SWMBO has a Golf Mk3 which we are relatively happy with although i have a feeling that it might cause us grief in the near future. She mentioned that with having to lug 2 kids around it might be nice to have a car with a bigger boot whilst not being too big a car in the first place.
Are there any 5 dr hatch backs that might be better suited. I was thinking along the lines of perhaps a Saab 900/9-3 but this is almost too big (i think that she want's a smallish car to be able to park it in the limited spaces available)
Do any BR's have any advice on what might be a good car (Golf Estate, Astra Estate??)
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I think you will find that the golf has a miniscule boot compared to most other cars of this size. I've just borrowed my mums Seat Leon and the boot is a pretty good size compared to a Golf.
Probably best to zip round some showrooms and have a good look and then decide.
My wife manages to get our two around with her Focus quite happily.
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If you can persuade her into an Octavia, that would be a good solution.
It is about the same size as a Golf (a little longer), feels very Golf like and shares a platform with the Mk IV Golf. It can also be had second hand very reasonably, or new for about £9.5k with three years' interest free (40% deposit).
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Go to a car supermarket and have a look at a load of cars all in the same place.
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Have you thought about keeping the golf and getting a decent top box?
H
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CM - how old are the kids? are you still transporting buggies, nappy sacks and the like? or is it mainly cos the shopping has to fit in the boot when the rear seats are occupied?
Just wondering as it would affect my choice
"Appearances can be Deceptive"
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Kids are both under 2 and it is the buggies that take up the whold boot by themselves. I had thought of a top box but not 100% practical.
I talked it throught with the boss and decided that it is all too expensive to change (unless the Golf starts falling to pieces).
Thanks for all suggestions.
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A few weeks back I posted that my wife was wanting a bigger boot than what she has on her Golf. Having thought that she wanted to stick to a hatch back, she told me that she saw a car that she wanted and it had 3 rings on the front!! I presumed it was an Audi (complete with 4 rings) and eventually she pointed out that she liked the look of an A4 Avant. Now this is quite pricy especially as if I P/X'ed the GOlf I am not sure that I would get very much for it - possibly £2.5-3.5k if that.
I don't mind spending, say, another £3K on top so does anyone have any ideas? The A4 seems to be out of the price bracket as does an BMW E36 (unless you know otherwise).
Not so keen on French (sorry to those francophiles out there) so German or Japanese. I mentioned a Skoda but the old badge thing came up. Perhaps I should take her to see one anyway.
I think that the only thing needed in the car is A/C and that it is not too big.
Also, where is the best place to pick up a car like this? A main dealer would offer some peace of mind thru a warranty but give worse PX values and a higher purchase price. Any advice would be warmly received.
C
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If she likes the Audi A4 Avant, but it's too pricey how about a late Audi 80 Avant? Very solid.
Stu.
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I looked at an N reg (1996) audi estate with about 80k for just over 5k (retail) and it had the 2.6 v6 engine.
Auctionview has these listed
AUDI A4 AVANT 1.8 SE Estate, 5 Doors, Manual Transmission, Petrol. 00W
Avg: £6488
91K
3+
New: £20857
Ret: £7850
Cln: £6475
Avg: £5800
Blw: £5175
BCA has this one for sale
Registration W886TPW
Registered 18-07-2000
Colour BLUE
Mileage 86,327
Equipment ABS Alarm Alloy Wheels Climate Control CD Autochanger Drivers Airbag Electric Windows Passenger Airbag Power Assisted Steering Stereo
Location Measham
Price should be somewhere around 6.5k
You could pick up a P reg with 120k for about 3k
or
AUDI A4 AVANT 2.8 Estate, GREEN, 5 Doors, Manual Transmission, Petrol, 50652 Miles, Marginal.
P655WGN Registered 21-05-1997
Tewkesbury 20-08-2003
AV005
New: £25524
Ret: £7095
Cln: £5500
Avg: £4950
Blw: £4450
You can get a nice one for your budget, you'll just have to look
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Thanks J,
I am VERY lazy and would want to PX the Golf at the same time so am not sure if your suggestions would accept this (but at least I have a guide to prices).
C
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I think that I have narrowed things down to a Volvo V40 - I have looked at HJs breakdown and couldn't decide whether this was a good motor to go for or not.
Anyway, I have been offered one by a dealer with FSH, 1 year warranty, 12 month road fund. V40 1.8XS which I believe is quite high in spec (and does have aircon). The price is £6k, with £3k PX on the battered Golf Mk3 1.6cl 5-dr electric roof+windows.
V40 has 78k on a '00-W (a little higher than I really want)
Golf has 35k
Is this a reasonable price or should I be able to do better?
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Subaru Impreza estate - loads on Autotrader at well below and well above your price bracket. Always do well on reliability surveys but some criticise the interior
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Toyota Avensis estate - same size as Audi A4 but much cheaper to buy and run. Will do all you want and should offer rock steady reliabilty a/c etc.
MB
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