gjm

4 rims - 16x7 et34 with centre caps. Not perfect but not trash either. Was planning to fit them to Miss M's E36... If they don't sell, we may still do that. No real idea what they're worth... For the sake of putting up a price, $70 ? Or make me an offer. They look like this. (I'll get some pics of the actual rims if anyone really needs them!): Collect from Te Kauwhata, or I can get them to Papatoetoe.

It's a very kind thought... I have some 51s with progressive springs. No idea what the inserts are, though!

What's love got to do, got to do with it?

Sadly a 2006-on model is going to be out of budget. Worth noting for the future, though - thanks.

We had a drive in a 3-litre Outback a few years ago. Very impressed by just how smoooooth the engine was. Compared to the 320d it'll be like a turbine! I thought they were fairly thirsty though... Another one well worth a check. In fairness, the suggestion of a CR-V was based on reliability and popularity, and because I had all-but given up finding a sensibly suitable estate car. Sorry... Wagon. I'm getting all English-ified agan.

They do. Like on a Range Rover, the often-used solution is to replace with conventional (steel) suspension. You lose the ride height adjustability, but gain simplicity.

Makes the one Turners have in HB look very expensive! Thanks for the positive review. It's often the case (with any car, or anything for that matter) that reports tend to be where the writer has something to complain about - useful, but not necessarily telling the whole story. A4 B5 Quattros tend to rot out the upper rear suspension mounts, but they're not expensive and pretty easy to replace. (I did ours. ) A friend in the UK has a Mk1 A3 1.8T that's covered similar mileage on very little more than regular maintenance. Of course, there will be others that have had major issues.

I'm probably still thinking like an Englishman. Car prices here are huge by comparison to in Europe (and that goes for Japanese cars as well as European ones) and servicing for anything Euro is easily and cheaply found. Unfortunately our budget just won't let go after something that will genuinely fit the bill (in NZ). <sigh> After all the grief we had with a Mazda Tribute, I can't say I'm keen on the idea of a MPV: I drove our ex-landlords MPV, and that understeered like it was an Olympic sport. Could have been his car of course, as he wasn't exactly fastidious about servicing and maintenance, and was possibly too-good a friend of the guy at the local garage and WoF station.

That could work. I have looked at an Audi A$ (B5) 2.4V6 Quattro Avant in the past. Need to dig into reliability and so on.

Not too fussed about the turbo. They're typically a bit taller than a more ordinary road car, and that's what's going to make getting in and out easier. Curiously, I've not seen many of the 2.5 boxers around A Quattro wagon of some sort is definitely a consideration. The Allroad has the benefit of being a little taller, but they're heavier than the A6 and tend to guzzle fuel. Grand Cherokees are cheap now. Perhaps a little bigger than would be ideal, but I'll not write them off. We're going to have to do some car yard touring, just to get in and out of a few to see what constitutes too low.

Interesting... Not something I'd considered. We love a challenge around here, don't we? I'd need to think hard about what could be dropped off the list. 4WD is an obvious candidate, but if we do what we hope to, 4WD could prove to be indispensable on occasion. An alternative that I saw was the Subaru Forester. Again though, I know little to nothing about them.

They're under the house. I saw them. Behind your tool box? I hope you weren't storing them in the silver car...

Price is the problem. We drove an earlier, more boxy-shaped X-Trail a while back. It was OK... Just OK. Nice colour, though - a sort of pearl ice blue. Of course, we would have been comparing it to a BMW or Mercedes so it didn't really stand much chance. Just seems a shame that while the Germans made good cars 10 and 20 years ago, the Japanese don't appear to have done the same. At least, not in the genre that we're looking at.

I thought you were my friend! I'll still have other ex-Munich projects.

The Rav4 and Vitara had already been discarded from consideration! An XTrail is a possibility, but are typically regarded (from what I can find) as not being as reliable and possibly even less of a joy to drive than the CR-V. In all seriousness - are there any recommendations for anything reliable and reasonably economical in this style and the $5k-ish price bracket? It does seem that pretty much everything has one fundamental flaw or another. Requirements - safe transport for Mrs M and the dog(s), sensible driving position, economical, reliable, fairly simple, 4WD, ability to tow something (a car on a trailer isn't covered in this), easy to get in and out of, and (sadly) not a manual gearbox.

I have a cupboard to keep them in!

This. Mount it on the two pieces of valve.

A lower mileage, well maintained 1st gen would suit (provided it's a Facelift model) - that elusive car bought new by an 'older person'. They do exist, so patience could be rewarded. A 2002-on would be a better bet. I was this one which is more than we're looking to spend, but price is likely to be negotiable. It also has the 2.0 engine which is a reasonable amount more economical, but... Silver with a beige interior? Lol It does have more stated history, too. Diff'rent strokes for diff'rent folks. I've not seen reports of chocolate transmissions, but to be fair I've looked far more generally so far. I will be digging into specific issues.

In the absence of funds to buy an X1, we're looking at other sources for a small SUV. The CR-V seems to fit the bill... In post-1999 version it has enough get up and go to get out of it's own way, it has the comfortable seating position Mrs M needs and is easier for her to get in and out of than a much lower vehicle. It'll need to be an automatic, and preferably 4WD. Does anyone have any experience of these? The 1999-2001 facelift model appears to suit us best (in terms of reliability, availability, and price) although it's possible we might be able to stretch to an early 2nd generation model (2001-2005). The 2nd generation got a V-TEC engine which while adding complexity, also added power without sacrificing fuel economy, and they don't appear to be unreliable.

As Kyu says, 'better' can mean different things. If it's the cheapest possible option you're after, you're probably asking the wrong people! Conor's suggest of Glenn @ Botany is an excellent one. If you want someone to have a quick look over the car, I work in Papatoetoe and would be happy to do that. I don't work on cars for a living and I definitely don't have Glenn's experience, but if I don't know an answer, I don't guess: I go to someone who does know.

Well... Three of them are OK? What's the bore like?

Where in Auckland are you? If you're at all unsure of what you're looking at, we can recommend a specialist who can help.

The green-yellow-red is an indicator of how soon a service is needed. In this case - soon! The red circle with a white 'P' is displayed when the handbrake is on. Nothing to worry about. Get it serviced and have the indicator reset.

Good price. If I had 45mm struts I'd be all over these. GLWS.