I’m having a dilemma on whether to keep running a ten yr old Peugeot 406 diesel estate which will need a new exhaust before its MOT in December and a service. Other consumable items will also need replacing in the next 6-9 months. Its been reliable and economical, comfy etc.
The alternative is to replace with a similar sized estate. The wife insists we need the space.
A newer Mondeo would fit the bill but for our budget, we could probably only get a 2008 2.0 tdci with the kind of mileage at which the car may need a new DMF or DPF and that things will start to go expensively wrong. I guess that’s why there is a large choice of 80k-110k cars, probably ex company fleet vehicles that they want shot of.
The ‘what’s bad’ section on HJ’s website regarding the Mondeo isn't reassuring.
Would a newer Focus 1.6 90hp diesel be a good choice? again though, I'm looking at mileages starting at 50-60k for my budget.
Renault Megane estate - any one got experience of these?
I quite like the Octavia- are there any I should avoid?
If it was my choice I'd try find the extra cash and go for a Hyundai I30 estate and we'd just have to compromise on the boot space but have the reassurance of the warranty.
Are there any other makes to consider?
|
If it's a reliable motor fix the one you have and run it till next summer when it's warm to shop around, these cars are a good old bus worth keeping if a tidy motor.
Mondeo.............No thanks Diesel pump scares me.
Mazda 6 No another bag of spanners.
Last edited by: Bigtee on Wed 2 Nov 11 at 12:33
|
Stick, without question in my opinion. Sounds like for a few hundred quid at most you can get an easy couple more years out of a car you like. I know someone who sold a perfectly good Mondeo estate just because his wife wanted a new car. The only thing which noticeably changed was the level of his bank account...
:-)
|
|
Not the Megane, unless you have a large bank balance - for, lets say after sales visits to the garage.
|
Kia Ceed 1.6d, one owned by one of our flock seems to do the business, under 100k it's still be under warranty if it's been serviced properly.
Avensis, another 406, current C5, outside runner Lacetti but i don't think you'll find a Diesel version.
|
Beware of Mondeos with low profile tyres and alloys.
Was replacing Matiz fronts (with Uniroyal Rains) when lady came in with a flat: a chipped and cracked alloy over a pothole..
So if your local roads are rough..
And the tyres are not cheap either..
|
Keep it, or try and save up a bit more and buy one of the Korean cars new or nearly new, nice long warranty etc.
I would not buy an 08 high mileage Mondeo as a replacement for your 406 as it is likely to be no more reliable.
Sounds like you're just a bit bored of it and looking for an excuse to get rid. I find in this case, mixing Coca-Cola with petrol might cause enough problems to warrant the excuse to replace it :)
|
You feeling alright Stu?
:-)
|
406 would be cousin to my Xantia.
Stick
|
I have grown to like the old Pug so I'd happily keep it but can I convince 'er indoors?
I'd be happy to replace worn or broken stuff as an when. It owes us nothing as we were given the car by an elderly relative so in effect, depreciation is nil and the current costs are normal running costs of fuel, consumables such as tyres and servicing, exhausts etc. I like the GLX spec, its quiet, smooth, body work has no rust and it has returned up to 66mpg on a run from Cumbria to Essex.
Think I'll stick
Thanks all.
|
>>You feeling alright Stu?<<
Ive wasted too much money on cars to go round suggesting others do the same, I know its folly really, ive always been able to afford it, but ive come around to thinking that its not affordability but neccessity that should govern the decision.
|
Trouble with sticking is we don't know what else needs doing, clutch?, DMF?, or full brake overhaul etc.
Choice of stick or twist might depend on whether TMWNN will be DIYing, if all work will be garage prices then there could be a serious bill or two coming up.
I'd be inclined to keep it too, but i'd likely be fixing all meself.
|
>> Trouble with sticking is we don't know what else needs doing, clutch?, DMF?, or full
>> brake overhaul etc.
That's always the quandry. The Xantia has cost me a few hundred over the past 6 months (induction plumbing, hydraulic leak etc). But the cost to change would be north of £4k. OK there would be a dealer warranty for 12 months and I suspect I'd have some goodwill in the event of a marginal claim. No guarantee of 'service only' garage costs though.
The book at the moment still has me £3k++ in credit.
|
>> The book at the moment still has me £3k++ in credit.
>>
And quite right to stay with the known if possible, especially when it was an elusive silk purse in the first place.
The other thing about good Diesel cars of this period ar that they are just about the last ones that are fairly simple to fix should they go wrong, they're not fitted with the dubious DMF or idiotic injectors that seem to need regular replacement at the most incrdible prices.
Seems our OP is sticking, good for you...just out of interest what else is likely to need doing in the near future.
|
>> Seems our OP is sticking, good for you...just out of interest what else is likely
>> to need doing in the near future.
>>
I reckon front discs and pads will be needed in next 6-9 months, could do with a new handbrake cable, definitely needs exhaust centre section and back box for its MOT. The wife wants a new front n/s coil spring to match the one replaced a few months ago. I know I should have probably changed both at the same time.
Tyres are good, bodywork good, interior perfect and everything electrical works.
|
Absolutely right to stick then, those jobs and more could easily need doing on a 4 year old car.
Apart from that they were one of the nicest, and the very last proper estate car from Pug.
|
It is always a gamble but consumables will need doing on any used car. You don't expect a 60k car to have perfect brakes and tyres do you?
I too have wasted far too much money on cars and never want to buy another car again until I really have to. Probably when petrol runs out or I simply cannot afford to drive any more or I loose my licence or die.
|
>>never want to buy another car again until I really have to. Probably when petrol runs out <<
They are re-fillable you know! ;-)
|
TheManWithNoName - dump it and let me take it off your hands as it's nothing more than pile of useless junk.
Once it's mine I'll then let you in to the secret: it's probably one of the best old estates ever made, economical, reliable, cheap to fix and with a few running repairs will last another 15+ years.
I would really like a good one.
|
The cheapest car is always the one you've already got.
I'm no fan of 406s, having had a couple of mechanically fragile ones, but if you know your car and what it does and doesn't need doing then keeping it's the best choice.
Focus 1.6TDCi 90hp will have the same DMF/DPF situation as the 08 Mondeos. Not a lot of space inside a newer Focus if you're used to a 406.
Octavia - lots of these are used as taxis which is not necessarily a bad thing - mechanically they go on forever but at 150k+ miles the interiors get a bit dirty and knocked about. Also, non-taxi diesel estates often have a harder-than-average life as engineer's cars, or used for towing etc. They only get abused because they can take it, but nobody wants to buy an abused car!
Have you considered a later non-DPF Mk3 Mondeo TDCi? ;)
|
>> I guess that’s why there is a large choice of 80k-110k cars, probably ex company
>> fleet vehicles that they want shot of.
Not getting shot of them, just that the lease company want to dispose of them at 3 years old, so they end up at auction in large volumes
|
I agree with the others - stick for now, unless and until you get a prohibitively expensive repair bill.
Does your annual mileage make a diesel worthwhile? I ask because diesels like your 406 used to be tough: with all the appendages found in modern diesels there are too many expensive failures that could happen at any time.
An Octavia would do you well: if you really do need a diesel, the non-DPF 1.9 TDI woul be best.
Last edited by: Avant on Fri 4 Nov 11 at 00:21
|
|
My dad had a 406hdi, and sold it a couple of years ago. It had done about 100K with only minor issues and a/c leaks. He was started to worry it was getting a bit long in th tooth, so sold it cheap to a local cab company. Ironically, they now use the same cab company to take them to the airport for their many trips to the house in spain, and more often than not it's in the same old 406. The guy has put another 130K on it without any real issues, and the old man regrets selling it.
|
>> Does your annual mileage make a diesel worthwhile? I ask because diesels like your 406
>> used to be tough: with all the appendages found in modern diesels there are too
>> many expensive failures that could happen at any time.
>>
>> An Octavia would do you well: if you really do need a diesel, the non-DPF
>> 1.9 TDI woul be best.
>>
With family dotted around the country from Southampton to Cumbria, Cambridge & Devon a diesel comes into its own on a good run especially loaded with kids n stuff.
My brother has a mate who drives an Octavia 1.9. Says its bombproof, so if the Pug went pop this is what I'd probably choose.
|
|
I've got an Octavia 1.9 PD and although I've only done 50,000 mile so far has been impeccable. No problems whatsoever. Only been in garage for routine servicing. Ideal on motorway. Feels as though would cruise at 70 forever. Huge boot . Ideal general purpose/family vehicle.
|
Stick or twist? - Bigtee
