Economical Commuter Suggestions £10k

[slowcyclist]

Hi,

My daily commute is about to increase from 1.5 miles each way to 53 miles each way - 10 miles cross country A & B roads, 40 miles motorway and 3 miles in town traffic.

I currently drive a 2008 VW Touran which has never yet left me stuck at the side of the road, but has a constant stream of little niggles that erode confidence.

As such I'm looking for a new (to me) car predominantly for my commute and currently have two trains of thought:
1. Buy a 5 door hatchback for £5-6k just for the commute, keeping the Touran for when we need the bigger vehicle; or
2. Replace the Touran with a large-ish family vehicle for £8-10k that will be used for commuting and family duties.

In either event I want something that will do a real-world 50ish mpg if diesel or 45ish mpg if petrol. Reliability is of paramount importance, particularly as I might be lift-sharing with one or two colleagues which also means that even the hatchback needs to comfortably seat an adult in the back. Handling and performance are not of much concern.

I'd like to keep either option for at least three or four years, so would prefer something with less than 60k miles at the time of purchase and that will be happy for another 80k to 100k miles . What do you all suggest?

[georgeyboy12345]

I’ll suggest some cars later/tomorrow, but for now one piece of advice - don’t lift share with colleagues, you’ll regret it.

[slowcyclist]

georgeyboy12345 said:

I’ll suggest some cars later/tomorrow, but for now one piece of advice - don’t lift share with colleagues, you’ll regret it.

You're probably correct about the lift sharing, but the fuel cost savings are too significant to ignore.

[georgeyboy12345]

slowcyclist said:

georgeyboy12345 said:

I’ll suggest some cars later/tomorrow, but for now one piece of advice - don’t lift share with colleagues, you’ll regret it.

You're probably correct about the lift sharing, but the fuel cost savings are too significant to ignore.

Honestly, I did it once, never again. The fuel cost savings for me meant my weekly commuting fuel bill went down to £0, but in hindsight, I'd happily pay £50 to not have to life share - you lose the very thing a car gives you - your personal freedom!

Finish what you have to do early so you can sneak off at 4 pm on a Friday? Nope, you can't do that as you have to wait for your lift share buddies. Got a load of work to do which means you might have to stay a bit later til 7 pm, so you can get it out of the way? Nope, you can't do that as your lift share buddies are waiting for you at 5 pm to take them home. Got something a bit out of the way you need to pick up after work? Nope, you can't do that as your lift share buddies want to get home. Have a dentist appointment at 3pm? You'll have to go to the dentist, then back to work to pick up your lift share buddies, rather than just knock off the rest of the day. It's awful, don't do it.

With regards to the car, I'd opt for option 2 and pick one of these

Skoda Octavia 1.6 TDI SE
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202301253...


Vauxhall Insignia 2.0 CDTi ecoFLEX Elite with full dealership history
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202112030...


Kia Optima 1.7 CRDi
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202208259...


Renault Megane 1.5 dCi with recent cambelt
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302023...


Ford Focus 1.5 TDCi Zetec S with FSH
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202211041...


Volvo V40 D2
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202209220...

[Bobupndown]

Of the above suggestions I'd take the Octavia, thousands of taxi drivers can't be wrong.
I'd maybe search for the 2 litre diesel version though, extra power and torque make it a nicer drive with not much difference in fuel economy.

[slowcyclist]

georgeyboy12345 said:

Honestly, I did it once, never again. The fuel cost savings for me meant my weekly commuting fuel bill went down to £0, but in hindsight, I'd happily pay £50 to not have to life share - you lose the very thing a car gives you - your personal freedom!

Finish what you have to do early so you can sneak off at 4 pm on a Friday? Nope, you can't do that as you have to wait for your lift share buddies. Got a load of work to do which means you might have to stay a bit later til 7 pm, so you can get it out of the way? Nope, you can't do that as your lift share buddies are waiting for you at 5 pm to take them home. Got something a bit out of the way you need to pick up after work? Nope, you can't do that as your lift share buddies want to get home. Have a dentist appointment at 3pm? You'll have to go to the dentist, then back to work to pick up your lift share buddies, rather than just knock off the rest of the day. It's awful, don't do it.

With regards to the car, I'd opt for option 2 and pick one of these

Skoda Octavia 1.6 TDI SE
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202301253...


Vauxhall Insignia 2.0 CDTi ecoFLEX Elite with full dealership history
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202112030...


Kia Optima 1.7 CRDi
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202208259...


Renault Megane 1.5 dCi with recent cambelt
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302023...


Ford Focus 1.5 TDCi Zetec S with FSH
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202211041...


Volvo V40 D2
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202209220...

Thanks very much for the reply and suggestions.

I think that the Octavia would be my choice of the ones you've suggested, although the Kia is a good suggestion that I'd not previously thought of. The Insignia is also appealing.

The Focus and possibly the Volvo are a little smaller than I'd like for our main family car and closer to the size I was thinking of for a commuter hatchback. Having had a Scenic a few years ago where fixing faults was like playing whack-a-mole, I'm not sure I'd trust a Renault for the mileage I'd be doing.

[georgeyboy12345]

Bobupndown said:

Of the above suggestions I'd take the Octavia, thousands of taxi drivers can't be wrong.
I'd maybe search for the 2 litre diesel version though, extra power and torque make it a nicer drive with not much difference in fuel economy.

Might struggle to get a 2 litre that’s euro 6 within budget below 60k miles

[slowcyclist]

georgeyboy12345 said:

Might struggle to get a 2 litre that’s euro 6 within budget below 60k miles

Although euro 6 would be a bonus I don't regularly drive in any low emissions zones, so it's not a big consideration.

[georgeyboy12345]

slowcyclist said:

georgeyboy12345 said:

Might struggle to get a 2 litre that’s euro 6 within budget below 60k miles

Although euro 6 would be a bonus I don't regularly drive in any low emissions zones, so it's not a big consideration.

In that case, it's probably a better idea to go for something that isn't Euro 6 as your money will go further. Given the mileages you are doing, it probably doesn't matter if it's not Euro 6 anyway as it'll be worth sod all after a few years doing 25k a year.

Euro 5 versions of some I've already recommended

Vauxhall Insignia 2.0 CDTi ecoFLEX Elite
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202301273...


Skoda Octavia 2.0 TDI SE
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302104...


Kia Optima 1.7 CRDi
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202212082...



Plus, not needing a Euro 6 opens up some more options

Volvo S60 D3
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302104...


Ford Mondeo 2.0 TDCI Titanium X Business Edition
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202301093...


Audi A4 2.0 TDI SE
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202212212...


Honda Accord 2.0 i-DTEC GT
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302023...


Or for almost your lower budget, a Peugeot 508 2.0 HDi
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202210030...

[slowcyclist]

georgeyboy12345 said:

In that case, it's probably a better idea to go for something that isn't Euro 6 as your money will go further. Given the mileages you are doing, it probably doesn't matter if it's not Euro 6 anyway as it'll be worth sod all after a few years doing 25k a year.

Euro 5 versions of some I've already recommended

Vauxhall Insignia 2.0 CDTi ecoFLEX Elite
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202301273...


Skoda Octavia 2.0 TDI SE
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302104...


Kia Optima 1.7 CRDi
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202212082...



Plus, not needing a Euro 6 opens up some more options

Volvo S60 D3
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302104...


Ford Mondeo 2.0 TDCI Titanium X Business Edition
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202301093...


Audi A4 2.0 TDI SE
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202212212...


Honda Accord 2.0 i-DTEC GT
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302023...


Or for almost your lower budget, a Peugeot 508 2.0 HDi
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202210030...

Thanks very much for that. I'm not entirely sure why, but I'm quite drawn to the KIA. I might try to find one locally to have a look at over the weekend.