Nostalgia 559 4th Gear March 21, 2010 (edited) I was doing the test drive rounds today, looking for a MODERATELY priced sedan to replace the wife's ride as the family mover for 3 adults 2 children. It looks like the best fit is either the C5 or the Superb Needs to satisfy the wife's criteria of: Non-MPV; non-hatchback; DVD player; comfort; overtaking oomph; GPS built-in preferred; I am familiar with Volvos and BMWs, but not looking to spend that much on the 2nd car. Having settled on the $100-110 as the price I want to pay, I have test driven the following so far. Includes a couple of stand-outs from that budget range as I wanted to be sure of what I'm missing - Toyota Prius - Skoda Superb - Citroen C5 - Subaru Legacy - MB B200 Turbo - MB C200K Some brief test drive notes. Any comments welcome - Toyota Prius 106K Pros -Huge fuel savings, esp with 70% city driving for the wife -Modern design/fancy electronic dashboard -'green' catchet - steady driving, smooth acceleration/deceleration - plenty of available stock (anyone else read the bad press? 8) ) Cons - lightweight, hybrid-friendly fabric replaced with 'local leather' - cheap interior - a little heavy - soft handling - tight rear seats, though plenty of legroom - MY09 cars. Any comment on buying MY09 car this late in the year? - Skoda Superb 116K Pros - lots of kit for the money - everything VAG has to offer - great looking interior - not sure about how long-lasting it is - 5 star NCAP - great acceleration and handling from 1.8T 7DSG Cons - Skoda - lots of poor reviews internationally on the web, though maybe not this version. Top Gear's review is hilarious - MY09 in stock - which might explain the low price. Any comment on buying MY09 car this late in the year? - local leather - reliability and servicing frequency? anyone care to comment? - 'normal' incentive of 3 free servicing and price level made conditional upon in-house insurance and minimum 50K/7 year financing. - not sure how bad depreciation could be after 3-5 years.. - Citroen C5 110K Pros - lots of kit for the money, interior a match for the Skoda - entirely imported internals - a MUCH smoother ride, the best I've taken. great for sleeping children in the back - Euro NCAP 5 star - Citroen's buy-back guarantee, which caps max depreciation at 50% after 3 years... Cons - weak acceleration, a far cry from the Skoda - steering not as sharp as it could be - reliability and servicing frequency? anyone care to comment? - 3 yr, 60K warranty - probably the worst terms among all the makes - Subaru Legacy 2.0 CVT 97K Pros - Cheapest of the cars tested - sharp handling - internal kit does not match the Skoda/Citroen, but not as 'ah pek' as the Camry Cons - acceleration could be better, but there's always the 2.5GT - wife doesn't like the Subaru radio ads and the image they project - MB B200 Turbo $139K Pros - the badge, albeit the almost the lowest end model (yeah yeah almost as bad as a badge whore). There's always the B170 at $118K.... - engine has enough oomph - lots of space for the money - both headroom and legroom are amazing for the size of the car - Euro NCAP 5 star - reputation for safety/reliability - 5K overtrade Cons - wobbly at speed and around curves - kit is worst of all the cars I've tested, barring maybe the low-spec Legacy 2.0 - MB C200K $159K Pros - Much better package than the B200, at $20K more - much sharper acceleration and handling than the B200 - 5K overtrade Cons - price - price - price Edited March 21, 2010 by Nostalgia ↡ Advertisement Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Saroja117 4 Neutral Newbie March 21, 2010 Go for Citroen looks much better and more reliable.Remember Citroen is always different Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nostalgia 559 4th Gear March 21, 2010 Any feedback from Skoda owners? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ithunk 31 1st Gear March 21, 2010 Definitely not one of these cars Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fondue 5 Neutral Newbie March 21, 2010 I love Citroens, having driven the CX and XM for over 15 years, and the New C5 is a very attractive car. But my vote goes to Superb because : 1. Citroen has yet to prove its reliability. 2. C5 is too sluggish, inless you opt for the 3.0, but the petrol bill will kill. 3. Space .... lots of it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Weiming 18 1st Gear March 21, 2010 The problem with the C5 is the anaemic engine and 4spd gearbox? Too outdated compared to the competition. Good points of it is of course the fantastic ride quality, the great exterior and interior design. The Superb engine and gearbox is fabulous with a teutonic-like business/somber interior but the exterior design is rather frumpy. Best to test drive both cars over the weekend with your family in tow to compare since you all will be living with the car, not us :) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Axela72 1,875 5th Gear March 21, 2010 Go for Citroen looks much better and more reliable.Remember Citroen is always different with 4 gear only? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Starry 484 3rd Gear March 21, 2010 if you must choose between this two.....I say Superb. Only issue is depreciation. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nostalgia 559 4th Gear March 21, 2010 I completely agree with you. But only if cost was absolutely no concern, and I'm keeping firm to the budget I set. Even the Volvo S80 would go at 150+ at these COE levels... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ithunk 31 1st Gear March 21, 2010 mercedes is a good car.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fourth 145 2nd Gear March 21, 2010 Think a woman driving C5 would be cool... but what's yr wife's preference? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nostalgia 559 4th Gear March 21, 2010 Think a woman driving C5 would be cool... but what's yr wife's preference? She test drives the C5 tomorrow. Surprisingly, she liked the look of the Superb and was impressed by the equipment levels and handling, especially the turning radius and how easy it was to park. This coming from a 6 yr old S80 2.5T. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ml2spin 188 2nd Gear March 21, 2010 Hmm... none of th big three Jap models considered: Camry, Accord and Teana? How about the new Hyundai i45?? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fourth 145 2nd Gear March 21, 2010 She test drives the C5 tomorrow. Surprisingly, she liked the look of the Superb and was impressed by the equipment levels and handling, especially the turning radius and how easy it was to park. This coming from a 6 yr old S80 2.5T. Maybe not surprising because I often hear good things about Superb. The Skoda brand name is non existent for now [no offense] but most ladies (including my wife) do not really care or know about brands. I think both are nice choices. I am interested on your wife's final decision. Keep us posted ok? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Quirky_ster 9 Clutched March 21, 2010 I've sat on the C5, Superb and C180.... I would say comfy... C5 Space, Drive and Fun to drive ... Superb Fun to Drive and image... C180 I would give these few a check first to confirm on the choice... Opel Insignia Audi A4 Peugeot 408 VW Passat It's tiring.. but it may be well worth the extra effort... and am just glad.. you took out the "ah Peck" car... let us know you decision.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cerano 92 1st Gear March 21, 2010 how does the acceleration of the c200k compare to the other cars? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nostalgia 559 4th Gear March 21, 2010 (edited) Hmm... none of th big three Jap models considered: Camry, Accord and Teana? How about the new Hyundai i45?? Camry was rejected because she didn't like the wood trim, and the look of the cabin....probably if we were businessmen a decade or two older.... Accord was rejected because we used to have one...3 generations ago, but she didn't want to 'repeat' the experience. Incidentally, here's a local comparison: http://www.------.com/articles/article.p...=&artid=513 We didn't even look at the Teana as she didn't like the look. Would you believe at one time we shortlisted the Peugeot 308SW 7-seater simply because she thought it had an 'interesting' bumper...? Edited March 21, 2010 by Nostalgia ↡ Advertisement Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
