advice/opinions: which car/engine to buy?

[oldbloke]

So I've been trawling eBay for cars that fit what I want, but I'm at the start of the process and there are really a _lot_ of options, especially as I haven't quite decided if I want an estate or not. I'm also seeing a ton of different engines and having a hard time collecting together all the advice about which engines are good and which are not (e.g. there are some TDI  PD's that are only good before a certain year... 1.9 is better than 2.0.. all very hard to keep track of)

 

I'll list the things that are important and not important to me and I'm open to all suggestions/advice.

 

Important:

 

- I live half the year in Greece, and I'm going to do the drive to Athens and back a couple of times a year.

 

Priorities in this order

 

1 - Reliability of engine / understanding potential issues. I would like to buy a specific engine/model so that I can read up on what faults it has and see if those have been taken care of. If I need to get it fixed in Albania or something, that'll be a PITA.

2 - Fun to drive. When I'm in Germany I'd love to have something that I can have a bit of fun with, and also whilst, err 'overtaking' on other countries. A quiet smooth ride would be nice. 

3 - Fuel efficiency. I will be doing mostly really long runs, not much about-town stuff at all. I'd like at least 50mpg reliably.

4 - I don't care about looks, but a/c and cruise control would be nice. 

5 - I definitely want 4 door

 

Don't care:

 

- Looks, superficial condition

- Size: as long as it's got at least 4 doors I actually don't care between e.g. small Fabia and Octavia estate - fuel efficiency much bigger factor

 

Budget: £2-4k. I don't mind spending at the top end of this, but if I can find something alright towards the lower end that's fine with me - I don't care much about looks

 

Thanks a lot of any advice (and opinions 😉)

 

ob

[TonyTonic]

Not really any special advice but personally I wouldn't rely on a 2k car to take me to Greece and back twice a year. I drive to Croatia (1100 miles) and back every year with family and would not do that in an old car. 

But your mileage may vary !!! Don't take it as an insult. I assume you have done this before in such a vehicle?

 

I'm sure other people will advise better than me.

Edited 12 June, 2019 by TonyTonic

[silver1011]

The Octavia Scout in the For Sale section that TonyTonic tagged you in would be an ideal car.

 

The 2.0 TDI PD 140PS 8V SOHC is a tough engine. The Scout will do 50mpg @ 70mph all day long.

 

The interior and boot are huge without being an overly big car externally.

 

Edited 14 June, 2019 by silver1011

[Ootohere]

 

 

 

[SurreyJohn]

Your budget is relatively small, and my advice would be keep it simple

For an older car, the less gadgets attached, the less there is to fail or break down.

 

As for engines, you need to find something that was serviced properly, and ideally one of the less stressed (lower power) variants of any engine

 

Don't know the differential of fuel price per litre petrol vs diesel in Greece, but my thoughts are fuel consumption should be a low consideration, saving a few pounds per month on fuel, could easily be outweighed by a extra maintenance or repair bill if you pick the wrong car, so getting one in good mechanical condition is more important.  Got to save a lot of fuel to cover an extra £200-300 repair.     Check the important parts like belts in the engine have been done.   How much brake pads remaining etc

 

Wouldn't worry to much about cosmetic items, a few bodywork blemishes and scratches are going to happen on older car, and more important to have the reliable mechanicals.

 

Could be a Fabia, or Octavia, or even a late model roomster.  Whatever you pick avoid the high spec models with lots of electric gadgets.

 

Couple of ideas (don't know condition, so treat as ideas, not recommendations)

 

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201903095721319?make=SKODA&radius=1500&model=OCTAVIA&postcode=nn11aa&price-to=4000&maximum-mileage=70000&onesearchad=Used&onesearchad=Nearly New&onesearchad=New&price-from=2500&sort=year-desc&advertising-location=at_cars&page=1

 

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201903236184203?advertising-location=at_cars&price-from=2500&make=SKODA&onesearchad=Used&onesearchad=Nearly New&onesearchad=New&price-to=4000&maximum-mileage=70000&postcode=nn11aa&model=ROOMSTER&radius=1500&sort=year-desc&page=1

 

 

Edited 17 June, 2019 by SurreyJohn