Best value for money: Xantia/Xsara/C3?

Pieter Jansen ( snipped-for-privacy@pitr.net) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

I don't know about wherever in the world you are, but in the UK, there'd be a VERY VERY big price difference between those three - not really an apples-to-apples comparison here. The Xant wouldn't be much over a quarter of the price of the C2, with the Xsara about half way.

For the C2 money, you'd probably be able to get a similar age C5.

How big's a 2cv?

The Xsara _is_ a ZX underneath - the only substantial difference to handling is going to be sheer weight.

Our experiences and preferences are very unlikely to coincide with yours in any meaningful way. Just go and test drive 'em all and see which you like best.

Message-ID: My guess, Netherlands...

:Jerry: ( snipped-for-privacy@INVALID.INVALID) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

That doesn't tell us much about the state of the used car market and relative pricing in NL, though...

No, but it did make my reposting of your (with good intentions) original reply rather irrelevant - hence why I left it out of my reply!

The Xantia is a bit cheaper indeed.

The prices I found:

Xantia: 7k C2: 9k Xsara: 9k

Add the required accessoires to the Xantia, and you'll be near the C2/Xsara range.

Remember that 30% of the newprice of cars here is taxed.

The C5 starts at 9k with 90000 km mileage. I think the C5 would be a bit of a risk, maintenance wise (big car with high mileage is usually more expensive).

In my expierience, most small cars are the same regarding handling. I do notice differences between a Twingo and a Corsa (the twingo being rock solid on the road).

I'm not buying a new car in a rush, as I'm first trying to sell my current BMW 530 diesel (hard market), so I thought to ask for some personal opinions first while I'm looking around. Thanks for yours :-)

Regards,

Pieter

Affirmative; the country which adds 30% "BPM" tax to all new cars.

Regards,

Pieter

The difference between the C2 and C5 is a bit bigger here due to the tax-percentage. I forgot to mention that I test-drove a C5 before buying my current car, but I wasn't impressed with the state of the car (2001 C5 2.0 diesel with 120000 km)

The reason for me trying out Citroen is that I'm getting tired of how my M5-undercarriage handles (speed-)bumps.

Regards,

Pieter

Pieter Jansen ( snipped-for-privacy@pitr.net) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Well, yes, but none of them are *new* cars, are they?

Pieter Jansen ( snipped-for-privacy@pitr.net) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Ah. In that case, it's a no-brainer. Get the Xant. It's the only one with proper Citroen suspension.

The 30% is included in the price you pay at the dealership. That rule has been around for a very long while now, so basically every car is 30% more expensive here in general.

Pieter

I want one with < 100000 km (and must be an automatic) :)

Pieter

Different realities :) I just sold a 94 for US$4000 and bought a 2002 for US$7000 :)

Eduardo K. ( snipped-for-privacy@nn.spam.cl) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Going rate for a 94 Xantia in the UK is more like £400... The 2k figure Pete gave for a '00 Xant is probably in Euros, not pounds.

In the last month or so, I've seen a scrap C5 HDi, because it wasn't worth the cost of repairing the broken cambelt - and I know of a "being-fixed- but-god-knows-why" scrap TD '00 Evasion/Synergie, with a dead engine (one conrod sticking out the side)

Pieter Jansen haute in die Tasten:

Okay, get the Xantia and you're done with that. The 1.8 litre engine is said to be the best in performance vs. fuel ratio.

Frank

Pieter Jansen haute in die Tasten:

Okay, I paid 4.3 K for my 2.0i VSX (AC, Power Seats, Power Mirrors) with 84.000 km on the counter and auto trans. I bought it from a Citroen dealer in germany.

Frank