Motors £15,000... what to get?

Sounds like a great car but I think the Fiesta may be too small for me, the only reason the small Cooper S is in the line-up is because at £13,000 it undercuts all other car choices by at least £2,000... it has full climate control (as opposed to just air-con)... it has sat-nav (which will come in very handy when travelling) and the lowest milage (< 20,000) and is the newer car (04/54-reg).

The only thing going for the RX-8 and 330Ci are they they are bigger and have more poke.

I'm taking the Cooper S for half a day next Saturday for a test drive and see if it can convince me to go mini.. if not, then I reckon i'd probably plump for either the RX-8 or the 330Ci. But things could change so until I actually drive a new car out of the forecourt, I could change my mind completely again!

 

I know this may play into ur chinese boys with riced out cars but i went past a Honda dealership and they have Civic Type-R's for round £13-15K....fully kitted i believe.

Damn nice cars tho.

 

Not actually that good to drive though... blinky hell fast on a straight dry road however, get it into a corner and it frankly gets dangerous imo. Not enough feedback from the wheel for my liking... but then i'm not a typical 'rice boy' (don't even think I fall into that category anyway )

Compared to the Cooper S or airchies Fiesta ST, it's no match. The newer Civic's Type-R apparently fixes all the flaws of the out going model but it has yet to be released.

 

What's the sat-nav like in the mini?
There is a fiesta ST model with sat-nav but apparently, compared to TomTom, its sucks ass.
I think the same can be said about a lot of standard-fit sat-nav but I'm not 100% sure.

Might be best to get a car without sat-nav cheaper and then kit it out yourself with TomTom?

 

So did you get any further with your decision mate?

 

There has been a set back.. i'm insured with Direct Line and i'm insured on my first year with 0 no claims bonus.

To insure me for the 330Ci with be an extra £300 on top of my premium but they won't insure me on either the Cooper S or the RX-8 even though the 330Ci is 20 grades higher (80+ as opposed to 60 for the Cooper s and RX-8).

So you'd think it would be easy, just pick the 330Ci then right? Well... I didn't realise that the 330Ci is an automatic

I'm not a big fan for automatics, even though it has 230+ BHP so i'm not sure whether to just get the auto 330Ci and change cars sooner or carry on looking for something now that'll last we 3 years.

 

Might be stuck with a fiesta after all?

 

I'd probably go for an imported Silvia S15 -- all the modern comforts and the thrill of a decent nissan 2 litre turbo with a huge array of mods available to get it to the magic 300bhp.

Actually no, don't get one because then I will be green.

 

Mwahahahahaha! Gonna get one just to make you go green

 

You could make all your passengers go green by drifting round every corner too

 

So, did you get anything in the end?

 

Forgotten if it's already been mentioned (it probably has (probably by me)) but... Clio Trophy?

 

For 15k i'd spend 4-5 learning to fly, and the rest on a 2nd hand aeroplane...

...ok, so it doesn't help the commute, but it beats driving for kicks imo

 

Skoda vrs ,quick and diesel and in vag perfect if your not a badge snob anyway

 

you know you can get manual 330ci's right?

 

Used, imported c06/z06?

 

Just got back from a week long business trip (that encroached into both weekends ) so I haven't even had time to look around at any more cars.

Clio Trophy.. would love as a second fun car, interior sucks as driving position sucks ass as an everyday commuter though.

Fly? been doing that already since I was about 14/5 in gliders and 2/4 single prop seaters.

Yeah, I know I can get manual 330Ci but finding one as cheap as and in as good condition as the auto one I saw is very very difficult.

 

Hehe, so the saga continues...

 

Considered the E39 5 series? More comfort, maybe not as chuckable as the 3 and IMHO in Sport form still not as good looking, but the 5 is definitely a 'classier' car in Sport form than the 3 IMHO. 15k would get you an awesome 530i or 530d......

All these suggestions of Fiesta ST, Clio Trophy, Civic Type R and Elise....all of them would be relatively horrible to do a lot of long distance driving in, they're good back road stormers but none of them are any good on the motorway!

 

Get a VAG TDI powered car with the 6 speed box for daily driving (very good economy and not half bad performance) and then something else for having fun in!

Running costs would be higher but depreciation would be less.