Looking for a diesel daily- budget up to £3k max

[boost monkey 0]

As the title, would perfer to stay VAG (so VW, Seat, Audi TDis) and something with a little bit of poke would be nice (sub 10 0-60 time). Deffo a hatchback for now, was thinking maybe a Mk4 Golf/Polo TDi or something similar.

 

I love the mk2 gti, but as with Pat McCrotch and his daily Integra it's just too hard not to drive it and too easy to see 30mpg from every tank and not much more!

 

The missus would like leather seats and I don't mind a few gadgets (probs leather and aircon are my mains) so anything above that i'm not too fussed with. Can be a 3dr or 5dr too.

 

So far i've been looking at Golfs, Polos, the odd Passat and Bora, Leons and Ibizas, and even some old Volvos tbh! Not really dipped into Audi A3 mk1 kind of stuff as I know they're just a primo version of the Golf.

 

Budget of 3k max is a proper maximum. Obviously I'd rather pay £1-£2k for a nice example, but I just don't kno what prices are like at the mo.

 

If anyone has any good ideas, I would love to hear them!

 

Cheers,

 

Jon.

[Jim Bowen 1]

skoda fabia?

 

not sure how much the VRS is now, i always liked the idea of them

[boost monkey 0]

Ah yeah, forgot those! Cheers matey :D

[emu 0]

Was in same situation some time ago but my budget was 1,5k for estate tdi and managed to get mk4 estate tdi for bit over 1k and I will never regret this decision. Cheap to buy, cheap to run, cheap to fix if you no bother buying genuine parts. Comfy to drive and very easy to get more power by chip tuning.

 

Aircon is fine but you can buy one without leather quiet cheap and then buy leather interior for peanuts from breakers or ebay. I bought one to my car for 100 quid and I still have my cloth for sale so leather will be almost free :)

[boost monkey 0]

Ah nice one! Cheers emu :D good to hear other people's experiences.

[coullstar 0]

Mk4 Golf Tdi's are the best all rounder. They will easily do high mileage, just make sure they have the timing belt and or clutch change. I had a 150tdi and abused the hell out of it for abotu 8 months and not once did it go wrong, was on 135kmiles with original turbo.

Seats / Skoda etc use the same engine but they feel a lot cheaper inside plus the Mk4 is easy to work on. I found the bigger cars like the Passat are not quite so easy and with the different front suspension dont handle quite so good. 130 Tdi is the pick of the engines.

[boost monkey 0]

Cheers coullstar, that's great advice. How come the 130 is the pick over your 150? did you think the extra grunt wasn't needed?

[daves16v 1]

My Passat TDi130 Sport estate is up for sale at the moment but I'd like a little more than 3k I'm afraid, it has been remapped though and is pretty much loaded apart from leather.

[tony_ack 0]

Looks like you have your heart set on a MK4, so go with that! Personally I found the boot a little small for my needs (especially compared to the MK2/Corrado) but that may not be an issue for you. A friend used to have a GT TDI - he had no end of problems with it and sold it in the end, but then there are others that are very reliable. The PD engines need a bit more love than the old TDi units, but then again are a lot more refined.

 

The MK4 is not the most nimble of cars in the world, but can be improved.

 

I have still never had a car with working aircon - I was going to get an A4 with aircon, but when the one I got came up at the price it did I soon learnt I could live without.

[coullstar 0]

Personally I preferred the 150 as its more petrol like to drive (some dont like that) however there have been some with terrible cam and tappet wear on engines. Mine was fine but it had used the correct spec oil from day one and changed every 6kmiles before I got it. Using the correct oil is key I believe.

[boost monkey 0]

Yeah, AC isn't a must tbh nor is the leather. I'd rather have a reliable diesel car that's nice to be in than a few extra toys! My wife's just been in my mum's volvo too often with heater leather seats, esp at this time of the year!

 

Thanks for the oil tip, I'll keep that in mind.

[Supercharged 2]

Can't really go wrong with a MK4 TDI or a Passat if you want more room... just be fussy, look at a few and get a good one!

 

As above the 130 is the best all rounder, 115's suffer from Headgaskets and 150's from chocolate cams - as long as they've been reguarly serviced with the correct PD spec 5W40 Oil though you can't go wrong, 6 Spd gearbox's are great too but clutchs / DMF's cost £

 

Audi's also just as good but parts will cost more although you get free MOT's at Audi - obviously the A3 shares parts with a MK4

[boost monkey 0]

Free MOTs even with an older Audi? That sounds pretty good. Where can I find out more?

[Supercharged 2]

If you have an Internet or World Wide Web then you can go here -

 

https://www.audi.co.uk/owners-area/servicing-with-audi/free-mot/claim-free-mot.html

[MikeVR6 0]

I've been using a Mk4 TDi 130 Highline (mapped to 180bhp) as a daily for the past 3 years. It's just passed 130k and hasn't missed a beat. I bought it at 105k and the clutch and flywheel had just been replaced. Other than regular servicing and tyres it hasn't needed anything. Kind of boring actually; when driving the Corrado there's always that excitement of wondering what will break next :)

[boost monkey 0]

PMSL@Mike, so true! So many random things went on my 16v when I just went for a drive.

 

Thanks Steve, I think I has a internets. There's a little box my computer plugs into. I think the internets is in there.

 

---------- Post added at 02:08 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:54 PM ----------

 

@Ant, I think the mk4 meets our needs. I mean, my wife wanted a Lupo at one point so I don't think she is too worried about space! I did tell her that a Lupo is a 2-seater in reality because you'd need to use the rear seat space if you want to put more than a twig in the boot.

 

Sometimes I picks up two twigs.

[tony_ack 0]

£3k (or even a more realistic £2k) is a nice lump to be able to spend on a car though, so you should get a decent MK4 for that. It would be nice to go and look at a potential new car without having to 'check for rust in the usual places'.

 

The MK4 definitely has enough room for two twigs, and even a Big Stick if you're lucky enough to find one on your travels.

[elliott 10]

Ok not VAG but a 300td or 320cdi w210 merc would be a lot of car for not a lot of money? Also you can do

if you really want... ;)

[boost monkey 0]

£3k (or even a more realistic £2k) is a nice lump to be able to spend on a car though, so you should get a decent MK4 for that. It would be nice to go and look at a potential new car without having to 'check for rust in the usual places'.

 

The MK4 definitely has enough room for two twigs, and even a Big Stick if you're lucky enough to find one on your travels.

 

Yeah, I think I've given up on buying cheap runners aka rolling projects for now! I just need something I can jump in and drive without having to worry about it too much. I doubt it will get modded much - my wife is from SA and has only had a UK licence for about a year now so putting her on a policy as a named driver is the same as having a leaner on there. £££. I think it doubled the premium on the golf from £350 to £800.