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Addison Lee Ford Galaxy

I need to buy a 7 seat MPV that can cope with 3 kids and associated kit without breaking the bank or buying something that will need major expenditure shortly after purchase? I see that you recommend the Ford Galaxy that Addison Lee sell off. You also say that high mileage cars are not necesrarily bad. What matters is how they have been driven?
Addison Lee consistently seem to offer cars ranging from £5k (140k miles) to £8k (90k miles). The website states that they have been well maintained. What is the best trade off between price and mileage to go for in view of the engine/gearbox combination in all these cars and how they will have been used? What mileage can you expect to get out of one of these cars before it would be wise to replace it?
Finally, Addison Lee's prices almost seem too good to be true. Is that because they only charge what they would get for the cars in the trade?

Asked on 11 April 2012 by Rob Gurney

Answered by Honest John
Go for the best you can afford. The Galaxy are all 6 speed torque converter autos with the 2.0 TDCI engine. But at 90k miles they will need fresh timing belts and tensioners. They aren't abused. Addison Lee hires the Galaxy to its drivers, and every Addison Lee driver I've been picked up by loves them. Any colour you like as long as it's black. They actually take a significant proportion of Ford's UK allocation of Galaxy. 3,000 in total, so about 1,000 a year.
Dear Honest John,

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