Reliable big car recommendations.

sthwild said:
Thanks for the suggestions guys. I was looking at Honda Accord 56 to 07 reg in diesel. It seems to have good reviews as well.
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Sorry thought you meant mpv's.
The vectra is a good car, as is the mondeo. You should be able to get an 04/05 sort of plate 3 series for that money too. Audi A4 is another option. Or a passatt. The latter 3 being more reliable, but more expensive.
 
JakeT1992 said:
Sorry thought you meant mpv's.
The vectra is a good car, as is the mondeo. You should be able to get an 04/05 sort of plate 3 series for that money too. Audi A4 is another option. Or a passatt. The latter 3 being more reliable, but more expensive.
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Cheers. I always thought Passat was good and reliable, but after seeing what my friend went through with turbo, I've changed my mind.
 
Mondeo fords are very reliable nowadays and a dam site cheaper than german and jap models
 
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If you're going for a mondeo diesel check the price of injectors out , BMW 320D , common turbo problems, 330D is a better engine

Diesels at 4-5 years old are a bit of a lottery these days, turbos, injectors, DPF Are common faults on most of them

Have a look at www.honestjohn.co.uk for a list of common faults by model

Not great on fuel but the most reliable cars I've ever owned have been Subarus

A Y reg impreza non turbo, a year with me and 4 years with my sister , a clutch
A 55 plate legacy, wishbone bush
My dad had a Y reg Forrester , in 6 years he never spent a penny on repairs , it only went when he gave up driving
 
So are you looking for an MPV or a saloon or not bothered?
 
sthwild said:
Thanks for the suggestions guys. I was looking at Honda Accord 56 to 07 reg in diesel. It seems to have good reviews as well.
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Dodgy DMFs, DPFs and exhaust manifolds leaking on that fuel type and age. You might want to check out any warranty work done especially on the exhaust manifold, the DMF and DPF are luck of the draw in all honesty.

Before you buy an old VAG, join those forums and see if you can live with their known faults/failures.
 
wack61 said:
Diesels at 4-5 years old are a bit of a lottery these days, turbos, injectors, DPF Are common faults on most of them
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A 4-5yr old large diesel saloon for £5k is going to have a lot of miles on it. 6-7yrs old is more likely and less likely to have a dpf.
 
AndyB1976 said:
Before you buy an old VAG, join those forums and see if you can live with their known faults/failures.
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They don't all (VAG) have issues.

ALL cars have known faults and failures.
 
To be fair you're never going to get a car, that's not going to have some chance of a fault. I echo the above regarding 2l bmw's, anything under a 2.5 isn't as well built.
My boss has a 55 plate 3l tdi a4 estate, on 171k, that's only ever needed general wear and tear items, not even a clutch.
I have a 106k 53 plate 2l petrol a3 that has also never had a mechanical fault.
I had a 90k 02 plate 3 series 2l petrol that died 5 days after I bought it, luckily buying from a dealer, I got a full refund.
It's luck, just buy one with a solid service history, lots of receipts. Main dealer service preferably. If you buy from a dealer, make sure they're a reputable one, do a lot of research online prior to parting with your cash.
 
Just buy a non turbo petrol and save yourself the worry. Do a comparison calculator.
 
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rjbell said:
Just buy a non turbo petrol and save yourself the worry. Do a comparison calculator.
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I have a 13 year old 1.8L turbo petrol Audi A4.....160000 miles. Reliable as hell.

It's all horses for courses.
 
Buying a second hand car is pot luck, it could have fsh, yet that has nothing with how the car has been driven or looked after between services. Due to my driving style my clutch went at 80k yet my mate who has a similar car, his lasted to around 160k. If it's possible, look for a car where the expensive items have just been replaced, there's a good chance then that you'll not have the expense of replacing them.
 
What do people think of the KIA Carens? Low mileage, 2009 plates can be bought for £5-6k
 
viv1969 said:
They don't all (VAG) have issues.

ALL cars have known faults and failures.
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ALL cars have known faults and failures {except?} (VAG) where not all of them have issues?

Erm.....its not a personal attack on VW. :love:


I've listed the Honda ones, three spring to mind on the i-CTDi. I doubt all of them will have those issues however I'm not going to deny they happen due to some ingrained fanboy-ism.

I wasn't going to list the VW ones as my avatar would be probably perceived as some kind of 'sour grapes' so I suggested having a look in the forums..Anyway, as you challenged my integrity here is my 'lookout for' from the VW stable


VW issues I've dealt with;
Plastic window winder mechanism failures
MAF sensors
Tailgate, locking mechanisms/latches
Water ingress through bulkhead (through pollen filter)
Broken rear springs
CAT failure
Wiper motor failures
Seized Calipers (and on Honda)
Burst radiators
Oil cooler gasket
Passat (1.8t) Sump volume (sludge) - apparently a US lawsuit filed


Check out the reliability tables for the last decade, the forums, word of mouth.

Anyway, I'm not here to convert anyone, your money your choice.
 
The Japanese are usually at the top of the reliability tree. I'd look at the avensis.

Anything will be more reliable than a Citroen ;)
 
The most reliable car I have ever owned is my Toyota poous
ugly but reliable and very cheap to run
 
Think your definition of BIG car needs a wee bit work ;)
 
sthwild said:
Thanks people. Great advice as usual. I'll get something with fsh and on top of that extended warranty. Diesel preferable as I'm driving a lot. Something that won't surprise me first thing in the morning being dead due to electric fault. Too much wirings/computers these days.
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Well you can usually rely on the french for that.
 
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the trouble with the hondas is there not built like they used to be
i owned a 2002 honda accord 1.8 sport for 7 years and it turned out to be a very reliable car
the build quality was very good and at 11 years old still drove and felt like a very nice car
recently i changed the car for a 57 ( 08 ) plated 2.2 diesel honda civic i wanted better fuel economy the accord wasn't that great
the ride isn't as nice the build quality is good but not as good and as far as the DMF clutch is concerned it can be a lottery
if the same clutch is used in the diesel accord you need to pay close attention to it and if it has been changed ask what version was used you are looking for a version know as 325 ( problematic version was 315 ) if nothing can be found about the clutch when you take the car for a test drive find an open road put the car in 3rd or 4th gear and floor it if the clutch slips either arrange as part of the sale a new clutch or walk away the cost of the clutch and flywheel is around 900 quid plus labour
i know the civics of that generation don't have DPF's but can't say about the accords i think it's worth a mention when looking to buy

pre 2008 ( 7th gen accords ) is where your likely to come across clutch slip problems 2008 ( 8th gen ) don't seem to suffer i think they use a different engine

don't be put off by this their still very good car but a bit of knowledge is a good thing if your considering one
 
cosmicma said:
the trouble with the hondas is there not built like they used to be
i owned a 2002 honda accord 1.8 sport for 7 years and it turned out to be a very reliable car
the build quality was very good and at 11 years old still drove and felt like a very nice car
recently i changed the car for a 57 ( 08 ) plated 2.2 diesel honda civic i wanted better fuel economy the accord wasn't that great
the ride isn't as nice the build quality is good but not as good and as far as the DMF clutch is concerned it can be a lottery
if the same clutch is used in the diesel accord you need to pay close attention to it and if it has been changed ask what version was used you are looking for a version know as 325 ( problematic version was 315 ) if nothing can be found about the clutch when you take the car for a test drive find an open road put the car in 3rd or 4th gear and floor it if the clutch slips either arrange as part of the sale a new clutch or walk away the cost of the clutch and flywheel is around 900 quid plus labour
i know the civics of that generation don't have DPF's but can't say about the accords i think it's worth a mention when looking to buy

pre 2008 ( 7th gen accords ) is where your likely to come across clutch slip problems 2008 ( 8th gen ) don't seem to suffer i think they use a different engine

don't be put off by this their still very good car but a bit of knowledge is a good thing if your considering one
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I had a 1992 dohc vtec that i used to absolutely hammer! I've yet to come across such a bullet proof (hell it was bomb proof) engine again. It was astonishing it never ever needed a oil or water top up in the 5yrs of owning it.
 
One of my colleagues is a part time taxi driver. He's got a 2004 Passat which has done over 300,000 miles which he's recently pensioned off. Its replacement is a similar model which is now up to 150,000 miles.

Easy to work on, reliable, his only complaint is the 6 speed gearbox isn't as durable as the 5 speed version.
 
Skoda Superb mk1, with the PD130 turbo diesel.
Basically a stretched, more luxurious Passat, bomb proof. Mine's cost me virtually nothing in repairs etc in the 7 years I've had it.
Plus a remap will give you nearly 200bhp and 412fl lbs torque in a huge car that'll still do 55mpg!
 
I have a P reg Toyota Camry 2.2. They seem totally reliable. but it has only done 100,000.
My son in law had one past 200,000.
 
landwomble said:
Skoda Superb mk1, with the PD130 turbo diesel.
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The PD engines suffer with chocolate camshafts if not regularly serviced. They have the advantage of no DPF, of course, and the Superb was AFAIK the last car to use them before they were phased out.


That said, the PD engine in my Audi A6 (2.5l V6 180bhp) is still on its original cams at over 170k miles, but it has 12 years' of service history, all at Audi main dealers, so I know that the correct spec of engine oil was always used.
 
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