A new job starts soon and I need to sell my beloved MX5 and get something with a bit of boot space. Bearing in mind I'm a victim of driving pleasure addiction I don't want a diesel.
The 3 cars I've shortlisted right now in the £2000-£2500 bracket are:
Mondeo 1.8/2.0. I can pick up a 4 year old Mondeo at auction for this. Nothing else comes close for ease of availability and age. I've never actually wanted one though.
Primera. Don't know so much about these. There's a 4 year old Primera 3 on Autotrader for £2300. Is this a typical price? Are they all Rear Wheel Drive? Anyone owned one? I'd prefer this to a Mondeo, strangely, because I think they're dog ugly.
Mazda Xedos 6. I love Mazdas big and small. Gonna be thirsty, and older than the above. Am I going to end up hating it?
Any help or other suggestions (except for diesels or French cars) greatfully received. I'll be doing about 350-400 miles each week. The car must be reliable.
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The Nissan Primera will be a pretty good bet for reliabilty. £2,300 sounds like a good price.
Primeras are all front wheel drive.
The Xedos 6 would be an interesting choice. The V6 engine is a peach but would start to get expensive if anything went wrong.
For that sort of money look at the auctions for end-of-lease sales where the cars have higher than average mileages but usually have a good service history.
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Maz - I agree that Mazda make great reliable motors, but reckon you ought to drive a Xedos before buying one - the steering is very light with no feedback and the V6 has very little low end torque. I reckon a better bet for you would be a 2.0 litre Sport version of the 626 if you can find one.
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Thanks Stackman. The one I looked at on Autotrader looks too cheap. Anyhow, the main appeal was Japanese with RWD. If it's not RWD, I'd sooner buy a Carina.
Dude, great advice. I'm sat in my lounge imagining it handling and steering like a big ol' MX5. I don't mind revving the engine for a bit of go. Why is the 626 a better bet?
What will fill the MX5 shaped hole in my heart?
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Get a luggage rack and keep the MX-5!
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Sadly there are very few RWD cars in this size, mainly BMW's and mercedes which at this budget level will only put you into a shed.
The Primera is generally recognised as being one of the best handling cars with a more enthusiastic feel than the usual Vectra Passat Mondeo class.
The Xedos and 626 are also front drive and won't offer the involvement of a Primera.
Finally don't write off the Mondeo either. They may be ten a penny common but do handle quite tidily.
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Maz. - If your heart has fallen for the Xedos then go for it. Lets face it they are superbly styled and the shape still looks modern today.
If you don`t mind revving the motor through the gears (because of the lack of low end torque) then you will have to sacrifice some fuel economy, - the extent of mpg will depend on your locality and the number of steep hills.
When I mentioned the steering on the Xedos was over assisted with little feed back, I was comparing it back to back with a 3 Series BMW which handled superbly.
It seems the main thing to ensure is that cam belts are changed on time and more particularly cam belt tensioners, and hopefully you should enjoy many years of trouble free motoring.
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