Citroen C5 versus Volvo S60 - advice appreciated

dulpit

Hey all,

We need to get a new car, we set ourselves a budget of €10k and have narrowed it down to 2 cars:

• Volvo S60, 2013 reg: https://www.carsireland.ie/3322893
• Citroen C5, 2014 reg: https://www.carsireland.ie/3243983

The Volvo is older, has more miles on the clock and is €1k more expensive. Having said that, a cursory google tells me the Citroen is thirstier and won't hold it's value as well. I've driven both, both drive well. The Volvo has a much nicer cabin/interior, but am I mad to spend more than €1000 (I get a better trade-in price with the Citroen) on an older car, even if it is a Volvo?

If someone could make a clear case for either, I'd appreciate it. I'm definitely leaning towards the Volvo, but is this me being silly?

Thanks in advance!

bazz26

They both use the same 1.6 litre engine but why only consider 1.6 litre in those cars? The 2.0 litre are more powerful and robust imo and probably just as economical to run in cars of that size.

You should also consider the Peugeot 508, it shares alot of DNA with the C5:

https://www.carsireland.ie/3264703

Another is the trusty Avensis, not glamorous but total cost of ownership will probably be lower than the others:

https://www.carsireland.ie/3281542

Matthewjohn

I have a 2012 S60 2.0 163 bhp, very happy with it over the last 3 years, plenty power and very comfortable. I get about 46/47 mpg with mixed driving, the only downside to it is the the boot and rear headroom isn't huge compared to the likes of a Passat/Avensis/Mondeo.

Dr_Colossus

€10k for a 10 year old car of any description is saucy, shows the lunacy of the 2nd hand market for the past few years. To put things in perspective I bought my 2007 Volvo S60 2.0 turbo petrol in 2014 for €3k. Great car and has been rock solid all these years and has nearly 285k km on the clock now. I had a Volvo S40 1.9 petrol for a number of years before that.

Only gripe is that motor tax is ridiculous at €710 per year but that led to it's initial depreciation as everyone wanted diesel back then for the cheap tax. You won't have that problem with the above diesel but check insurance especially for next year once it's 10+ years old as the likes of Aviva won't quote. Best I could get this year was 500 for TPFT with full no claims and quotes ranged from about 550 to 1,200.

Can't really go wrong with Volvo, neighbour has a 2012 2.0 diesel (same design as in link) from new and no major problems with it that I'm aware of.

drunkmonkey

Saucy is an understatement, I think they're way overpriced the citroen especially, I know that's what the market is asking for but still it's a bubble waiting to burst.

Why those 2 cars?, if I was going for a 10yr old spending 10k I'd want a bit of luxury and power with cheap tax.

Jaguar XF, BMW 5 Series, Mercedes E Class that kinda thing.

We've had volvos and citroens, that's why I'm shocked by the asking prices.

goochy

Don't bother with any of last op' s suggestions , just waiting for trouble . What about a high spec. Kia optima ?

listermint

There's nothing wrong with the power in that volvo D2. It's economical and nippy and zero issued with motorway speeds whatsoever. I have one. I've owned everything from 3.2 Litre M3s down to 1.3 litre mazdas so fair bit of experience in power.

The power plant in both cars is the same the engine is a PSA engine in fact mine is stamped on the rear as citreon.

What you want to make sure with these is that it's timing belt is changed in time. There isn't any oil leagues from PCV as that's a common fault. And obviously no loss of coolant.

I've never driven the Citreon but the volvo has superb handling the steering feels refined and solid and is a drivers car.

The disks in rear are known to wear heavier possibly related to electric parking brake but nothing else poor.

As for the price. That's the market don't expect it to change anytime soon because it won't. There's no raft of cars coming on stream from anywhere anytime soon regardless of what posters above think. Comparing to a used car market 6 years ago pre brexit is nonsense. It's never returning.

McCrack

A 2 litre diesel is more refined than a 1.6 litre diesel and a better buy

drunkmonkey

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120437526#Comment_120437526

There's a change coming start of may, northern dealers will be able to buy from the UK and claim back 1/6th of the purchase price, the thinking is it will encourage exports back down here and to the EU. Not sure how effective it'll be but it's a step in the right direction.

https://www.macintyrehudson.co.uk/insights/article/Second-hand-motor-vehicle-export-refund-scheme-start-date#:~:text=The%20refund%20scheme%20mimics%20the,there%20or%20in%20the%20EU.

I've a 3.2 Evo in the shed, the Kia and the citroen just aren't doing it for me, €280 tax on the 3.0L Jag, friend has one seems happy. Volvo would be the best of the 3, 10k does seem like a lot though.

listermint

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120437567#Comment_120437567

Having drove both. There's little in it. But sure look. We can throw out isms till the cows come home.

dulpit

Thanks all. I'm going to get the volvo. Reason I didn't look for a bigger engine or different model or wait for changes is that I need a car this week and I live in Cork and that's what was available.

I was surprised at how poor the market is at the moment alright, I spoke to one dealer who said that currently a lot of dealers in Cork are struggling to get stock because dealers from up the country are coming down and buying up all available cars. And another guy said a big issue is that people are moving to Ireland and buying cars, so not trading anything in, and people with cars are holding onto them for much longer, so it's a bit of a vicious cycle...