Fast petrol estates on a budget?

[Wizard1992]

Hi all

I've been hankering after a estate for a while, now my partner is expecting our second child I finally have a excuse to get one!

I'm currently looking at bmw 3 series tourings (ideally the 3 litre engine spec) no particular reason apart from I like the looks

I'm currently driving a 1.8 kompressor c-class and the car is fine, if a touch gutless.

Are there any cars/models that fit the criteria
Estate/petrol and preferably automatic, budget around the 5k mark

Thanks for all your help

[SlowV6]

We've had an E91 330d for years but to be honest they are like a reverse tardis inside and it never became the do it all family car I envisaged when I bought it. I'd also consider testing a 5 series if you want a beemer and its going to be your one and only car.

(Editted because I asked 3 stupid questions due to not properly reading OPs message)

You'll be looking at E91s with the N52 engine (pre 2007 I think) and most of them will have the ZF6 auto box, which is good for age but IMHO probably suits the 330d better than the 330i.

At that age its likely to be reasonably needy as 15+ yrs old.

Edited by SlowV6 on Sunday 17th November 21:51

[mcdjl]

Yes, my e91 was very small on the inside with one little one. The mondeo that replaced it is vast in comparison(ok I know 5 series would be closer).

[SlowV6]

mcdjl said:

Yes, my e91 was very small on the inside with one little one. The mondeo that replaced it is vast in comparison(ok I know 5 series would be closer).

We have one of those too LoL! A mk4.5 TitX estate, which is a massively better family car, but is a physically huge car when you don't need the capacity. I find it a bit unwieldy in car parks. Beemer better to drive (unfair comparison really) but Ford is very good.

Does it have to be auto? For the budget I was wondering if the 2.0T Insignia (217bhp) would be a good fit?

£5k isn't a huge budget for the ask. If you want petrol/auto and 6cylinders it's going to be old and also thirsty and possibly high tax. If you could increase it by 10% or so you could consider a Lexus 450H, if that sort of thing appeals?
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2024103157...

Edited by SlowV6 on Sunday 17th November 22:04

[castex]

Go BMW touring, manual.

[defblade]

Have a look at imported Subaru Legacy wagons. loads of space, plenty of speed. Also the 3 litre UK one, if you can find one that's not rusty (and they seem to be either rusted out or not rusty at all). Not great mpg is the downside to pace and space; also UK cars may well be the £700+ VED bracket.

[Jamescrs]

I'm a huge BMW fan but for your budget OP and considering its for family transportation I just wouldn't recommend a BMW because you would need to double your budget to get anything half decent. You could probably get a 320D but I wouldn't recommend it.

I'd look at Mondeo's or Insignia's or probably a Skoda Octavia though unfortunately the budget won't stretch to a VRS

[66HFM]

Jamescrs said:

I'm a huge BMW fan but for your budget OP and considering its for family transportation I just wouldn't recommend a BMW because you would need to double your budget to get anything half decent. You could probably get a 320D but I wouldn't recommend it.

I'd look at Mondeo's or Insignia's or probably a Skoda Octavia though unfortunately the budget won't stretch to a VRS

I'd look at A4 Avant, and Skoda VRS Estate rather than an E91, as especially the VRS will and is so much bigger internally.

[Jamescrs]

66HFM said:

I'd look at A4 Avant, and Skoda VRS Estate rather than an E91, as especially the VRS will and is so much bigger internally.

Whilst I would agree there are no VRS estates (at least on Autotrader) within the OP's budget

[OutInTheShed]

SlowV6 said:

mcdjl said:

Yes, my e91 was very small on the inside with one little one. The mondeo that replaced it is vast in comparison(ok I know 5 series would be closer).

We have one of those too LoL! A mk4.5 TitX estate, which is a massively better family car, but is a physically huge car when you don't need the capacity. I find it a bit unwieldy in car parks. Beemer better to drive (unfair comparison really) but Ford is very good.

Does it have to be auto? For the budget I was wondering if the 2.0T Insignia (217bhp) would be a good fit?

£5k isn't a huge budget for the ask. If you want petrol/auto and 6cylinders it's going to be old and also thirsty and possibly high tax. If you could increase it by 10% or so you could consider a Lexus 450H, if that sort of thing appeals?
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2024103157...

Edited by SlowV6 on Sunday 17th November 22:04

That Lexus....
Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):

Rear Suspension arm corroded but not seriously weakened (5.3.3 (b) (i))
tick tock....

Decent cheap estates with reasonable performance can be hard to find.

[decafbeermerchant]

Saab 9-3 Aero Sportwagon.

Avoid the V6s as they cost a bomb to run and they suffer with heat soak as it's a large forced induction engine in a small space. But the 2.0 4-pots are reliable, fast and affordable to run. Easily tunable as well (google Noobtune). High-40s are easily achievable on a run.

Volvo V50 T5 could also be a good option. They're not massive by estate standards but they sound great and again, they're pretty reliable. They don't feel particularly "premium" inside if that bothers you, but in fairness they tend to be well equipped.

And by the way, congratulations.

[ZX10R NIN]

3.2 A4, hard haggling will get you close to 5k:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202411126...

2.0T:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202410014...

E280:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202411025...

Mondeo Titanium X Sport, make sure the gearbox fluids (this is the same for all auto gearboxes but especially the dual clutch ones) have been changed as per their schedule:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202410095...

2.0t Insignia:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202411086...

Legacy:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202411166...

9-3:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202410165...

530i:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202411066...

525i:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202410285...

[nobrakes]

^

These ^ all look very nice capable motors!

E280:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202411025...

Mondeo Titanium X Sport, make sure the gearbox fluids (this is the same for all auto gearboxes but especially the dual clutch ones) have been changed as per their schedule:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202410095...

2.0t Insignia:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202411086...

[Mr Tidy]

I bought a 2006 BMW E91 525i in 2018 and like others have said the boot wasn't massive, so a 5 Series might be a better option.

I felt a little short-changed with the performance though, so after a year I replaced it with a 330i which is significantly better.

It's also an early one with the N52 engine as I wanted to avoid the issues that the later N53 engines often suffer from.

[bolidemichael]

Does budget extend to purchase or maintenance? If the former over the latter, I’d recommend an S211 E500

[Wizard1992]

Thanks for all the replies! I hadn't even considered a audi and I think it's certainly more attractive than a tourer!

After a good few hours online searching and phoning around I finally discovered the perfect car, or so I thought.

It was a audi a4 estate, black and auto just in budget, checked the mot history and it had only had one mot, soon realised that the car was a import.

I'm waiting to speak to the dealer, and I'm sorry for changing the subject but would the car being a import put you off ? The car comes with a full service history supposedly

Thanks again for all your replies!

[Gastons_Revenge]

Wizard1992 said:

I'm waiting to speak to the dealer, and I'm sorry for changing the subject but would the car being a import put you off ? The car comes with a full service history supposedly

Depends where it was imported from. If it was originally sold in the Japanese market then I would potentially see that as a bonus over a UK market car since IIRC they only salt the roads there in the far far north, outside of most of the population hubs- and their equivalent of the MOT is far stricter. As long as all paperwork is present it may be a solid prospect. Get an insurance quote as they can be impacted by imported vehicle status.

[DD3566]

How about something very rare, a Volvo V70 T6. 3.0 Turbocharged 6 Cylinder, AWD, Auto. I believe there is a Polestar tune avaliable for the engine and gearbox which will take it to around 320 BHP

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202408092...