To be fair Dip I was on the receiving end of a 3k loss in 4 weeks on a 5.5k merc which at that point I still had in my possession.
I HATE cars without any torque so the 2 litre petrol wasn't going to do the do, TTS was well out if price range and there were no other nice looking, fast(ish), economical cars knocking about on PCP (as I was fooked if it was going to get a massive loan out for a 4-5 year old car with no warranty).
However the fuel consumption turns out to be absolute BOLLOCKS, the car I test drove was about 25 minutes old and quite quiet (min is 3 years old and by the time I saw it I'd already signed on the dotted line).
Besides for all its foibles it's still a good car. Second and half slower than the zed, properly remapped with dpf delete would in real world keep up and in the twisties would leave the zed in a ball of flame in a hedge.
Horses for courses.