I seldom get very excited by the launch of a new car, but what I really want right now is a Toyota Century.
The problem is that the very latest Century, like all the previous incarnations, is disappointingly a Japan-market-only phenomenon.
So what could we get as an alternative luxobarge? Reassuringly, there is no reason at all to spend anywhere near the £120,000 that a Century is going to set you back in the Orient.
Great big saloons may be going out of fashion, but they still make a huge amount of sense if you want a safe, comfy, long-distance-journey crusher. Getting more rare by the week is the Honda Legend. There are never many around and it is ginormously dull to look at but fairly effortless to own and drive. You can find earlier models for a few hundred pounds, but best not to really. Instead, £2990 will get you inside a 2007 model, which even has radar cruise control.
Find a used Toyota Century on PistonHeads
Luxobargery throws up some wonderful oddities. A Hyundai Grandeur promises a lot but only really delivers a posher Elantra. However, a 2011 one with just over 40,000 miles, a petrol V6 and such trimmings as an electric rear window blind is £5500. It is either cheap compared with a Lexus or still far too pricey. At least, it isn’t diesel.
We seem to have stayed on the Far Eastern side of the globe. There is a reason for this and maybe a pattern is emerging, although the long-in-the-tooth Vauxhall Senator would qualify. There are plenty of long-lost models from manufacturers that don’t bother with this end of the market, most notably the Nissan Maxima. Great name, another ordinary offering, though, and nowhere near as impressive as a Century.
However, a tidy 2002 2.0-litre example, which was all I could find (no V6), was £1450 with a full service history.
I think I’m losing my way here because I’ve even started to consider the long-forgotten Hyundai XG350 but, like the Maxima V6, it only seems to be a thing in the US.
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The alternatives you suggest
The alternatives you suggest are not luxobarges, merely mid level execs with all the options. The obvious alternative to a Century is a Lexus LS430-L. Limo room, huge spec, Lexus dependability and a V8 known to keep going for hundreds of thousands of miles. Easily bought for under 10 grand with 100 to 150K miles. Slam dunk really.
Should you be nervous about buying a diesel?
Yes. Contrary to Autocar's biased views on diesel even in the very latest EU6 complaint diesel engines produce far more CO2, NOx and soot than they are supposed to. Some, not many, are actually reasonably clean and give close to or better results than the official tests (BMW 218d and Mini Cooper D being two of them) but the vast majority are still filthy dirty things that cause fatal illnesses. If you intend to keep a diesel car for more than 3 years there is the very clear likelihood that you will not be allowed to drive it into city centres without paying a large daily fee and some city authorities may even ban diesels completely from city centres. Where I live there have been endless "consultation" documents on a total diesel ban, a partial ban, a ban at weekends, a "Low Emissions Zone" etc etc. Sooner or later diesel will be banned and it is looking as though it will be sooner. Petrol has perhaps got a longer shelf life but it will go the same way too.
Luxobarge? Can I say 'Ford
Luxobarge? Can I say 'Ford Granada Scorpio Cosworth' wihtout being laughed off the forums?Granted its a Ford so will be full of rust but equally, it's a Ford so will be cheap to repair/fix. Probably pick one up of the price of a decent meal out these days too.
And of course it has the mythical 'C' badge on the boot, and the rocker cover.
(No, we wont mention MPGs here, thats not the point of a barge)
FORD
Sorry but pretty sure there was no 'C' badge on the boot of a standard Scorpio Cosworth in the UK.
xxxx wrote:
Go away and check, pretty sure doesn't mean you can post and be negative about another contribution...at least go away and never return...that would be something we would all appreciate. TWIT