Hi all,
how does one go about guestimating remaining battery life expectancy and efficiency of say 10 year old hybrids? VW toureg or a volvo xc90 in particular?
Would I be better of with a gas/diesel (maintenance, headache, reliability, etc)?
TIA!
ADAC has specialised manufacturer-independent and certified battery check (written certificate). They hand you a box to connect to the OBD connector on the dashboard. You charge the battery to 100% and then drive it down to 10% in 7 days. Two days later, you get a readout of data, including energy % compared to a new battery. Can the seller(s) do this test for you before you agree to buy?
I have to get an OBD anyway to check out the computer readings.
What OBD will also do this for me? How expensive are these?
CHeers …
No purchase necessary. ADAC gives you the battery tester, which plugs into the OBD port in the car’s dash. It takes the readings…you give it back to ADAC, and they give you a report based on the data the tester has gathered. You may have to get a year’s membership in order to qualify, and the article doesn’t mention costs.
I looked at their partner website for the unit (followed the link on adac.de). the partner quoted something like EUR 50 as a cost (private, not business). However, i got the impression that for a vw toureg hybrid, the partner only support 2020 - 2026 models.
I will have to investigate this more.
thank you bossbaby very much for the info!
OBD port on dashboard? Where?
Edited: Apparently it is under the dashboard by the Drivers left knee behind some removable trim!
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location varies from car to car…
It’s usually under the dash, often on the driver side. In some cars, i have seen the interface in the glove compartment or under it …
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You‘ll be better off with an EV, especially as gas prices are going to sky rocket.
I‘d ask them what it would cost to have it replaced as part of the sale.
I‘d never buy such a car without warranty or not from a dealer.
Thanks for the article. I was simply wondering if a hybrid should be considered.
I want something that has a towing capacity of 3000-3500 kg and relatively long range. If I am towing, then it is really not feasible to pull into a charging station every few hunderd miles, (super) charge and keep going.
until now or in near future, there are no suitable charging stations for ‘trucks’ in europe.
Regardless of motor VS engine, it’s a 10 yr old car. There will be issues no matter if it’s a diesel, gasoline or whatever. You may worry about the battery for the hybrid system, but any day the little servomotor that opens the fuel tank lid can fail and the whole system collapses. Or the cooling system can have issues, failure options are endless.
People raves about diesels. Once, I bought a 12 YO old one, rebuild the engine and sold it 5 years later to a friend when I moved to Switzerland. The engine exploded 12 year later after the rebuild (my friend called me to joke about it). A connecting rod snapped, piston head went free and crushed whatever was above it. The engine was rebuilt a 2nd time and it’s doing fine, but it’s a hobby. Maybe more, keeping a 1998 reliable it’s a labor of love.
For a 10 YO car, what matters is having 2-3k in a emergency fund for whatever happens, and a plan B when the car doesn’t want to work. Economically, that repair of 2k is orders of magnitude cheaper than a new car (even over 10 years). Plan B can be a 2nd car or a rental one.
Cars are pain, anyway I love them. New and old, doesn’t matter 
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Can’t go wrong with CNG. And since the current war started the price at the pump is still the same.
https://www.autoscout24.ch/de/s?conditionTypes[0]=used&fuelTypeGroups[0]=gas
robbob
Used G Wagon from before the facelift in 2018.
The Electric G does not tow. At all.
Or an F150 Lightning, if you really want to go electric. But it’s even bigger than a Cybertruck - and due to its rear wheel steering, the later apparently feels rather nimble - if you can stomach the length equivalent of a long-version Mercedes Sprinter.
If he needs to tow 3t, there’s just two cars left.
Two Dodge Trucks. With the current political situation, I would suspect that these types of engines will disappear sooner than later, simply due to unavailability of fuel and cost saving at the companies providing the gas stations.
I love fords - had 2 of them. drove each over 100K miles - both burnt oil and i often forgot to fill up. Drove like a champ on almost no oil. Never had to rebulid either engine. Sold the first one to someone who took it down to south texas, relaced the gasket and was still running in 2006. It was a 1994 model. The other one was a 2010 model which I sold, fully functional with 189000 miles in 2023.
Ram1500 burnt oil and blew a cylinder every 30K miles. Never buying a ram 1500, ever. they are like sheep - more beautiful, amazing than fords, but also extremly fussy and finicky …
Dont want a merc … But will look into it now, for consideration. Thank you.
I was hoping more along the lines of a lower mileage (<=80 km) vw toureg, volvo xc90, toyota land cruiser, equivalent hundai or perhaps a seat.
I wont be towing often but want the capability available.
I would have preferred a jeep 2018 or newer (JL or newer), but most jeep models can not tow so much. The only jeep that can is the gladiator, which is effectively a truck. I dont like trucks. I prefer a suv.
I am also open to importing a late model one from the US …
like 2006 times - wish I had bought a viper back then. they are now worth a fortune … 
I’m hoping to take advantage of this situation in the US and perhaps import one from there.
What’s the actual use case?
90% daily drive (highway/city? what’s the split?) and 10% towing? 10% towing means 3 days a month.
Diesel used premium SUVs are perfect for that kind of split. Great dailies, reasonable fuel costs all-in, and super capable to tow. You don’t need a super duty to tow 3.5t. Most hybrids are not designed for output, but rather for emission compliance. That means that you could get the model that with an ICE would tow 3.5t to go hybrind and not be certified for that capacity.
I prefer more of a comfortable SUV for daily use in city, highway, and some gravel road. Towing would be a 9m trailered boat (total length trailer+boat <=15m). Short distances (<30k) several times a year.
I find diesel to be noisier in the cabin, over petrols. Hence my preference for petrols.
Just don’t buy a G63 
G350 Professional Or G500 should be ok. Though I’m not sure if those were available as petrol engine variants.
Looking into it, I see there’s some GLEs specced for 3t towing. And of course the infamous X-Class (a pimped-up Nissan Navarra).
Though, the G-Wagon (pre facelift) will probably be easier to maintain in the long run.
It’s also the only ICE-vehice I’d consider buying, if I ever have the need for one.
These days, the mil-spec versions (that run on low-grade fuel) aren’t available for sale in Europe, unfortunately. They also cost 200k upwards…
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