Help! Which car? | Motoring discussion | Back Room Forum

Sat 20 Jan 2024 11:33

Help! Which car? - Al26

Hi,

I'm completely clueless when it comes to cars. Just go for which I like the look of. So I'm after some advice. I'm looking to trade my Audi A1 63 plate in for a newer car. Not brand new, between 2/5 years old.

Key things are;

Great mpg.

Comfortable drive/ride

Reliable.

Nippy (enough)

Easy to park.

I do, infrequent, long journeys. 250 miles + at a time. Sometimes once a week. Sometimes once every 2/3 weeks. Sometimes once everything 1/2months. And then inbetween smaller journeys, just to shops ect.

I'd rather a 2.0lt for power on the motorways and overtaking (I'm not a crazy speeder just cannot stand being stuck behind pootling drivers when I have a 300-mile trip ahead of me.) Previous cars have been 1.6. My Audi is 2.0 and I wouldn't want to downgrade after having a 2.0.

The Audi is a bit too small so wanting something a bit bigger but nothing too big. Usually just myself and one other person + dog in the car.

I like the look of the Audi Q2, BMW X1, Mercedes GLA, Volkswagen T - Roc and the Tiguan, and the Volvo Xc40

Any advice, on any of those would be fantastic. Best suited to my needs, best mpg, best engine/spec, any you'd avoid.

Thanks :)

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Sat 20 Jan 2024 12:16

Help! Which car? - skidpan

Previous cars have been 1.6. My Audi is 2.0 and I wouldn't want to downgrade after having a 2.0.

You don't need a 2 litre, anything fitted with a VAG 1.4 or 1.5 TSi 140/150 PS will have more power than you will need for motorways and overtaking. We had one in a Leon and one in a Superb, both averaged about 46 mpg overall but would do over 50 mpg on a long trip. Totally reliable in over 7 years of ownership.

The engine is available in the Q2, T_Roc and Tiguan you mention as well as cars like the A3, Golf etc.

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Sat 20 Jan 2024 12:17

Help! Which car? - Palcouk

Have you not looked at HJ Reviews?

You fail to mention price range which woul have a baring

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Sat 20 Jan 2024 13:04

Help! Which car? - Al26

Upto around 20k

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Sat 20 Jan 2024 13:14

Help! Which car? - Adampr

Could you please tell us a little more about your current car? You say it's a 2 litre. I think that would mean it's either diesel (which wouldn't really suit your use) or an extremely rare and valuable quattro (which I'm pretty sure you would know about).

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Sat 20 Jan 2024 13:50

Help! Which car? - Al26

Could you please tell us a little more about your current car? You say it's a 2 litre. I think that would mean it's either diesel (which wouldn't really suit your use) or an extremely rare and valuable quattro (which I'm pretty sure you would know about).

Tbf knowing me, I wouldn't know about it lol. But no, it is a diesel. I was always told diesel was better for long journeys. Which is the main thing I do (working all over the country)

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Sat 20 Jan 2024 13:57

Help! Which car? - Adampr

Could you please tell us a little more about your current car? You say it's a 2 litre. I think that would mean it's either diesel (which wouldn't really suit your use) or an extremely rare and valuable quattro (which I'm pretty sure you would know about).

Tbf knowing me, I wouldn't know about it lol. But no, it is a diesel. I was always told diesel was better for long journeys. Which is the main thing I do (working all over the country)

Yes, it is, but it's not great for local trips or for driving into cities with emissions charges. Still, if yours has lasted over 10 years, you must be doing something right, so diesel is in.

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Sat 20 Jan 2024 19:03

Help! Which car? - Adampr

So, of your choices, I would probably avoid the GLA. I believe they're essentially a Renault Mégane in drag, so not really worth the money.

I would add a Lexus UX to your list. A hybrid will be efficient on long journeys and around town, and Lexus are super-reliable. Just check that the boot is big enough for your dog.

I think the Audi Q3 and VW T-Roc are the same underneath. If you want to go bigger with a Tiguan, that's the same as an Audi Q3, Skoda Karoq and Seat Arteca.

I don't know about the Volvo, but Volvo used to be well-known for comfortable seats, which may well be an important consideration given your journey lengths.

In any case, make sure you get a long test drive - perhaps even ask for it when you make the appointment. When I bought a Golf a few years back, I soon discovered that the seats were not comfy for me - buying it was a mistake that cost me thousands.

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Sat 20 Jan 2024 21:23

Help! Which car? - Al26

A friend also told me to avoid mercedes. So think I'll scratch that from my list. I'm not as keen on the Q3, apart from the new fancy sportback but that's a bit out of my price range and mpg wasn't as good. But I like the Q2. They seem quite good on mpg. Look nice inside and I love my Audi. It doesn't seem a big jump from my A1 to the Q2.

I think the T-roc is my favourite looks wise but have seen people say its not as nice inside - and thats the most important part as I'll be driving it, not stood outside looking at it lol. It seems pretty good on mpg aswel. But I'm not sure which engine/version is best.

I don't know enough about engines or power ect to know which one to go for - in any model. Only that when I've driven previous cars, clients cars or families cars they're not sharp enough for me. When accelerating fast/overtaking. Theirs are all 1.6 engines or lower. Anything as powerful/quick as my Audi (or quicker) is fine but I wouldn't know where to look for that information.

A friend has the volvo xc40 and her husband an xc60 and says they're the most comfortable cars she's ever driven. Not really a volvo person but someone has a brand new XC40 at the end of my road and its lovely so I've had my head turned lol.

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Sat 20 Jan 2024 22:01

Help! Which car? - Adampr

The feeling of power you have in your current car is torque (the engine's twisting force). A brief Google suggests you have 320Nm at 1750 rpm. That probably.means nothing to you (it means little to me), but means that the most force is easily accessible at a motorway cruise.

If that's the feeling you want, stick with diesel. Modern petrol engines with turbochargers can get close to that, but generally at higher revs and with a bit more drama

You're correct, an Audi will generally have a nicer interior than a VW (that's what you pay the extra money for).

If I were you, I'd probably test drive a Q2 and XC40 with the biggest diesel engine available.

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Sat 20 Jan 2024 22:49

Help! Which car? - catsdad

The OP shouldn’t get fixated on cc. With modern cars it’s probably the least reliable thing on which to base performance. Torque and bhp are much better indicators.

As already suggested, the VW 1.4/1.5 is a very competent performer. My 1.4 Golf is every bit as good to drive as older 2 litre or even 2.5 litre cars I’ve had in the past. The same will be true of most 1.4 - 1.6 modern petrol turbo engines.

A good test drive (not just a tootle round the block) should set his mind at rest.

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Sun 21 Jan 2024 11:00

Help! Which car? - Al26

Could you tell me which engines/versions of the T-roc , Q2 and Volvo xc40 are as powerful or more powerful than my Audi a1? Thank you

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Sun 21 Jan 2024 12:26

Help! Which car? - Adampr

I believe your A1 has 140bhp power and 320Nm torque.

An XC40 D3 has 147bhp and 320nm.

An XC40 D4 has 187bhp and 400nm

For reference, an XC40 T5 petrol has 243 bhp and 350nm, so more outright power but less 'grunt' and would not be as economical (check the 'real mpg' section of this site for details).

They all weigh about 1700kg, whilst your A1 is about 1200kg, so I would expect the D4 to more closet match the performance of your A1.

Just for fun, the XC40 electric has 402 bhp and 660 Nm...

The T-Roc 2.0 TDI has 147 bhp and 340 Nm torque. It weighs about 1350kg, so would have similar performance to your A1.

A T-Roc R petrol would probably be too expensive, but has 295 bhp and 400 Nm. It would be very thirsty and very fast.

The Q2 tdi is the same as the T-Roc. You can also get an SQ2, which is along the lines or the T-Roc R - very fast and very thirsty.

So: XC40 T4, T-Roc 2.0 TDI or Q2 2.0 TDI.

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Sun 21 Jan 2024 17:04

Help! Which car? - Al26

Thank you so much for all that, that's very helpful.

Yes, I looked at the T - Roc R and the SQ2, which look brilliant for the speed I want but very bad on the mpg as you've said. And by quite a bit. I don't mind a tad extra cost on the mpg biut they're horrendously bad compared to the diesel options.

I looked into my Audi and it says it has 0 to 60 in 8.30.secs. So anything the same or quicker than that should be fine. I've tried to look at the T-roc / Q2 and Volvo 0 to 60 options but there seems to be so many different trims/engines that I can't make head nor tail of which ones are quicker than my Audi ??

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Sun 21 Jan 2024 18:47

Help! Which car? - Adampr

T-Roc 8.5 seconds

XC40 7.6 seconds

Q2 7.8 seconds

I wouldn't get fixated on that. Anything below 10 is all you'll need.

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Sun 21 Jan 2024 22:21

Help! Which car? - Al26

T-Roc 8.5 seconds

XC40 7.6 seconds

Q2 7.8 seconds

I wouldn't get fixated on that. Anything below 10 is all you'll need.

Thank you so much for all your help. I really appreciate it. I'll test drive those 3 and see if that comes up with a preference

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Thu 8 Feb 2024 16:42

Help! Which car? - DocJohn

We've got a low mileage 2019 T4 XC40. It's generally a good car and I would sum it up as worthy but dull. My biggest complaint, apart from poor fuel consumption, and rather odd steering feel, is the complete lack of help from the dealers, or even Volvo UK, when something goes wrong. Ours has a broken tailgate handle; it's known design fault and there's a Service Action in North America, but here you have no chance! In fact one dealer wants £168 to diagnose it before they'll even work on it...

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