Buying a used V60, petrol vs diesel and manual vs auto

[dhr90]

Too Long/Didn't read: 8k miles with short commute so want a petrol, but they don't exist at my £13k budget. Manual vs auto gearbox? Thoughts/experience from existing owners?

Looking to replace a Rover 75 that is just becoming too unreliable/costly for me to depend on. I like the look of the V60, I need/want an estate/big hatchback for ease of putting a mountain bike in the back, and generally just like the styling of them.
The V60 looks good, has very comfortable seats and retains a bit of a premium feel/look about it (The Rover is so comfortable to drive, even if it is a barge).

Now to my dilemma/problem. Budget of £12-13k puts me firmly in the used area, but a face lift with average or below average mileage can be found. Desires:
Xenons (if they are actually worth it, on some cars they seem a bitnot much better than halogens, where as others (BMW 5 series for instance) they are so much brighter
Heated leather seats. And mirrors and front screen if possible, but the winter pack seems to have been a fairly popular option.
Comfort as mentioned above, I'm more interested in going somewhere smoothly, relaxed and just waft there than race around at high speed to save myself 30 seconds
Sunroof (rather big obstacle, not many V60's about with these!)
Driver Pack would be nice, but not essential.
Rear tints, as above.
Satnav - essential
The above has me looking at an SE Lux Nav spec.
Very reliable, the Rover has made me yearn for something that just needs fuel and usual consumables for a few years.

Now for the big hurdle: I want/desire a petrol, but I'd be better off looking for a unicorn! They simply don't seem to exist, or are £1-2k above budget and in business spec with astronomical mileage on them. I like the way a petrol sounds, smoother, less tractor-y, far less NOx and particulates (ok, yes more CO2).I guess diesel still has a dirty image to me personally.
Right now, my annual mileage is around 8000 miles, with my commute being 6-8 miles each way, 2-3 miles being across town (lots of junctions and traffic lights) and the rest 40/50mph b roads. I do a few 30/40 mile trips a year and 3 to 6 100-200 mile trips away for holidays and to see people.
The commute makes me want and think a petrol makes more sense for me, but they don't exist. Does anyone out there do similar journeys to me with a diesel? Do you have problems with DPF?
Back when I owned a Ford the diesel owners on their forums had all blanked off DPF or took their cars on a run in a lowish gear for 10-20 miles to burn it all off/clean it out, which seems to negate the higher mpg diesels get.
Above I said 'right now' because I'm also job hunting and looking to relocate across the country, so I've no idea what my commute may be, and I may do more 50 mile journeys but far few 100-200 mile journeys.

So if diesel is okay for me (mechanically), which one? I've tried a D3 16' plate and hated it, all the torque in one small band and it was generally gutless and sounded terrible (at least comparing to the Mazda 6 2.2 I've also tested).
Today I drove a D5 13' plate geartronic. More than enough power (gearbox is a bit slow and jerky for my liking when pushing it hard, but very good under normal driving), didn't sound bad, just not good, but it feels like it may be so powerful I won't see the increase in mpg I'd desire, I worry about running costs in general of them. Arranged to test a D4 next friday, which on paper at least has the same power as the Mazda 6 (very quick).

I'm coming around to the idea of an auto, but think I prefer a manual still. Does the geartronic have higher running costs or any maintenance issues? I did somewhat enjoy the ease/smoothness of the auto, but I may not be ready to give up the control of a manual?

Looked at a V40 briefly, because there are a few of them in petrol (thought probably T4 engine for my desire to overtake with ease, but I'm not really keen on the smaller size, dislike the exterior styling and if they have a sunroof, its a fixed window, not one that opens.

Sorry for waffling on! Thanks for any thoughts/help!

[Tannaton]

A waffly post however this is what this forum is for... you've done your homework and just want some advice on the various options.

PS I may be in a minority but I think the Rover 75 was a very fine car in its day and with some Volvo like qualities in terms of how comfortable it was and how it made you feel...

Anyhow I would say the following:

Suggest you borrow a V60 as the load area isn't quite as big as its rivals, especially with the sloping roof. However a bike will not need that much height, but would check anyway. I looked at the V60 to replace a Passat company car and decided to go for the XC60 for a number of reasons.

Xenons - Active Bending Lights (which I think are standard on "Lux" models) are bloody brilliant and worth it 100%.

Heated seats are a personal preference but I wouldn't be without them, especially with leather seats.

Comfort - V60 good at this but avoid the R-Design models as these have stiffer, lower suspension and bigger wheels/tyres which are less giving and more expensive to replace.

Privacy glass looks good but it can be a pain to reverse at night...

Petrol/Diesel? I don't think the low annual mileage is an issue - its how the mileage is done and for modern diesels to work at their best you need a good run at least once a month - by good run I mean 20 mins+ at over 50 mph. That said at 8k p/a it might be 5 years before you get a clogged DPF... The benefits of diesel are better economy in all cases and stronger residual values. Some of us have gotten so used to the slower revving torque of a (manual) diesel we'll never go back - again its really down to personal preference. Environment is a fashion industry to some extent... the way things are going the focus might be more towards global warming again (i.e. CO2 not NOx) and single use plastic might overtake diesel as the number 1 evil - who knows? As you have already found out the smaller, "economy" diesels have issues, and need to be driven in the certain way. The D5 engine is brilliant, plenty of power, very reliable, if a little rough. The D5 cars will hold their value best.

Manual/Auto - both reasonable options in the V60, again very much down to personal preference, most people who try auto's do get used to them and rarely go back. Again you should try both, if you spend a lot of time in queuing traffic then that's when you really get the benefit of an auto. Economy of auto is slightly less usually, but not by much.

So I would say then answers to a number of your questions are very much personal preference - get round the dealers and drive some. Good luck!

[xsaab]

Scratch a builtin SatNav from your list, get a Garmin or Tom Tom that you like the look and functions. Use a Brodit support to attach the SatNav to the dash.

A removable SatNav can be programmed with your destinations in the house or hotel long before your journey starts. It can also keep a track of where you have been, the altitude and the speed which can be transferred to your computer for later reference.

[NigelDay]

Top advice here ^^^.
I use a Garmin and have a (very large) database of waypoints, easily managed with Garmin Basecamp software. Tracks can be downloaded for reference. Not sure how TomTom compares on this specific point of PC / Mac integration.

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/accesso...up-test-review

[dhr90]

Thanks guys

The 75 is definitely comfortable (seats in the Volvo are far better though), and the beige interior and dials and walnut wood trim just makes it a nice place to be, happy to drive it slowly/gently, it rewards you when driven that way. The headgasket makes it a less enjoyable car to own however!

Xenons, are they really that much better than the halogens? I know they should be, but they don't always seem to be. Good to hear how good they are though. Did any Halogens have active bending? I'm sure the D3 V60 I tried had some form of bending headlights (they definitely moved the beam across the car in front, with even a tiny input from the wheel) but the dealer said they weren't, or it shouldn't have them?

Comfort is why I'm looking at SE Lux rather than R-Design, as fantastic as the R-Designs do look, especially with tinted windows!

This is exactly the kind of information I needed about diesels Tannaton! Thanks! Taking it for a run once a month is easily doable for me. Cheaper road tax of the diesel appeals too! Good to know all of that about the D5 engine, how does the D4 compare if you know?

Its the reliability of an auto, or any potential extra long term maintenance that concerns me mainly to be honest. Otherwise I'm sure I'd be fine with either gearbox. Tried a D3 manual in a fair bit of traffic and I was fine (apart from that damn stop start) and the auto D5 felt good for my usual style of driving.

Interesting about the build in satnav xsaab and NigelDay. Any particular reasons for this? I already have a good Garmin, so that is covered if I didn't get along with the built in one though.

Thanks again, good helpful advice!

[spaceman2844]

Originally Posted by Tannaton

Petrol/Diesel? I don't think the low annual mileage is an issue - its how the mileage is done and for modern diesels to work at their best you need a good run at least once a month - by good run I mean 20 mins+ at over 50 mph. That said at 8k p/a it might be 5 years before you get a clogged DPF... The benefits of diesel are better economy in all cases and stronger residual values. Some of us have gotten so used to the slower revving torque of a (manual) diesel we'll never go back - again its really down to personal preference. Environment is a fashion industry to some extent... the way things are going the focus might be more towards global warming again (i.e. CO2 not NOx) and single use plastic might overtake diesel as the number 1 evil - who knows? As you have already found out the smaller, "economy" diesels have issues, and need to be driven in the certain way. The D5 engine is brilliant, plenty of power, very reliable, if a little rough. The D5 cars will hold their value best.

Worth thinking about which Euro emissions category the engine is in if you go for a diesel. The VEA D4 engine from early 2014 is Euro VI, but I'm not sure whether the later D5 engine was rated at Euro VI or V. Euro V and earlier engines will increasingly be taxed & charged for inner city driving and parking compared with the "cleaner" Euro VI engines. This is already planned for London and no doubt other cities will follow. So I would doubt that a Euro V diesel will hold its value better than a Euro VI engine. I'm currently trying to encourage my son to avoid diesel altogether as he looks for his first car. Our other car, an A3, is petrol for the reasons above. However in an XC60 and larger cars, diesel still makes sense for mpg.

[dhr90]

Originally Posted by spaceman2844

Worth thinking about which Euro emissions category the engine is in if you go for a diesel. The VEA D4 engine from early 2014 is Euro VI, but I'm not sure whether the later D5 engine was rated at Euro VI or V. Euro V and earlier engines will increasingly be taxed & charged for inner city driving and parking compared with the "cleaner" Euro VI engines. This is already planned for London and no doubt other cities will follow. So I would doubt that a Euro V diesel will hold its value better than a Euro VI engine. I'm currently trying to encourage my son to avoid diesel altogether as he looks for his first car. Our other car, an A3, is petrol for the reasons above. However in an XC60 and larger cars, diesel still makes sense for mpg.

Fair point, although I have little intention to go into London. I'm mainly looking at late 13' plate, preferably 14 or 15 plate age. I'll ask the dealer whether its Euro V or VI before they get anything in for me. Thanks!

[NigelDay]

Just a quick comment on car tax. If you find a D4 FWD manual, you will find the VED is a bargain £30pa.

[NigelDay]

The built-in sat nav is basic. You cannot do proximity searching for the nearest supermarket, cashpoint, post office or indeed anything else. Garmin (and I assume TomTom) will do this. The only advantage in having the built-in sat nav is that all the functions can be selected without having to take your hands off the wheel.
As regards placing the Garmin or TomTom, you can fit it by the A-pillar so it is less intrusive. The power cable can be routed across the top of the dash-binnacle and wedged down the side of the trim to the centre console power outlet. Not perfect, but unless you do some DIY and thread a power cable up in a more discrete manner, that's as good as you will get.

[MattB99]

Google maps on your phone, magnet on the central air vent, phone mounted on the magnet, most discreet method by far