WTB wagon - seeking opinion

[Stratovarius]

1 hour ago, boonhat_91 said:

Reviving this topic for fun. Mainly looking at used unless otherwise stated. Didn't expect this list to grow so long. First 3 are my preference not in any particular order, the rest are also not in any order. I am quite curious if there are any long term reviews for the Peugeot 308 and Opel Astra because they are surprisingly common.

1.      Mazda 6 wagon 2.5 – Looks good. Expensive. Expensive road tax. 522L boot on paper.

2.      Subaru Levorg 1.6T – Looks good. Expensive. 1k cheaper road tax than Mz6. 522L boot on paper.

3.      Hyundai i30 1.4T Wagon – Looks good. Cheaper than above 2. Cheaper road tax than above 2. Smaller dimensions than above 2. 602L, bigger boot capacity on paper than above 2.

4.      Honda Shuttle – Very common, many used as PHV. Price/depre varies a lot – lower depre higher quantum vs lower quantum higher depre. Affordable road tax. 570L boot on paper. Unless buying new (PI-only, not sold by AD), high chance of getting ex-PHV.

5.      Peugeot 308 SW 1.2T – Not too uncommon, also many PHV. Reasonable price/depre compared to i30 and Shuttle. Cheaper road tax than i30. 660L(!!) boot on paper.  French reliability?

6.      Opel Astra Sports Tourer 1.0T - Not too uncommon, also many PHV. Looks good. Reasonable price/depre compared to i30 and Shuttle. Cheapest road tax. 540L boot on paper. German = good? Unpopular German in Sg though.

7.      Peugeot 508 SW 1.6T – Rare. Reasonable price/depre compared to all above. Looks good. Affordable road tax (same as Levorg). Can’t find an official boot capacity figure, seems to be in the low 500s. Strange then that the 308SW has such a huge boot.

8.      Opel Insignia 2.0T – Super rare. Looks good. Reasonable price/depre for the specs compared to all above. 2L road tax. The only available used unit has high mileage. Almost 5m long! 256hp, 400nm torque!! 560L boot on paper. German = good? Unpopular German in Sg.

9.      Seat Leon Sport Tourer 1.0T – Uncommon. Price/depre not that great for the specs. VAG car, for better or worse. Cheapest road tax. 587L boot on paper.

10.  VW Golf Variant 1.4T – Uncommon. Expensive. It’s a VW, for better or worse. Affordable road tax. Apparently 600L boot on paper.

i vote for 1 and 2. The rest are just hatchback with elongated kar chng.

Between the 2, i will probably choose the Levorg. lower road tax and easier to tune if you are into that kind of thing.  

[shrjun]

Can get an M3 touring for 1/2 million dollars.

[boonhat_91]

 

28 minutes ago, shrjun said:

Can get an M3 touring for 1/2 million dollars.

For added context, I am only looking at up to C&K level of "luxury" 🙃 hence the omission of BMW (certainly not M3), Merc, Audi (used options only have 10yo A4/A6 or RS models) and current gen Volvo (which I agree look nice).

1 hour ago, Volvobrick said:

 Current V60 is nice. V90 too long.

Drove the Insignia 5 door rental in Australia. Not bad ride and 2.0T is just adequate in power. Low end a little lacking.

What about Skoda? 

PS I would stay away from Frenchies.... 

Skoda I considered too, just that the only used one available for some time had been the VRS which is too expensive. Now there is a 2021 Octavia Combi which depre is similar to Mz6/Levorg but since it is young the quantum is quite high.

French reliability still no good for 2010s cars?

[Mrmilktooth]

2 hours ago, boonhat_91 said:

Reviving this topic for fun. Mainly looking at used unless otherwise stated. Didn't expect this list to grow so long. First 3 are my preference not in any particular order, the rest are also not in any order. I am quite curious if there are any long term reviews for the Peugeot 308 and Opel Astra because they are surprisingly common.

1.      Mazda 6 wagon 2.5 – Looks good. Expensive. Expensive road tax. 522L boot on paper.

2.      Subaru Levorg 1.6T – Looks good. Expensive. 1k cheaper road tax than Mz6. 522L boot on paper.

3.      Hyundai i30 1.4T Wagon – Looks good. Cheaper than above 2. Cheaper road tax than above 2. Smaller dimensions than above 2. 602L, bigger boot capacity on paper than above 2.

4.      Honda Shuttle – Very common, many used as PHV. Price/depre varies a lot – lower depre higher quantum vs lower quantum higher depre. Affordable road tax. 570L boot on paper. Unless buying new (PI-only, not sold by AD), high chance of getting ex-PHV.

5.      Peugeot 308 SW 1.2T – Not too uncommon, also many PHV. Reasonable price/depre compared to i30 and Shuttle. Cheaper road tax than i30. 660L(!!) boot on paper.  French reliability?

6.      Opel Astra Sports Tourer 1.0T - Not too uncommon, also many PHV. Looks good. Reasonable price/depre compared to i30 and Shuttle. Cheapest road tax. 540L boot on paper. German = good? Unpopular German in Sg though.

7.      Peugeot 508 SW 1.6T – Rare. Reasonable price/depre compared to all above. Looks good. Affordable road tax (same as Levorg). Can’t find an official boot capacity figure, seems to be in the low 500s. Strange then that the 308SW has such a huge boot.

8.      Opel Insignia 2.0T – Super rare. Looks good. Reasonable price/depre for the specs compared to all above. 2L road tax. The only available used unit has high mileage. Almost 5m long! 256hp, 400nm torque!! 560L boot on paper. German = good? Unpopular German in Sg.

9.      Seat Leon Sport Tourer 1.0T – Uncommon. Price/depre not that great for the specs. VAG car, for better or worse. Cheapest road tax. 587L boot on paper.

10.  VW Golf Variant 1.4T – Uncommon. Expensive. It’s a VW, for better or worse. Affordable road tax. Apparently 600L boot on paper.

CLA 200 Shooting Brake ?. Since u have considered the contis.. 

[boonhat_91]

18 minutes ago, Mrmilktooth said:

CLA 200 Shooting Brake ?. Since u have considered the contis.. 

Expensive and not much boot space (on paper).

[Genes]

There is apparently a WRX Wagon that is launched with the SMS 2023. Cant find price anywhere (havent dug much)

[R32]

I have a 2019 6 wagon, the pros are that it is quite a good-looking car and handles well for a mid-sized car. It comes pretty well-equipped with head up display, CarPlay/Android Auto, 360 camera system, but with an old-school powertrain comprising of an NA 2.5 litre as well as a 6-speed auto gearbox. The engine has enough torque and refinement such that its not intrusive and doesn't struggle to get up to speed. Sounds nice for a 4-pot when you do wring it out. Small features that I like are the cargo cover that is attached to the tailgate even when it opens, and minimalist dashboard layout where there are good-quality metal decorated HVAC and audio controls.

But some of its pros are also cons as well as the engine can be quite thirsty in city driving (10km/litre) and transmission can be a little slow to respond in city point and shoot driving. It is also quite an old platform (more than 10 years old from first launch) so should be in the last facelift by now. Wheelbase is a little shorter than the sedan equivalent so you lose a bit of leg room but gain some headroom as the roof doesn't rake down to the rear windscreen. The aforementioned 360 camera is needed however, as the car doesn't have a great turn radius and is fairly large. It doesn't have an auto tailgate, which is unfortunate. They put so much thought into a great interior dashboard that they disabled the touchscreen when the car is moving. And the 6 series has a constant common problem with recurrent front suspension noises and faults with its folding mirror.

When I was shopping for this car, I also considered a used C200 estate, but that was 2 years older and 2k more depreciation per year even though the allure of the brand was strong. There's some COE-renewed ones on the market now, but I think you mentioned you didn't intend to spend a large quantum. 

All in all, I don't regret buying the 6 estate and would do it again.

[R32]

22 minutes ago, Genes said:

There is apparently a WRX Wagon that is launched with the SMS 2023. Cant find price anywhere (havent dug much)

250k, thereabouts.

[boonhat_91]

@R32 thanks for the detailed owner's opinion 👍 On hindsight, do you think the road tax and fuel economy of the 6 might have made that C200 estate closer in affordability than you thought?

[Stratovarius]

1 hour ago, Genes said:

There is apparently a WRX Wagon that is launched with the SMS 2023. Cant find price anywhere (havent dug much)

wrx wagon is actually levorg. are they bringing in the 2.0T now? The last gen TC only brought in the 1.6T (which is why i never go for it). 

[R32]

24 minutes ago, boonhat_91 said:

@R32 thanks for the detailed owner's opinion 👍 On hindsight, do you think the road tax and fuel economy of the 6 might have made that C200 estate closer in affordability than you thought?

The road tax and fuel economy of the C200 would have been better. However as a whole ownership proposition, the 6 cost me nothing to repair as it was under warranty for the first three years, whereas the 2-year old Mercedes Benz would leave warranty coverage sooner and start costing me money to repair, as well as the resulting downtime. In fact, that particular car would have cost me money upon purchase because there was a fairly large dent on its rear fender and I would have wanted to upgrade the head unit anyway.

https://www.sgcarmart.com/used_cars/info.php?ID=847592

[Dh6211]

@boonhat_91 Actually there are 3 variants of Opel Astra ST in SG, the 1.0 3cyl Turbo, 1.4 Turbo and the 1.6 Diesel which is mostly used on PHV. The 1.0T and MTA combo makes the car very agricultural and dumb in Auto mode. I'm currently driving this version since Dec 17, 132k km now. It's been reliable for me (no leaks or high oil consumption) and its pick-up is actually rather decent for a wagon with a 1.0T. I'd recommend getting this if you don't want to pay over the moon due to current high COE price.

For Insignia ST, I personally don't like the super big rear overhang and I will personally steer clear as there are not many parts for this car in Singapore due to its scarcity (less than 10?) unless you really like it.

 

Edited January 13, 2023 by Dh6211

[boonhat_91]

38 minutes ago, R32 said:

The road tax and fuel economy of the C200 would have been better. However as a whole ownership proposition, the 6 cost me nothing to repair as it was under warranty for the first three years, whereas the 2-year old Mercedes Benz would leave warranty coverage sooner and start costing me money to repair, as well as the resulting downtime. In fact, that particular car would have cost me money upon purchase because there was a fairly large dent on its rear fender and I would have wanted to upgrade the head unit anyway.

https://www.sgcarmart.com/used_cars/info.php?ID=847592

Fair point on the repair cost. That merc is a good looking wagon though...

[Watwheels]

Can narrow down to just 3?

A lot of the cars I see for me I will strike off quickly.

The 3 cylinders are out. The Hyundai unit is worth considering. The Mazda you wont want cos of the road tax. Subaru I am not sure what kinda effect you will get from the cvt gb. The flat engine has to be overhauled once the gasket leaks. Too much work.

Opel Insignia should be a very old car by now. The GM took the 2.0L TC engine from Saab and put it in this car. On paper it looks good but old tech, will experience turbo lag. By now it should need a new turbo replacement, radiator and hoses replacements. A lot of messy work for old cars.

Only the Hyundai is a good contender.

[boonhat_91]

23 minutes ago, Dh6211 said:

@boonhat_91 Actually there are 3 variants of Opel Astra ST in SG, the 1.0 3cyl Turbo, 1.4 Turbo and the 1.6 Diesel which is mostly used on PHV. The 1.0T and MTA combo makes the car very agricultural and dumb in Auto mode. I'm currently driving this version since Dec 17, 132k km now. It's been reliable for me (no leaks or high oil consumption) and its pick-up is actually rather decent for a wagon with a 1.0T. I'd recommend getting this if you don't want to pay over the moon due to current high COE price.

For Insignia ST, I personally don't like the super big rear overhang and I will personally steer clear as there are not many parts for this car in Singapore due to its scarcity (less than 10?) unless you really like it.

 

Ah I didn't know there was a 1.6D used for PHV, kinda makes sense. 1.4T version seems super rare or maybe no owners want to let go. Thanks for your owner's opinion! 132k km, it has served you well! Many trips up north?

For Insignia ST, I wonder how many shared parts with its saloon variant. The saloon seems more common, seen a few as PHV.

[cth_]

Have you considered the Passat 2.0 Wagon?

[boonhat_91]

48 minutes ago, Watwheels said:

Can narrow down to just 3?

A lot of the cars I see for me I will strike off quickly.

The 3 cylinders are out. The Hyundai unit is worth considering. The Mazda you wont want cos of the road tax. Subaru I am not sure what kinda effect you will get from the cvt gb. The flat engine has to be overhauled once the gasket leaks. Too much work.

Opel Insignia should be a very old car by now. The GM took the 2.0L TC engine from Saab and put it in this car. On paper it looks good but old tech, will experience turbo lag. By now it should need a new turbo replacement, radiator and hoses replacements. A lot of messy work for old cars.

Only the Hyundai is a good contender.

Actually the first 3 were my main considerations, but I realised there were other options around that price/depre range and my list grew out of control 😅 Thanks for the technical info!

The Hyundai I also feel is a very strong contender, since my family is small and young so pax space and rear legroom is not a high requirement. However I do wonder how Hyundai's turbo and DCT will hold up over time?

[boonhat_91]

23 minutes ago, cth_ said:

Have you considered the Passat 2.0 Wagon?

Golf wagon already quite expensive, Passat no need to say. I did see one on the road before, also a good looking wagon...