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Klassik

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Another Honda, Volvo, Subaru legacy, Audi - that kind of thing. Petrol is better as I have a better chance with the LEZ, and a flat loading bay is also desirable.

King of the hill would be a Honda CRV - I luv'm and I think they might do a petrol version (need to check that).
Quite sadly, 'station wagons' as we call them in the US were largely discontinued and replaced with SUVs here in the US by the turn of the Millennium.  :S   Thus, it's hard for Klassik to make any recommendations which might be useful to you.  The most reliable car on US roads from the early 2000s, which would probably fit your price range if you were in the US, would be the Toyota Camry XV20.  Klassik does not know if the Camry XV20 was even sold in the UK.  If it was, it was surely not common.  That said, maybe there is some other similar Toyota which is more common in the UK.

The Subaru Legacy is still sold in the US in 4-door form.  Klassik would avoid Subarus from the 2000s and early 2010s.  The Boxer engines they used at least here in the US during that time have a terrible reputation for head gasket problems. 

Many cars from the 2000s still used timing belts instead of timing chains.  If the engine is an 'interference' engine design, if the belt slips, the engine will be ruined so it's critical that the timing belt is within the specified service life of it.  Timing belt replacement service is not cheap and so people with cars not worth a lot often neglect this.  In totality, the maintenance of whatever car you buy is going to be important.  If you can find something that has been maintained properly and regularly, it'll likely be a much better buy than something that hasn't been maintained properly.  Some cars handle abuse better than others, but there are limits to everything.

Given your price range, you're likely to be buying a car from the time period where air bag recalls were common at least here in the US.  Hondas in particularly were prone to air bag recalls, but they're hardly the only manufacturer who had to replace air bags at least here in the US due to safety problems with the inflators as they aged.  Some air bags had a problem with spewing metal shrapnel when they inflated as they aged.  :eek:   Klassik knows not how these air bag problems were handled in the UK.  If there were recalls, make sure the recalls were done.  Also, do some research and see if the replacement air bags will also need to be replaced at some point down the road.  There was some concern that the replacement air bags may have the same problems as the original air bags.  Klassik knows not about that.

Klassik quite hates crossover SUVs as mentioned earlier, but the early Honda CR-Vs were pretty reliable.  Newer ones have problems especially with fuel getting mixed into the oil on the ones with small turbo engines which causes the oil to degrade quickly.  :doh:   The biggest problems with Hondas from the 2000s and early 2010s, aside from the air bag problems, are troublesome automatic transmissions though most of these cars in the UK probably have manual transmissions anyway which should be fine.  At least here in the US, some Hondas in the 2000s switched to using very small batteries which are prone to having starting problems if they aren't given sufficient time to recharge from the alternator.  Also, some Honda engines from that time have issues with excessive engine oil consumption.  Klassik's former 2009 Honda Accord with the K24 engine did have oil consumption problems, but only when the car was driven fast (70+ mph) on the highway.  If kept below that, oil consumption was negligible.

Klassik does have personal experience with one 'wagon' which might be in your price range, the B5.5 VW Passat with the 1.8T turbo 4 cyl. engine.  What a piece of London that car was.  The car was only around here for ~50,000 miles, but it needed around 10 major repairs during that time.  It couldn't go more than about 10,000 miles without needing new ignition coil packs (a known problem on those cars).  That's just to mention one problem.  Klassik would avoid any car with that engine (they probably did also show up in Audis, Skodas, SEATs, etc.).   Klassik does not think the Passat was all that well-built otherwise, but certainly the engine was the worst part.  Perhaps it would have been better with a different engine.

 

Non-Smoking Man

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Thanks everyone for your contributions - very valuable if not all of it followed on this occasion. The big Skoda looks a candidate, I must say.

Ive plumped fro a Honda CR-V. Its got the V-Tec 2L petrol engine that performed so well in the outgoing Honda Tourer, so I'm ULEZ compliant. Its fairly local and drove well in a test drive. Its a 2004, 167K miles, Navy Blue, manual model and we agreed £1300. Take delivery soon.

My decision to change from the estate was forced when I reversed into a grassy bank in a tortuous unkept driveway and broke off the backbox. Buggar! But every cloud has a silver lining and the CR-V is better suited to my current needs. Drawbacks - less loading capacity and not a flat loading bay; bonus - 4WD for that testing driveway..

Jack

 

toprepairman

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Hi Jack.

 I too had to look for a replacement motor when the old Rover 75 died. Looked at a number of CRV's which weren't bad but settled on an old Accord which has a brilliant rear opening and flat floor.

 
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calorgas

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Cool result, I always fancied a CR-V but they're a bit thirsty I think. Owner reviews were pretty consistently gushing when I looked into them iirc.

We recently bought a Touran as we also wanted a low-ish & flat loading area, mainly as the dog is getting on a bit and doesn't like jumping into boots with deep lips. It's a decent car but it's heavy and feels a bit lumbering, but hopefully it'll do us for a few years.

 

audio_PHIL_e

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Yes. When the front wheels start to  slip, the system detects this and brings into play, the rears. My brother had a similar car and put winter tyres on, and it was very good.
So why not just have full-time rwd? I've always disliked fwd, partially because it has a huge turning circle but mainly because if you lose traction with it you also lose your steering.

 

AnilS

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Not sure. I just remember going with my neighbour to buy one and the salesman mentioned it.

Its also mentioned in the reviews.

My neighbour's CRV was utterly reliable up to 200k when he part time exd it for a new HRV.

 

TheFlash

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So why not just have full-time rwd? I've always disliked fwd, partially because it has a huge turning circle but mainly because if you lose traction with it you also lose your steering.
4WD and front wheel drive probably have the same issues, don't they, due to the mechanics of powered steered wheels? So if you dislike FWD because of the turning circle, I guess you're limited to rear wheel drive. Which is fine, of course!

 

rabski

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In the days when it was an Austin 1300GT vs a Ford Capri, there was a real difference between RWD and FWD. It's not the same any longer. With relatively up to date suspension and tyres, when you get to the stage of losing steering through losing traction the only difference between FWD and RWD is which end goes through the hedge first.

 

audio_PHIL_e

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In the days when it was an Austin 1300GT vs a Ford Capri, there was a real difference between RWD and FWD. It's not the same any longer. With relatively up to date suspension and tyres, when you get to the stage of losing steering through losing traction the only difference between FWD and RWD is which end goes through the hedge first.
I think I'm more likely to survive if the back end goes through the hedge first. From my (admittedly) limited experience of skids I think that's a preference for RWD.

 

rabski

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I think I'm more likely to survive if the back end goes through the hedge first. From my (admittedly) limited experience of skids I think that's a preference for RWD.
Easrly series Porsche 930 plus wet downhill bend with adverse camber taken a bit too quickly will rapidly disabuse anyone of the notion that rear wheel drive is better in terms of skid control 🤣

 
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audio_PHIL_e

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Easrly series Porsche 930 plus wet downhill bend with adverse camber taken a bit too quickly will rapidly disabuse anyone of the notion that rear wheel drive is better in terms of skid control 🤣
All systems have their limits, but I'm not skilled enough to say whether FWD would have got you out of (or prevented you getting into) the situation you describe.

 

rabski

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All systems have their limits, but I'm not skilled enough to say whether FWD would have got you out of (or prevented you getting into) the situation you describe.
An extreme example. I think the main point is that with modern suspension and tyre technology, the differences between RWD and FWD are no longer that relevant to normal driving. When I started, far too many years ago, the contrasts were stark because radial ply tyres were 'new tech' and skidding and sliding around in the wet was perfectly normal. With 'her and my' current cars, you've really got to be doing something relatively insane to lose grip, unless it's snow and ice.

 
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Tony_J

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An extreme example. I think the main point is that with modern suspension and tyre technology, the differences between RWD and FWD are no longer that relevant to normal driving. When I started, far too many years ago, the contrasts were stark because radial ply tyres were 'new tech' and skidding and sliding around in the wet was perfectly normal. With 'her and my' current cars, you've really got to be doing something relatively insane to lose grip, unless it's snow and ice.
Back in the 70s I went on a works trip to a skid pan - very educational and taught you how to control a RWD skid. Also great fun. The instructor was very anti FWD and 4WD, reckoned that while they gave the illusion of better control, but when things went bad there was nowhere to go other than off the road. Of course that was a good while before modern suspension and traction control tech existed in mainstream cars, so things are very different now. My current (electric) car is the first RWD I have driven for some while (4x4 for the last 20 years) but as you say most of the time there is little practical difference.

 

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