The Best Car below 5M for Comfortable Ride

Stealth · February 1, 2020

Hello. I'm new to the forum but a car enthusiast since the childhood. I'm currently driving a Corolla 121 Lx limited bought in 2012. Now I'm looking to buy a car giving the priorities to comfort, good engine performance, less cabin noise and practicality respectively . My budget is maximum 5 million. I'm not much bothering resale value or maintenance costs. I would appreciate your owning experiences & recommendations of the cars that gives better options & performance for the value.

iRage · February 1, 2020

If you can find a good example then there are X120 series Mark Xs below your budget. As a friend of mine is finding out..a good one is a bit hard to find (and good ones are not up for sale).

Also, to be fair, the Premio is quite a comfortable car to ride and is not very noisy. Performance is a bit of a let down with the 1.5L engine if the car is under a heavy load (full car or going up mountains, etc..) but not bad for day to day city driving. If you can find a good 1.8L variant then you would pretty much have the best of all the worlds you are looking at.

You probably can find the following advertised slightly above your budget which you probably can negotiate down.....

1. Mazda 6..early variants

2009/2010

2. Benz C class

3. Audi A4

4. BMW 3 series (as well I suppose?)

3&4 might be a little too hard in terms of suspension for your liking (not soft and cloudy like a Premio or even your Corolla but pretty comfy yet firm.)

Only hitch with 1-4 is that the good ones seems to be well beyond your budget...

AVANTE · February 1, 2020

Best ones have been mentioned already, here are a few more suggestions:

GX110 Toyota Mark II with the 2L Yamaha Beams Inline 6? if you don't mind a 15 year old car.

Toyota/Lexus harrier with the 3L V6.

VW Jetta has a nice interior and is also comfy I heard. Not as easy to maintain as a Toyota though.

You could get a Toyota Crown Hybrid which is powerful, smooth & unique too but that's slightly above your budget.

iRage · February 2, 2020

A 2010- 2012 Mark X would be a X130 series Mark X. A low mileage Mark X that is in good shape of that vintage could range anything from 1mil to 1.3mil yen..plus I would say add about another 400,000 yen for transport and document chanrges in Japan plus shipping and insurance...so you are looking at anything from 1.4mil - 1.7 mil yen. The price of the car is pretty accurate but I am being vague with the shipping and stuff because...YOU CANNOT IMPORT a 2010-2012 Mark X. Sri Lanka has a 3 year age restriction on imports. A Mark X between 2017 - 2019 (they stopped production of the Mark X in 2019) costss anything between 1.8mil to 2.8mil yen depending on the grade and options. Plus, pbecause of the 2500cc engine the taxes are going to be huge.

There are a few X130 Mark Xs for sale and they are usually 7mil LKR.

I too believe the Premio meets all your criteria....the negatives towards the car however are:

a. Over priced because of the herd-like following

b. Too common

c. Finding an honest car is tough

For your budget you are looking at a 2010is like model I pressume and for a 2010 era car it was pretty decent...it just isnt decent for a 2020 era car.

Stealth · February 1, 2020

On 2/1/2020 at 10:06 AM, iRage said:

If you can find a good example then there are X120 series Mark Xs below your budget.

You probably can find the following advertised slightly above your budget which you probably can negotiate down.....

1. Mazda 6..early variants 2009/2010

2. Benz C class

3. Audi A4

4. BMW 3 series (as well I suppose?)

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Thank you iRage. Finding a good Mark X seems really hard. It's a great car. I would like to know your personal verdict on C class, 3 series & Audi A4. I hope to keep the car for sometime.

GayanR · February 1, 2020

just buy a premio.

Stealth · February 2, 2020

Thank you AVANTE. I saw two VW Passats below 5M. but good to hear from an owner. I'm interested about 2010-2012 Mark X .May be somewhat above my budget but seems still worth. When importing from an auction ,how much will it cost including inspection certificates and taxes paid ?

GK_007 · February 3, 2020

On 2/1/2020 at 6:01 AM, Stealth said:

Hello. I'm new to the forum but a car enthusiast since the childhood. I'm currently driving a Corolla 121 Lx limited bought in 2012. Now I'm looking to buy a car giving the priorities to comfort, good engine performance, less cabin noise and practicality respectively . My budget is maximum 5 million. I'm not much bothering resale value or maintenance costs. I would appreciate your owning experiences & recommendations of the cars that gives better options & performance for the value.

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All your priorities are relative. I would suggest following cars, just have a test drive and feel how it is for you.

1-Mazda 3 2014-2015 *Think this is the best deal for your price range in terms of being a newer sedan.

2-Honda CRV 2010-2012 *Boot space, Ground clearance

3-Premio/Allion *If you can find a good specimen.

4-X trails 2011-2012

Stealth · May 27, 2020

2011-2013 Audi A4 is my selection now with bit improved budget. I have shortlisted few cars.

1. What are the common issues of them that owners experienced or complained ? Also any areas should I pay special attention when buying ?

2. Where Can I do an inspection like Toyota inspection for A4 ?

kush · May 27, 2020

Get agent maintained. If not inspection by the agent.

1.8T had engine sludge issues as far as i know.

If you have a higher budget go for a Mazda 6, more comfortable and roomy, plus bullet proof built quality.

Devinda_Z · May 28, 2020

On 5/27/2020 at 5:59 AM, Stealth said:

2011-2013 Audi A4 is my selection now with bit improved budget. I have shortlisted few cars.

1. What are the common issues of them that owners experienced or complained ? Also any areas should I pay special attention when buying ?

2. Where Can I do an inspection like Toyota inspection for A4 ?

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@Stealth try Drive1 the Agents or else Vishwa Motors in Boralesgamuwa who specialise in VW/Audi Group cars

If it's a basic check for crash damage etc Car Checks in Kohuwala is also an option

Devinda_Z · May 28, 2020

On 5/27/2020 at 1:38 PM, kush said:

Get agent maintained. If not inspection by the agent.

1.8T had engine sludge issues as far as i know.

If you have a higher budget go for a Mazda 6, more comfortable and roomy, plus bullet proof built quality.

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@kush is right - the Mazda 6 has done quite well locally. If you can find a 2.5L even better!

The european cars will fulfill most of your requirements but the reliability concerns given the age of the vehicles that will fall within a 5 Mn budget should not be discounted.

The upside is that there are now a lot of high end workshops that handle euro cars so you have options other than just the agent but parts aren't exactly cheap

kadsa98 · May 29, 2020

On 5/28/2020 at 5:29 PM, Devinda_Z said:

@Stealth try Drive1 the Agents or else Vishwa Motors in Boralesgamuwa who specialise in VW/Audi Group cars

If it's a basic check for crash damage etc Car Checks in Kohuwala is also an option

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In my experience, I would avoid Vishwa motors and just use Drive one. Or if they are a bit pricey for you try Sunway automotive in Battaramulla. They are great in their work and highly professional.

I say avoid vishwa because I dropped off my car twice (Both times I was too busy to attempt the repair myself) and they took an unreasonable amount of time to fix a small issue. After a week I brought the car home and did it myself in about 2 hours.

Devinda_Z · May 29, 2020

On 5/29/2020 at 12:17 AM, kadsa98 said:

In my experience, I would avoid Vishwa motors and just use Drive one. Or if they are a bit pricey for you try Sunway automotive in Battaramulla. They are great in their work and highly professional.

I say avoid vishwa because I dropped off my car twice (Both times I was too busy to attempt the repair myself) and they took an unreasonable amount of time to fix a small issue. After a week I brought the car home and did it myself in about 2 hours.

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@kadsa98 good to know there are options!

Who runs Sunway?

Lalana who was one of the original lead technician/partners at Vishwa has set up shop in Kurunegala I believe

Magnum · May 30, 2020

Buy a Toyota Mark X and call it a day

kadsa98 · May 30, 2020

On 5/29/2020 at 7:51 PM, Devinda_Z said:

@kadsa98 good to know there are options!

Who runs Sunway?

Lalana who was one of the original lead technician/partners at Vishwa has set up shop in Kurunegala I believe

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Sanjeewa is the main guy there. He used to work at an euro dealer in the middle east if I remember correctly.