New car for the wife.

[Tom24]

The missus might be changing jobs in the near future, she currently has a BMW 116d company car but their is a good chance the new job will not come with one. 

Any ideas on what I could get her?

Need something with a decent boot that we can fit a pushchair/our Beagle in, low running costs so cheap road tax and decent mpg, reliable, 5 doors, also something pretty stylish with decent spec such as leather, sat nav, parking sensors etc.

Budget will be around £8,000 - £12,000.

Ones I've shown her that she likes the look of are;

Lexus CT200h, Lexus RX400h, BMW X1, Alfa Giulietta, Alfa 159 estate, Saab 9-3 estate, Fabia/Octavia VRS estates, Nissan Juke, VW Tiguan. 

[Spacewagon52]

Out of the ones you have listed I would go for the RX400h but I am not sure that would be particularly economical. However it will keep the family in the Lexus stable.

[Mark G]

I was in a similar position and I went for the RX, great car, carries everything in comfort, did a few European trips in it, cant fault them.

[Jgtcracer]

I had a brera and the 159 estate is a lovely car.  Interior is beautiful and they're cheap to buy.  Engines are ok also.  

Dont discount it just because it's an Alfa, they're really not as bad as people think anymore.

[rayaans]

The Alfa Guilietta is a money pit and its genuinely a car that you buy for the looks and nothing else - speaking from experience! It doesn't do anything well at all apart from looking good on the drive.

Cross the Nissan Juke off the list - if I stop one person from buying one, I'll be content - I get all Richard Hammond when I see them.

How about a MINI Clubman? Take the run flats off and its quite good.

 

 

[Flytvr]

What about something like this.

[Tom24]

46 minutes ago, Jgtcracer said:

I had a brera and the 159 estate is a lovely car.  Interior is beautiful and they're cheap to buy.  Engines are ok also.  

Dont discount it just because it's an Alfa, they're really not as bad as people think anymore.

I'm a big Alfa fan and the 159 Sportswagon is a gorgeous car, my previous car was a Giulietta QV....if I could find a low mileage Ti spec 2.4 JDTM I would definitely consider it. 

[Tom24]

34 minutes ago, rayaans said:

The Alfa Guilietta is a money pit and its genuinely a car that you buy for the looks and nothing else - speaking from experience! It doesn't do anything well at all apart from looking good on the drive.

Cross the Nissan Juke off the list - if I stop one person from buying one, I'll be content - I get all Richard Hammond when I see them.

How about a MINI Clubman? Take the run flats off and its quite good.

 

 

My brothers missus has a clubman, I'm not that keen but I will see what she thinks. 

My previous car was a Giulietta QV Launch Edition, looked great and went well but it just wasn't that exciting to drive. Build quality on them isn't that great either.

If I was choosing I would stick with either of the 2 Lexus choices. 

[Tom24]

1 hour ago, Mark G said:

I was in a similar position and I went for the RX, great car, carries everything in comfort, did a few European trips in it, cant fault them.

What RX do you have? Year, engine etc?

[Tom24]

That Golf looks nice Flytvr....I'm inclined to push her in the direction of something bigger tho as the space would be handy.

 

[Big Rat]

With Mrs Rats road skills or lack there of I think this would be her best option 😳

Big Rat

[Tom24]

I also have the option of leasing a new car.....my work has a scheme through Lex Autolease where we can get anything below £40k and under a certain carbon emissions.

The payment will come off my wage before tax too so will save on it that way, although I believe my tax code will change. 

Everything is included such as insurance, tax, servicing and consumables...just have to put fuel in it. 

[Flytvr]

2 minutes ago, Tom24 said:

I also have the option of leasing a new car.....my work has a scheme through Lex Autolease where we can get anything below £40k and under a certain carbon emissions.

The payment will come off my wage before tax too so will save on it that way, although I believe my tax code will change. 

Everything is included such as insurance, tax, servicing and consumables...just have to put fuel in it. 

Does she do many miles? If not, leasing would be good then.

[Tom24]

About 8k a year. 

[Tom24]

She has had her offer through today and will be giving a months notice next week, so have 4 weeks to find her something.

I've been reading a lot of negative things about modern diesel engines regarding dpf's if you don't do a lot of long journeys to get them up to temp and allow them to regenerate, so am now looking at solely petrol or hybrid options.

Her work route is the same as mine and is a 30 mile round trip, mainly B roads with a few miles dual carriageway, so she will be doing 8-10k a year.

Am I right that a diesel isn't the best choice practically and financially if you don't use it in its intended way and cover lots of miles?

 

[Farqui]

Yes I agree that many derv's with DPF's are troublesome, though the 9th gen Civic doesn't seem prone to clogging/regen issues/etc. I believe Honda positioned the DPF nearer the engine and gets plenty of heat into it, whereas other manufacturer's appear to have simply bolted the DPF further down the zoorst to comply with reg's.

The outlook for derv car is unknown at the moment and for the miles your mrs will be covering, a petrol seems the most logic option.  But which one? 

[Tom24]

This is the current list;

Lexus IS250 convertible, RX400H or GS450H.

BMW 630i or 320i coupe/convertible, X1 2.0i.

Mercedes E350 coupe.

Audi A5 2.0 TFSI coupe/convertible or sportback. 

VW CC 2.0 TSI or 3.7V6, Eos 2.0 FSI.

Toyota GT86.

Jag XF 3.0 V6.

Jeep Compass 2.4 Limited.

Saab 9-3 Convertible 1.8T or 2.0T.

 

[Tom24]

Might look at this this weekend as it's only 9 miles away.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201702122243027?atmobcid=soc3

 

[Flytvr]

Nice! Loving the interior.

Let's hope the new GS-450 depreciates as quickly :)

[Big Rat]

30 minutes ago, Tom24 said:

This is the current list;

Lexus IS250 convertible, RX400H or GS450H.

BMW 630i or 320i coupe/convertible, X1 2.0i.

Mercedes E350 coupe.

Audi A5 2.0 TFSI coupe/convertible or sportback. 

VW CC 2.0 TSI or 3.7V6, Eos 2.0 FSI.

Toyota GT86.

Jag XF 3.0 V6.

Jeep Compass 2.4 Limited.

Saab 9-3 Convertible 1.8T or 2.0T.

 

That is quite a list Tom a real mix, the only one I've owned was Vw Passat cc 2.0TSI GT Manual petrol had it new in 2009, it got a lot of looks bit like a Cls Merc of that era, vast boot typical Fwd offerings. Also had the V6 version for a while they're alright for what they are only available as auto/dsg.

As a drivers car don't know if your good lady is into it to that extent the only one that would interest me is the GT86 they have an appeal for me, never driven one but they have a good reputation......... and there's one on the tube with an ISF V8 dropped in 🤣

The rest of them the 3 Lexus yes, the rest........................☹️

Big Rat

 

 

 

[Rusty Crobar]

Honestly, I would get a lexus from that list for the reliability and quiet commuting comfort. 

Gt86 would be great but probably a bit noisy for a daily driver.

[Tom24]

Yeah the 3 Lexus options interest me most.

I've tried to push her towards a CT200h but she prefers the others.

The SC430 could be another option as I'm toying with the idea of a cheap Saab estate or similar to run alongside mine.

[Tom24]

What did you think of the VW CC Big Rat?

[Big Rat]

12 minutes ago, Tom24 said:

What did you think of the VW CC Big Rat?

Tom it's a comfortable car spacious an absolutely massive boot, it has 3 Phase damping and great seats.

The engine is from the 2.0 Golf gti there is also a 1.8 petrol a couple of diesels and the V6

I enjoyed it reliable and fairly economical, you may struggle to find a V6 there aren't many about

A car that's worth consideration IMO for a main stream manufacturer they are a bit different.

Big Rat

[Spacewagon52]

RX is the still the best option for practicality - but you are thinking of getting an estate - so the GS450H would tempt me.