Replacing the old boat

[Ian_Fearn]

Next month the MOT is due on my big old V6 Omega estate. I love it and it suits my needs just fine but the mrs hates it with a passion. It needs work. Its officially 45k overdue a cambelt change, wants an autobox oil change and generally wants some love but drives great and is an amazing workhorse. I've abused it.

 

I'm doing a house up at the moment and the garage isn't built yet so doing any work at the moment is out. So I'm thinking of appeasing 'er indoors and making my life easier with something a bit newer.

 

I quite fancy one of those Rover 75 V8s in estate form but they're daft money. So what would you recommend for upto 4k in a similar flavour to the omega.

 

Google reveals the V6 Turbo Vectras/Signums, X Type jags etc

 

 

[Lacquer Peel]

Nissan Serena.

[twosmoke300]

Accord tourer or big Volvo I reckon . Or you could get a blinding Saab 9-5 for 4k . Just watch the tax banding on 2004 on big cars

[Lacquer Peel]

Rover Quintet.

[skattrd]

Someone post a link to that V6 Camry estate please, lots of change from 4 bags, blue leather and double wipers on the tailgate

[Lacquer Peel]

Cushman Haulster.

[Cavcraft]

Renault Kangoo.

[cort1977]

Mercedes wagon?

[Joey spud]

Winters around the corner so a Legacy / Legacy outback would be high on my wanted list.

[Lacquer Peel]

Why the 'need' for four-wheel drive in winter? I have driven around the snowiest place in Britain in some of the snowiest winters of recent years in two-wheel drive cars with no problems.

 

Dacia Shifter.

[Sigmund Fraud]

I was going to recommend a Horsey Horseless, but they didn't make an estate version so I'll refrain.

 

I reckon the Autoshite way would be to spend £500 on the Omega and £500 on jewellery to appease the missus. The remaining £3K of your budget can be used to purchase more shite cars

[Joey spud]

Well mr peel you are obviously a driving god and i salute you.

[brickwall]

Octavia? There seem to be some decent ones around now.

[wuvvum]

Those 2.8 turbo Vectras look like a bit of a weapon - and something of a sleeper in Elite form, or in ex-plod SRI spec.  I had the 3.2 non-turbo version and it was a lovely old thing to drive.

 

Either that or spend £2K on a W210 E430 estate and the remaining £2K on rustproofing products.

[Ian_Fearn]

Subaru Outback 3.0.

 

 

Off to ebay......

[Micrashed]

Well mr peel you are obviously a driving god and i salute you.

Not really, Ive been driving in all sorts of shit on two wheels and four for the last twenty odd years and only once owned a 4x4 ( for about 8 weeks - I hated it). Ive never been stuck in snow yet. Small light car, M&S front tyres, snow socks and a shovel - but even then Ive only ever used my shovel once.

[Joey spud]

All fine but what about your wife and kids cant they have use of a family vehicle that is undeniably more sure footed in crap conditions.

I thought this place was a broad church where running something a bit different was to be applauded and not scorned.

[Cavcraft]

Buy a 4x4 Vectra and lets find out.

[Lacquer Peel]

Buying a 4x4 for winter is for fuds, especially if you live in the south of England.

Next.

[vulgalour]

Anything is going to be better than an Omega, apart from maybe another Omega.

[forddeliveryboy]

All fine but what about your wife and kids cant they have use of a family vehicle that is undeniably more sure footed in crap conditions.

 

I thought this place was a broad church where running something a bit different was to be applauded and not scorned.

 

I think it's got to the point in modern England where not believing a 4x4 is the best way to travel through snow is a little bit different. The BBC line, "our reporter managed to reach the snow-stricken community in his four wheel drive" seems to have affected people's better judgement. Perhaps it's just that too many cars have too-wide tyres in a hard compound. Instead of spending £200 on a set of old steelies and 4 new winter tyres, they blow thousands on something which costs more to buy, to run, to insure, to service, to repair and to re-tyre.

 

You need four driven wheels if you're towing up a hill through slippery conditions. Otherwise, why? Getting going (unless you have a BMW/Glipless tyres with 1.6mm tread remaining) is the easy bit. Superb snow tyres start from under £30 online, so no excuse for not having them if you want to drive in snow. It's stopping and cornering which is more difficult and which dictate your speed (along with how well balanced your rear brakes are).

 

Which isn't to say I'm not fond of old Land Rovers or that a sensibly-tyred Audi quattro or Subaru isn't good in snow. I live somewhere many would call extreme, the last thing I want is a lumbering agricultural machine when there is nothing but a dry stone wall between you and a few hundred feet drop. If the plough hasn't been through, then on some days even tractors struggle to get out of the valley, let alone a Land Rover.

[Micrashed]

All fine but what about your wife and kids cant they have use of a family vehicle that is undeniably more sure footed in crap conditions.

 

I thought this place was a broad church where running something a bit different was to be applauded and not scorned.

Im scorning no one, merely pointing out that its perfectly possible to survive without a 4x4, and yes I concede that the C8 is a bag of shit on snow, not that my wife cares ( marry a farmers daughter, they are very robust creatures) she will take my car out if she needs to or walk to the shops, the kids walk to school anyway.

 

As for different, my wife used to have a Unimog. There are times I think she thinks she is still driving one.

[dollywobbler]

Micrashed - I thought just like you, right up until the striped BX got stuck on an incline four miles from home, in a snowstorm, at 1am. I bloody wished I'd got four-wheel drive then, as skill is no use at all if you've got absolutely zero grip. Mind you, winter tyres are pretty handy.

 

Anyway, back to the point. XM, a doggy C6 would be nicely suicidal, or an E39 BMW.

[forddeliveryboy]

 

You can get stuck in any vehicle, without the right tyres.

[dollywobbler]

Indeed. But just saying 4x4 is unnecessary isn't true either. I've still not had a chance to test winter tyres in PROPER snow. Every year I have some, it barely snows. That's one way of avoiding getting stuck I suppose. 

[PiperCub]

Legacy's are really decent cars - the one's I've driven anyway but the two things everyone I've known who's bought a Subaru has bitched about are the crap fuel economy and very high price of parts. As I've not actually owned one I'm not sure how fair/accurate this is now though.

 

Down here in deepest Hampshire, seems every fifth car is a 4x4, but amusingly when the weather turns crap, very few of the owners know how to use them and you have instances like that RR in 6" of snow!!

[dollywobbler]

Has to be said, my Legacy was a nice old bus. Typically I got bored with it. 27mpg didn't help.

[Micrashed]

Micrashed - I thought just like you, right up until the striped BX got stuck on an incline four miles from home, in a snowstorm, at 1am. I bloody wished I'd got four-wheel drive then, as skill is no use at all if you've got absolutely zero grip. Mind you, winter tyres are pretty handy.

 

Snow socks - really these are brilliant, fitted in seconds and the grip on snow is fantastic.

[PiperCub]

+1 for snowsocks - I was really anti & sneery when I first saw them, then I used them, regretted taking the piss as they do actually work well. Made my 156 V6 with-silly-fat-tyres usable in the snow.

[mat_the_cat]

Only times I've been stuck in snow (twice in the last 4 years) it's been down to lack of ground clearance rather than grip - either the car has ridden up on the snow so there is not enough weight on the wheels, or it's just built up too much snow in front of the bumper. That's with winter tyres and chains on 2wd vehicles. Doubt whether a 4wd car would fair that much better in that sort of situation which admittedly is rare for most of the UK.

 

Back OT, there's not that much in the way of quick estates, although I can't help be tempted by something like this:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Audi-S6-Avant-4-2-quattro-Tiptronic-V8-Estate-Metallic-Grey-recaro-leather-/251577915079?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item3a933656c7