What Car

j_l

Company Car driver seeks new motor.

Short List

BMW 3s 318d Touring, 13% tax , but its a BMW :twisted:

New VW Passat Estate Sport Blue Motion, a bit dull and has a gay name but ticks all the box's

Volvo V60 old man's car label but looks ok

Audi A4 2.0 TDI e Very few toys for the money



Any other ideas, it must be a estate and diesel with a resonable standard of kit.

thanks

WisePranker

Mondeo estates are pretty well specced for the money but they're bloody awful cars to drive.

Possibly a Vauxhall Insignia?

Tartanyak

I'd avoid the volvo - they're replacing it soon.
The VWs are nice, big, comfy cars.
A4's feel pleasant, but I've never liked them. Like you say, few toys.
Try the BMW. They're nice to drive - though they may have the few toy problem.

Erm, Volvo V50 - lots of toys, but not that big inside and basically a volvo'd up focus. Feels much better than a focus though.

spongtastic

The new Passat.

BMW seems too small and shouldn't be considered with the others, I can't drive my mates with car seats in the back because there's no room for the kids legs. A4 is dull and underspecced, a real rep mobile motorway cruiser. Volvo is just a bit nothing really, no longer tank like and soul free.

I had a Skoda Superb on order until HMRC got in touch, which I think iirc runs on the new passat platform but costs less, has more toys and a bigger load space.

aidso

+1 for the VW. I considered a BMW 3 series a few months ago and for the money at brand new, I don't think you get a good return. The engines will run for ever though. The interior just feels like you have been short-changed unless you're going for models higher up the range.

Thewaylander

What ever hasthe lowest CO2 as owning most normal petrol cars through a company car set up can actually end up more expensive due to the tax.

HIt the bluemotion with low Emmissions so your not taxed down

bellys

Mazda 6 lot of car for the money and good spec iv got a 12mth old one and its a very nice drive but wish i had got the c6 now.
citroen c6 lovey to drive.
audi seem to look nice but not driven a new one.
i do like the new honda accord there very nice but not driven one.

but for me it would be the c6 if you do lots of motorway runs.

sniper68

Tartanyak wrote:

I'd avoid the volvo - they're replacing it soon.

The V60 is brand new

The Vauxhall Insignia is well specced.....but it's a Vauxhall

bellys

Insignia are well specced but as you said its a vauxhall not the best......aslo its got a black box fitted to them....EG... my mate works for vx and a vxr in come in with a blow engine they told owner is not covered by vx as he was red lining the car for X amount of time in a low gear when it give up, he asked them how do you know that, he was told about the black box also the tracker told them what road he was on and speed doing at the time.....NOT GOOD...

Tartanyak

ibbo68 wrote:

Tartanyak wrote:

I'd avoid the volvo - they're replacing it soon.

The V60 is brand new

The Vauxhall Insignia is well specced.....but it's a Vauxhall

I'm so out of date with my volvos

bellys

ibbo68 wrote:

Tartanyak wrote:

I'd avoid the volvo - they're replacing it soon.

The V60 is brand new

and its a ford in a new dress.

leaflite

Don't bother with the bluemotion version of the passat unless you absolutely have to - its a underpowered car with really long gear ratos. Go for the 170 HP Common Rail Diesel-its not a lot worse on fuel and much faster

VWsurfbum

What about the SEAT version of the A4, the EXEO or something? for the money difference you could throw some real toys on it??
But the VW is a lovely drive if a bit dull IMO, The BMW, well its a BMW- good cars but it does mean you'll be the same as every other rep on the road, oh and hated by every normal person because you wont use your indicators and tailgate people.
The Volvo's are good but have the "Safe" tag, My mate has one as his new company motor with a 1.6D in it, slow as feck but great on fuel and tax. and he got the "R" upgrade for free??
Just remember the golden rule. DONT BUY FRENCH!

Thewaylander

And all those toys will cost you in tax again

Keep yours eyes careful I do P11D's as part of my job and some cars can work out alot of money and alot of it is based on net book value with all the extra's

V5ade

You really need to decide what you want from a car, be it fun to drive, cheap tax, loads of space, toys etc.
Drive them all and make a list of pro's and cons.

BTW, not all BMW drivers are tools!

Mancunianfightingcat

+1 for the Skoda Superb, gay name but worthy of it!

allthegearnoidea

i'd defo be looking at the relevant Honda accord and Mazda 6, Japaneese reliability!(fixed servicing costs too i believe, not that its much a worry as a conpany car!) the honda's good for 4 adults in, the middle of the back isnt that comfyu for any distance! (my pops has the 2L auto, pre face lift), apart from having a battery issue (the battery on it is Tiny!! half an hour with the radio on and its gone! ) its the only issue he's had outside of Std servicing over the past 13 years of honda ownership. (1 civic coupe, 2 2l auto saloons and 2 2l auto tourers)
why not look at the Alfa 159 sportwagon?? Lovely to drive, real feel of passion comes from them and reliabilty is Much better than it used to be! (not quite so good as the 156 to drive but they werent quite so reliable!!)
if you go for a german wagon then look at the skoda seat alternatives! the real price vw's should be!!

VWsurfbum

V5ade wrote:

BTW, not all BMW drivers are tools!

LIES ALL LIES

allthegearnoidea I like the idea that you suggest the Alfa, Lovely looking machine, (everyone knows to be a true Car man you have to of owned a alfa) but in reality it will be in the garage more than on the road, a bit like a citreon. Now I know its a company car and you wont have to deal with depreciation as much, but it does get tiresom keep having to drop your car off to the service department for them to bluetack it back together again.
Alpha's also have the best sounding diesels out there, i dont know how but they do.

So in conclusion i suggest you make a spreadsheet of all the things you like and dislike and then pick the car you like the colour of most!

Andy

Honda Accord Tourer.

bellys

[quote a bit like a citreon. ![/quote]

there not as bad as they used to be work has got 4 and never let us down and they get abused http://fwd.five.tv/cars/executive/citroen-c6

allthegearnoidea

my citroen is coming up for 21 years old and all of it still works how it should, especially the elrctrics!!

But! french car makers on the whole tend to opt for Thinner wiring to keep the weight down, which is often the cause of the troubles! also often use thinner matereal in general for the same reasons,

j_l

thanks for all the feed back, some good points.

I have looked at the Seat (old A4) but leg room in the rear is rubbish at best

would never buy French (I know they can be good but I have had a couple and never again)

am aware of the BIK % and P11D value hence looking at the BMW as only 13% on a £27,000 would be the same as my current Seat Altea at 20% £18,000

Hondas look nice but the best Co2 they have is 157g/Km the BM is 120g/Km as is the VW.

Will look at the Vauxhall though.

thanks for feed back folks much appreciated.

bellys

i would look at the mazda 6 there a lot of car and very nice to drive you can get a 2.2 diesel180bhp sport estate fully loaded on the road for £25K

Andy

If you do get a 3 Series, it should be the 320d not the 318d. Much better engine for the car.

allthegearnoidea

the honda deisel's a 2.2 isnt it?? against the Bmw, its 400cc more engine, would expect it to churn out some more co2 lol really you should compare the 2l bm against the others as they are all 2L/+. (surely that should say something if the Bm is in the same bracket yet it has the smallest lump??)
best method as has been said, test as many as you can as close to the spec you can get and make a note of all the good and bad points, then compare, see which is best on paper, which is best to drive, which is best on £££and which is best trade off!!

hyperman

steer clear of the vauxhall insignia....waaaayyy too many problems. never buy a brand new model of any car, wait till its been facelifted and all the problems ironed out..

i do like the look of the new volvo v60 though, i read on another forum somewhere that some of the new mercedes were quite good on the company car tax, may be worth a look.

j_l

its all a trade off I would love more power but I then have the added burden of more Co2, this then effects my income Tax, the 320 BM is a much better option but the additional 15g/Km makes a huge difference as does the higher value. my mouthy tax amount would climb to £120+ where as the 318 BM is only £60.00.

A close friend has a Mazda and though nice looking the interior is horrid same reason for not going with the Mondeo.

My boss has organised a week test of the BM, VW, Audi and Volvo so I will report back.


what really hurts is its all pointing to the BM and I have been a hater all my life :oops:

allthegearnoidea

thing that i'd be thinking more of rather than whats best on paper, is the Bm is fundamentally under powered compared to the other cars! and the 3 series looks a big car for a 1.8 td! (am sure it will be okay but just in comparison!)
a kinda pay more for less principle??

CraigXXL

J L wrote:

its all a trade off I would love more power but I then have the added burden of more Co2, this then effects my income Tax, the 320 BM is a much better option but the additional 15g/Km makes a huge difference as does the higher value. my mouthy tax amount would climb to £120+ where as the 318 BM is only £60.00.

A close friend has a Mazda and though nice looking the interior is horrid same reason for not going with the Mondeo.

My boss has organised a week test of the BM, VW, Audi and Volvo so I will report back.


what really hurts is its all pointing to the BM and I have been a hater all my life :oops:

If you think the Ford and Mazda had bad interiors wait until you get in the BMW or Audi/VW, very dull. The BMW is a great car to drive but underpowered and equipped. The Audi/VW isn't a drivers car, you feel cut off from the steering and chassis.
My choice would be the Octavia VRS (+827 BIK or 330 more in tax (40%)), Mondeo or Citreon.

leaflite

CraigXXL wrote:

J L wrote:

My choice would be the Octavia VRS (+827 BIK or 330 more in tax (40%)), Mondeo or Citreon.

+1
My dads seat leon has the same engine in it, and its the perfect balance of performance and economy. The new common rail model is even better on the fuel (65mpg iirc), and is just as fast.

Gazlar

Does either of these count as an estate in your books, or at least fulfill the role of one?



I can only say good things about the Jeep and Dodge I've had