorway.

Also done similar days using my dad's W reg petrol A4. It was a more comfortable drive on the motorway, but the higher/busier engine note is annoying in comparison to the diesel. With the same engine from the golf, I'd love to have my dad's A4 for long miles.

For reliability, My bro bought the golf at 85k miles, I sold it at 102k and my mate who has it now has it at 140k miles, hasn't skipped a beat, no out of the ordinary servicing (cambelt done at 95k, oil change regularly and brake pads). My dad had a couple of issues with his A4 in warrenty, but that was solved by 15k miles, now at 85k and been fine since then, though obviously not used that much. I think he gets it services each year, but could get it done every two years.

I would also say there is a reason why sales reps, execs and other high milers use 3 series, mondeos, A4's and other small* exec saloons. They are designed to drive long miles, and are pretty good at it. Better then the smaller GT cars like the golfs.

[yorkie_chris]

Auto box... I wouldn't like the fuel economy hit there at all! What does it matter when you just boot it up the ramp into 6th gear and leave it there anyway?

Got to be a diesel but if you're looking at slightly older ones beware of the high pressure pumps going, this seems to be 175k or so for the mondeos and the resulting glitter bomb destroys the injectors as well.


Got a new ish astra at work that does fine, not the absolute quietest but no complaints. Small side windows but all modern cars feel like they've got tank slits compared to my van.

[Luckypants]

Originally Posted by phil24_7

Get an m sport if you can for better suspension, seats and spec.

Depends on your view of 'better' suspension. I think the 3-series to be a hard ride on the road - especially with run-flat tyres - and the M-sport suspension makes it worse. The improved handling is not of much benefit while mile-munching but can make the trip more tiring. Personally I'd avoid 'sports' suspension and ultra-low profile tyres to improve comfort, but I do live in an area with bumpy roads.

The real problem is run flats. Remove them and then you find the sports suspension much more supple. Can of tyre weld in the boot and your sorted!

My 118D M Sport is a little bouncy on the rear end (so is the standard) but other than that the suspensions is absolutely fine on the motorway and is amazing once you hit A and B roads! With the run flats removed the M Sport suspension is much better than standard, don't presume Sport means stiff, they are much better Bilstein units that perform better over a greater range of conditions.