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What used family car? Too much choice is a curse.. - BRADYB

I live in North London, and my current VW Golf 1.6 TDI will soon fall foul of the extended ULEZ. As I cross the north circular regularly, this means it's time for change. However, I’m totally confused as to what to buy.

My situation;

· Family man with a 5yr and 3 yr old, and no plans to grow family - buggies are on their way out thankfully, but will continue to have kids clobber to ferry around for many yrs to come.

· Low-mid mileage driver (10-12K per yr) – not used for daily business commute, but used regularly for around town driving, weekend getaways and family holidays.

Must-have’s / preferences

· Gearbox – Must be automatic

· Practicality - Decent passenger and boot space to cope with demands of family-life, and clobber for family holidays.

· Low running costs - Reasonable fuel economy, insurance, road tax and service/maintenance costs i.e. we can rule out the supercars!

· Body type - Five door hatchback/saloon/estate as I’m not convinced by SUV’s in terms of cost, space or ride quality, and not keen on MPVs.

· Safety - Five star EURO NCAP

· Style – This will be used for both family as well as business occasionally, so something that looks good (even sporty) is important i.e. not a Citroen Berlingo!

· Longevity – I’d like to make the next car the one we drive for the next 8-10yrs as I’m not a fan of changing and switching regularly. However, concerns of whether this is wise/possible (concerns/worries below)

Budget

· MAX £20K, but hoping I could spend a lot less to get what I need!

· I’m hoping to part exchange/sell my VW Golf TDI 1.6 (61 Reg), so hoping this will give me 3-4K towards cost)

Worries/concerns

· Do I buy used – always felt if you have the budget this offers the better deal, however big concerns over spending too much on Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles, with regulations changing as well as emergence for electric and hybrid

· Do I got for a PCP/HP to future proof myself – i.e. an ICE vehicle for the next 3yrs, before switching to electric/hybrid once new models emerge, price lowers and better infrastructure in place for long journeys home and abroad.

· Do I buy nearly new (2-3yrs old) which will be more future proofed, or go for something older/cheaper (i.e. 5-6yrs old) and save money for a change in 4-5 yrs time.

· Fuel type – If going for ICE, I’m minded to go for Petrol versus Diesel, as they offer decent MPG and aren’t being overly targeted currently in terms of regulations (i.e. ULEZ). If I go Diesel, fear the future is now looking bright and I'm likely to be in the same situation I’m in now, in another 4-5yrs?

Current cars I'm considering (all 2-3 yrs old);

· USED Skoda Superb TSI 1.5 or 2.0 (S E L Executive or Sport line) –

o Pro: Passenger and boot space enormous, good standard kit, like the Sportline look;

o Con; Rare to find 1.5 Sportline used, top of budget for nearly new model, will I be mistaken for a taxi driver!

· USED Audi A4 Avant TFSI 1.4 or 2.0 (S Line)

o Pro: refined, well built and good looking vehicles, budget friendly due to popularity

o Con; Boot space could be better – will this cope with demands of family-life

· VW Passat Estate 1.5 TSI (SE Business or GT)

o Pro - Passenger and boot space generous

o Con – Questionable reliability

· Mazda 6 Tourer

o Pro – Good looking, and decent passenger and boot space

o Con – Rare to find used

· BMW 3 Series touring

o Pro – Ride quality and driving experience, and ticks the snob box

o Con – Lowest boot space so question practicality

What used family car? Too much choice is a curse.. - grumpyscot

My experiences -

Skoda - terrific

Honda - same

BMW - troublesome

Volvo - even more troublesome

Mazda - great

Audi - not easy to find one that's not been thrashed

From your choice - Skoda every time/

What used family car? Too much choice is a curse.. - Metropolis.
Right at the top end of your budget, actually a bit over but it will meet all your criteria and last longer than anything else you look at. Economical, too.

Toyota Camry, www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20200818263...1
What used family car? Too much choice is a curse.. - Heidfirst

I would also add to the list of options to consider a 2017/18 Toyota Avensis Tourer 1.8 CVT (HJ's favourite version of the Avensis was the 1.8 CVT) in whatever trim you want/can find. Tbh there probably won't be much choice as people "in the know" snap petrol Avensis up fast when they are available.

Spacious, reliable, cheap to run, long warranty. I think that they are attractive but they aren't a sporting drive.

www.autotrader.co.uk/car-search?postcode=n8%207jn&...1

Edited by Heidfirst on 28/10/2020 at 14:09

What used family car? Too much choice is a curse.. - Engineer Andy

Might I suggest also considering a KIA Ceed estate. Their DCT 'auto' is seemingly far more reliable than those from Ford and VAG and the current version looks good. best to go for the 1.4GDI-T.

You also get the benefit of (depending upon what deal you can get for the age of car) a much longer warranty via their 7year/100k mile one.

The latest gen Corolla Estate is the best in its range as well, though trying to get the (best) 2.0 version might be tough for your budget. Nice riding, apparently.

Always stick to sensible profile tyres - better ride quality, less wear on the tyres and suspension and cheaper to replace both.

Forget about the snob factor. At the moment, value for money is far more important.

What used family car? Too much choice is a curse.. - John F

Too much choice is a curse..

It was indeed a blessing to be in East Germany. A Trabant....reddish or blueish?

What used family car? Too much choice is a curse.. - daveyjp

Prius+ 7 seater. All those London taxi drivers can't be wrong,

What used family car? Too much choice is a curse.. - Manatee

Your usage pattern is unsuitable for diesel. Perhaps there are cars that would cope with it but it could be hard on a DPF.

If you contemplate owning it until it is 10 years old or more, then start with something known to be reliable, as far as one can know.

I'm wary of very complex engines and gearboxes for the long haul. That said we have a 2014 Roomster, from new, with a 1.2TSI engine (the one with the 'toothed [timing] chain') and a DQ200 (dry clutch, 7 speed) DSG gearbox. It's been OK but it has only done 25,000 miles in 6 years. I'm not sanguine about its prospects of reaching the same age in our ownership as its predecessor, a Honda Civic 1.6 auto, which had no turbo or supercharger and an old school epicyclic auto with torque converter. That car is still on the road 18 years later.

You could try to narrow your choice by looking for cars without turbos and with TC auto boxes. You might find there then isn't a wide choice at all!