Need recommendations for a new car

Associate
Joined
20 Feb 2009
Posts
2,033
Location
Rugby
I currently drive a Jaguar XF Portfolio 180PS 2.0D. I bought it new ~3.5 years ago via PCP, however I'm currently looking to give it back via voluntary termination (there's more left on the finance than any of the similar cars on auto trader, and it's trade in value is substantially less than the GFV, so there's no real point keeping hold of it) as soon as I find an alternative vehicle.

I'm struggling to find a vehicle I'm happy with in both spec & cost though unfortunately, so I'm hoping someone give me some ideas of vehicle I may not have thought of.

The specs I require:
  • >3 door
  • ~150PS+
  • Heated front seats
  • Cruise control & speed limiter
  • Auto wipers/lights
  • large(ish) boot (big enough for a case ~100x40x40cm, plus a few other bits)
  • Front & rear parking sensors
  • Climate control (rather than just air con)
  • folding rear seats
  • Satnav/android auto integration
Some extras I'd quite like:
  • Reversing camera
  • Keyless entry & start
  • LED headlights
  • Heated windscreen
  • Heated steering wheel
  • Semi auto gearbox (assuming it's decent. Would rather a manual over a poor semi/full auto though)
  • Adaptive High Beam
Some things that would be a nice addition, but I won't reject a car because it doesn't have it:
  • TFT Cluster with map integration
  • Remote climate (pre heating/cooling the cabin from an app)
  • Powered tailgate
  • HUD
  • Blindspot Monitoring
  • Auto High beam
I keep coming back to an F-pace 3.0L Petrol 300 sport, as it seems to tick every box, and I can get it for ~£450/month PCP for a 3 year deal (with 10k miles), with no deposit (work discount, as I work for JLR). Problem is, due to the number of times I've had to take my XF back into the dealer, and how poor the customer service has been, I'm reluctant to buy another JLR vehicle, hence looking elsewhere.

Any other cars I've looked at that seem to have the majority of the features I want, don't seem to be quoted for much less than I can get the F Pace for, and I don't really fancy spending the same amount on a <£30k car, as I would do for a £50k car!

I know with a bit of haggling with the dealerships, I'd get the other cars down a bit, but I'm not sure I believe they'll drop quite low enough.

Vehicles I've thought of, and had a bit of a look into so far:
  • Ford Focus (& estate)
  • Seat Leon (& estate)
  • Toyota corolla (& estate)
  • Toyota C-HR
  • Volvo XC40
  • Volvo V40
  • Vauxhall Astra (& Estate)
  • Skoda Octavia (& Estate)
What am I missing (other than just don't buy a new car)?


TL;DR: I want a car with loads of stuff, but don't want to pay anything for it, what are my options?
 
Associate
Joined
7 Sep 2014
Posts
1,158
So you work for JLR but under no circumstances want a JLR motor? lolz

If you're looking at an F-Pace and your comparing it against a Leon / Focus / Astra :p you're going to be extremely disappointed!
 
Soldato
Joined
24 Nov 2006
Posts
4,922
Why not look used/nearly new? Could knock £10k off the price, still get PCP and get into a car with all the bells and whistles?
 
Associate
OP
Joined
20 Feb 2009
Posts
2,033
Location
Rugby
So you work for JLR but under no circumstances want a JLR motor? lolz

If you're looking at an F-Pace and your comparing it against a Leon / Focus / Astra :p you're going to be extremely disappointed!

Unfortunately so! My local dealer doesn't seem to have heard of customer service, and after the treatment I've had, I'm not sure I want another (and if I do end up doing, I'll be buying it from a different franchise, even if it means travelling)

Audi A4 or A6.

TBH hadn't really looked at Audis, will take a bit of a look.

Kia Opitma?

Will take a look, with a 7 year warranty, I wouldn't necessarily mind holding onto for a little longer, which would help on costs.

Why not look used/nearly new? Could knock £10k off the price, still get PCP and get into a car with all the bells and whistles?

Was something I thought of, but from the quick look I've had, very few actually give finance example to get an idea on costs, but I'd probably go for a shorter period (so it ends around the end of the warranty), so I'm not sure how much cheaper it'll actually be.
 
Man of Honour
Joined
19 Jan 2003
Posts
12,645
Location
Warwickshire
As you’re JLR (like me) - what about Evoque? I’ve found LR dealerships better than Jag ones generally. You can get R-Dynamic S D180 for about £310/month with similar deposit for 3yr, though probably not got everything you want, can get HSE for less than £400 - would rather that than an F-PACE, as it’s a little dated now.

You’ll find most cars don’t feature the remote climate that is present of JLR cars, so you’ll be pretty disappointed by that!

If you go new, Focus through Ford privilege will probably be best value, but don’t know how good the auto box is in newer Fords, though manuals are much better.
 
Soldato
Joined
28 May 2007
Posts
18,200
These would be top of my shopping list.

Alfa Romao Stelvio
Mazda CX-5
Mercedes GLC
Skoda Kodiaq

The Mazda CX-30 would probably be worth waiting for if possible. After a sager with VW I went with a CX-5 GT Sport Nav+ 2.2 190. I've been really impressed with it and it's showed up a lot of more expensive cars.
 
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