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Skoda Fabia VRS 130 diesel? Hear these things go extremely quick and return over 50 mpg.
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Skoda Fabia VRS 130 diesel? Hear these things go extremely quick and return over 50 mpg.
And even better if the chip shop man visits! Why everybody doesn't do it is beyond me.
vbr.....................................md
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BMW 330d? Won't hit you're mileage and warranty preferences at that price though.
Bradgate says he doesn't want anything bigger than a Golf - a 3 series is one class above.
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>> BMW 330d? Won't hit you're mileage and warranty preferences at that >> price though. Bradgate says he doesn't want anything bigger than a Golf - a 3 series is one class above.
I was in a similar situation with my Impreza STi and thought a Golf TDi 130/150 would suffice. Unfortunately, as a driving experience, almost everything is well below the standards of the Subaru! Yes, the latest TDIs are nippy and frugal but the handling often falls short. I would definitely only look at 'sportier' TDi variants otherwise it'll be a compromise too far.
The Fabia VRS is a great little car but the engine is noisy and doesn't have sporty sound, it's a little soft handling-wise, and a touch nose-heavy - all these criticisms are from an Impreza owner's point of view by the way :-)
I went for a 330D Tourer and am absolutely delighted with it. Fantastic build quality, lots of goodies and safety kit, a very involving drive, great engine noise and 40-48mpg!
I agree though, something smaller and cheaper may be preferred, but sometimes the best value is indeed the next size up.
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Thanks for the replies,
Rumfitt - my Scooby is the standard turbo, so a TDI 150 would be slightly less of a step down for me than from an STI, but thanks for the advice.
A 330d does sound extremely tempting. I would have to either stretch the budget or compromise on mileage , or both but it is definitely worth researching.
If anyone else has experience of owning / driving a Leon or Golf TDI 130/150 I would value your views.
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I have a chipped 115bhp golf TDi fore runner to the 130 (140ish bhp) goes very well, but needs a good suspension kit to handle as they should.
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I did the same recently, sold my Impreza turbo and went out looking for a replacement, narrowed it down to Golf 130/150 and BMW 320d/330d (is there a pattern emerging here?!)
I went to a few fleet car auctions where Golf 130s were in reative abundance but came back with an immaculate BMW 320d SE saloon which I am delighted with, I drove a couple of Golfs but the BMW is so much nicer to drive. I paid £9100 for a 43k 02 reg silver one, but as has been said I doubt if you would get one in manufacturers warranty in your budget, especially for a 330d which fetch £1.5 to £2k more than a 320d. However a Warranty Direct warranty is below £300 so you can get reasonable cover.
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Bit dearer than your budget, but brand new........ drove the new Honda Civic 2.2 diesel turbo......... went well, handled well and i was more impressed with it than i'd ever imagined. Even the quirky styling started to appeal after a while.
About £14200 or £14300 at one of the discount places, if you could stretch a bit.
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There is allegedly a Renault Sport Megane 175 dCi on its way. This is the new 2.0 Nissan/Renault engine with chain driven cams.
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