£6k to blow on a car - 700 miles a week use

It's not unfair- legrandfromage is an intelligent chap and capable of making up his own mind.

Several people have suggest vw group cars. Why is it unfair for me to mention the truth about the companies behaviour? Why is it fair only for you to have your say and not me?

Lgf May have a social conscience, he may not - that's his business and I won't bemoan him either way. However If if does have one he is now aware of information of which he was likely unaware, of which most VW proponents are themselves unaware, and he can now make a more informed choice about that companies products. What's so unfair about that? How is it inappropriate for you to be able to profess an opinion but not me.

No my opinion as someone who owns a small spannering business and has to mend these cars for people when they break - in terms of reliability or longevity these not a lot to choose engine wise between the bulk of them, though there are some tragic examples out there. If you do buy a VW Group car from the last 6 to 8 gears be certain it has had new brake fluid every 2 years as they are extremely prone to ABS problems, and it costs over a grand to put right with even refurbished parts.

PSA diesels are strong, but genuine parts are surprisingly expensive, though if you know what you're looking you can buy decent pattern kit.

Try and avoid anything with a DPF. Avoiding DMF May be harder - unless you go for a torque converter auto - but could be possible as your budget will have you looking toward older motors.

But i think the best tip is to have it professionally inspected unless you really know what you're looking at. People bulk a paying £100 for an engineers report, but seem to then moan even louder when the remains are towed to the like of myself to mull over.

Good luck.

I think you made your point and of course you're entitled to it. I just think as an intelligent chap Lgf is likely to be aware of history and make his own choices about the moral value of his purchases. It strikes me that though that his question was more concerned with the relative merits of the cars as products, not which brands he can buy without offending other forum users.

I'm glad that you seem able to read mind and think you can tell other members what they can and can't say.

I'm City and Guilds qualified on the spanner and have been running my own business part time for nearly a quarter a century. If lgf has any particular model in mind I'd be happy to regale him of my experiences of the model(if any) from a mending them when bits drop off perspective, instead of a faintly sycophantic "buy brand X because it's got some of the same parts as a Rolls Royce" spiel.

I think of greater importance is how it's been driven, cared for an maintained. In the last few months I've had on the ramp a 406 HDi with over 300k which was a marvel, it looks beautiful and ticked like a Swiss watch. The new wiper linkage I fitted was the first non-service part it'd ever had fitted. Last week I had a Qashqai in, only 29k miles. It was leaking from the timing chest but Nissan warranty wouldnt touch it as it had never been serviced. It leaked, rattled, the tyres were shagged and the front suspension creaked. It's clearly never been cared for and thrashed mercilessly across the local speed humps.

I'd sooner have a mint Vauxhall than a knackered Mercedes. By the time they've devalued to £6k or less the badge on the boot is of far, far less importance than the cars lifestyle up to that point.

carry on boys!!

no fords then...they collaberated with the evil and spawned the galaxy....and the ford gul in south america. ford also jumped into bed with mazda, so they're out. oh, and jaguar, oh, and........
lgf, get a bike!!! ha ha!

So you don't buy or use any German goods Chopstix? Perhaps you should resign from the force after all, they seem to drive an awful lot of Beemers!

Had it not been for the production of VWs in those factories more of those people may have been sent to camps where they may have perished.

VW could well have saved lives.

Love the cars they made after WW2, had quite a few of them.

I see no conflict in owning a car made in post war Germany. The German people were victims of Nazi rule as well.

Whatever way you cut the crumble, 6k buys you a lot of car these days. Should be able to acquire a practical and economic car that will swallow that mileage for two or three years and still have some value to sell on. Recent Skodas and SEATs would certainly be on my list, along with Fords, BMWs, Honda and Mercs.

tumble weed..............................




i was enjoying that!

You misunderstand Mr Flyer. I have no issue with cars simply because of their country of manufacture, and never intimated to that effect. In any case, about half of VW s themselves and the majority of VW Group cars aren't made in Germany.

blimey, LGF's intelligence and antisemitism...

VAG engines are built in Poland if that helps.

I dont care about depreciation. I want something that wont go into limp mode just because it needs MAF censor no.6 for that years motoring.

Just to stoke it a bit, SEAT and VW cars are from parallel universes - they may share stuff but they are not assembled the same or share the same quality of materials.

mk2 escort running zetec engine