Accord, Passat or Avensis

Stinkah

Hello all,

I'm new to this board, used to use the tech boards all the time, but never the motors one. I'm not majorly into cars but I've reason to buy a car at the moment. I'm recently married with a kid on the way, so I need a good reliable, comfortable car, that's not going to cost the earth and that will be easily maintained and relatively cheap to run.

I've been searching for a while now and have narrowed the search down to three possible candidates, but would like so "expert" advice on which one I should pick, and maybe a couple of simple reasons why.

My choices are:

(all from 2004 onwards)
The Honda Accord
The VW Passat
The Toyota Avensis

My gut feeling is that thousands of taxi men can't be wrong in terms of reliability, so would be leaning at the moment towards an Avensis. Then again, they are a small bit on the boring side and the Accord is nice looking, comfortable car and Honda's are built to last. The final choice is the VW Passat, and realistically this is my outsider at the moment because I've only really thrown it in because of the VW name.

My preference would be to have leather seats but it's not a must. Thinking here is that with baby coming, any mess can be wiped clean pretty easy in theory

I've budgetted for a spend between 16 and 20k so that would obviously restrict my purchase power, but I'm not adverse be any means, to travelling to the UK to purchase and have been looking into what Car Giant have to offer and like what I see.

Anyway, I'd be very greatful for any thoughts suggestions from you guys.

Thanks in advance,

bbam

Hi...
I have a Passat for some time now, I've driven both the Avensis & Accord in turbo diesel models..
The Accord wins hands down in my book... Relyable, stylish, comfortable, huge boot space....

Best of all " A real touch of Class"

Cheers..
BAM

Stinkah

Wow, that was quick, and just want I wanted to hear.

I should have pointed out too that I'm looking to buy a Diesel, so obviously this is good news

vengeance52

bbam wrote: »

Hi...
I have a Passat for some time now, I've driven both the Avensis & Accord in turbo diesel models..
The Accord wins hands down in my book... Relyable, stylish, comfortable, huge boot space....

Best of all " A real touch of Class"

Cheers..
BAM

i got a 2.2i-CDTI accord in exec spec and i love it. drove the avensis and it was ok, but i didnt like the pedals for some reason. ive big feet so the accord was more comfortable driving position. When i drove the passat, theres loads of room and comfy enough, but found it heavy and slow.

This is my thread i had when deciding on my accord, and it was cos of boards i went for it. http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=53046386

joy123

to me it will be either toyota avensis or passat.
now its depend on urs driving profile
if u driving more then 6000 mile per year, i would say for fuel economy u should buy passat tdi. they r really good if u do lots of milage and they r reliable too.
otherwise go for toyota they r known to be reliable.


again its my openion.

E92

I wish you luck trying to find an Avensis with cow skin(leather) in it.(unless you try across the pond, most of our ones were fairly basic inside in them)

Of the three cars there, it would have to be the Toyota for me, as long as you stay away from the 1.6, as these have yucky seats(and are unlikely to offer any decent performance). 1.8 Lunas are the ones to have(or better still a diesel Luna), and there are plenty of them around. I would warn you that the Avensis, like all modern Toyotas isn't quite as trouble free as you might think(it certainly won't live up to the "best built cars in the world claim"), but it's not going to leave you stuck at the side of the road either, and would still be a lot better than most other cars out there for reliability.

My father has a 05 one, and thus far it's had electrical issues(it wouldn't start twice and required an AA callout on both occasions because of some electrical problem), air conditioning trouble(it turned out to be the pollen filter, so nothing major) as well as traction control issues too. Apart from that it is a lovely car though.

The Passat is overrated(especially for reliability) and the Honda is more expensive(though I haven't gone in one, but it is meant to be similar to the Avensis, just dearer, it has bigger engines, and probably would be a bit more reliable too) than the Toyota(not that the Toyota is cheap now either, they have fantastic resale value).

Don't just limit yourself to those three though, the Mazda 6 and Ford Mondeo should never be left out of the shopping list of any person considering a family car, and if none of those float your boat, the Opel Vectra is super quiet(super heavy depreciation too, nobody will want it when you want to sell it but you should be able to get a much newer one than anything else mentioned), and though I personally wouldn't buy them, a 407 is super stylish, and a C5 is meant to be ridiculously comfortable, though I'd be holding my breath on reliability there, with a Laguna you'll get to know your local mechanic VERY well indeed should you buy one.

A bit of an outsider is the Volvo S40, smaller than anything else I've mentioned, but reliable, very safe, and I don't care what anyone says, they are a seriously comfortable car(a lot of people think that they are bad over the bumps, absolute nonsense as long as you avoid sports suspension and stick with 15 inch wheels), and anything from 03 onwards is very well appointed inside. I think it is a seriously underrated car(I would say that wouldn't I since I drive one:D).

JHMEG

I would see the Accord and Passat as being a bit more upmarket than the Avensis, tho the Avensis has certainly moved up aswell. The Avensis tho should be the cheapest of the 3, and certainly isn't a bad bus.

The Accord is superbly built and the interior is very high quality. It almost has a German 'feel' to it. As a result it's on the expensive side.

The Passat disappointed. The interior is nice, tho I thought a little OTT in the use of silvery plastics. That was the other thing: the Passat's plastics felt cheap to me, something I was quite suprised at.

I haven't driven a Passat, but have the other two. Tho the Accords were both 2.4s, a Type-S and an Exec auto, and the Avensis was a 1.6, so it'd be unfair to compare them.

Green Hornet

Got to be the Accord. More stylish, comfortable and upmarket than the others and unbreakable. Seems to be a lot of posts complaining about the Passat on the forum as being "soft". The Avensis is most likely a very good car but bland as hell.

The Accord will cost you more but you will get a great trade in. The only thing to watch out for is the fact that the model is changing in September. Actually, the Avensis is also changing model soon but I doubt if the new one will be "dramatic" either.:rolleyes:

bazz26

OP wait until after 1st of July and import yourself a Honda Accord 2.2 diesel. The VRT will be reduced on it and because it is an import registered after 1st July the annual road tax will be around €420 compared with over €700 at the moment. I am going down this route myself next year.

The Accord is a lovely car and feels that little less main stream than the Passat or Avensis.

tippbhoy

Stinkah wrote: »

I need a good reliable, comfortable car, that's not going to cost the earth and that will be easily maintained and relatively cheap to run.

Reading into this sentence, the Avensis is the one for you, value for money, hugely reliable and a good size.

Personally i would rate it a bit boring but it's not designed to be an exec car. For me i'd buy the Accord, they're all mostly high spec and have a finesse about them that no Toyota could ever pull off. Several of my friends have had passats , they're not as reliable as people make out, granted most of them would have been the previous model...still...

If you're doing a lot of miles i'd spend the bit extra on the Accord, if you only want a run around then the Avensis imho.

kleefarr

Accord for the drive as well as everything else. (And the adverts )

fabsoul

bbam wrote: »

The Accord wins hands down in my book... Relyable, stylish, comfortable, huge boot space....

Best of all " A real touch of Class"

+1 Of the three it has to be the Accord

worded

What about an Audi A4?

Black_Knight

My dad has the Accord, 2ltr petrol. I drove it for a year. Excellent car, never any problems with it, reliable as a wee donkey. Only thing I felt was the steering felt quite light at times compared to other cars ive driven. Its nothing to get used to anyways.
+1 for the Accord

kyote00

It would be either accord or avensis for me...

Honest John report for Accord is interesting....
http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/index.htm?md=665&

JHMEG

kyote00 wrote: »

Honest John report for Accord is interesting....
http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/index.htm?md=665&

What's Bad
No longer British built.

LMAO!

coolbeans

Of the three I'd go for the Accord every time. Why? It's got one of the best diesel engines in the world for one.
It's built in Japan so it's gonna have proper Japanese reliability and the majority sold in Ireland had leather.:). Check this bad boy out.
http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/Honda/Accord/2.2-CDi/910034/

unkel

JHMEG wrote: »

What's Bad
No longer British built.

:eek: Well spotted, JHMEG

What's Bad for who? I thought honest john was honest, but maybe he's a bit deluded too? He is a Brit after all and they used to be a super power many generations ago :rolleyes:

JHMEG

unkel wrote: »

:eek: Well spotted, JHMEG

What's Bad for who? I thought honest john was honest, but maybe he's a bit deluded too? He is a Brit after all and they used to be a super power many generations ago :rolleyes:

Personally I'd prefer to have my Japanese car built in Japan. Ironically I think a lot of Brits would feel the same.

As a mechanic I know says about Lucas, a British company: they were making sh1t 25 years ago, and they're still making sh1t. He actually blames Nissan's misfortunes on the extensive use of Lucas parts.

kyote00

British built or not, what about all this stuff....even if you filter out the all stuff about radio/satnav and speakers (ffs)

What to Watch Out For
Radio TP problem when cars fited with satnav. Radio supposed to automatically seek best signal for selected station but instead can seeks out the strongest signal around the frequency which can result in unintended channel hopping.

Have been turbo failures on CDTIs.

Report of heavy use of rear brake pads.

Reports of heavy oil consumption as bad as 1,000km a litre on some CDTis and no low oil warning light, only oil pressure light so needs regularly checking.

Reports of mid 30s fuel consumption of early 2.2iCDTI.

Reports of problems with electrics: central locking and electric tailgate.

Problems with ABS and radio speakers.:rolleyes:

Noisy automatic transmissions due to known software fault with transmission ECU.

Have been cases of water ingress into rear wheel bearings.

DVD Satnav is by Alpine and can be repaired by them if it goes wrong, tel Alpine Electronics 0870 3333 407. No need to buy a new unit.

Problem of 2006MY 6 speed manual boxes on diesels jumping out of 1st gear. Modification available from Honda, but parts on back order in March 2007.

Report of faulty voltage regulator on 2.2iCDTI at 20k miles.

Report of dealers charging £100 to adjust non adjustable hydraulic tappets of 2.2 diesel.

Report of dealers repeatedly overfilling with oil at services.

Numerous report of fuel strainer/fuel filter of 2.2iCDTI clogging in cold weather leading car to run in 'limp home' model.

Reports of problems with swirl chambers of 2.2iCDTIs at high mileage. Best to have replaced before the 3 year 90k mile end of warranty.

groupb

worded wrote: »

What about an Audi A4?

You're only buying a badge.
The other three are better cars.

Stinkah

Just wanted to Thank Everyone for the replies on this so far. Superb information. I'm not too sure that I can wait until July such are my current circumstances, but my strong feeling is that the Accord is the pick of the bunch which makes me happy

Again, Thank you!

Wolff

I have an 07 Accord 2.2 CDTI and its a classy motor - the fuel consumption is brill - interior is excellent - I found the mondeo too plasticy and badly built - doors are flimsy and thought the same of the avensis - not in the same class as the accord

GERMAN ROCKS

id go for a passat they look the best in the driveway.

vengeance52

ive had no probs with any of my electrics, fuel consumption, getting about 56mpg from my 2.2 i-CTDI. Oil consumption is low, and better than my old mondeo.

The radio is spot on and doesnt jump to a diff station when seeking best signal. The 6 CD front loading player is VERY handy.

worded

Wolff wrote: »

I have an 07 Accord 2.2 CDTI and its a classy motor - the fuel consumption is brill - interior is excellent - I found the mondeo too plasticy and badly built - doors are flimsy and thought the same of the avensis - not in the same class as the accord

Hi - What MPG are you getting?

vengeance52

Accord Spec List here
http://www.parkers.co.uk/cars/specs/detail.aspx?deriv=33390

bazz26

GERMAN ROCKS wrote: »

id go for a passat they look the best in the driveway.

What a really daft reason to choose a car.

E92

bazz26 wrote: »

What a really daft reason to choose a car.

I completely agree. Though if this sort of petty snobbery is important to the OP, by all means choose the VW(it will be spending more time on the driveway too, cause it'll being going wrong more often, and might have electric handbrake trouble, so you can't move it). I've always wondered what people see in modern VWs that I don't, and now I realise that people are making all sorts of bullcrap excuses to buy them, so they clearly aren't good cars if this is the sort of nonsense is a "reason":rolleyes: to buy one.

JHMEG

bazz26 wrote: »

What a really daft reason to choose a car.

Even more strange is that German Rocks normally advocates French cars...

GERMAN ROCKS

JHMEG wrote: »

Even more strange is that German Rocks normally advocates French cars...

i said i wouldnt bother recmmend a french car as the op did ask only about those 3 cars.
let me clarify myself in my opinion out of those 3 cars i would go for a passat because i think it looks the best out of the other 2. my neighbour has a silver one and it always looks the best compared to the other neighbours cars. by the only problem she had with it is that the airbag light came on due to somebody kicking the wire under the passenger dash or something