Recommend me a petrol automatic car | hatchback or estate | £3000 - £5000

Soldato
Joined
29 Jun 2004
Posts
12,957
Hello, it's been a while since I've done anything like this. OcUK please recommend me a car.

Must have:
  • I have at the most £5000 to spend. My "envelope" is £3000 - £5000.
  • Petrol.
  • Automatic.
  • 5 doors.
  • I would prefer an estate, but I won't let that limit me. Therefore I am happy to "settle" for a hatchback.
  • Nothing smaller than a Ford Focus.
  • Reliable and economical. Please don't recommend me an old 3 litre, 6 cyclinder German muscle car.
  • I don't care for speed. But it has to feel well planted on a motorway.
  • My annual mileage is 7000 miles.
  • I aim to keep the car for 3 - 4 years.
Nice to have:
  • HID headlights.
  • Heated seats.
  • Dual zone climate control.
I'm going to assume the car has:
  • Electric windows.
  • Automatic headlamps.
  • Automatic wipers.
  • Climate control.
Thank you.
 
Last edited:
Soldato
Joined
11 Aug 2012
Posts
4,533
Location
S.E Wales
Honda Accord 2.0/2.4 Estate in EX Trim as I believe it has most of the above requirements as long as it's on the motorway run should see 30+mpg (from the 2.0), we had the 2.0 saloon with an auto and it was faultless for well over 10 years/110k we owned it (Sold it off at 170k), one thing I will say the Estate version is UGGGGGLLLLLY, it looks like a hearse.
 

mjt

mjt

Soldato
Joined
31 Aug 2007
Posts
19,994
Would something like a Subaru Legacy Tourer be a stupid idea? Probably not the most economical of cars though.

Focus or Astra Estate may make the most sense though.
 
Soldato
Joined
1 Jul 2003
Posts
6,231
Location
There's a voice that keeps on calling me.
How about a Civic, or maybe an Octavia DSG but I dont know how much of a liability DSG is at the lower end of the budget. You could also look at the Passat DSG.

I know you said no german barges, but my old man picked up a 06 Merc E280CDI (W211), for just over 3k, and its not skipped a beat in 15k miles, but it only had 130k miles in the 1st place, iven the 2.0 are well prices and the 7 speed gearbox is still a fantastic box.
 
Caporegime
Joined
23 Dec 2011
Posts
32,910
Location
Northern England
How about a Civic, or maybe an Octavia DSG but I dont know how much of a liability DSG is at the lower end of the budget. You could also look at the Passat DSG.

I know you said no german barges, but my old man picked up a 06 Merc E280CDI (W211), for just over 3k, and its not skipped a beat in 15k miles, but it only had 130k miles in the 1st place, iven the 2.0 are well prices and the 7 speed gearbox is still a fantastic box.

No no, he said no German muscle cars. Can't see a problem suggesting a barge! That's what I'd go for.
 

Deleted member 66701

D

Deleted member 66701

+1 for the Mk4 Mondeo.

Ours is great (Mk 4.5 / 2L / Auto / Petrol / Titanium X).

Seconded - my wife has a Mk4 Titanium X Sport (2lt petrol turbo) and it's great.

I've got a mk 4.5 Titanium X Estate (2.0 tddci). Both are autos but the auto is smoother on mine (not sure if that's down to the diesel or the software revisions they put in for the mk4.5 - I suspect the later).
 
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