I have found the latest A3 suspension to be firm, I have found the latest Octavia to be poor when it comes to noise insulation.

Haven't had tje latest golf or Leon as a hire car yet I did have a Seat Toledo 1.6 diesel recently which was highly specced and faster than expected, was a good car.

Here's my thoughts.

Had a 2008 BMW 118D for 5 1/2 happy years. We bought it to replace 2 cars, a Mini Cooper S and a Micra 1.2. Cars on the short list at the time were the BMW, Honda Civic, Golf and Leon.

Honda Civic won on space but the ride was really terrible and the engine and car noisy.

Golf rode OK but the interior was poor.

Leon rode really badly and the interior was even worse than the Golf.

BMW had a nice interior, enough space, the best engine and with 205/50 17 tyres the ride was perfectly acceptable.

Can I ask what tyres are on yours?

After a couple of years I fitted winter tyres to the BMW, they were 205/55 16 non run flats. They improved the ride considerably.

Early 2013 the BMW was getting ready for new tyres to replace the OEM run flats. Went on e-bay and won a really nice set of genuine BMW 1 series 16" alloys complete with 2 nearly new tyres, one good but repaired tyres and one total scrap tyre for £65. Intended to but one new Vredestein and one new Uniroyal to match the 2 nearly new tyres and have matching tyres on each axle. Never did it, sold the car and later in the year sold the wheels/tyres on e-bay, made a nice profit on those.

So for a lot less money than swapping cars if your car has big wheels I suggest you consider getting a set of "normal" sized wheels and fit them with non-run flats. Aviva, my insureres, were happy for me to do that providing I fitted them in matched sets of 4, no extra cost.

For your info I replaced the BMW with a 1.4 TSI Leon but its the new 2013 model. The ride on that car is excellent as is the interior quality, Seat have made a huge step forward.

Edited by skidpan on 25/01/2015 at 08:39

I've had the use of a Mk5 2.0TDI Golf for a while and was impressed. Hard to argue with your choice given your prioritites. The Golf is a very civilised and comfortable car to be in, the 1.4TSi offer performance with economy and smooth running. A Focus used to be the drivers choice over the Golf but the MK5 and Mk6s are on a par or almost.

The 1.4TSI VW/Seat/A3 Engines don't have a very good repuatation for lasting, some failed at 40,000 miles. I would look at other engines sizes

That was the previous generation wasn't it? Something to do with the timing chain i believe.

The new ones must be belt driven as VAG dont seem to be able to make/buy a chain that lasts. It's been a problem for them on a few engines

I agree, car history is the most important factor.

It is well publicised when a VAG car has a problem due to their volume, but as one of the most profitable car manufacturers they should spend a few more £'s and increase the robustness of the chains.

Comfort is inevitably subjective, so you need to look at as many options as you have time for. It might be an idea to go to a car supermarket where there will be lots of different models to sit in.

A Golf, A3 or Leon (or Octavia which is slightly bigger) will probably tick most of your boxes - just avoid the twin-charged engines which are anyway quite rare. But don't dismiss the Ford Focus: there are plenty to choose from in all price ranges; you'll get a newer one for your £7,000; and you may well find it comfortable. The 1.8 and 2.0 petrol engines are livelier than the 1.6 with very little loss in economy.