Newer car advice

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Wed 3 May 2023 21:59
Newer car advice - Crickleymal

At present I'm driving a mk 1 Kia Sorrento 2006 vintage but it's getting too long in the tooth, and the rust us starting to win. So in a month or so I'm thinking of getting a newer car. It's got to be petrol as I mainly do short journeys, have a large load area as sometimes I carry a big rotovator or camping equipment and my budget is about £6k to 7k

Choices so far

Mazda 5. This is favourite but trying to find one that's newer than 2009 within a reasonable distance from Gloucester is very difficult.

Renault Kangoo 1.6. Again trying to find one that isn't wheelchair accessible near to Gloucester is difficult. They're all automatic which I hope is torque converter and not very economical. www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304286773216

Vauxhall Zafira Tourer. Loads around but how reliable are they?

Fiat Doblo 94hp not the 77hp version as the low power one is glacially slow. Again finding a non wheelchair accessible version is very difficult.

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Wed 3 May 2023 23:33
Newer car advice - SLO76
Realise you favour petrol, and I wouldn’t normally recommend a diesel at this money. However, there’s a low mileage, one owner Zafira with the well liked and highly durable Isuzu 1.7 diesel motor within range and budget. Petrol examples are robust if looked after but the 1.6 petrol is slow, the 1.7 Isuzu turbo diesel is the one to have.

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/145031536603?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&m...Y
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Wed 3 May 2023 23:55
Newer car advice - Crickleymal

Thanks but I sometimes have to go into Bristol and Birmingham where there are clean air zones. Besides I thought diesel wasn't recommended if most of your journeys are 3 miles or less.

www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202303195402313

Performance is better than the car I've got now

Edited by Crickleymal on 04/05/2023 at 00:04

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Thu 4 May 2023 00:52
Newer car advice - SLO76
“ Thanks but I sometimehave to go into Bristol and Birmingham where there are clean air zones. Besides I thought diesel wasn't recommended if most of your journeys are 3 miles or less.”


Fair reason. Yes, it’s not wise to run a DPF equipped diesel on short runs unless you do a regular longer run to allow it to regen. The only reason I flagged it is that this particular engine is a good one, one of very few modern diesels I’d recommend. That said, you’re probably better off with petrol.

The Zafira you’ve linked has a terrible advert, it mentions nothing about the cars history, condition or number of owners, it’s just a spec list. You’d need to call to see if it’s even worth viewing. The 1.8 petrol is a bit greedy and lacks low speed pull, but you definitely don’t want a diesel in the later model like this as they’re all Fiat designs and prone to loads of issues.
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Thu 4 May 2023 02:13
Newer car advice - Crickleymal
“ Thanks but I sometimehave to go into Bristol and Birmingham where there are clean air zones. Besides I thought diesel wasn't recommended if most of your journeys are 3 miles or less.” Fair reason. Yes, it’s not wise to run a DPF equipped diesel on short runs unless you do a regular longer run to allow it to regen. The only reason I flagged it is that this particular engine is a good one, one of very few modern diesels I’d recommend. That said, you’re probably better off with petrol. The Zafira you’ve linked has a terrible advert, it mentions nothing about the cars history, condition or number of owners, it’s just a spec list. You’d need to call to see if it’s even worth viewing. The 1.8 petrol is a bit greedy and lacks low speed pull, but you definitely don’t want a diesel in the later model like this as they’re all Fiat designs and prone to loads of issues.

Fair enough. I just used it as an example.

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Thu 4 May 2023 13:17
Newer car advice - corax

Would you be able to get the rotovator into a Toyota Verso. 1.8 petrol as reliable as they come.

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Thu 4 May 2023 14:35
Newer car advice - Crickleymal

Would you be able to get the rotovator into a Toyota Verso. 1.8 petrol as reliable as they come.

I have no idea. I'd have to take a tape measure to one. I need at least 1.7 metres clear from the inside of the tailgate.

Edit after a bit of googling

Theoretically yes. But the only one near me on auto trader is a taxi that's done 185k. Obviously a reliable car but I'd like a lower mileage.

Edited by Crickleymal on 04/05/2023 at 14:42

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Thu 4 May 2023 14:36
Newer car advice - Adampr

Have you considered a Chevrolet Orlando? Basically a 1.8 NA zafira tourer underneath.

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Thu 4 May 2023 21:11
Newer car advice - Crickleymal

Have you considered a Chevrolet Orlando? Basically a 1.8 NA zafira tourer underneath.

No I haven't, I'll add it to the list.

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Thu 4 May 2023 21:29
Newer car advice - Crickleymal

I can only find one on autotrader which is Milton Keynes which is slightly further from Gloucester than I really want. It's an automatic and I suspect it's not a TC auto

www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304196444667

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Thu 4 May 2023 22:36
Newer car advice - Adampr

I can only find one on autotrader which is Milton Keynes which is slightly further from Gloucester than I really want. It's an automatic and I suspect it's not a TC auto

www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304196444667

It's a GM in-house TC auto. Wasn't sure if you wanted manual or auto. I think petrol Zafiras are only manual, but you can get auto with an Orlando. Either way, I don't have Chevrolet shares or anything, so was just trying to make your net a bit wider.

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Fri 5 May 2023 10:57
Newer car advice - Crickleymal

Thanks. Good to know

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Fri 5 May 2023 11:30
Newer car advice - Ian_SW

This is a bit of a tricky search. Effectively what you're looking for is a budget petrol van (albeit with some extra seats), at the same time as many others are looking to do the same thing. These are the kind of vehicle your one man band local painter & decorator, sparky, plumber, gardener etc are all after now. Their previously preferred option of an ageing diesel van has been priced out by ULEZ in many cities.

Would carrying the rotivator on a small trailer instead of inside the vehicle be an option? Obviously this wold depend on whether you've got anywhere to store it. If so it would open up much wider range of possible options of standard cars (Focus, Astra etc) where there would be a much better choice, and you're likely to get something much better condition for the money, even if you have to budget a few hundred for a towbar and trailer.

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Fri 5 May 2023 13:31
Newer car advice - Crickleymal

Nowhere to store the trailer I'm afraid. Plus the need to have space for family camping gear.

Edited by Crickleymal on 05/05/2023 at 15:24

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