2009 Audi A6 2.0TDi Avant or 2009 BMW 520d SE E61

Wailin

Family has gotten bigger, need a bigger car...so has to be an estate. Have had my eye on the 520d for awhile but learning about the timing chain issue has scared me off (more or less, hasn't stopped me looking:)). For the sake of this post I'm going to ignore the chain issue and would like advice from folk on the pros and cons of these cars. Both are priced similar with the A6 having a bit more mileage but not much. I haven't actually seen the cars but they both look clean and with full service history. With the timing chain issue I'm guessing most people will tell me to avoid the BMW, does the A6 of that vintage have any issues to be wary of? Unfortunately, both are manual but I can live with that.

bazz26

What about a 530d? No timing chain issues to worry about.


http://www.driving.ie/used-cars/BMW/5-Series/530-D/42813941264898470/

Wailin

Well truth is, after checking it out, my insurance would more than double plus tax would treble, fuel economy etc. Yes I am spending up to €20,000 on a car but I still want something that will not have me forking out close to €2,000 a year just on tax and insurance, regardless of fuel costs. My annual mileage is very low, roughly 15-20,000 at max, I don't commute to work. Having a big 3.0L engine would be pointless really.

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

bazz26

Tax on the 530d is €750. Cheaper than the cost of fitting a new timing chain too.

Wailin

bazz26 wrote: »

Tax on the 530d is €750. Cheaper than the cost of fitting a new timing chain too.

True Bazz, but I am also wondering is there a bit of hysteria over the whole timing chain thing. I mean, there are hundreds of 520d's and 320d's out there. If this was such an issue no one would be buying them. What Car magazine doesn't mention it as something to look out for, only going on about issues with the self levelling suspension and electrical problems. I know it has affected a lot of cars but it's probably a tiny percent overal.

bazz26

Some food for thought:

http://www.bmw-driver.net/forum/showthread.php?t=47070&page=4

http://www.bmw-driver.net/forum/showthread.php?t=39216&highlight=n47

http://www.bmw-driver.net/forum/showthread.php?t=34566

http://www.bmw-driver.net/forum/showthread.php?t=31171

http://www.bmw-driver.net/forum/showthread.php?t=45073

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/23p5j5wzPtYflS7kFvmKVZf/bmw-deny-engine-failures-are-due-to-manufacturing-fault

https://www.facebook.com/pages/BMW-Problem-Timing-Chain/293617047394760

Make what you want of it, your choice really.

I'd choose the A6 over a 520d of that vintage.

Wailin

Think you could be right about the A6, will give it a test drive and see how it goes from there.

R.O.R

Neither a 520d Touring or an A6 Avant.

Had a similar situation a couple of years ago. Looked at all the available 520d Tourings and A6 Avants in budget. Ended up with something newer, lower mileage, higher standard specification, and with a larger load area.

The Grandaddy of the Large Estate Car - The Volvo V70.

http://www.carzone.ie/search/Volvo/V70/D3-SE/59014048301876190/advert?channel=CARS Has the new engine, but the interior...........Looks OK in the pictures (if you like that sort of thing), but the cream doesn't wear well. Imagine what a state the kids would have that in, within weeks.

http://www.carzone.ie/search/Volvo/V70/2.0-D-SE/52014019673037740/advert?channel=CARS Silver, with the much more practical Black interior. Full Volvo service history up to 105,000km.

The D3 is a cracking engine with lower road tax than the older 2.0D. 163ps 5 Cylinder in the D3 - better than you'll find in most 09 A6 2.0Tdi's, but not quite up to the standard of the BMW unit. The 2.0D in the V70 is 136ps 4 cylinder - generally pretty reliable (shared unit with Ford/PSA) - gearing is slightly off to make it an enjoyable drive, but it's not really the sort of thing you want to be throwing in to corners anyway.

We only had our V70 for a brief period. €17,000 of damage put paid to it, but apart from a small bruise on the wife's thigh, herself, a 15 month old and a 6 week old, came out without a scratch. As well as being built to carry huge amounts of stuff, they are also built to keep important people in your life, very safe.

The one downside to the V70 is it's sheer size. The 5 Series Touring and the A6 Avant are big cars (A6 feels bigger than the 5 when you are in it), but the Volvo takes up a lot of room. Easy to spot in a car park as the nose or @rse stick out further than just about anything else. Electric Tailgate also means you've got to be very careful of where you park - had to keep an eye out for overhangs that the tail gate would smack off. That's the only reason we didn't replace the V70 with another one, now have a more manouverable XC60 - not as much boot space or rear seat space, but carries the double buggy.

Wailin

Those Volvos look huge alright, never even considered them, too wrapped in BMW and Audi badges:) But I have to say, I'm not too keen on the exterior looks. Inside looks fantastic though, and they are probably a safer bet than either BMW or Audi. That cream interior looks gorgeous, but yeah, kids would have it destroyed! Worth a test drive definitely, thanks for the reply.

jamesypeters11

New Audi interiors are horribly plastic...feel made of a wheely bin compared to BMW...ride is hard steering is numb and they're the same car as a Passat but for substantially more money...buy a vw or BMW and u will never go wrong

ROSSKI

Would you consider something else ?
Different model I know but I had a 06 BMW 525 d for a year or so- I now have a 2010 superb estate elegance 2.0tdi 170 Bhp and it is miles ahead of the BMW in every way . I absolutely love it plenty of poke and very good on fuel

Wailin

ROSSKI wrote: »

Would you consider something else ?
Different model I know but I had a 06 BMW 525 d for a year or so- I now have a 2010 superb estate elegance 2.0tdi 170 Bhp and it is miles ahead of the BMW in every way . I absolutely love it plenty of poke and very good on fuel

Yep, Skoda Superb was definitely top of my list for awhile, drove one, lovely to drive, but then drove a '09 520D. No contest in my opinion, the BMW was just much better to drive. Went with the 520D in the end, despite all the warnings about the timing chain. I think you'd need to be very unlucky for that to happen.