XC90: £7k buying tips please!?

[05349]

Hi ladies and gents,

I've owned several V40/70s over the years as I have 3 children and 2 GSDs.

We have our 4th on the way, and the wife seems to think that we are going to re-venture into the MPVmarket...(had a scenic previously, cost £thousands in repairs).

So naturally I've said no, and I want an XC90. A new one on lease is not financially viable. I don't really want to take a big loan out and therefore set a budget of £7k.

Located MANY T6 petrol versions on 04/05 plates with less than 70k miles. FSH. And cambelt changes.

There are a few D5s, that are slightly more expensive, but the pay off with tax and mpg is minimal.....

What's the best model to look out for?

We are looking to move house soon, to where we both work, and have a small second car anyway. So mpg is not really an issue...

Many thanks

Richard

[warninglight]

The T6 is widely known for gearbox issues, just see how many are for sale with issues, or recent rebuilds mentioned, and then ask yourself how many on the market which don't mention the gearbox are hiding something...

I had a 53 plate D5 Geartronic for a few months, my brother has a 2007 D5 Geartronic as well. He loves his and it proves very useful with 2 kids and airport runs for grandparents etc.. I used mine for towing and it wasn't legally up to the job in terms of weights. The D5 is no ball of fire but it does OK. I was getting a pretty consistent 30-32mpg.

If you can find one, the 2.5 Turbo is a better bet than the T6, as it has a similar gearbox to the D5, and not the General Motors one the T6 has.

You should find something nice for £7k, the one bit of advice I'll give is buy on condition, not mileage. You'll find a much nicer car with 140k and loads of service history than with 70k in your budget.

If you aren't going to be doing regular long runs, and you do go for a D5, bear in mind that the 185bhp versions (2005 on - I think?) have a particulate filter which will clog up if not used on long runs to get hot enough to regenerate.