KeteCantek

Never understood the jerkiness and slow reaction that many seem to say about DSGs. The ones I have driven and owned are brilliant. Only occasionally the gearbox is confused or bit slow to engage clutch but that's it. It's smooth, fast shifting and gives a direct feeling like a manual gearbox otherwise. Newer TC auto with lockups probably feels similar with added smoothness due to the TC at set off or crawl speed.

Can't comment on interior look as that is subjective to each individual. I personally think the stinger's interior is nice, not fantastic but nice. As for underpinnings from upmarket brand, I did mention Genesis. They are upmarket, just not sold in Europe. However, I fully understand the feeling as far buying is also emotional. Most people have been conditioned to believe one way or another wrt to branding and image. One common example I find (funny to me) is someone will happily call out a Lexus as just a fancy Toyota but never have any issues with Audi being 'just a fancy Skoda'. In fact , most seem to understand some Skodas/Seat/VW as value for money since they share parts with Audi and that makes them good. But still a Toyota is a Toyota but not a Lexus... Blows me mind. I wish you good luck in your search, gonna be hard to beat a 280 on a budget, we know because we have the same car!

Never knew they aren't supposed to tow but that isn't one of OP's requirement so maybe it's OK. Agree that parts will be pricey, not to mention servicing. Reality is, for the power/interior space/running cost/purchase price ratio, it is quite difficult to beat a superb 280. And with that, there are still obvious compromised because the perfect car doesn't exist. One just have to weight the requirements and pick one that suits best. I'd still recommend @TheBinarySheep to consider the Kia Stinger 3.3. My take is OP wants interior space, good power, better than average dynamics, some peace of mind for reliability, image that car projects. The Kia does all of that except the last point. Which is exactly the same as a Skoda, but in my books better in almost all the others. I ended up with a 280 only because the Stinger 3.3 wasn't in my budget. Would have gone for that, no brained.

This absolutely. Unless you want to spend big bucks, you won't get near the ideal car of sporty and roomy. Even then, with big bucks budget, you can sacrifice roomy for even more sport. It's a never ending cycle as they are conflicting requirements. @TheBinarySheepGet a semi banger cheap MPV for family lugging then a fun car. Or take a brave pill and find an older E63 AMG estate (within your budget) keeping in mind you want a pot of emergency funds if it goes wrong. Upside is that will have you sorted. Just don't complain about fuel economy!

I know you get the Audi Engine in the 280 Skoda ... But the Kia has a Genesis engine! I'd say go for a test drive because if you have bought a Skoda (basically a minicab, but yours is the sleeper version ) , a Kia badge isn't the end of the world .

@jannerofl can't blame you as it's not that intuitive or obvious.

Superb? I thought SEL exec comes with auto wipers as standard. The intermittent setting is auto. They don't come-on quickly when it rains but toggle it off/int will activate it immediately.

No brainer. How often do you need to carry long pieces of timber anyway? If not frequent, just live with a superb and deal with the timber in other ways lol.

Don't think 2400 length will fit in superb. Iirc, I measured , 2000mm will be OK with rear down, maybe a bit more with front seat forward.

Have you done it and did you get a photo of the state of the strainer before cleaning? It be good to see how it's like at a particular mileage and also as proof they actually did the work! Mine at about 21k isn't too bad. But it's clean now good until the next one probably 20k down the line, whenever I get there.

Negotiate a deal with the dealer to take the price of plugs, filters, and haldex oil change. Filters are easy to DIY tbh and costs about 30 or so pounds for decent parts.

If you don't mind to spend a bit more on fuel and have a car to keep, a 280 is definitely the one to have, or 220 since power isn't important. I think SEL and above trims will have ACC as standard so no need for L&K unless you want the other toys that come with it (not many, and the lower trims can be specced up quite similarly). Lower trims like SEL has advantage of smaller wheels at 18 which gives you a wider, cheaper choice of tyres. Better ride too and probably lower road noise. Be wary of 1.4tsi DSG gearbox as they are not the most robust. Hatch or estate gives you plenty boot space either way.

Good luck with it. I'd argue it's essential. Unless the car is located in a beauty spot... I don't see a high risk of getting into trouble with the police.

The boot dimensions are as follows: Height x width x length : big x big x big OK, joking aside, you'll fit it no problems. Might even fit in a hatch version if you place it so the 800mm is width across.

Can't comment on GAP insurance as I never have experience of it. But does this mean you have found a car!? What is it and hopefully we get to see photos!

ECO coasting will improve MPG marginally in certain situations. Good for downhill sections where you can gain speed without using the engine. Will also allow you to let of the throttle earlier on approach to a stop. There is a delay when getting back on throttle from coasting while the engine rev match to engage gear. If you touch the brake, it will also come out of coasting mode into gear.

It would have left the factory with the default variable service interval I assume which can be up to 2 years and 20k miles. Other option is a yearly service which can be set in the car too. If worried, negotiate a service with selling dealer/price reduction of a service so you can take to a local dealer if not buying local/or simply budget for one.

Both gearbox should be good although the old one is a proven unit that dates back more than a decade. Newer 7speeder in 272 gives a lower cruising rpm. Both will give good outputs at stage 1 tune. Petrol particulate filter don't seem to affect the final output much for the 272. If you are paranoid about carbon build up, the 280 has port injection.

280s are older. They have a 6 speed dq250 gearbox rather then newer 7speeder. 280s have exhaust flaps (makes no difference to noise as far as I can tell except for bragging rights). 280s have the older screen with physical buttons each side. They also have the IMO better engine with port + direct injection and no petrol particulate filter. No virtual cockpit on 280. You'll get better mpg out of a 272 with longer top gear. Probably harder to find a nice 280 nowadays. Both engines have chain driven cams.

Money no object? I'll buy an old American muscle car, high power, carb fed, terrible fuel consumption and then join the owners club and start posting about what mileage I can eke out of it. OK that was a joke.. If I can only have one car, purchase and running costs are no issue, my requirement for at least 5 seats and a good boot means I'll get an Alpina B5 touring, fully loaded. If I ditch my family, I'll have a Ferrari 812 GTS.

In my car, stop start is always disabled...By me. 😁 I never use it as I don't like the idea of stressing out an expensive AGM battery and changing it early.

Yep the manual says it can be expected. Be good to see your experience with LED lamps and whether it disappears after a drive with lights on. I know it goes away on my older xenon type headlights.

If you want economy, the 190 is the way to go while preserving a bit of performance. It has the budack cycle engine which gives good efficiency. I looked at AT prices and 220s are quite close to 280s so more the reason to go full whack as long as budget allows. Forget about the 1.4 versions as the gearbox is chocolate. 1.5 versions probably quite new same as the 190 2.0, not sure how prices compares to a 220. Rear wiper is an option at no cost if I am not mistaken for the hatch but not everyone takes it I guess.

You'll find another. I considered the 220 before I realised there is a 280 version. The rest is history.

@TB404 with the direction VW group is going, the next superb will have a stubby knob thing as gear lever.