33K to spend on a company car...which 1 to chose???

ds20prefecture

bazz26 wrote:

In fairness the same argument could be said about people who drive Alfa Romeos, Audis and Volvos. Not everyone wants to drive a BMW. The new 5 and 7 series are horrible to look at imo, the new 3 Series is hardly an inspiring design is it?

Fair enough, except for the Alfa. Alfas tend to be driven by people who love cars and couldn't give a rats ass what anybody thinks of their less-than-shrewd financial acumen.

I couldn't agree more about BMWs generally. They went from bland but attractive to bland and ugly with the latest styles. I've only ever been tempted by the last shape 530d touring, and not because of its shape, more its combination of ability and anonymity.

TE0N

Rodney Trotter wrote:

PASSAT? Credible rival to BMW, Audi, Alfa? You have got to be joking? It's still agricultural and only a repmobile. (A lá Mondeo, Avensis, Primera, Vectra etc). If you are going to spend €33k on a co. car you don't want to be saddled with a repmobile, you want something a little bit different from the ordinary.

Id love to see a front wheel drive Passat tackle a muddy field lol, youd need the 4WD version for that. Besides i dont think anyone with a sane mind would take a car costing €36k (1.9Tdi) into a muddy field! Dunno where you get that agricultural idea from, maybe the PD TDi engine, it does sound a bit rough but the common rail diesels dont sound any better. (maybe thats your angle)

and...

Hahha, no im not joking, its BETTER than all the cars you memtioned there except 1, the BMW 3-series, and it only beats it on preformance, straight line zero, 0-60. But when moving the Passats mid-range preformance will more than keep up, besides people dont go round thrashing their engines revving to the red line all day.

Here look at an experts review

I know this first hand, a friend of mine was resently in the market for decent sized car and was indecisive between the MB C220 CDi and BMW 320d. I told him about the 05 Passat, showed some reviews and of we went to the VW dealer. And the ONLY thing that we found that was worth the extra money was that Beamer was RWD and had 20 more BHP. Conclusion; 320d was better if you floored it. BMW see this and now gonna bring out a 318d (a lower power 2.0d) to tackle this. Besides why am i saying this, both these car are well out of her price.

Rodney Trotter wrote:

I'd repeat, the best option is the Accord, Mazda 6 or a SAAB 9-3.

Wrong!! A cheaper Passat will be a better option, if only for its low depreciation!

Rodney Trotter wrote:

2 points on this.

1. Most Co. Cars are required to have 4 doors. Very rare to have something like a mini as an option.

2. As co.car fuel is usually paid for, petrol is the one to go for. Much nicer to drive, usually, with very few exceptions. Where there is a diesel option it is usually more expensive therefore increasing the BIK payable by the driver , with no extra benefit for the individual.

Most company cars are 4-door, show me where it says that. I thought you could pick what you want to the offered value.

I was under the illusion that diesels where cheaper because of their lower emissions!! But maybe you're right.

Rodney Trotter wrote:

I'd agree with the BMW 1 series. Good option for a single girl.

Yes, the 116 is a good car, but its expensive and cramped when compared to a Golf.

Car id reccommend would be a Golf or a Skoda Superb/Octavia.

junkyard

Sorry guys I couldn't help but throw this in as an ad break.

maidhc

No one has suggested a Toyota Avensis 2.2 D4D. You should get one for that money. The 2.0 is quite a fast car and the 2.2 is substantially faster. It shouldnt cost any more to run than a 1.8 petrol. It also has a 3yr warranty, Toyotas roadside cover is good, and Toyota dealers dont have as bad an attitude problem as many others. If it was a private purchase I would suggest a 2.0 D4D as they hold their value unlike anything else.

Why would someone buy an Audi over a Skoda? Its a terrible affliction to be a badge snob. The same goes for a Volvo s40 v. a Ford Focus.

The Octavia is a very fine car. Second the Avensis in my book. The superb is getting a little old now alright.

Finally, for everyone, 33k doesnt get you a very fancy car. It is very much "repmobile" territory. And to be honest, there is nothing wrong with that.

If you buy a BMW or whatnot with 33k you know you are getting something small and overpriced, or something with a small underpowered engine that looks nice, but is still overpriced.

unkel

bazz26 wrote:

The new Passat is very expensive

I was very surprised that the entry level is only €25k which seems very competitive to me. Most other versions esp. the 2 liter diesel are ridiculous money, I grant you

ds20prefecture wrote:

I couldn't agree more about BMWs generally. They went from bland but attractive to bland and ugly with the latest styles

I must be ultra conservative, just like yourself, to not like the styling on the latest BMW models. Then again I disliked the E39 when it came out 9 years ago but I do like it now

But to call all BMWs past and present bland? My experience and interest is not with 4 cylinder engined BMWs or Minis* for that matter but what do you base your qualification of "bland" on?

*SuperPaddy, who won the Monte Carlo rallye in a Mini in '64, currently drives a BMW Mini BTW, but surely you know this

junkyard

The basic BMW's may be bland but the top of the range is a different matter. The same can be said for Mercedes. I think car manufacturers have to cater for all customers as lots of people would aspire to buying a prestige car brand, and the car manufacturers can see this and supply the product accordingly.

ds20prefecture

unkel wrote:

But to call all BMWs past and present bland? My experience and interest is not with 4 cylinder engined BMWs or Minis* for that matter but what do you base your qualification of "bland" on?

I was referring to the previous model BMWs only, unkel. I meant no offence, but I'm afraid that does include your 7. The 3 -> 5 -> 7 family tie was just too strong. So while the 7 had distinguishing features like the boot treatment unfortunately the grille, glasshouse, gratuitous stiffening creases in the flanks, wheel arches and lights were all made banal by the 5 and ubiquitous by the 3. And thats without mentioning the ever-so-predictable Hoffmeister kink.

I certainly would not class a '38 328 as bland. Or a '71 3.0CS. Or a 2002 ti. Or an '80s 635. Or even the E30 (?) 3 series. Is it a Teutonic thing to endlessly flog a winning formula without rocking the boat? e.g. Porsche 911. BMW. VW Golf.

ds20prefecture

unkel wrote:

I must be ultra conservative, just like yourself, to not like the styling on the latest BMW models.

I almost take offence to being called ultra conservative, but I'll let you away with it because I'm drunk.

Perhaps Bangle will be fondly remembered, stranger things have happened. I'm a big fan of the Fiat Coupé.

Back on-thread!!! Could the Fiat Coupé be bought as a company car for €33000? I'm afraid not, more's the pity.