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Motors Evora 400 or... (fill in the blank)

Discussion in 'General' started by Mister_Tad, 6 Jul 2017.

  1. Mister_Tad

    Mister_Tad Will work for nuts Super Moderator

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    I have an itch and in trying to figure out how to scratch it I've become infatuated with the Evora 400 to the point that I'm finding it difficult to give other options a fair assessment - so looking for some reasons for why something other than an Evora 400 is a better idea to break the cycle (or perhaps affirm my choice... as happened the last time I asked the forums for car advice - lots of good suggestions, but still ended up with my first choice)

    General wants...
    - Entertaining
    - A bit different
    - As depreciation resistant as is feasible - I'm not necessarily looking to flip a car and make a buck, but when I do come to change out, don't want to take too much of a bath, since it will be a low-mileage car.
    - 2+2 seats (my daughter loves going fast and the noise of my wife's polestar, so would be nice to take her along for the ride in this too)
    - Something that's not going to spend more time at the garage than in my garage
    - pre-owned, low-ish miles
    - Local dealer (Nottingham)

    I initially thought to swap my daily driver (730d, ~10k/year) for an i8, but then putting miles like than on an i8 is kind of uncharted territory, and the 7-er is definitely NOT depreciation resistant, and basically worthless now, so I may as well keep it since it's basically free motoring until it starts breaking. And if I'm having something entertaining as a separate vehicle, then an i8 is a bit sensible for that... but the doors go up after all, so it's not totally out of the question.

    Cars that have been considered thus far...
    - i8 - kind of sensible, but also kind of mental. Low miles examples are changing hands at a level I think should be pretty depreciation resistant. Too wide for the garage so would need to live on the drive (double garage, but double doors ruins that)
    - 911 of some sort. A last-model Turbo, Turbo S, GT3. Very depreciation resistant, and easily the most sensible choice, which is what puts me off. Booooring.
    - V12 Vantage - A manual should be pretty depreciation resistant, but only two seats and maintenance is a worry, perhaps unwarranted.
    - Granturismo/Grancabrio - maintenance and depreciation are a worry, and even a late model example is still a 10 year old car underneath, and values will tank I'm sure when a properly new one is released which can't be long.

    Budget is around the £75k mark, but a relatively wide window either side, dictated by expected depreciation resistance.

    So, spam away with ideas, lest I become too fixated on the one car and end up with that without proper consideration for some other excellent ideas.
     
    Last edited: 6 Jul 2017
  2. Guest-23315

    Guest-23315 Guest

    Friend of mine has an Evora, and its hilariously good fun, but don't try and get ANYTHING in the back of it, also fairly basic inside.

    My darling mother has a V8 Vantage, and thats just a great all round car, and has never had any reliability issues. Will sit at 100 down through France all day and not blink, so imagine the V12 would be even better

    And another friend of mine has a Granturismo, what youre really buying is a barge with an exhaust note. Seriously, all he does is complain about parking the thing anywhere in public.
     
  3. Mister_Tad

    Mister_Tad Will work for nuts Super Moderator

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    Assume that's an S1, and not the new 400?

    I've not driven either yet (not driven anything yet, intentionally), but having had a snoop round both, I had pretty much concluded that the S1 is as you say, a laugh but still a core lotus at heart (sparse/cheap interior) whereas the 400 they concluded that if they expect anyone to pay 911 money, they're going to need to have a 911 level interior. The altcantara interior on the 400 looks up to par with any other ~£100k car fortunately.

    The back is a bit of an issue, a couple more inches in the 400 than the S1, but still a couple inches shy of a 911. I imagine it will be just two front seats occupied 90% of the time, but want to keep the option open of the occasional short family trip - won't be comfortable, but at least possible.

    Dat exhaust though. But you're right. The face and the exhaust seduced me, all in all not really a lot of substance though. A colleague of mine nearly went for one, ended up with a Conti GTC instead and never looked back, so kind of out of place with the rest of the list... but still something calls me to them, I've had a soft spot for them ever since they were released, and Masers in general since I was ~10. Maybe I need to drive one just to cross it out once and for all.

    Thanks for the input!
     
  4. liratheal

    liratheal Sharing is Caring

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    Honestly?

    Of the cars in that list, I'd say go with the Evora.

    Astons seem to have a lovely habit of going 'pop' when least convenient, and comprehensive warranties should be top of the shopping list when looking IMO.

    Porsche. Bleh. They all look kinda the same IMO. Bored already. Price point is impressive for performance, but at what cost?

    i8. I sat in one at the BMW museum. I was not as impressed with them after that. Never driven one, but eh. It's German, it'll be overengineered and a hefty bill to repair should it go near the swanny. Kinda interesting to look at, but I think colour choice is key in making the best of the unique style.

    Maserati's irritate me. They have the price point of luxury sports/super cars with none of the substance or interesting quirks. Plus, take a look at the Ghibli and start wondering what else they've reused from cheaper lines. While I accept that reusing parts is fine and good, on that kind of price level things shouldn't feel like they fell out of a Mk1 Focus.
     
  5. Krikkit

    Krikkit All glory to the hypnotoad! Super Moderator

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    For me it'd probably be the V12V - the V12 and general Vantage components are extremely reliable (for a car of this type), and when are you realistically going to get another brand making a 6 litre manual V12 in a small chassis again?

    The Evora looks like a fabulous car, and I'm sure it's dynamically more competent than the V12V, but there's something in the drama that attracts.

    Another choice is maybe a prancing horse? The 360 and 430 are in budget for reasonable cars, and the 360 seems to be heading up in value at the moment! Maintenance costs will be higher, but it's offset by gentle appreciation.

    Much like you the 911 does nothing for me (unless it's a 996 GT3), the Maserati is a good choice of a GT, but you already have a very capable continent-crusher in the 7'er.

    The i8 is an interesting technical exercise, but it fails to stir my soul with its lack of cylinders and drama. If I'm spending that kind of cash on a fun car it needs to have a bit of drama beyond a tech-fest.
     
  6. Wakka

    Wakka Yo, eat this, ya?

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    Can't help but be depressed when someone considers an I8 or 911 "too sensible"...
     
  7. Guest-23315

    Guest-23315 Guest

    Or you go fully loopy and just get a Morgan...
     
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  8. liratheal

    liratheal Sharing is Caring

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    If we're talking fully loopy, why not do a GOO and build a Marlin?
     
  9. sandys

    sandys Multimodder

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    Evora seems like a winner out of your list, but I would struggle to not buy something red and Italian at that price point :D

    what about classics, always fancied an old rally special, Integrale, Cossie etc.

    Maybe a GT-R?
     
  10. Mister_Tad

    Mister_Tad Will work for nuts Super Moderator

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    Generally evidence points to the V12V being fairly reliable, but even the most reliable car is subject to going pop, and "pop" and "V12" in the same sentence is mildly terrifying.

    If I did fewer business miles, either of them would make a great daily driver I'm sure, but the porsche it stirs nothing in my loins, and the i8 is a bit compromised to be little more than an entertaining sunday driver. Lots of tech in it too... I've found BMWs hugely reliable in my time, but there are lots of things to go wrong, things that BMW was having a first-stab at, in the i8. Buuuuuuut, it looks like a transformer, which appeals to the 12 year old in me very much.

    V12V would probably be frontrunner if there were any rear seats, the fact that it's the only thing on the list without them says something for its desirability. A guy at work has one in white and it's just hnnnnrgh, and as far as I know he's not had troubles, but a low volume V12 is still a daunting prospect, particularly when stacked alongside the mega-volume and bulletproof V6 in the Evora. I briefly considered a DBS, which is showing a nice appreciation curve right about now, but manual examples with 30k miles seem to command £130k, and even in light of the likelihood of being at worst flat over a few years, it's still a big pill to swallow, not even sure it would pass WAF.

    As for Ferrari, A Cali was on the shortlist for a while, given that there's such a lack of love for them (for reasons I don't understand, I rather like them, lots) I feel they're undervalued in today's Ferrari crazy market, but then maybe everyone else knows something I don't?

    You're quite right that both the 360 and 430 are hard to ignore and I've done quite a bit of homework on both. I'd probably favour the 430 as it's touch easier to find a nice example with lower miles, but both of them seems to have all sorts of stupid things that need to be sorted that somehow get a pass because "oh it's just a Ferrari". £2000 to replace the plastics with something that isn't a sticky mess ffs. Much/all of the maintenance cost should be covered by gentle appreciation, but that doesn't give me time and faff back sorting out inevitable "general Ferrari issues" and with parts that are marked way up "because Ferrari"

    I've driven a 550 and passengered in a few others and they're all lovely, but I never had that many Ferrari posters on my wall as a child (just an F40, sadly out of budget), so not the same fixation as many on the prancing horse I guess.

    With Ferrari there's also the challenge of image. I'd like to think that I don't care what the neighbours or the other people on the school run think, but something about that badge kind of puts me off (for the same reason that it turns most others on). Ferrari is a bit too much "look at me"... I like the fact that the generally the uninitiated think my debadged 7-er is a garden variety 5 series and that the V60 Polecat is just another Volvo estate for instance (albeit an inexplicably noisy one!)

    Actually looked (virtually) at Morgan... the looks are just a bit too much of a challenge.

    I've had a partly built kitchen island in the garage for 6 months... not for me :lol:

    Modern classics have been a consideration - 1M, CSL, Z3M Coupe... (apparently only BMWs...)
    But I started to navigate away from them when I considered, would I really enjoy driving something like a CSL, or be too preoccupied with handling it with kid gloves?

    (I'm also still kicking myself for not picking up a 1M in the mid 30s or a S54 Z3M coupe for <20 when I had the chance. Both things I was perilously close to doing, but didn't because I'm apparently an idiot)
     
    Last edited: 6 Jul 2017
  11. Krikkit

    Krikkit All glory to the hypnotoad! Super Moderator

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    I had an opportunity to buy a fixer-upper Delta Evo2 about 10 years ago for just shy of £5k... I look at the prices now... Oh my.

    I wouldn't worry about the V12 in the Aston - the same engine has been used with minor revisions since the later DB7, it's a very old and very well-tested unit now. That said it doesn't have rear seats, so you'd miss the family outing. Not that the rear seats in the Evora +2 are much for more than a shortish trip or a very little 'un of course...

    Whatever you choose they're all corkers tbh, it's a price-point with so many fabulous things to choose from it's unreal.
     
  12. liratheal

    liratheal Sharing is Caring

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    Ah, I'll be honest, Aston's are well out of my price range (Even with relatively modest interests such as the V8 Vantage X Pack) so they rarely get checked up on. I'd assumed, as I'd never read otherwise, that all Astons suffered the same 'Made in England' issues, with terrifying price tags for repair. I know a fellow with a DB4 that, despite being immaculate (Honestly, it's cleaner than the hospital I spent a week in), is forever having things done to it/tweaked on it to maintain some semblance of functionality.

    Yeah, I'm sure the majority of BMW's are reliable (It's the only thing that keeps drawing me back to kind-of wanting a 320D estate with the M-sport pack), but something about the i8 fills me with dread. New tech, however over engineered, with the BMW brand on it puts my wallet in a panic.

    And perhaps you're right, building a car isn't for you! Although, Rome wasn't built in a day. I bet they had a few unfinished kitchen islands :p

    If I had a 75k budget it'd be an Escort RS Cosworth in Carlos Sainz' Repsol scheme, no questions asked. So perhaps my thoughts need a pinch of salt given what you've said so far in this thread!
     
  13. Krikkit

    Krikkit All glory to the hypnotoad! Super Moderator

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    A DB4 is a very different proposition to a modern Vantage! Most cars of that age are in need of constant maintenance to keep in proper fettle.
     
  14. liratheal

    liratheal Sharing is Caring

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    Well, like I say, I don't tend to keep 'up' on reliability of cars that might as well be a million quid as far as my budget is concerned! My exposure to Astons is that DB4, and Doug DeMuro's through youtube. Neither make a strong case for infrequent joy ride type cars.
     
  15. BentAnat

    BentAnat Software Dev

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    Hmmm... At that price, I'd opt for the (also only 2 seats, IIRC, but worth it) Cayman GT4, if you can get your hands on one.
    Looks miles better (to me) than other Porsches, and is basically a GT86 mentality car with a Porsche badge and more everything.

    An Evora could be fun as well,
     
  16. Mister_Tad

    Mister_Tad Will work for nuts Super Moderator

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    Cracking car no doubt, but Cayman GT4s here are trading at well above list (in the UK anyway), and I'm inclined to think they're a over-valued as well at the moment with all of the Porsche-mania surrounding things like the 911R (which I think is even more ridiculous) - sure they're desirable, but it's not like they're a low-volume limited run car.

    As an aside, a chap I work with was on the list for a new GT3-RS, paid his first deposit down ages ago and his build slot came up recently where he had to pay another 30% or so, but they said if he wanted to keep the slot the price went up by £100k. A main dealer. Total dick move.
     
  17. Krikkit

    Krikkit All glory to the hypnotoad! Super Moderator

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    Yeah, the BS surrounding the Porsche halo models is getting into ludicrous territory now - at one point the 911R peaked at just under a million quid! They've now crashed back down from that, but still expensive. The GT4 is down to about £10k over your budget now, but likely to keep nosing slightly further down over the next few years - I can see them at £50k with a few miles on them.
     
  18. Mister_Tad

    Mister_Tad Will work for nuts Super Moderator

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    Yeah, it's insane. I'd hate to be the one that decided it was a good idea to plump for a 911R when it was sitting near 7 figures (saying that, I feel like the person that takes a punt on a new car 6x over list can probably afford to lose that million quid, so maybe it's not so bad...)

    I've got some free time tomorrow morning so I'm going to head over to Lotus and see what's what. I won't be buying, but just scoping out options and possibly having a drive - they do have a Sport 410 in the showroom as well... shame there are no rear seatbelts - I don't even need seats tbh, just a seatbelt and maybe isofix points, wouldn't even add weight! I'm kind of torn between asbo orange or something more sensible... a solid red without the black pack looks hella-sharp, as does a white with black pack, as does gunmetal. To be honest it's just the yellow that doesn't do it for me in photos, but that could be another matter in person. I didn't get the Polecat in smurf blue after all, so maybe I should get something daft.

    I've promised a mate I'd try to drive a 997 Turbo before I do anything rash as well, so I probably should try - try being the operative term because I'd be after a manual, which aren't exactly common.
     
    Last edited: 6 Jul 2017
  19. liratheal

    liratheal Sharing is Caring

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    From what I've seen of ASBO orange, it's either a **** to keep clean, or owned exclusively (near enough) by people who can't operate soapy water.
     
  20. Strudul

    Strudul ~

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    Jag XKR-S?
    Lexus RC F / LC500(h)?
    GT-R?

    Or if you can drop to 2 seats, Corvette C7.
     

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