Purchasing a station wagon

[Grant 4]

I heard the 3.0l's were hard on gas (round town). Findings??

Yeah, they aren't the cheapest now that I think of it. Gas here is cheap so not a bit concern for us. A fill costs around US$35, and I guess my wife would fill up once a week or so.

I don't have any mpg figures, so can't say exactly how thirsty it is.

Here are the manufacturer mpg figures 20-mpg in the city and 27-mpg on the highway.

Edited December 23, 2009 by Grant

[bekker 7]

if you can find one... a skoda octavia... very hard to find tho.

left field = Saab 9-5 wagon.

+1

The VRS is a lovely car. Get a TDi. Quick and economical and according to Top Gear much better build quality then VW.

Merc? Although they don't seem to be great value for money.

I had a Commodore a couple of years ago (2005 I think) and it was at the dealer more than every three months. Maybe they are better now, but if it was Japanese it never would have left the factory.

Good luck.

[Jo Blogs 11]

I had a look at those, they look nice and I'm sure the ride is good in them... but I've heard horrible things about reliability of audi's in general, can anyone offer an insight to this? Glenn maybe?

Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat, Passat,

Still to this day the best car i have owned, (sorry bmw lovers)

It was fantastic on fuel, beautiful to drive, so so so reliable,

i had mine superchiped and that made all the differance.

Mine was a 2000 passat sedan, in white 1.8t.

it has done 200,000km + now with the new owners and still no worries, (i did 80,000km) and replaced one suspension arm, replaced tires, and serviced.

[DRTDVL 0]

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/C...n-269475434.htm

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/C...n-268847792.htm

Could talk them down to sub 20k

[Wervie67 0]

With the Allroad, the shocks pump themselves up but a common fault is to have a leak on the shock overnight = car looking like it is kneeling on one side. Once the key turns, the pump starts and it comes up.

Very tempted by the allroad now, will go and check a few out after christmas.

Getting the suspension fixed isnt cheap. my old man has a 2001 allroad (70,000 on clock), suspension went bung (leaning on one side) archbalds ripped him $4000 to repair the system. whereas if the suspension had to be fully replaced it was some absolutely rediculious figure around $8000.

Other than that. Great cars!

[lidistick 70]

E39 Wagon.

Have it and love it.

Comfortable and yet sporty enough for a backroad blast

[danj 0]

Thanks guys, bought an 04 legacy GT, will see how it goes. I get the feeling I'm going to miss the euro's though, so expect to see me selling it and buying an other bmw in the near future

Cheers for all the help and advice while I owned my BMW, it made ownership much more enjoyable knowing that there were a lot of knowledgeable people willing to lend a hand. Hopefully I'll rejoin the BMW ownership club soon, when they bring out a 4wd estate! or when I can afford an X1

[Gotheschu 1]

if you can find one... a skoda octavia... very hard to find tho.

left field = Saab 9-5 wagon.

Think I'm a bit late here. But got a joy ride in a mates RS Octavia and they are real quick. Really impressive.

Good fun we had in it for the day =)

[twisted 45]

Thanks guys, bought an 04 legacy GT, will see how it goes. I get the feeling I'm going to miss the euro's though, so expect to see me selling it and buying an other bmw in the near future

Cheers for all the help and advice while I owned my BMW, it made ownership much more enjoyable knowing that there were a lot of knowledgeable people willing to lend a hand. Hopefully I'll rejoin the BMW ownership club soon, when they bring out a 4wd estate! or when I can afford an X1

Good Choice.

Just be aware that subarus (and in particular the turbo models) NEED to be maintained.

Fantastic cars otherwise, and mine will be in my ownership till the day I die. Though it will be losing its DD status in the next year or so for a 3.0R Spec.B

[HaNs 226]

Think I'm a bit late here. But got a joy ride in a mates RS Octavia and they are real quick. Really impressive.

Good fun we had in it for the day =)

Which version, the new TDI's fly once remapped!

[danj 0]

Thanks guys, bought an 04 legacy GT, will see how it goes. I get the feeling I'm going to miss the euro's though, so expect to see me selling it and buying an other bmw in the near future

Cheers for all the help and advice while I owned my BMW, it made ownership much more enjoyable knowing that there were a lot of knowledgeable people willing to lend a hand. Hopefully I'll rejoin the BMW ownership club soon, when they bring out a 4wd estate! or when I can afford an X1

Just thought I'd give you guys an update on my car ownership experience with the GT since I've almost put 20,000km on it now, might be of interest to anyone looking at purchasing one.

Mechanically the car has been great, I've replaced the front control arm bushings and other than that it's just been regular maintenance items such as air filters, cabin filter, fluid changes etc. Worst thing to go 'wrong' so far was the bonnet latch which stopped latching properly... clogged with silt/liquefaction and wasn't operating freely.

The car drives very well, it certainly doesn't feel like station wagon, even when loaded up with people/gear it still maintains good composure on the road. The ride is a little harsh on bumpy roads, especially when the car is empty with just the driver it's most noticeable. The upside of the stiff suspension is that the car sits very flat in the corners which makes it a joy to drive around the twisting roads we have in NZ. Road noise isn't too bad, a bit louder than the e34 I had, and more wind noise too.

The quality of the interior is vastly inferior to that of the e34 I owned, and other european cars i've been in. For a car that's only 7 years old I would have expected much better. The dashboard is already starting to crack even though the car is always garaged and was often parked in an undercover car park during summer, and when parked in the sun I always put a visor/shield over the dash. The car may have spent some time sitting in the sun while in Japan but even so I expect better from a car, my 1994 e34 had spent at least 5 years living outside (I knew the previous owner) and had no signs of sun damage at all.

There is also a rattle coming from the instrument cluster, that started about 5000km after I got the car. Maybe I just got unlucky but I have heard that the interior quality of these cars was a bit suspect.

There are a few other minor little annoyances, sometimes the suspension makes a slight squawking/squeaking noise, my mechanic also said this is a common problem, I now can't recall which components were causing it but if I remember I'll repost. The reversing light is an LED light which appears bright to look at but doesn't really seem to light things up all that well, also there is only one (the light on the other side is a fog light... bizzare setup).

In summary it's been a good reliable car, that is versatile and suits my needs well (skiing, mountain biking, tramping etc), but the finish quality and ride comfort leaves a lot to be desired. It's certainly no bmw... and as a result I now find myself regularly browsing trademe in search of another wagon to replace it. Very keen on getting a diesel... sure they're not exactly impressive off the mark, but fuel economy, long travelling range off a tank of fuel and good torque for when the car is loaded up with people/gear are big drawcards.

Thinking of maybe an Audi A4 wagon, or perhaps the cheaper alternative a VW Passat, Skoda Superb... anyone owned or know much about any of these? I've considered an x3 but I don't really see the point in the whole SUV/crossover vehicle, you pay the price in handling and economy for the extra ride height... but interior / boot space wise they're no bigger than a wagon, and you can't really take it anywhere that a standard station wagon couldnt go anyway, what are your guys thoughts on this?

Edit: should have mentioned I'm quite the awd fan now, if nothing else at least I don't have to put chains on at the ski field nearly as often as I would in a 2wd.

Edited July 15, 2011 by danj

[kiwi535 538]

Just thought I'd give you guys an update on my car ownership experience with the GT since I've almost put 20,000km on it now, might be of interest to anyone looking at purchasing one.

Mechanically the car has been great, I've replaced the front control arm bushings and other than that it's just been regular maintenance items such as air filters, cabin filter, fluid changes etc. Worst thing to go 'wrong' so far was the bonnet latch which stopped latching properly... clogged with silt/liquefaction and wasn't operating freely.

The car drives very well, it certainly doesn't feel like station wagon, even when loaded up with people/gear it still maintains good composure on the road. The ride is a little harsh on bumpy roads, especially when the car is empty with just the driver it's most noticeable. The upside of the stiff suspension is that the car sits very flat in the corners which makes it a joy to drive around the twisting roads we have in NZ. Road noise isn't too bad, a bit louder than the e34 I had, and more wind noise too.

The quality of the interior is vastly inferior to that of the e34 I owned, and other european cars i've been in. For a car that's only 7 years old I would have expected much better. The dashboard is already starting to crack even though the car is always garaged and was often parked in an undercover car park during summer, and when parked in the sun I always put a visor/shield over the dash. The car may have spent some time sitting in the sun while in Japan but even so I expect better from a car, my 1994 e34 had spent at least 5 years living outside (I knew the previous owner) and had no signs of sun damage at all.

There is also a rattle coming from the instrument cluster, that started about 5000km after I got the car. Maybe I just got unlucky but I have heard that the interior quality of these cars was a bit suspect.

There are a few other minor little annoyances, sometimes the suspension makes a slight squawking/squeaking noise, my mechanic also said this is a common problem, I now can't recall which components were causing it but if I remember I'll repost. The reversing light is an LED light which appears bright to look at but doesn't really seem to light things up all that well, also there is only one (the light on the other side is a fog light... bizzare setup).

In summary it's been a good reliable car, that is versatile and suits my needs well (skiing, mountain biking, tramping etc), but the finish quality and ride comfort leaves a lot to be desired. It's certainly no bmw... and as a result I now find myself regularly browsing trademe in search of another wagon to replace it. Very keen on getting a diesel... sure they're not exactly impressive off the mark, but fuel economy, long travelling range off a tank of fuel and good torque for when the car is loaded up with people/gear are big drawcards.

Thinking of maybe an Audi A4 wagon, or perhaps the cheaper alternative a VW Passat, Skoda Superb... anyone owned or know much about any of these? I've considered an x3 but I don't really see the point in the whole SUV/crossover vehicle, you pay the price in handling and economy for the extra ride height... but interior / boot space wise they're no bigger than a wagon, and you can't really take it anywhere that a standard station wagon couldnt go anyway, what are your guys thoughts on this?

Edit: should have mentioned I'm quite the awd fan now, if nothing else at least I don't have to put chains on at the ski field nearly as often as I would in a 2wd.

Skoda octavia scout tdi.go drive a diesel you wont beleive how nice they can be on the open road.a 2.o litre turbo diesel has the torque of a 3-4 litre petrol engine and will go nearly twice as far on a tank.$$$ wise there may not be as much difference,the ruc equates to 5 c a kilometer for me or about 30 bucks a tank.Rego is more too,but the range torque,makes up for it even if the actual $$ per kilometre were the same or more.

Edited July 16, 2011 by kiwi535

[kiwi535 538]

The problem with ALL front wheel drive based AWD cars, Audi, Volkswagen & Subaru is when push should translate into fun it invariably feels like crap!! and sh*t follows shortly after.

Had Subarus looked at and drove audi's left me seriously un impressed - fine for low speed slushing in an auto but way off the mark in terms of drivers cars.

interesting,prolly good job i didnt try a skoda and bought the 120 instead

[danj 0]

The awd's certainly dont drive like a rwd bmw, but that's to be expected. For what they are the subaru wagons have amazing road holding, and for being able to get power to the ground in wet or snowy conditions you can't beat awd. Certainly not a drivers car though.

Now looking to replace my legacy with something european and possibly a bit more ground clearance (awd essential). Looking at octavia scouts or audi allroad (put off by horror realibility/maintenance cost stories for the allroad though). Anyone know of anything else worth considering? I thought maybe an x3 but I'm not a fan of the full sized SUV... can't see the point, an x3 wont go anywhere an allroad or octavia scout won't. A real shame bmw dont do a rival to the audi allroad, i'd be all over it.

[kiwi535 538]

The awd's certainly dont drive like a rwd bmw, but that's to be expected. For what they are the subaru wagons have amazing road holding, and for being able to get power to the ground in wet or snowy conditions you can't beat awd. Certainly not a drivers car though.

Now looking to replace my legacy with something european and possibly a bit more ground clearance (awd essential). Looking at octavia scouts or audi allroad (put off by horror realibility/maintenance cost stories for the allroad though). Anyone know of anything else worth considering? I thought maybe an x3 but I'm not a fan of the full sized SUV... can't see the point, an x3 wont go anywhere an allroad or octavia scout won't. A real shame bmw dont do a rival to the audi allroad, i'd be all over it.

i reckon you are on to it with a diesel octavia scout(dsg or manual).

[danj 0]

i reckon you are on to it with a diesel octavia scout(dsg or manual).

Yeah very keen on the 6spd manual, have yet to see one come up on trademe but will keep saving the pennies and wait for the opportunity

Does anyone know of any other cars similar to the audi allroad, octavia scout and subaru outbacks? I have yet to find any manufacturers that make anything in that "off-road" station wagon class

[kiwi535 538]

Yeah very keen on the 6spd manual, have yet to see one come up on trademe but will keep saving the pennies and wait for the opportunity

Does anyone know of any other cars similar to the audi allroad, octavia scout and subaru outbacks? I have yet to find any manufacturers that make anything in that "off-road" station wagon class

there is of course the occasional 525ix

[danj 0]

there is of course the occasional 525ix

Well after watching an hour long documentary (youtube link was posted on this forum) I now want a bmw again. Anyone know how they go with chains on them (is there enough clearance under the wheel arches?)

Think I'll give it a few months and see what comes up, maybe I could even get an x3, although I think I'd have to hang my head in shame for buying an SUV.

[_ethrty-Andy_ 2122]

the Holden Adventura is a VERY capable car if you can afford it, and handles like nothing else ive driven (not that the list is amazing mind you, but ive driven an 04 Boxter and a few late BMWs..). it sticks to the road like glue, and have pushed it at speeds WAYYYY beyond id be happy to push a RWD in corners.

trouble is.... its not just thirsty... its a fish lol

[kiwi535 538]

Well after watching an hour long documentary (youtube link was posted on this forum) I now want a bmw again. Anyone know how they go with chains on them (is there enough clearance under the wheel arches?)

Think I'll give it a few months and see what comes up, maybe I could even get an x3, although I think I'd have to hang my head in shame for buying an SUV.

chains are fine as long as you dont have m sport suspension(or big wheels)

[danj 0]

chains are fine as long as you dont have m sport suspension(or big wheels)

Thanks kiwi. Hard to bring myself to take nice 5 series up a ski field road though... don't mind bouncing the subby along rubbish gravel roads, or even a car designed for it (octavia scout, audi allroad, bmw x3 etc), the thought of treating a 5 series like that makes me cringe though. Do you think they'd stand up to the 'punishment' ok? Wish I could afford / had room for 2 cars lol.

[318Touring 40]

Thanks kiwi. Hard to bring myself to take nice 5 series up a ski field road though... don't mind bouncing the subby along rubbish gravel roads, or even a car designed for it (octavia scout, audi allroad, bmw x3 etc), the thought of treating a 5 series like that makes me cringe though. Do you think they'd stand up to the 'punishment' ok? Wish I could afford / had room for 2 cars lol.

I did it once. That would be the last time I took a 5 series up the mountain.

Took 1/2 hr to fit in rear chains. The car bottomed out on everything.

Took another 1/2 hr to fit in the front chains, as snow was getting too much just having rear chains.

&%$#% stones got stuck on the rotors making high pitch screeching noises like someone's dragging their nails on a blackboard.

From now on we always take the shuttle up the mountain.

[kiwi535 538]

I did it once. That would be the last time I took a 5 series up the mountain.

Took 1/2 hr to fit in rear chains. The car bottomed out on everything.

Took another 1/2 hr to fit in the front chains, as snow was getting too much just having rear chains.

&%$#% stones got stuck on the rotors making high pitch screeching noises like someone's dragging their nails on a blackboard.

From now on we always take the shuttle up the mountain.

was that the e34 or e 60?

[318Touring 40]

E39

[danj 0]

Thanks, interesting to hear peoples experience. BMW estates never really struck me as ski field cars - I think it will have to be an x3 or non-bmw.