Me and a work colleague have been bantering between ourselves, discussing what would be the ideal car in the price point of 16000 - 20000 pounds. Looking at second hand car market as losing the vat on the forecourt is daft. So here are the current candidatea. Vauxhall Insignia VXR - Pro: Looks good and 2.8 Turbo = Win Cons: over 1000 for tyre replacement. BMW 330i 2010 - Pro: Very comfortable yet sporty. Well made Cons: BMW services inheritantly expensive. Vauxhall Astra VXR - Pro: Sporty and quick Con: Tyres cost a bomb and in same price range as insignia. Golf GTI - Pro: Sporty number, well made and tunable. Con: Chavvy... nuff said. Audi TT - Pro: Again sporty and well built. Con 2 seats and a girls car. Audi S3 - Pro As above Con: Know someone who drives one. Any other ideas? We're running out of cars lol.
Vauxhall VXR8. Plenty around for that price, and I'd imagine way more fun that any of those on the list above.
You can get many cars in that price range. We need to know what are you going to use this car for. You can get: Bentley Turbo R Rolls Royce Silver shadow 2 Audi RS4 bmw e46 M3 Bmw e60 M5 Bmw e39 M5 (get a very nice one) Audi RS6 Chaterham Honda s2000 (with lots of change) Honda NSX 91 (if you look around) Jaguar XKR (05) Lotus elise s2 Lotus exige s2 Mercedes AMG (lots of models to choose from, just pick one with low miles) Porsche cayman Porsche 911 (964, 993) Toyota GT86 (I wouldn't to slow need some money over) Vauxhall monaro TVR Cebera TVR Griffith TVR T350 TVR Tuscan II Actually just forget all of that and just buy a TVR.
The thought of spending that kind of money on an Audi A3 feels like an actual crime to me. What a waste! Get a mad skyline or something! You could probably have a Porsche Cayman for that as well, very capable cars.
For £20k you could get a decent second hand TTS, which is quite a different car to the TT. I wasn't enamored by the standard TT and pretty much wrote it off before I went back - upon recommendation of a good friend - to test drive the TTS. Even then, I didn't make a snap decision... I had to go back for a second bite of the cherry after driving various alternatives cars ranging from the Porsche Cayman, Cayman S (I couldn't afford the insurance on the S, being the first sports car I'd own), BMW Z4M Coupe, and even the Toyota GT86. From the test drives I had, the Cayman S was by far the most fun (closely followed by the GT86) and I can understand the media's love for both, but I kept going back to the TTS which too has had some decent reviews. In the end, after several months of dilly dallying (and increasing repair costs on my previous car), I decided that I wanted something that was: a) relatively comfortable, all things considered b) fun to drive, whatever the weather c) a sports car I felt that both the Cayman and GT86 didn't quite satisfy the above... I bought my new car (not out of choice) in the middle of winter during the icy/snowy conditions we had from Jan/Feb onwards. The GT86 was amazing fun and really proved that power wasn't everything (after the first test drive of the TT 2.0 TFSI FWD/TTS, I felt it was everything), but the exhaust note was too much of a drone that it would make long journeys tiresome. It would be a fantastic weekend car, but I wasn't sure it would be a good daily driver for me - others might disagree with that, but that was what I felt. The Cayman, on the other hand, sounded brilliant and was great fun to drive. It is incredibly well-balanced - I couldn't help but feel that, after driving the Cayman S, the bog standard Cayman was missing something (those extra horses really do show off the excellent chassis in all its glory). Unfortunately, I couldn't afford the S's insurance so that was struck off the list. I am determined to own a Porsche one day though! The Z4M Coupe... it was a good car, but just not as much fun as the Cayman S/GT86 and only slightly more practical than the former. It's hard to put my finger on it, but there was something about it that just didn't "do it" for me. An emotional thing, I guess. After that, I went back to the TTS after veering off course to look at some more sensible saloons. I honestly couldn't be happier and after 6,500 miles, I still look forward to going out for a drive in it. Smiles per hour are very high. Point to point, it's very quick come rain or shine - you can step on it in pretty much any weather. It's very easy to lose track of how quickly it gains speed when you put your foot down. I've driven in a (relatively, given the conditions) spirited fashion across the Peak District during the April snow and it never batted an eyelid. The engine/exhaust note is also pleasing - when you press the happy pedal, it growls rather loudly and with purpose, popping and crackling on the overrun, but when you're cruising up the motorway or driving around town it's relaxingly quiet. Bags of fun and quite a transformation from the standard TT.
You can't really dismiss a car based on the cost of tires when every car listed is in the same boat regarding tyre cost. Rather than spanking £16K on a fairly new car that will just loose money, invest it in a retro ride that'll increase in value. Sierra Cosworth Audi Quattro If you need a daily driver I wouldn't spend over 10% of your yearly salary on any vehicle. If you want to sink a fair wad of cash into a car, go classic or give the cash to a charity.
The Cayman (as long as it's the S) would be a great buy and you can get a good one for under £20k. Insurance was more than double the cost of other marques (which weren't exactly 'cheap') for me, though... YMMV and it depends on experience, etc. What about something like an E46 M3? One of the best drivers' cars ever and practical too - I guess it depends how practical you need it to be.
Looking around car classifieds is a very dangerous activity for me (CAS might be worse than GAS although the initial costs are slightly cheaper) but I'm just going to state here that for around the £1000-3000 mark you can pick up a 276bhp, absolutely gorgeous (well, in my opinion) Gen 1 Mitsubishi 3000GT. Insurance for someone my age.... well that's another matter.
Run and hide from a 3000GT - unbelievable b0rkage hides there. There's a reason they're cheap. Sub-20k is a rich seam of immense machinery, I could sit here all day.
Had an Noble M12 GTO.. the subframes rust very quickly and need re-welding often. Also isn't suitable for a daily driver. Car needs to be a daily driver, relatively new, comfortable for the occasional long ride to north wales but sporty enough to have a little fun. Plus needs to be quit reliable over a 4 year period.
Spend 10,000 on a BMW e46 M3 and 5000 on something like a seat Leon 2.0 diesel. M3 - sporty fun driving on the weekend. Leon - reliable mile cruncher in the week. Newish cars are a waste of second hand money if you want new, buy new and spec it how you want.
I think I'd say buy a very decent E39 M5 with about a £5k fund for getting it minty if you want a single vehicle. Keep it right and you'll not lose a penny when it comes to selling up, they're the kind of car that will start increasing in value soon. I'd plump for a Griffith and a W124 Merc for waft.
I was thinking along the lines of the 3 Series. Couple of years old 330i engine. Comfort yet Sporty. Personally not a fan of old cars, however, my friend mentioned an Evo VI or VIII though i assume they are bad for service costs?
Evo VI or VIII is an interesting point. They won't be cheap to run (fuel especially, expect 20mpg by all accounts), servicing is quite frequent, and depending how hard you use it depends how quickly it'll wear out other components. Not comfy though, they're pretty hard, sharp things. 330i and similar is a sound all-rounder, although you'll struggle to find one that wafts properly. Not very interesting, but if that's your bag then go to it!
