# Mazda 6 or Volvo v60.



## bradleymarky (Nov 29, 2013)

Both 64 plates with 28-32k. diesel.

Lot more toys in the Mazda and a lot more BHP. I did want a v40 but its too small inside the back so started looking at the v60, the r-design is too dear for my budget (£12000 max at a push) and would be looking at a 13 plate with 60k on it.
I dont want a bmw or audi and ford have let me down in the past, currently have an insignia but its time to get rid. Its a big car and the wife doesnt like driving it and the mazda is longer :thumb: so that will keep her away.

The mazda is the red colour which is nice and will polish up nice. I`ve seen a white mazda with a bit less miles but its in glasgow but they will bring it down with a deposit but ive been stung by that before because they dont want to give it you back.

I`ve just read through what ive typed and i think ive answered my own question  only thing is...........does the mazda look like an older persons car


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## Fentum (May 1, 2017)

FWIW I don't think of Volvo as a young person's car either!

More Surbiton yummy mummy or Cotswold antiques dealer?

Aren't they on a Ford platform as well, given your concern about Fords?

Peter


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## Kerr (Mar 27, 2012)

You're worried about the Mazda being for old folk when you're considering a Volvo as the alternative? :lol:


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## steelghost (Aug 20, 2015)

Mazda diesels don't have the best reputation for reliability. Maybe better if you're going to be covering decent distances regularly.

All that said I'd far rather have the Mazda than the Volvo, going on looks alone.


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## Indi (May 12, 2010)

Why not a MERCEDES?

For 12k you can get some very nice ones, and they dont shout old man driving,

How much room do you need?

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classi...sing-location=at_cars&postcode=tn234px&page=1

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classi...sing-location=at_cars&postcode=tn234px&page=1

Or a little more luxury..

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classi...sing-location=at_cars&postcode=tn234px&page=1


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## Rayaan (Jun 1, 2014)

Indi said:


> Why not a MERCEDES?
> 
> For 12k you can get some very nice ones, and they dont shout old man driving,
> 
> ...


No point even considering those apart from maybe the C class unless you're prepared to spend big on anything that goes wrong

But, these are from an era when Merc reliability was a bit rubbish so wouldn't bother with them personally.


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## insanejim69 (Nov 13, 2011)

Rayaan said:


> No point even considering those apart from maybe the C class unless you're prepared to spend big on anything that goes wrong
> 
> But, these are from an era when Merc reliability was a bit rubbish so wouldn't bother with them personally.


And their not much better these days going by what a family member says regarding cars in the local dealership.

But would def be the Mazda for me, the Volvo's have t aged top well Imo and the interiors are a bit dated too.

James.


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## ollienoclue (Jan 30, 2017)

I used to think Volvos were for old duffers. Won't buy anything else now. So comfortable, solid and nicely thought out cars. Bit more upmarket without being shouty about it. Built like tanks as well. Suits our lifestyle perfectly. Buy one with an uprated engine or Polestar it?


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## MagpieRH (May 27, 2014)

I used to think of Volvos as old man's cars too, then when I was looking for a new car a few years back, someone mentioned the C30 (hadn't heard of it), looked it up, tried one, had it 3 years now.
They do have a reputation (again, one I was unaware of prior to buying this one) of having the most comfortable seats, bar none. The R Design ones are slightly better than standard, I believe.

R Design doesn't generally add any power or toys, it's seats, bodykit (incl. spoiler), silver mirror housings and a couple of R Design tags inside and out. If you can afford the extra, go for it. Well worth it.



Fentum said:


> Aren't they on a Ford platform as well, given your concern about Fords?


The C30 is a Focus base, but I think they were sold to the Chinese in 2012 or 13, so haven't been since then. I've had to replace the battery in mine (twice thanks to getting a duff one from the RAC), and have a minor issue with the windscreen (seems to be fairly common in slightly older models, but Volvo haven't officially acknowledged it) but aside from that, it's served me very well. About as safe as you can get too - although the C30 is not good for any pedestrians I may hit, a whole solitary star there from Euro NCAP :lol: (more recent models are much better here, AFAIK)


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## mikster (Jan 4, 2016)

Rayaan said:


> No point even considering those apart from maybe the C class unless you're prepared to spend big on anything that goes wrong
> 
> But, these are from an era when Merc reliability was a bit rubbish so wouldn't bother with them personally.


My E class 2010 is the best car i have ever had.
No problems at all....better than my previous lexus, Audi and Bmw


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## Christian6984 (Dec 20, 2007)

bradleymarky said:


> does the mazda look like an older persons car


Volvo for me, not so keen on the looks of the mazda, looked at an estate version on autotrader and those big rounded wheel arch curves on the side profile give it a hint of the Renault Kadjar :lol:

Interior wise i don't think either is anything to rave about but i've read plenty saying the Volvos are very comfortable


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## Kerr (Mar 27, 2012)

There is a lot of choice around the £12k mark for saloons. Surprised how many of the prestige brands aren't much more expensive in this market for similar age cars.


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## bradleymarky (Nov 29, 2013)

I'm always changing my mind. Been looking at a Mazda 3 2.2 sport nav. A year old insignia with plenty of toys and 170 bhp.
I'm more for mpg but still need something with a bit of power. And I don't want to pay more than £20 tax I know it's asking for a lot but I've been told I have to keep this next car for a while.


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

The Mazda 6 is one of the best looking family saloons available at the moment. Would be my choice of the two.


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## bradleymarky (Nov 29, 2013)

volvo.https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classi...e=VOLVO&postcode=hd21aa&price-to=12000&page=5
mazda3. even got heads up display.https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classi...tising-location=at_cars&price-to=12000&page=1
mazda6. https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classi...from=10000&sort=sponsored&model=MAZDA6&page=1


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## AndyN01 (Feb 16, 2016)

Having had 2 superbly reliable Mazda's you'd think I'd suggest those.

Generally I would. But I'm hearing about a lot of very expensive problems with the diesels so be careful (a bit like the issues with the 1.6 turbo diesel Fords).

Not sure how Mazda are handling these issues?

Maybe worth a look on the owner's forums for helpful info and cars for sale rather than going to stealerships?

Remember, provenance is everything and a full dealer stamped book doesn't actually mean things have been done correctly or even at all.

Good Luck with the search.

Andy.


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## bradleymarky (Nov 29, 2013)

AndyN01 said:


> Having had 2 superbly reliable Mazda's you'd think I'd suggest those.
> 
> Generally I would. But I'm hearing about a lot of very expensive problems with the diesels so be careful (a bit like the issues with the 1.6 turbo diesel Fords).
> 
> ...


I have joined mazda and volvo forums to have a look around, seems v40 owners like to have a moan about the interior rattling but not much else.
Mazda owners seem to be generally happy but dont like paying for extras..folding mirrors,satnav and the like but the mazda 3 i was looking at has just about every option going  but no real problems with either cars.

The wife wants a smaller car (mazda3 size) but i`ll see, i dont have any days off until thursday so will take a look around then.


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## ollienoclue (Jan 30, 2017)

The Volvo forum are a very nice and handy bunch. Several of them are Volvo techies.

I see one of the V60 variants is 180hp, for a princely sum of about £500 you can get a Volvo dealer to Polestar it for you. How much more poke do you want from a 2 litre engine?

The interior is not an explosion in a button factory and none of that stupid MMS one button controls everything like you get in a German. The simplicity and comfort of the cabin is near unrivalled in my view.

Tastefully understated is how I would describe the exterior.

Lots of these cars rack up huge mileages, which says much for the brand I reckon.

Be aware that Volvo are currently in the process of up-marketing their cars, all the newer models will be priced upwards from where they were. Compare the old XC90 with the new one and the difference is an automotive chasm. I suspect the replacement for the XC60, V70 and V60 and C30 will be likewise. They appear to be 'doing an Audi'.

The only problem I can forsee is that Volvo don't sell huge numbers of cars compared to the Germans, I don't know for sure but I don't think their engine tech is as cutting edge as the Germans, who seem to offer more power, refinement and lower fuel consumption overall. I don't know if that is accurate but I know people with some of the newer BMWs and Mercs, the engine department seems to be near unbelievable, I wonder who much is due to the crazy multi-speed automatics people have in these cars now.


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## PugIain (Jun 28, 2006)

What about a 508 GT.

Sent from my VFD 710 using Tapatalk


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## Rayaan (Jun 1, 2014)

mikster said:


> My E class 2010 is the best car i have ever had.
> No problems at all....better than my previous lexus, Audi and Bmw


Obviously an exception then. I know a few owners with no problems at all but the majority tend to have some issues be it small or large


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## mikster (Jan 4, 2016)

Rayaan said:


> Obviously an exception then. I know a few owners with no problems at all but the majority tend to have some issues be it small or large


Sure, sure....


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## bradleymarky (Nov 29, 2013)

Changed my mind again and off to look at this today. The colour is better than the pictures and has a nice shine in the sun.
http://www.sytner.co.uk/car-search/7683587-seat-leon/


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## LewisChadwick7 (Aug 22, 2014)

you know my views for the Leon, Mark  

what about an ST version as you didn't mention you wanted something a bit longer? what was the Leon at Sheffield jct600 like?


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## bradleymarky (Nov 29, 2013)

LewisChadwick7 said:


> you know my views for the Leon, Mark
> 
> what about an ST version as you didn't mention you wanted something a bit longer? what was the Leon at Sheffield jct600 like?


Already gone mate  but luckily i rang before i set off. This one is only around the corner from where i live. I`ve seen a couple of ST`s further a field but the hatchback will keep the wife happy....ish :thumb:


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## LewisChadwick7 (Aug 22, 2014)

bradleymarky said:


> Already gone mate  but luckily i rang before i set off. This one is only around the corner from where i live. I`ve seen a couple of ST`s further a field but the hatchback will keep the wife happy....ish :thumb:


ah that's a bummer then at least it wasn't a wasted journey though!

It might be worth going a bit further afield though if it's going to save your ear been chewed off :lol:


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## bradleymarky (Nov 29, 2013)

LewisChadwick7 said:


> ah that's a bummer then at least it wasn't a wasted journey though!
> 
> It might be worth going a bit further afield though if it's going to save your ear been chewed off :lol:


I like my ears being bit but dont tell everybody


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## bradleymarky (Nov 29, 2013)

The car was in poor condition so i just left. One persons idea of "mint condition" isnt mine.


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## Andyblue (Jun 20, 2017)

bradleymarky said:


> Changed my mind again and off to look at this today. The colour is better than the pictures and has a nice shine in the sun.
> http://www.sytner.co.uk/car-search/7683587-seat-leon/


Thought you didn't want German 

Do you have a car supermarket near you ? Could be worth a wander round and you can actually see lots of options - might help narrow things down for you ?


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## bradleymarky (Nov 29, 2013)

I seem to have got a good "over the phone deal" on a leon 184 so going to have a look.

One dealer asked me to bring my national insurance card with me  thats a new one on me.

I forgot about black friday deals and the car i`m looking at was £500 cheaper yesterday


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## Andyblue (Jun 20, 2017)

bradleymarky said:


> I seem to have got a good "over the phone deal" on a leon 184 so going to have a look.
> 
> One dealer asked me to bring my national insurance card with me  thats a new one on me.
> 
> I forgot about black friday deals and the car i`m looking at was £500 cheaper yesterday


Well use that to your advantage if getting to the nitty gritty of the deal - bear in mind, if you're doing a trade in, they 'may' have reduced your px by some yesterday...

Hopefully goes well


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## bradleymarky (Nov 29, 2013)

Andyblue said:


> Well use that to your advantage if getting to the nitty gritty of the deal - bear in mind, if you're doing a trade in, they 'may' have reduced your px by some yesterday...
> 
> Hopefully goes well


As soon as i got there they started talking crap and found £1000 extra on the car i was looking at, they also gave me a different price trade in even though he said its the cleanest car for that age he had ever seen.
It did have a bit of paint loss on the bonnet but they wouldnt agree to the price he had said on the phone. his attitude changed when i told him no and got up to walk out so i was quite blunt with him and left.

Off to look at the 150bhp grey one this morning in Oldham but its the same company so will have my details already. I`ve seen a black 150 thats close to me on a 16 plate but has 30k on the clock so maybe a tad high on that front.

The red did look nice with tinted rear windows but any marks show up really easy. The search continues


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## Andyblue (Jun 20, 2017)

bradleymarky said:


> As soon as i got there they started talking crap and found £1000 extra on the car i was looking at, they also gave me a different price trade in even though he said its the cleanest car for that age he had ever seen.
> It did have a bit of paint loss on the bonnet but they wouldnt agree to the price he had said on the phone. his attitude changed when i told him no and got up to walk out so i was quite blunt with him and left.
> 
> Off to look at the 150bhp grey one this morning in Oldham but its the same company so will have my details already. I`ve seen a black 150 thats close to me on a 16 plate but has 30k on the clock so maybe a tad high on that front.
> ...


Bugger, well it wasn't meant to be and they've lost a sale, not you've lost a car...

Might be the same company, but if it's a different site, then could be a completely different experience... Hopefully things go well 

On a side note - not been personally, but there is a Seat dealership in Sheffield - part of JCT600 and when I dealt with their Audi branch, they were superb, so could be worth a call ?

Good luck and hopefully a better experience today


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## bradleymarky (Nov 29, 2013)

Its taken a while but i pick up a 65 plate seat leon fr on Friday. Really impressed with how it drove and goes a bit for a 150. In Silver.

Bit of a change from original post but the wife liked it because its smaller than my current tank.


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## andy665 (Nov 1, 2005)

Good choice. Leon fits the bill for me as well so ordered a Cupra for next May


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