UKC

I've been looking for a reasonably priced AWD estate or large hatch.

Options so far are:

Audi A4 or A3 Quattro
VW Passatt/Golf 4 Motion
Jag X Type 2.5/3.0 V6 (The diesels aren't AWD)

My budget isn't huge, maybe £6k max. so it's not going to be too new and likely have high miles. I'd prefer petrol, but would consider diesel.

Any others I could consider?

And comments on reliability of the various high mileage engines also welcome.

TIA

In reply to Dispater: maybe have a look at the old Volvo XC70 cross country estates. No idea on reliability but plenty of forums around online for that.

In reply to Dispater: i have the jag 2.5 petrol ( not estate )great comfy and big , but heavy on petrol , they seem to come up on autotrader with low milage so £6k should get you something good

In reply to Dispater:

Land Rover 90 300TDi

Practical, comfy, economical....

hahahahahahahahahahahahaha

Seriously it's terrible but I still love it!

In reply to Dispater:
Subaru Legacy
BMW 3 or 5 series X-drive

In reply to Dispater: Audi A4.

The A3/Golf use a part time awd system that needs fluid changes regularly - lots of people neglect this and have problems. The a4/6 use a torsen diff - more reliable and doesnt need the same servicing.
Reliable cars - only weak spot is front suspension arms - don't bother with aftermarket they're rubbish. Ours was the 1.9tdi 48mpg however I drove it.
(don't touch the 2.5 engines)

V70 AWD is terribly unreliable - lots of expensive problems.

Never tried the Jag but they have a good name.

Always Subaru? Legacy? Forester? fuel economy not too hot and parts prices can be a bit steep, but generally reliable.

Suzuki?

In reply to jimtitt: Can you supply rocking horse sh!t with those BMW's Jim?

I think all the 3s are LHD and the RHD 5's are E34 525 only

In reply to Dispater: Don't look at the Volvo mentioned above...really poor reliability. I was in the market a while back and strolled through loads of forums and sites and the XC70 has some really bad reviews!

In reply to another_mark: Another vote for scooby. My impreza with a set of snow tyres has taken me places most cars wouldn't even dream of in their worst nightmares. Above is right about consumption though... not too clever. But they're reliable and if you're into fixing yourself, easy to fix.

In reply to Dispater:
I've also been pondering the same question for some time, need to replace my Golf Tdi with a mid-size AWD estate. At this price point I would go for a petrol Subaru Legacy, or an older A4.

In reply to Landy_Dom:


More of a Land Cruiser man myself, have an old 80 series which is the nuts. On my travels most of the Landie's I saw were generally on the side of the road with someone under the bonnet. Bags of 'character' though and great to drive, would never own one though.

In reply to Dispater:

They have a 2005 2.0 Legacy at Europa, Sheffield for £6K (75,000 on the clock). I have bought a few cars off them and have always been impressed with their service. I assume it would come with 12 month warranty for some peace of mind.


Chris

In reply to Dispater:
Skoda Octavia Scout is 4WD, and the Skodas always get good reviews

In reply to steelbru:

There is also a standard Octavia estate 4WD.

In reply to PeterM:

Think Audi but without the price tag -- however used 4wd Octavias are as hard to find as hens teeth or rocking horse droppings. You may have better luck with a Yeti!

In reply to Dispater:

Second the Skoda Octavia 4WD (in either Scout or "normal road going" guise) and the Skoda Superb 4WD (in "Normal" guise - the jacked pseudo off-roader has only just been released).

I've owned both (have the Superb now) and both are brilliant. However they are also rare as hen's teeth as they are basically VW Group Audi A4/A6 tech at a much much lower price. If you can find a good example at a sensible price I'd bite their hand off.

In reply to Dispater:

You are going through a similar thought process to mine a few years ago

Incidentally in addition to the above I have also owned:

Volvo V70 AWD. Great car - I had mine to 160,000 miles - however when they go wrong it costs a fortune.

VW Passat. Nice car, beware the electronic handbrake (introduced in 05?). In fact, I wouldn't buy one with an electronic handbrake full stop. It's a Bl**dy menace, and the fact that VAG appears to not consider it a design fault despite if failing (at huge expense and inconvienience to the owner) on every Passat I've ever known about does them no credit.

Subaru Legacy. Depends on the year, but I had an old one and the tech was a good 10 years behind its competitors at the time. Amazing off road, but awful on it. I hated it. This was a 10 year old car though, newer ones must be better (they couldn't be worse).

Octavia 4WD - comments in post above. Absolutely brilliant car.

In reply to John_Hat:

VW Passat (think I had an '05 plate) is pretty horrid to drive on anything other than motorway. Massive boot though.

My Dad has a Subaru Outback - very reliable, nice to drive but thirsty.

In reply to Dispater:

Thank you muchly Gentlemen, for your detailed and very useful advice!

I have narrowed it down to two cars (saloons, after originally specifying an estate) - a question which needs a thread of its own.

And if anyone is interested in a 2006 Mondeo 2.2TDCi Ghia X with 75k on the clock.....

In reply to Dispater:
Another vote for Octavia scout, it's a awesome car,you may struggle to get one for 6k as the oldest they do is about 57 plate, but you should get a octavia 4x4 estate, which is almost as good, you'll get a lowish miles one for less than 6. The 2L turbo diesel engine is quite nice, pretty quick too. You can get them in a petrol engine too.

In reply to Dispater:

Mitsubishi Galant VR4. Petrol. Should be able to get one with pretty reasonable milage for £6K. Its an estate with the same 4WD system as an Evolution (active rear diff etc). Legnum is the same car but Jap import version.

In reply to Dispater: subaru legacy. they will go places no other car will

In reply to John_Hat:
"beware the electronic handbrake"

So it's not just me. For a handbrake I want a lever not a button, I won't buy a car with a button for a handbrake not until they stop making levers.

I'll third or is it forth an Octavia 4x4, but then surely it's expected on this forum

In reply to heidi123:

Seconded: http://www.pbase.com/image/148365526/original


Chris

In reply to Chris Craggs: Confirmed - over Xmas I found myself on a very rough track in the wilds of Australia... when I got to a junction I could clearly see the sign that warned access was for high clearance 4WD only, we had just covered 20km of serious track in a AWD on road tyres. Good cars.

LD

In reply to Dispater: I'm on my second subaru. Gave the last Legacy to my sister after her car was stolen. It had 180k miles four years ago, and is still on the road. Current Outback is 6 yrs old with 155K and no problems. Pricey parts and not great MPG, but they do work. Might go for diesel next time.

In reply to Dispater:

I've got an octavia scout and love it - big, comfy and capable.