BMW X! - Alternative to our BMW X1

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Sun 1 Oct 2023 18:47
BMW X! - Alternative to our BMW X1 - AndrewAUK99

Hi All

We have a 2013 X1 Xdrive which is shared between the family. We bought it about 6 months ago. Its the 2.0 20D version 2013. It only has 80k miles on it and all of that is BMW services

Its been reliable so far but due to financial circumstances we are looking to sell it and get a slightly cheaper car. We think its worth between £7500 and £8000 so ideally want to get a car between £5000 and £6000

My daughter likes being high up and we all like automatics

Any ideas which of these on our list ( obviously if we choose on history and condition ) would we be a 'wise' alternative for something reliable and not costly to fix ( which I think the BMW is if anything went wrong ) We would probably only do about 6-8k miles a year.

Thanks

Kira Sportage 2010-16

Hyundai IX35 2010-15

Ford Kuga 2008-12

Volvo XC90 2002-14

Toyota RAV4 2006-12

Honda CRV 2007-12

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Sun 1 Oct 2023 19:24
BMW X! - Alternative to our BMW X1 - badbusdriver

There will be no guarantees at this age and money, just varying degrees of likely reliability (assuming a car which has been looked after and hasn't suffered from accident damage*)

Assuming petrol engine to go with the auto, I'd remove the Kuga as I think (not sure though) it would have the Powershift DCT.

If you want diesel, i'm not sure I'd recommend anything with the low miles you do. Too much potential for expensive failure.

But TBH, much as I am no fan of the X1 (and it certainly does not have a reputation for good reliability) it seems unwise to change from a known quantity to an unknown quantity for the sake of £1.5-2k?

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Sun 1 Oct 2023 19:33
BMW X! - Alternative to our BMW X1 - Adampr

I wouldn't bother with the Volvo either. Also going to be expensive to run. Otherwise,.it.loos like a decent list.

You could probably go smaller and look at a Hyundai ix20 / Kia Venga.

Edited by Adampr on 01/10/2023 at 23:45

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Sun 1 Oct 2023 22:02
BMW X! - Alternative to our BMW X1 - AndrewAUK99

Thx for your comment. I can't say anymore re the money that £2k would make a big difference

..and although the X1 is a known quantity I'm really worried about the potential huge bills, even my local BMW specialist said they are known for timing chain issues

I would also agree about the diesel but certainly when I looked up the kia and hyundai diesel seed to be the only recommended engine

Auto is also important , not sure what the auto boxes are like on these cars

Just to add to the confusion...should I add the Skoda yeti to the list

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Mon 2 Oct 2023 08:10
BMW X! - Alternative to our BMW X1 - badbusdriver

I would also agree about the diesel but certainly when I looked up the kia and hyundai diesel seed to be the only recommended engine

There may be less risk with the Diesel engine used by the Korean pair, but that doesn't make them a safe bet. With your mileage nobody should be recommending a diesel engine made after around 2007/8. If you need the extra torque from a turbo diesel to tow something heavy, fair enough, but not worth the risk otherwise.

Just to add to the confusion...should I add the Skoda yeti to the list

No.

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Mon 2 Oct 2023 09:24
BMW X! - Alternative to our BMW X1 - AndrewAUK99

thx

Why a flat No for the yeti... I thought they were good cars ?

cheers

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Mon 2 Oct 2023 09:35
BMW X! - Alternative to our BMW X1 - skidpan

thx

Why a flat No for the yeti... I thought they were good cars ?

cheers

A Yeti of the age your budget will buy would probably have the potentially unreliable chain cam TSI in it (assuming you go sensible and buy a petrol) and the potentially unreliable DSG box. But not all have been unreliable, find a lowish mileage well looked after car and it may well be fine. Not seen many (if any) reports of here about DSG boxes on cars under about 10 years old in recent times and the same applies to chain cam TSI's.

Just accept that for £6000 you are buying into what a few years ago would be banger territory, one expensive failure could make the car uneconomic to repair and that applies to any brand.

Are you feeling lucky?

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Mon 2 Oct 2023 23:08
BMW X! - Alternative to our BMW X1 - johncyprus

If my son in law’s experience in typical you should get rid of the X1 PDQ. Last year his 13 reg x1 diesel with about 80k had a major engine failure requiring £2.5 worth of work. It was never the same again and he nursed it for eight months until his new Toyota Corolla was delivered. He’s an engineer incidentally and says the quality of the Toyota is vastly superior to the BMW.

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