Who knows - Advice on new car please

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Mon 29 Jan 2018 14:21
Who knows - Advice on new car please - EmmaW
Hi there. I am hoping someone can help. I currently have an automatic Hyundai Tucson which I love and does the job, however, the fuel economy on it is ridiculous and I am only getting aroung 370miles to a full tank. I have changed my job and have to travel twice the distance I did before meaning that I can no longer afford to run it so I am looking to sell it and get something different. However my shopping list is quite comprehensive and I am struggling to know where to even start so any help or advice will be well received.

I need something that the sitting position is high and as near to a normal seat sitting position as possible due to an op ive had

I have 3 children, 2 of whom are in car seats and one who is a teenager so needs to be wide enough for all 3 to be seated comfortably so really a flat back seat with no foot hump

I have a dog so need to get a cage in the boot

I tow a 1500kg caravan regularly so needs this capability

Needs to be as economical as possible

So.....there is my dilema and exhaustive shopping list ??

There has to be something out there
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Mon 29 Jan 2018 14:23
Who knows - Advice on new car please - badbusdriver

You forgot the most important bit, budget?

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Mon 29 Jan 2018 14:25
Who knows - Advice on new car please - EmmaW
Oops, i knew there would be something i forgot

I am looking around the £5000 mark
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Mon 29 Jan 2018 14:29
Who knows - Advice on new car please - badbusdriver

Couple of other points, does it have to be an auto?. What is your annual mileage?, and what type of driving does that consist on, i.e, mainly urban, mainly main roads?

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Mon 29 Jan 2018 14:42
Who knows - Advice on new car please - EmmaW
Hi there, thanks for taking the time to reply
I really dont want an automatic, annual mileage of possibly 12 to 14000 now, some urban on daily school runs but 4times a week on dual carriageways and every other weekend in the summer in different lications with the caravan so very varied
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Mon 29 Jan 2018 14:28
Who knows - Advice on new car please - barney100

When we had young ones and dogs a Volvo estate fitted the bill. We now have a V70 D5 which swallows loads and has plenty of cabin room with decent MPG thrown in....worth a look.

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Mon 29 Jan 2018 14:42
Who knows - Advice on new car please - EmmaW
Thanks for that, I'll have a look
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Mon 29 Jan 2018 14:27
Who knows - Advice on new car please - Happy Blue!

Without full details of your driving regime it is hard to recommend an engine/gearbox combination. Despite all the doom mongers on here, a diesel may well suit you if you do regular A-road/motorway journeys of some distance/speed. 20 miles per day on a fast road will be sufficient for a diesel. We also need to know your budget.

In terms of body style, you want an MPV. Vauxhall Zafira, Ford C-Max, Mazda 5, Renault Scenic. All (except the Mazda) have three separate rear seats, a flat floor and a good driving position. All are available with petrol or diesel engines, manual or automatic. Towing tends to require the lower torque characteristics of a diesel but a modern turbo-petrol can do the same job. Larger cars such as the Ford S-Max will be superb for your requirements if you can afford it.

So - how far do you drive each day and on what type of road? What is your budget?

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Mon 29 Jan 2018 14:44
Who knows - Advice on new car please - EmmaW
Thanks for taking the time to reply

Budget of 5k tops really, i do school runs most days and 4 times a weeks dual carriageways on my 20 mile journey to work plus every other weekend in the nice weather towing.

Im not averse to a diesel although really dont want an auto again, hate it.
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Mon 29 Jan 2018 14:48
Who knows - Advice on new car please - SLO76
Roughly where in the country are you? It’s easy to make recommendations but they’re not much use if there’s none available for sale within reasonable travelling distance of you.
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Wed 31 Jan 2018 11:28
Who knows - Advice on new car please - EmmaW

In Lincoln

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Mon 29 Jan 2018 15:15
Who knows - Advice on new car please - badbusdriver

The trouble here is the caravan, 1500kg is a big old lump of plastic to be pulling behind you, and you will need something fairly substantial to safely tow it. Which of course means a fairly big car with a fairly big engine. So you are probably not going to get the kind of economy you would like!. You say you were getting 370 miles out of a tank of fuel in the hyundai, but without knowing how big the tank is, that isn't much to go with. Do you know what MPG it was giving you?, was it a petrol or diesel?.

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Mon 29 Jan 2018 15:25
Who knows - Advice on new car please - Bromptonaut

The trouble here is the caravan, 1500kg is a big old lump of plastic to be pulling behind you, and you will need something fairly substantial to safely tow it.

My usual answer to this question wouldf be Citroen Berlingo but max towing weight is 1300kg. We struggle to keep our tiny Elddis 304 below that so you've no chance!!

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Mon 29 Jan 2018 17:58
Who knows - Advice on new car please - concrete
The difficulty here is the budget. I towed a 1300kg unladen weight caravan with a Skoda Superb diesel. From 50 plus normal to 35 towing. For 5k you would be lucky to get something reliable. I presume reliability must be a priority. Ferrying children, dogs etc you need to be fairly sure of your vehicle. I don’t know what to suggest other than getting your current vehicle tuned for fuel efficiency and keeping it in good order for a few more years. Got 5k I think you may be buying trouble. Good luck. Cheers Concrete
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Mon 29 Jan 2018 16:51
Who knows - Advice on new car please - Avant

Emma - looking at the reviews section of this site, the Tucson I think you've got has a 58-litre fuel tank. If you're getting 370 miles on a usable 50-55 litres (12 gallons) that's just over 30 mpg - not too bad, surely, for the type of driving you're doing in a big automatic 4x4, be it petrol or diesel.

Be careful here: if your budget is £5,000 for another big car, you'll be buying something qute a few years old with plenty of miles on it. There's a risk that it could need repairs which could negate any fuel savings. Maybe better the devil you know, if yours is in good condition and well maintained?

So don't be in a hurry, but you could look out for a similar Hyundai, or equivalent Kia, only a manual this time. There's Cars for Sale on this site, or Autotrader, or just look at the adverts in your local paper.

Edited by Avant on 29/01/2018 at 16:52

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Mon 29 Jan 2018 18:49
Who knows - Advice on new car please - badbusdriver

TBH Emma, for that budget, if you want something which meets your needs, it is not going to do much, if any, more MPG than your hyundai. Without the need to tow a heavy caravan there are a few options open to you, which would otherwise meet your needs and which could return up to 50MPG (1.9tdi VW touran for example). But none that would comfortably tow a 1500kg caravan.

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Wed 31 Jan 2018 20:59
Who knows - Advice on new car please - SLO76
You don’t half like to set a challenge Emma!

Trouble is to fit in with all of your requirements you’ll need a large SUV/MPV or Estate, probably Diesel and the age/mileage of car that your budget will afford you will leave you open to a very high likelihood of costly failures and problems.

I had a quick look in your neighbourhood and there’s a few Honda CRV 2.2 CDTi’s which will certainly tow that caravan and give closer to 40mpg but at £5k it’ll have a six figure mileage under its belt and SUV’s are never cheap to run even without any failures one at this age/mileage will be at risk of.

I also spotted a tidy looking Toyota Avensis 2.0 D4-D with 60,000 miles but it’s more money at £5995 and it’s a saloon so the dog is on your lap.

These however did pop up. Covers most requests but again it’s a complex turbo diesel exec that could be very costly to run in the next few years. There’s plenty of people running around on old Volvo D5’s who swear by them and have covered massive mileages however but as with any old diesel it’s a risk. Worth a look but take someone who really knows what they’re doing with you even if that means paying a mechanic for his time.

Personally it may be better just buying a cheap second car for commuting instead. £2-£3k would get a decent small hatch that’ll break 50mpg.

Auto Trader:

www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20180110261...5


Auto Trader:

www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20171115128...9




Edited by SLO76 on 31/01/2018 at 21:08

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Thu 1 Feb 2018 00:21
Who knows - Advice on new car please - Nomag

As SLO said I think you're setting an unrealistic challenge. A car to safely tow 1500kg needs a decent kerbweight which will never translate into good economy. The bigger picture says to me the car you have fits the bill and you could end up spending far more in repair bills on its replacement than you do in extra fuel on the current car. Fwiw the R type diesel in the Hyundai is not the most economical of its type but is chain cam and seems to be reliable. I've just sold my 80K mile IX35 manual which gave 35mpg. We get the same from our larger and heavier Sorento which has the 2.2 version of this engine and auto gearbox.

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