Moving back in with your folks has its advantages, basically we're after something big and comfortable as an occasional car shared between me and
my father (As we both have smallish cars because we both have to go places where a big car causes problems.
We had a Jag before for a while and liked it but he wants something different. Our current short list is Jaguar (XJ or S-type) Lexus GS or LS BMW 5 or
7 series and Rover 800. We both wanted a Cadillac but for some reason they're all in scotland. What is there to look out for on these cars and
are there any that should really be avoided? Anything you guys think is missing from the list, the only requirement is to beable to carry 4 people in
comfort, have an autobox and be reasonably quick.
Audi A8 nuff said
Saab 9-5 
quote:
Originally posted by Marcus
Audi A8 nuff said
I'm not worried about fuel economy. I'd not really considered an A8.
A8 is a beautiful car - i saw one on ebay with a fridge in the rear armrest!
I've never thought it much of a looker compared to a Jag but they look menacing in black. I like the idea of a fridge in the car.
XJs can be horrendously costly to maintain, loads of cheap petrol S Types and X types around but beware Jag parts aren't cheap and differ
from equivalent Ford bits. X types seem to suffer from rusty doors.
BMW and Saab are a safer bet with Saab a history of attention to oil regular changes is mega important.
With Lexus when parts are needed the parts cost an arm and several legs.
The days of picking up good immaculate Rover 800 these is practically zero. A few years ago £500 would find a nice 820 or 820 Turbo or Honda
engined 827 but those days are gone I might add never touch a KV6 800 or a Honda engined 825.
However Rover 75 and MG ZT are in your price range ... all the engines are good and reliable although personally I would avoid the 1.8 turbo
tends get abused by drivers.
The 75/ZT is fairly DIY friendly provided the WSM is followed and parts are cheap. However a cam belt change on 2.5 version of KV6 however
needs special tools fo the 90,000 mile cam belt change.
See wacomuk's ad in the for sale section http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/forum/34/viewthread.php?tid=178534
With all of the above check road tax costs for exact model and date of registration before buying
Thanks for the advise, I'm not to worried about the tax as I won't get a car from after 06 on budget so it's going to be either old
rate tax or higher rate from before they brought in the highest of the current bands. I'd noticed with smaller cars how different the tax can be
between to very simillar cars. I will admit an 800 is a bit of a long shot these days.
Something like wacomuk's 75 would probably suit quite well but it's the wrong 'box and Wigans a bit further than I'd like to
go.
With Jags and BMW's is it worth worrying about Nikasil bores? My dads been doing his own research but i reckon that if the problems were going to
happen they'd have already happened on the cars we're looking at.
BMW bore wear problems are history these days, after market parts support for BMW is also pretty good and they are good DIY propositions provided
you don't take short cuts when doing servicing and repairs but they do tend to need TLC
Most cars you are considering will probably have either a JATCO or ZF autobox. The FWD 5 speed JATCO box up about 2002 is prone to the valve
block cracking, most with have already been fixed.
I have an acquaintance with an A8. Did I mention it has extremely comfortable back seats? Air conditioning even works back there. Unbelievably expensive to buy, but worth considering anyways, if you ask me!
Mercedes-Benz E-class W210 or W140 S-class.
Hard to beat a Mondeo for a big cheap car.
Lexus 400?
Ooh while I think of it the Phaeton is rather cheap atm, not sure about sub £1k though
[Edited on 7/2/13 by Ninehigh]
I picked up an 03 omega 3.2 elite estate for dog carrying duties 75k historied and had all the options including sat nav for a grand . Very impressed with it for an auto and the Bose stereo is very good . I had a s type v6 which was a lovely drive but parts were a bit steep and not a lot of non gen stuff available for suspension etc but If I hadn't needed an estate I would have another s type v6
I'd love a phaeton or a citroen C6 but they're still too new.
I'm going to try and see some cars over the weekend as I've found a few at dealers so I can see what they're like and hopefully this
will give a better idea of what to go for. I've found a square headlight XJ40 which I really like the look of, is there anything in particular
worth looking out for, it's a 3.2 on a 93 plate with 140,000 on the clock.
quote:
Originally posted by morcus
I'd love a phaeton or a citroen C6 but they're still too new.
I'm going to try and see some cars over the weekend as I've found a few at dealers so I can see what they're like and hopefully this will give a better idea of what to go for. I've found a square headlight XJ40 which I really like the look of, is there anything in particular worth looking out for, it's a 3.2 on a 93 plate with 140,000 on the clock.
citroen c5 3.0 v6?
At sub 1k consider a V70 Volvo, they're big have smooth 5 cylinder motors and are incredibly reliable upto very high mileage and most come with a high interior spec. The only downside is they're thirsty buggers
quote:
Originally posted by britishtrident
BMW bore wear problems are history these days,
If you want a reliable sub 1k barge its got to be a Lexus, parts are price well too.
Here you go
Awesome for the money
Saw a VW Passat W8 4motion in the car park. Now there's an interesting beast.
Rare as hens teeth.
Edited to say, not that rare apparently, but misses the 1k category
http://www.gumtree.com/p/cars-vans-motorbikes/volkswagen-passat-40i-w8-4motion-1-in-the-country-360-bhpsat-nav-recaro-leathers/1008200562
[Edited on 8/2/13 by Xtreme Kermit]
[Edited on 8/2/13 by Xtreme Kermit]