335d, Octavia VRS, or ?

[BigDaddyTurbo]

My aging Audi A4 B8 Avant needs replacing.

On average, I do 12k a year with the vast majority of that being motorway round trips to see my lad. About 60 miles return.

The Audi has been a work horse but I'd like something more exciting and practical, without draining the pocket on fuel and maintenance.

The only two cars I have on the shortlist at the moment are:

• BMW 335d Touring - 2014 onwards (I understand there was a facelift in 2016?)
• Octavia VRS (petrol or diesel) - 2017 ish onwards
• Any other suggestions?

Budget is around 20k. Needs to be an estate.

I've wanted the 335d for a number of years, but I am wondering if buying a big diesel like this is a bit daft at the moment.

Brands that wouldn't make the list:

• Mercedes
• Vauxhall
• Probably others but I can't think of them right now...

Any help appreciated here!

[stevemcs]

335d every time, although personally i find the 330d a very good car, they drive better and as mentioned above th ZF8 is a much nicer gear box. The skoda might be practical but there is more excitement in a washing up bowl

[ZX10R NIN]

BigDaddyTurbo said:

My aging Audi A4 B8 Avant needs replacing.

On average, I do 12k a year with the vast majority of that being motorway round trips to see my lad. About 60 miles return.

The Audi has been a work horse but I'd like something more exciting and practical, without draining the pocket on fuel and maintenance.

The only two cars I have on the shortlist at the moment are:

• BMW 335d Touring - 2014 onwards (I understand there was a facelift in 2016?)
• Octavia VRS (petrol or diesel) - 2017 ish onwards
• Any other suggestions?

Budget is around 20k. Needs to be an estate.

I've wanted the 335d for a number of years, but I am wondering if buying a big diesel like this is a bit daft at the moment.

Brands that wouldn't make the list:

• Mercedes
• Vauxhall
• Probably others but I can't think of them right now...

Any help appreciated here!

Can I ask why no Mercedes?

A diesel makes perfect sense with your usage, the 335d is a good shout but for me the Xdrive hurts the drive imo the 330d is the better car.

330d M Sport:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202203163...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207017...

Jaguar XF S Portfolio:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207017...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202206307...

V90 D5:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202205145...

[Pistonheader101]

335d xdrive for sure. Wouldn’t half ass it and get a 330d

[BigDaddyTurbo]

ZX10R NIN said:

Can I ask why no Mercedes?

I drove a 350e a few years ago and just hated the infotainment system. I'm also wary of how expensive the servicing and parts are, but perhaps that's an outdated view?

[BigDaddyTurbo]

sgtbash said:

The F30 335d has insane power, the first time I drove one I was blown away, the engine with the ZF8 speed is just a winning combination.

So does the 335d and the 330d both share the same ZF8 gearbox or have I got that wrong?

[BigDaddyTurbo]

Thanks for all the responses. Really appreciate it!

I notice that the facelifted 2016ish models that are in my price bracket tend to have a lot of miles on them. How much of a concern is this on a car like the 335d? Should I be stoutly looking for a FBMWSH?

[georgeyboy12345]

I'd go for a post-2015 335d, like this one
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202205105...


what about another Audi A4? Here's a TFSI Quattro
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202205256...


Or a 3.0 TDI V6
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202206297...


Peugeot 508 SW
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207087...

Not really a patch on a 335d though

[SD_1]

I'd highly recommend a 335d, I've got one and it's a fantastic car. Mine is a 65 plate on about 52k, has given zero issues over the year or so I've had it. Plenty of power, comfortable, and drives very well.

Make sure you have a go in one - people get a bit wound up about about the SE suspension and the standard small sat nav screen, but in my experience they really aren't issues at all. Just watch out for the run flat tyres, mine is on 19s and run flats it came with made a hell of a lot of road noise, but swapping to Michelin PS4s transformed it.

Edited by SD_1 on Monday 25th July 21:17

[georgeyboy12345]

BigDaddyTurbo said:

Thanks for all the responses. Really appreciate it!

I notice that the facelifted 2016ish models that are in my price bracket tend to have a lot of miles on them. How much of a concern is this on a car like the 335d? Should I be stoutly looking for a FBMWSH?

These cars are designed to do big miles, so should be ok.

I'd sooner have a newer high mileage car than an older one with fewer miles. For example, I'd sooner have a 3 year old car with 60k than a 8 year old car with 30k.

Low mileage can mean it was more likely used for lots of short journeys where the car hasn't been allowed to get up to temp, etc. Whereas a with a high mileage, it's more likely to have been done on the motorway, which is less stressful for the car in general.

[stevemcs]

Pro Nav is nice to have but Xenons or LED's are an absolute must.

[reefer110]

I've only skimmed the thread, apologies if somebody else has mentioned similar -

I had PFL 335D for around 18 months, in that time I changed out the suspension for the full ACS version, swapped out the rear roll bar for the 15mm version, and got rid of the run flats, also ran it on a square 18-inch setup for the last few months. As you'd expect it drove pretty well, not much would trouble it at the traffic lights. But, the underlying fear that the transfer case was about to let go terrified me, a slight stutter at cruising speeds akin to fuel starvation (it wasn't) worried me stupid, so I sold it. Shame as it was a great car but as a daily, I couldn't take the risk.

19" staggered wheels look the part, as do the 20's which some come on but I found the ride too hard. The 18's provided a decent compromise.

BMW will tell you the ZF8 is a sealed unit, ZF says otherwise... get it serviced, I think ZF suggest around 60k. Oil changes, I cut the BMW suggestion of every 20k in half and went for every 10k.

[Pica-Pica]

I have the F30 335d ZF8 on a ‘66 plate, so EU6 and LCI. If you can, I would try and get one on 18” wheels. After three years, I swapped mine out from 19”, but still kept to runflats. I had mine from pre-reg’d on 9 miles. Quite frankly, we don’t need two cars now, but I can’t part with it, and keep it for longer runs. I don’t think the 330d has the twin turbo at that age. The twin turbo is the raison d’être of the 335d.

[BigDaddyTurbo]

Is the LCI the facelifted model? What exactly changed in that? I'm not quiote sure how to tell if all 2016 onwards are facelifted or if I should be looking for visual clues to confirm.

I had a 320d M Sport Shadow Edition Touring a couple of years ago and that was so nice to drive.

I've shortlisted the following ads:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202204064...
104,000 miles though...
Lot of the services are 00000 so I guess that's an independant garage.
It's also done 35k between the last two services (35k in six months is a lot of driving...)

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202009284...
More reasonable on the miles but lacking a couple of options I'd really like to go for (sunroof...HUD at a stretch)

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207087...
78k miles but FBMWSH and some balance of warranty. Next service is a long time away.
Doesn't have the M Performance bodykit on which I think really helps the look of the car.
No sunroof.

Am I getting too picky or is it a matter of watching for a few weeks? I think I have about 6 weeks to get this done.

[HelldogBE]

reefer110 said:

I've only skimmed the thread, apologies if somebody else has mentioned similar -

I had PFL 335D for around 18 months, in that time I changed out the suspension for the full ACS version, swapped out the rear roll bar for the 15mm version, and got rid of the run flats, also ran it on a square 18-inch setup for the last few months. As you'd expect it drove pretty well, not much would trouble it at the traffic lights. But, the underlying fear that the transfer case was about to let go terrified me, a slight stutter at cruising speeds akin to fuel starvation (it wasn't) worried me stupid, so I sold it. Shame as it was a great car but as a daily, I couldn't take the risk.

19" staggered wheels look the part, as do the 20's which some come on but I found the ride too hard. The 18's provided a decent compromise.

BMW will tell you the ZF8 is a sealed unit, ZF says otherwise... get it serviced, I think ZF suggest around 60k. Oil changes, I cut the BMW suggestion of every 20k in half and went for every 10k.

This is a great argument for a 330D without Xdrive.
The ride will be better sorted as an M-Sport too.

[Keepersball]

My money would be on a Skoda Superb 280 4x4

All the toys, all the space and all the grunt you could ever want - for your budget you’d be looking at a 2016/17 with 40 ish k miles. I had one and was unbelievably good! If your so inclined you can make them look aggressive too!

[fflump]

I had a '16 plate 330d and while a very competent and quick car was a pretty soulless place to be compared to my previous car (Alfa 159 V6) and subsequent car (Ghibli V6S).

[nordboy]

The diesel Octavia VRs is pretty slow, we have a few of the petrol versions, they perform, or feel much faster than the stats figures say.

We also have two Superb sportline 280's, which are also swift.

As for a diesel, you won't go far wrong with either a BMW 330 or 335.

[hulksta]

BigDaddyTurbo said:

Is the LCI the facelifted model? What exactly changed in that? I'm not quiote sure how to tell if all 2016 onwards are facelifted or if I should be looking for visual clues to confirm.

I had a 320d M Sport Shadow Edition Touring a couple of years ago and that was so nice to drive.

I've shortlisted the following ads:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202204064...
104,000 miles though...
Lot of the services are 00000 so I guess that's an independant garage.
It's also done 35k between the last two services (35k in six months is a lot of driving...)

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202009284...
More reasonable on the miles but lacking a couple of options I'd really like to go for (sunroof...HUD at a stretch)

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207087...
78k miles but FBMWSH and some balance of warranty. Next service is a long time away.
Doesn't have the M Performance bodykit on which I think really helps the look of the car.
No sunroof.

Am I getting too picky or is it a matter of watching for a few weeks? I think I have about 6 weeks to get this done.

The 1st one has an absolutely fantastic spec.
HUD, lane keep assist, forward collision which will include radar cruise control, and rear heated seats are hardly ever seen on F30/F31s.
High mileage indicates a motorway car, so regular servicing and the long drives you do will give you no issue what so ever.
I personally don’t understand the stigma of buying cars that have higher than 100k mileage.

[BigDaddyTurbo]

Yeah the first one ticks all the right boxes. Just concerned about the last few services being non-BMW. Perhaps I should just give them a call tomorrow to have a chat about it.

Do we think £19,695 is a fair price?