Do it all family car £5k

[Paul_B]

By do it all I'm thinking a car that'll take family camping kit, full complement of 4/5 people minimum with clothes etc and still be nice and easy to drive (parallel park in congested streets, day to.day driving etc.). Also cheap to buy, economical, cheap to find parts/get repaired at a garage, etc.

We got a 5 seat mpv to replace an Astra estate. It had more volume to it but wasn't really much bigger if at all. However being of German/Spanish extraction the car parts are expensive to get and get fitted. It's also had a few problems such that it's not trusted/reliable.

That leads us to the idea of replacing it early and taking a hit on it before it gets more expensive. That leads me to a question.

What is a good used car to get for £5000, that's economical, reliable, plenty of space, not really slow, good for towing a 4/5 birth caravan, cheap to maintain using garages and generally a car to cover most family uses?

Phew! A long question.

I rated my old Astra estate which was a decent size and was reliable. However I think the mondeo or insignia goes for not much more than the Astra so perhaps one of those.cars is better. Any views on the this?

 

[boatman]

I regret parting with my Ford Escort Estate, did the sort of things you want although it towed my boat rather than a caravan. Only quibble was ground clearance.

 

[hughlle1]

Can't go wrong with older mercades estates the ones from the pre-computer age. Cheap as chips and almost any parts can be had for pennies if you're willing to go to scrap yards

 

[The Lord Poncho]

landrover Discovery 2? Its the ultimate do it all car - heaps of space, great to drive, nice square shape and good visibility (i.e. i find it easy to drive/park), parts are mostly cheap and plentiful, perfectly quick enough (especially the V8). Granted it doesn't really tick the reliability or economical boxes though! Sounds a bit odd, but the V8 petrol versions are a lot cheaper to buy than the equivalent spec diesals, and it will be a few years of ownership before the difference in MPG would cancel out that cost saving. And those few years would have been spent with a smile on your face!

 

[Paul_B]

My Astra was ok for clearance for my needs. I've driven b through floods with bow wave that just lapped over the bonnet for example without issue. This weekend I chickened out of so many floods I thought I'd never find a way to my destination. My Astra would have made some of them. Plus it coped well with heavy snows one year despite no snow chains/ sock or even if winter tyres! We just grew out of it. Well our camping kit did but that's the same thing, right?!

 

[Toddy]

I wish they still made Suzuki Ignis', I really do.
Himself said I had to trade mine in because the recovery service we use would only agree to do it until it was so old.
I haven't found another car I really like since.
Good luck finding something suitable in your budget

M

 

[rik_uk3]

Fiat Doblo
Berlingo
Mitsubishi Delica

 

[Macaroon]

I bought a Citroen Berlingo a year ago and I can't fault it. The people carrier version will easily seat 5 in comfort and masses of room to spare for kit. Cheap as chips to buy and run, spares etc.

 

[XRV John]

Skoda Octavia estate

Just got a new one but my other one did 60k miles with nothing more than services. Ultra reliable and huge carrying capacity with a roof box. 600 mile range from 50 ltr diesel tank which I miss as my new one is now only 460 moles!

 

[Robbi]

Some real good deals can be had if you take time to look for them and are prepared to travel a bit, for example, Ex Ambulance Service Skoda Octavia Scout Estates, OK they have high-ish mileage but they have been fully serviced and anything needing changed has been. Cracking cars with ( as said above ) loads of room, intelligent four wheel drive so MPG is very good, could be well worth a look.

 

[santaman2000]

Not sure if it works the same over there are not but here, the bigger rental companies (Hertz, Enterprise, etc.) have a choice in the menu on their websites to view the vehicles they're selling; usually around 3 years old and with a service record. might be worth googling to see.

 

[Robbi]

I know it's too far away for you but this is what you can find.......

http://www.usedcarsni.com/2008-Skoda-Octavia-diesel-4-4-estate-scout-142855868

 

[XRV John]

I know it's too far away for you but this is what you can find.......

http://www.usedcarsni.com/2008-Skoda-Octavia-diesel-4-4-estate-scout-142855868

Christ that's £2700 cheaper than I've been offered for my 59 plate Elegance !

 

[adestu]

I have a seat altea 2.0 tdi sport.maybe the xl version would suit.payed 4000 for mine on a 54 plate with 50000 on the clock.

 

[Paul_B]

We got a seat altea xl in the end. Worked out well for us since the space seemed more than our old Astra estate. Bit sportier feel but boy aren't the parts expensive. Also Halfords and those high street car part chains don't stock the wipers for the car. A different fitting bit apparently. Things like that annoy me.

Anyway, think we'll not keep it the full 7 years we usually keep cars for. I know VW, Skoda, SEAT, etc are a good, reliable set of car makes I just not happy with their slight premium cost to run over Vauxhall or Ford cars. Especially since all cars are made by a limited range of tier 1 and 2 part suppliers. They'll be supplied at least some if not most of their parts from the same suppliers their competitors buy from. Certainly the European based plants but even US plants take Euro parts.

We're now wondering about which sized van makes a decent car replacement / camper conversion other than the overpriced vw transporter range. Bongo, hiace, nv200 at a push but more likely Ford transit or Vauxhall Vivaro and equivalent rebranded versions.

 

[GGTBod]

I really like the look of the Toyota Hilux double cab 4x4, they run forever and second hand cost with fsh range from 2.5k to 15k depending how new it needs to be for you

 

[Gcckoka]

I don't know what the prices are over there . but if you can afford it buy Land Rover Discovery 2

 

[mountainm]

Citroen Picasso - the only car I've seen that you can fit 3 child seats into in the back. The seats come out to turn it into a van (I got 2 ikea armchairs in ours). We're on our second. Ours is the old model, but it doesn't look as vannish as a berlingo.

 

[Tony]

Well, we've had a Ssangyong Rodius for a couple of years now and I have to say that the bang for your buck is huge, 2.7lt will tow 2.7t, 31mpg around the countryside here, 7 seats with plenty of room, we pack 7 of us and luggage inside because behind the back seats there's enough space for suitcases.

Some people really hate the looks, I just think it's brill at what it does and they're cheap making them great value.

 

[Hunkyfunkster]

Our current car is a c4 grand Picasso. Good to drive and a decent amount of space.

Not as big as the Citroen c8 we had before that. Couldn't fault that car at all. Highly recommend it to anyone. I read loads of crappy reviews (after I'd bought it) but we had it for years and it served us well. Rear automatic sliding doors were a godsend. Loads of room inside, and loads of seat configurations meant we could fit anything we needed inside. Plus the roof bars meant a top box was easily fitted too. Only sold it on as we "upgraded" to the c4.


Alex