Seeking advice for new car

[MrAurisT]

On 12/3/2023 at 7:20 PM, Goatz said:

Hi all,

i would be grateful if you could help me with picking a new car.

i currently have a Peugoet RCZ which i picked up very cheap a few years back. I live in London and have no kids so this has been fine. Its also quite comfortable for long trips and my trip computer has me averaging around 38mpg. 
my life is about to change as i now have twins on the way, so i am trying to figure out what sort of car i will need. 
from what i understand, an estate makes more sense than a SUV, being bigger and more economical.

petrol makes more sense than a diesel as i am not racking up a lot of miles a year, although when i do drive it can be long journeys. However, i expect with the 2 on the way i will be using the car more to drive short distances.

i would like something very economical and reliable, which leads me to Toyota and Honda.

My thinking currently is:

avensis estate

auris estate

civic estate 

prius 

i have around 8k to spend. If i do go diesel ( i hear that with a civic diesel you dont have to worry so much about short distances) i will need it to be ulez compliant.

ideally i would want it to be below 100k mileage.

Any tips welcome!

 

thanks

I would recommend an older (I have a 2010) 1.8 petrol T27, ULEZ compliant and one of the properly built vehicles, does near 50mpg on a motorway run been super reliable. Try and find one with cruise. Good luck.

[Cessna]

21 hours ago, Goatz said:

After some more research i am questioning if the auris estate is right for me for two reasons:

1 apparently rear facing child seats are a squeeze

2 there is no room for someone to sit in between two child seats

so perhaps a petrol avensis is a better option?

I think the Avensis is a much better option. An Auris is likely too small for carrying twins, other half and paraphenalia around.

APS's idea of a Prius+ is a good one too. Not as big as an Avensis, but more room than an Auris.

[Cyker]

The Prius+ isn't a bad shout if you can find a real one; Most of the ones on the road are import cars so you have to be careful because that affects the insurance.

They can be pricey tho; If an MPV is an option the Verso is pretty good too; My dad has one and it's been solid. Averages 38-40mpg and has been used for house moves, transporting relatives, even one with a wheel chair! (Thankfully it *just* fit in the back behind the 3rd row when folded up!  )

Their one is a 1.8 Valvematic with CVT gearbox and it's surprisingly good; Has plenty of shove, very smooth, a lot quieter and refined than my Yaris. I love how there is loads of storage bins, even some under the floor! - I really miss that sort of thing from my Yaris Mk 1 and 2 in the Mk4.

My brother also has a 7-seater MPV but it's a BMW 2-Series Gran Tourer - It's much nicer than the Verso (The germans really know how to make an opulent interior!) but was also much more expensive.

 

[Harry Carri]

Having just been car shopping I found the used car  market at the moment a challenge particularly if looking for petrol Avensis estate and petrol Auris estate. There weren't many to choose from, prices were strong and they were scattered all over the country. However when you need to buy a car you just have to take the best option available at the time. 

I think Avensis, Auris and Prius are all good, well proven cars and personal preference and what you need a car to for you are going to be deciding factors. 

Why not give them all an audition if you can find three for sale local to you?

If load and passanger space is your number one priority then I would say Avensis estate in 1.8 petrol, it is a big roomy car. 

I would have one if it fitted in my garage. 

 

 

[Goatz]

Thanks everyone!

prius+ does look interesting. Having a look around they do mostly look like imports so i will need to research that one a bit.

Checking carsized.com the prius+ and avensis look very similar in size ( prius+ a little taller, avensis a little longer, but not by much). It still seems to me that with the avensis you get a lot of bang for your buck. I will have to test drive one first though. 
This deal looks almost too good

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/166460608591?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=-hIIZ9_aQCG&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=9VqhmsqjTlK&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

[TonyHSD]

Prius plus is more practical than Avensis and if it’s a uk spec car comes with two extra seats in the boot which are ultra easy to fold down or set up. 
Plenty of room inside, drives great and can easily deliver 50mpg real world. 
The three independent seats on the rear can be folded down independently,  for loading purposes, or middle seat folded as table with two cap holders. Most trim levels comes also with built in sunshades into rear doors, really helpful in hot summer days. The only negatives on these cars is the higher price because of the taxi trade ,and these rear seats aren’t as comfortable as bench style con Avensis or Japanese imports Prius +. 

[UlleB]

On 12/8/2023 at 9:03 PM, Goatz said:

After some more research i am questioning if the auris estate is right for me for two reasons:

1 apparently rear facing child seats are a squeeze

2 there is no room for someone to sit in between two child seats

so perhaps a petrol avensis is a better option?

Can't speak to other models but the Avensis T27 Estate (2009), which we have, has tons of space for car seats. We often travel with a large dog, a bike on the tow hook, lots of crap in the trunk, a child in the back seat and the car full of adults and it's not even close to being a squeeze. When we have a box on the roof it's even more comfy. Ours is the 1.8 petrol and more or less does 14-15 km/l no matter what we throw at it even after 14 years. I really can't recommend it enough for the money (we paid 10,000 GBP for a more or less fully loaded one). And yes, the price is crazy but in Denmark it's normal due to something like 180-200% tax on cars.