I can't decide between the Astra Twintop 1.9 CDTi and the Megane dCi 150. The difference in the cost to change is less than £30 at the moment, so I'd welcome some feedback on owner and driver experience with the two cars.
As I see it:
Twintop: better looking, slightly larger boot with top down, clever boot access with top down, slightly less road and wind noise and a bit more headroom in driver's seat. I've had Vauxhalls for ages and very happy with the local dealer.
Megane CC: better quoted fuel economy and CO2 emissions, £60 less to insure, better spec (cruise, parrot bluetooth) but no remote top closure, no reall access to boot with top down and really naff chrome front pillars. Slightly wider inside, but seems to have a slightly higher rear sill so visibility not quite as good as the Twintop. I used to have Renaults a long time ago and remember spongy gearboxes, prone to electric faults and expensive servicing.
It's really too close to call and SWMBO is being no help at all!
Any suggestions?
Thanks
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 26/10/2007 at 11:26
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what about future value.
i would have thought astra would keep more of its value. sorry cant help on driving experience though.
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From you own comments: -
Astra is far more convenient, larger boot, easier access, less noise more headroom and happy with local dealer. Vauxhall not everyones cup of tea but no nightmares I recall.
Megane - frequently dodgy electrics, economy of less concern than depreciation, no access to boot when roof down, visibility not so good. Parrot Bluetooth is £150 to fit plus VAT max as an aftermarket. How often do you use cruise control? I Have it and like to use it, but rarely do.
Seems to me you want the Astra.
Have you driven either of them for more than three miles?
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I'd also try and find out if there are any owners club sites to look for problems with the roof. Fixing a leaking roof on one of these things can be a nightmare (as friends with an Eos are finding out). It gets fixed and is OK for a while, but once the car is driven the seals shift and it starts leaking again.
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Thanks, some interesting thoughts. Heard about roof problems with early Meganes, but I guess the Twintop hasn't been round long enough for these to materialise in significant numbers (if at all). Looking at sample PCP estimates from our company car management service, the Twintop has a residual value about £700 greater than the Megane after 3 years/60,000 miles.
I feel at home in the VX cabin so I am leaning that way but I've heard good things about the new dCi 150 engine.
I took them both for a ~20 mile test drive including country lanes, M56 and town driving. The Renault seemed to have a slightly harder ride, but could be becasue it had slightly lower profile tyres.
Looks like a call to the VX dealer to see if I can squeeze a bit extra out of him!
Thanks for the help.
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>>Looks like a call to the VX dealer to see if I can squeeze a bit extra out of him!
You might want to try to squeeze cruise control out of if it's a feature you would like, and would make the difference between the nice Vauxhall and the nasty Renault.
I suspect that all that is needed is a new indicator stalk with the cruise switches in the end, a clutch pedal switch, and the cruise control setting in the engine ECU switching on - i.e., it isn't an expensive or costly thing to implement, because most of the wiring and functionality is already there.
Number_Cruncher
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I have had various Renault diesel engines and have never been able to get anywhere near the quoted fuel consumption so I wouldn't let the perceived better economy sway you!
--
2007 Seat Altea XL 2.0 TDI (140) Stylance
2005 Skoda Fabia vrS
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Yep, the VX dealer offered to fit cruise control at no extra cost so that swung the order his way. As far as fuel economy goes, I've found the Vectra delivers pretty close to the stated combined cycle mpg and over the 60k or so miles I've had it, the CO2 figure has averaged almost bang on the stated 159 g/km.
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