Dirty diesel motorway trampers, talk to me

[sutty2006]

I am changing my job, from trucks to classic racing cars. A dream job, but will come with some commuting. My Mondeo ST is up to the job but unfortunately my left knee isnt (due to sitting in traffic clutch kicking all the way home) so Im looking to buy something big, with a diesel engine and automatic. So far Ive been looking at e39 530d's and Merc e300 td's. Anything else I can look for? I prefer rear wheel drive, but its not a huge loss.... but it has to be an estate capable of towing a wobbly box easily. . . . . . Ive got a grand to play with.

 

Penny for your Thoughts?

[rantingYoof]

Not technically estate, but I can vouch for the stupidly large loading space in one of these.

 

Generally very reliable (front springs a bit snap-happy), 40mpg on an unburdened run, generally 30mpg overall, but daft amount of torque even if the engine is a little down on the Bimmers of the same age.

 

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201601119986124

[sutty2006]

Its the right price and ticks many boxes. Problem is those newer vauxhalls give me chronic back pain

[Lacquer Peel]

BX 1.9D estate

[Pete-M]

S210 E320 CDI estate. That's what I use.

 

195 bhp with 470 nm of torque @1800 rpm means no problem towing. The fastest diesel money could buy at the time, and they're all autos.

 

They're under a grand at the moment, but won't stay cheap forever.

[2MB]

300td Mercs, as opposed to later CDis, are veg friendly if that's your thing

[skattrd]

Not RWD, Volvo 850/V70 tdi ... speak to Richard of this parish for info.

or you could go older 740/60, but automatic dizzler will be scarce.

[Pete-M]

CDI are a lot quicker, which is why I like 'em.

 

It's bad enough that I'm driving a diesel, there's no way I'm gonna run the bloody thing on chip fat.

 

(According to the handbook CDI ones can run a bit of bio diseasel too)

[cort16]

Dome's selling a nice 300D E-class

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1999-Mercedes-W210-E300-Turbodiesel-Estate-MOT-Dec-2016-Very-Good-Condition-/252278856579?hash=item3abcfddb83:g:aqIAAOSwL7VWtePq

[sutty2006]

BX 1.9D estate

 

Auto?

[sutty2006]

Dome's selling a nice 300D E-class

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1999-Mercedes-W210-E300-Turbodiesel-Estate-MOT-Dec-2016-Very-Good-Condition-/252278856579?hash=item3abcfddb83:g:aqIAAOSwL7VWtePq

 

Its the right kind of car, but too far above my limit at the moment.

 

Are Mercs fairly reliable?

[skattrd]

Its the right kind of car, but too far above my limit at the moment.

 

It's a bit cheaper on here, £1300 ... http://autoshite.com/topic/19688-for-sale-mercedes-300td-estate-now-on-sensible-wheelscheaper/?p=916988

[dome]

Drop me a pm if you're interested. The only issue with doing big miles in it is that its comfier than your house so you won't want to get out of it at the end.

[sutty2006]

Will do boss.

 

Ive got my eyes on a 530d touring, if I cant get it for a reasonable price I might be in touch.

[JohnK]

The problem with a cheap 530d that I've looked at is that sub 1k ones are generally stupidly high mileage or just all out nails.

[rantingYoof]

Its the right price and ticks many boxes. Problem is those newer vauxhalls give me chronic back pain

 

The leather seats are a wee bit bench-like.

 

I just had a little look at the old Vauxhall options and left Autotrader lawling at people asking £2,500 for a 2002 Omega with the 2.2DTi diesel....

[MarvinsMom]

75 Tourer?

damn, you beat me too it.....

[Pete-M]

Merc seats work fine for me. I suffer with sciatica sometimes and did 1000 miles in a day in my 210. Not a twinge.

[wuvvum]

Do you feel lucky, punk?

 

[sutty2006]

Do you feel lucky, punk?

 

 

Definitely not lol

[Junkman]

Are Mercs fairly reliable?

 

No. Far from it.

[djimbob]

Kia Sedona 2.9 crdi like what I've got - decent mpg, good high up driving position for visibility, plenty of auto's and cheap to buy as unfashionable, all the toys and can carry whatever you like as the rear seats lift out and can be put in the garage

[NorfolkNWeigh]

This is my specialist subject as I do around 80--100k miles a year , currently in a W211 e280dizzler.

I would say there's very little difference between an e39 or W210 as far as motorway slogging and I wouldn't be too specific, just find the best looked after least rusty one you can find regardless of if it came from Bavaria or Stuttgart.

Dome's Merc,would , I think, be worth a stretching your budget a bit for, just because of the work he's done on it.

Don't dismiss smaller engined versions either, post 2001 525's go well enough and even 220 Mercs will cruise all day at 100, and they're good for 500,000 before they need a service!

[sutty2006]

Kia Sedona 2.9 crdi like what I've got - decent mpg, good high up driving position for visibility, plenty of auto's and cheap to buy as unfashionable, all the toys and can carry whatever you like as the rear seats lift out and can be put in the garage

 

Ive not got kids yet, so im not going down that road just yet hahahaha

[sutty2006]

I wouldnt mind an 850 diesel or an early V70 diesel but they arent common in Auto. Most are manual. I like ovloVs.....

[hauserplenty]

As they say (on benzworld.org and elsewhere)

 

"The most expensive car you'll ever buy is a cheap Mercedes."

 

Buy it.

They're great cars.

I would but its so far away / if I had the money &c.

 

They grow on you. My W124 has put me through hell, with more to come. But I love it so much I never follow through on giving up and selling it. Which has happened several times, I must admit...

[John F]

Discovery 300 TDi

[andrew e]

All sub £1500 diesel auto estates will be, to quote the Junkman "FUCKED" the good ones don't get sold, they get run to the death. So let's play Russian roulette - the extra cost of petrol will be outweighed by the fact none these need any parts over oil and filters for another 50k. It's not that crazy an idea....

 

Laguna 1 facelift

 

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201601210291374

 

Vectra facelift

 

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201601130037936?price-from=500&fuel-type=petrol&sort=atcustom&search-target=usedcars&transmission=automatic&body-type=estate&onesearchad=used%2Cnearlynew%2Cnew&price-to=1500&minimum-badge-engine-size=1.8&postcode=W12%208QT&page=1&radius=1501&maximum-mileage=up_to_90000_miles&logcode=p

 

Mondeo mk3

 

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201601210285168?price-to=1500&radius=1501&sort=atcustom&fuel-type=petrol&body-type=estate&price-from=500&postcode=w128qt&page=1&transmission=automatic&search-target=usedcars&minimum-badge-engine-size=1.8&onesearchad=used%2Cnearlynew%2Cnew&maximum-mileage=up_to_90000_miles&logcode=p

[Pillock]

If by "tramper" you mean sleeping rough, then yeah - a Laguna DCi sounds perfect. The RAC take AGES to turn up.

[rantingYoof]

This is a sure-fire bet. The same engine as the 2.2 Omega more or less, but with actual armchairs instead.