Which one do you prefer?

ICUBABY

Hello Everyone,

I need some opinions from all of you on which car to buy.

I will be having approximately £ 4000-5000 to spend on the car.

Which would you buy from:

a) Golf TDI
b) BMW 3 series

I have seen used cars in that price range which have very high mileage. This does worry me as to whether i will incur high costs in repairs in the future.

I like the mpg on the golf but the beemer is the ultimate driving machine.

Please advise a confused simpleton here.

Many thanks in advance

apintofstella

neither is very moneysaving ... in fact both are potentially moneypits! Parts for both are expensive, services likewise. IF it must be one of these two go for the golf though.

ArsenalFC

While the golf is better on fuel, the bmw is the one to get.

Im not saying that because I have a bmw 318is coupe. The rear wheel drive of the beemer is very good, much better than the golf.

Drive, handling, image and looks; bmw Do not get the compact, get the 2 doors coupe if you are planning to get the bmw.

With regards to high mileage, make sure the car has FSH or nearly FSH. Bmw engines last very long, get something with less than 120k will be fine so long as it has service history.

I managed to get a 88k miles on my current 318is M'95 coupe last year for £2050 on ebay. Had no problem at all, really like the drive and handling.

burbs_2

As Arsenal has said, the only choice here is a Beemer. I deal cars for a living and have owned both cars so can hopefully do you a good comparison.

The BMW will last you many miles if you get the right 1. They last well over the 130,000 mark. Make sure you get a decent example that has the FSH. For your money you wouldnt have too much problem picking up an older BMW.
As said above though, they cost money to run and maintain but i wouldnt say the fuel consumption is going to be huge, nothing to put you off anyway. Get a BMW with all the service lights on and you should be fine.

ICUBABY

Thank you all for the very useful posts.

I am definitely leaning towards the BMW. Going to look around on Autotrader/Ebay right now to find the one for me.

tomstickland

I'm a total BMW convert. You can't beat RWD if you want to enjoy driving. IMO they are actually cheap cars to run. They are solidly built and don't rust around you like most other cars. Use a BMW independant to do the servicing.

cundall

It depends what you want. A BMW people will think you have money or they will think you are a show off while a Golf if a car that blends into the background.

My mother has a Golf 1.6S and my mate has a Golf TDI 115bhp so i would say the Golf though my other mate who had a Golf TDi 130bhp sold it to buy an older BMW and he likes it though for the money you get more features and the Golf is quicker.

If you were thinking of a 1.6s Golf or a BMW i would say BMW though with the TDI if you get the 115 or 130bhp versions you will have more fun, cheaper to run and plus you dont look like you have lots of money while driving a quality car.

It's jsut my personal view

ICUBABY

cundall wrote:

a Golf if a car that blends into the background.

Hi Cundall,

You are not joking are you with that comment are you?
It is not the snobbery badge i am after when i think of buying a bmw.

It is the reliability and everyday 25 mile smooth drive that i am after. I have had a fiat punto as my first car. I think i have outgrown it due to various reasons especially it's road handling round the bends/ roundabouts like a go kart out of control :mad:

Thanks to everybody who have given me ideas.

Chris_VRS

Skoda Octavia TDI??? :money:

burbs_2

cundall wrote:

It depends what you want. A BMW people will think you have money or they will think you are a show off while a Golf if a car that blends into the background.

My mother has a Golf 1.6S and my mate has a Golf TDI 115bhp so i would say the Golf though my other mate who had a Golf TDi 130bhp sold it to buy an older BMW and he likes it though for the money you get more features and the Golf is quicker.

If you were thinking of a 1.6s Golf or a BMW i would say BMW though with the TDI if you get the 115 or 130bhp versions you will have more fun, cheaper to run and plus you dont look like you have lots of money while driving a quality car.

It's jsut my personal view

BMWs are not a car that makes people think you have money or that you show off. BMWs are not that expensive to buy at the moment, they are relativly cheap considering what you get for your money. I sell quite a few BMWs and they go to people from all walks of life, factory workers, milkman etc.

What does it matter what other people think with regard to your money situation? BMWs are common place nowadays, they really are not as expensive as you make out.

In all honesty the difference in running costs between the Beemer and the Golf (dependant on which 1 you got) would be hardly worth panicing about to be honest with you.

ArsenalFC

Burbs is spot on, BMWs are relatively inexpensive to buy and are common today. I picked up mine for £2k last year. Older bmws are more affortable these days, more and more people are getting them.

If I had loads of money and I can afford to get a ferrari then I would, I cannot care what people think about me. I had the beemer for a year now, I only changed one tyre (£60) and an oil and filter changed since (£25).

Many people tend not to get a beemer because insurance is an issue. If its not an issue then it is a very good piece of machine and it's a massive improvement from smaller cars. I have driven the 1.6 golf, cannot even begin to compare with the beemer. Although the golf TDI/GTI maybe faster (because of size) than certain models of the beemer.

An neighbour of mine had one of those older golf (mark3) top of the range 2.8i, he recently got the beemer compact 2.5i 02 plate. He used to loved his golf, now he is saying its rubbish compared to the beemer. Pre 2001 bmw compact are not good, from 2001 they are excellent. Which is the reason I suggest the OP to not consider the compact.