Looking for a used estate car - recommendations?

[Shoxt3r]

Long post warning - TL/DR at the bottom.



I'm looking at getting a used car. My budget is approximately £10k (via a loan), plus part exchange of my 2013 Ford Focus.



I've looked at WBAC and they have offered £2,500 which seems on the conservative side and is obviously subject to inspection. The car has most service stamps (I missed a couple a few years ago) and it's in relatively good condition. The cambelt work for example was done around 2-3 years ago.



I've had the Focus for 8 years now and I've got concerns about age-related issues creeping up, but would also like something bigger for family holidays etc. For example there is a slight whine from the gearbox at slow speed/start-up which I had checked last August, and essentially it will need a replacement eventually. MOT, Service and Car Insurance are all due in July, so I'm ideally looking to replace before then so I don't double up on other costs. Tax is paid on monthly basis, so I presume I can just switch the Direct Debit, and I have car-specific breakdown with the RAC which I know will incur an admin fee to change as I only renewed last month.



I visited 4 used car dealers locally today which unfortunately didn't yield much - most of the cars I saw are either too small, old, high mileage or automatic. Some of them are the age I'm looking for but miles out of budget (£15k+). Is now a good time to be looking, or is it down to a poor used car market at the moment?



My wishlist for the new car is as follows:

- Manual

- Petrol

- Around 50k mileage maximum (Focus is on 68k, was 45k when purchased in 2017)

- Estate

- No more than 7 years old

- Situated fairly local in Kent/London/Essex



I've looked on Autotrader but it seems to be a minefield. For example, I can't find details by car about tax rules for the £40k+ list price? I'm ideally looking for a simple flat rate like I have with the Focus - £195/£210 and no more.



Also many dealers push for "reserve" payments, or for delivery which I guess is the new normal? I'd like to be able to purchase in person to avoid these costs if possible, plus to have ample time to check the car over and test drive. Warranties (if offered) are fixed at 3 months and can be extended (unlikely to do this to save money).



Some cars of interest are:

- 2021 Ford Focus estate, 1.0T Ecoboost Hybrid MHEV

- 2019 Ford Focus estate, 1.0T Ecoboost Active X

- 2022 Seat Leon 1.5 TSI EVO FR estate

- 2016 Ford Mondeo 1.5T Ecoboost (breaking my rule of "no more than 7 years" but I like the Mondeo after doing a test drive a few years ago)



Why are modern engine sizes so small - what are they equivalent of? My Focus has a straightforward 1.6 Duratec Ti-VCT so I'm unfamiliar with the change to smaller capacity engines.



Added to my questions are what the acronyms for the cars listed above mean? I understand there are different trim levels but I'm not familiar with brands other than Ford (my Dad owns an old Ghia Mondeo) - is there somewhere I can see this information at a glance?



Long post I know - thanks for getting this far!



TL/DR:

- I can't find details by car about tax rules for the £40k+ list price?

- Is £2.5k accurate trade-in for a 2013 Ford Focus?

- Anything to be aware of for the car list above?

- Is now a good time to be looking, or is it down to a poor used car market at the moment?

- Many dealers push for "reserve" payments, or for delivery which I guess is the new normal?

- Are Ford Ecoboost engines better than they were?

- Why are modern engine sizes so small - what are they equivalent of?

- What do the acronyms for the cars listed above mean?

Thanks in advance!

 

[tracktoy]

Firstly as this is a Seat forum you are not going to get much help on the trade in value for a Ford i am afraid (although you might get lucky)

So you overall budget is £12,500 which a quick look on autotrader shows either a 1 litre or very high millage / long distance

In terms of description the EVO stands for EVOLUTION (I am no expert so that could be wrong)
The FR is a Trim Level and stands for "Formula Racing" so is a more sporty version

My personal advise is you need to take the car for a drive because that's the only way YOU can decide which is the best car for you.

 

[Rob66]

As above not sure we can be a great deal of help. Of the cars you have listed I had a Leon FR Estate for a week as a Hire car and loved it, but you really need to have a drive yourself. I am by no means an expert on the Ford Ecoboost Engines but I know that the early ones tend to go ‘pop’ very easily and have earned the nickname Ecoboom. I am not sure if the ones you mention have the new improved Ecoboost engine.

Trade in wise, there are so may variables but there will be a ‘book price’ for your car based on condition and history, but its just a guide and the dealer may adjust it based on whether he will retail the car or sell it on. Stating the obvious but when you visit the dealer make sure the car is as clean as possible inside and out, You may not get a better price but they will be more keen to take your car if they don’t need to do anything to it to sell it on.

It may also be worth popping a few picture on Carwow or Motorway and see what they offer you.

 

[serdar_18fr]

- Why are modern engine sizes so small - what are they equivalent of?
- What do the acronyms for the cars listed above mean?

Smaller capacity engines are the result of "downsizing" push, started in the late 2000s.
Until then, most of the mainstream engines were naturally aspirated, like the one in your current car.
With the downsizing, they went for smaller cylinder capacities and added turbochargers (and superchargers in some cases) in search of lower fuel consumption and emissions, while keeping the same (or better) performance levels.

Ecoboost is the marketing name of a specific Ford engine family, they have plastered it to all small capacity engines they built in a specific timeframe, so it doesn't mean much.

MHEV is for mild-hybrid electrified vehicle and is used for vehicles which has an additional small battery to run a low-power electric motor, which provides additional power to improve the fuel economy. Battery is recharged via regenerative braking.

Active X is a trim level which is used for Ford's crossover-ish models where the car is jacked up a little bit, and has some off-road looks.

 

[SRGTD]

Welcome to the forum @Shoxt3r.

I’ve no experience of owning a Ford with the 1.0 Ecoboost engine. However, I have read of some catastrophic engine failures on some earlier cars with this power plant and its ‘wet belt’. The cam belt runs in the engine oil and can degrade over time, shredding small parts of the belt that find their way to the oil pump strainer and block it, restricting / blocking oil flow within the engine block. The result can be total engine failure. The cam belt is a serviceable item and because it’s located within the engine block, it’s a labour intensive - and therefore costly job to replace it. I don’t know if Ford made any modifications to reduce the risks associated with the belt, but I would recommend doing your homework and researching thoroughly before buying.

If I was looking for a sub-7 year old Seat Leon sized estate car within your budget, I would also consider, the Toyota Corolla estate, Kia Ceed Sportwagon, VW Golf Estate and the Skoda Octavia Estate. I believe the Kia has a 7 year manufacturer’s warranty when new, so you may find one with the balance of the original warranty remaining. Toyota offers ‘up to’ a 10 year warranty; I don’t know when this was introduced but the original factory warranty is extended by one year at each service up to a total of 10 years, provided the car’s serviced by a Toyota dealership. However, Toyotas tend to have a reputation of being pretty bulletproof so the warranty might not ever need to be used. One downside of the Corolla for some might be the transmission; the Corolla is a hybrid so it will have Toyota’s CVT transmission which won’t be to everyone’s liking, and your preference is to have a manual.

As for your existing car’s value. We Buy Any Car have a reputation for making low ball offers, so I would try some of the other car buying services such as Motorway and Carwow. As with any of these car buying services, always be 100% honest over your car’s condition and declare any mechanical faults and / or bodywork damage and imperfections to avoid any initial indicative valuation being reduced when the car is viewed due to undeclared faults / defects.

As for the car tax on cars with a list price of £40k or more at date of first registration - The enhanced (supplementary) tax is payable in addition to the standard rate of VED for a period of five years from the time the VED is first renewed. So when the car is one year old, the standard + enhanced VED is payable for the next five years until the car is 6 years old.

 

[serdar_18fr]

I’ve no experience of owning a Ford with the 1.0 Ecoboost engine. However, I have read of some catastrophic engine failures on some earlier cars with this power plant and its ‘wet belt’. The cam belt runs in the engine oil and can degrade over time, shredding small parts of the belt that find their way to the oil pump strainer and block it, restricting / blocking oil flow within the engine block. The result can be total engine failure. The cam belt is a serviceable item and because it’s located within the engine block, it’s a labour intensive - and therefore costly job to replace it. I don’t know if Ford made any modifications to reduce the risks associated with the belt, but I would recommend doing your homework and researching thoroughly before buying.

Along with Ford, also PSA (now Stellantis) Group's smaller engines have contributed with a lot of horror stories to the wet-belt saga. But it should be mentioned that manufacturers' position in those cases was that the engines were not maintained as they should have been (delayed or ignored inspection timeframes, and especially using the wrong grade oil). Anyway, they have since switched to timing chains for newer generations of those engines but of course this switch is not relevant to older ones and as you said a thorough history check is recommended before buying a car with any of those engines.

 

[Rob66]

PS. Luxury Vehicle Tax was introduced in April 2017, and is payable for 5 years from the second year.

It applies to the Retail Price, so if like our Formentor the Retail Price was over £40k, even though we only paid £30k for our ex-demo we still have to pay the Luxury Tax for 5 years.

 

[Shoxt3r]

Thanks so much for the informative replies everyone! I've got to be honest I'm quite put off the Ecoboost engines (and others with "wet belts" from other manufacturers).

Is there anything similar to be aware of for the Seat or VAG range in general?

I'll also have a look into other brands and see what's available - the VW range sounds interesting.

Thanks also for the reassurance on the additional tax - it seems like my aim of getting a 6+ year old car should escape this then.

Also, how are servicing costs for VAG? I've always seen them as expensive to own? I am used to spending around £300 a year on servicing my Focus (outside of cambelt change which has been £7-800+).