One car fits all, or comfy cruiser and sunny day weapon?
Discussion
I have just been talking via Skype to some friends in California and one was mentioning a thread on an American forum he saw this week.
Essentially, would you prefer a great car that can do everything, maybe the new M5 or M3, perhaps an XFR or maybe even a 911 or Cayman, depending on the amount of flexibility you need; or would you rather go for something like a Golf/Mondeo/CRV and have an Exige/Caterham/TVR/etc for the fun side of motoring?
My pal Glenn has a base model Corvette in San Diego, a 460bhp/460lbft n/a 6.2 litre V8 and he uses that as his daily, so is his choice for one size fits all. 30+ mpg on a run, big enough trunk, a 180 mph car which he paid about £26,000 for new last year. Cheap to service and that engine will do 200,000 miles comfortably without issues as a rule.
But his friends have gone down the route of a 5 or 10 year old V8, eg, and a sports car for the weekends.
Which way would, or do, you do it?
Essentially, would you prefer a great car that can do everything, maybe the new M5 or M3, perhaps an XFR or maybe even a 911 or Cayman, depending on the amount of flexibility you need; or would you rather go for something like a Golf/Mondeo/CRV and have an Exige/Caterham/TVR/etc for the fun side of motoring?
My pal Glenn has a base model Corvette in San Diego, a 460bhp/460lbft n/a 6.2 litre V8 and he uses that as his daily, so is his choice for one size fits all. 30+ mpg on a run, big enough trunk, a 180 mph car which he paid about £26,000 for new last year. Cheap to service and that engine will do 200,000 miles comfortably without issues as a rule.
But his friends have gone down the route of a 5 or 10 year old V8, eg, and a sports car for the weekends.
Which way would, or do, you do it?
swerni said:
ORD said:
Of course not. But no two cars will cover all bases, either, so everything is a compromise. I just can't imagine owning a good car and leaving it sitting there while I drive a shed or dull repmobile. I wouldn't want to drive my car at £20 per mile in depreciation, which is what a lot of people tend to do.
depending on circumstance, one car is never going to cover all the basis and in your logic, be an even bigger compromise than having two. Personally I'd opt for 3 (or maybe 4)
At present i have a very fast 414 bhp German V8 coupe with a great, good fun screaming engine, a huge 566 bhp 7,000rpm Yank V8 in a 2-seat sports car, a 2015 Mondeo 240 bhp petrol for holidays and shopping and load carrying and a 210 bhp Ducati for sunny days and trips to bike Grand Prix, etc..
I simply couldn't find one car to do all i want, but i guess the newest Corvette would come closest for me. The base 6.2 litre version. it's a fine car with 460 bhp, a decent boot and great handling.
battered said:
ORD said:
It's a bloody discussion. Give the guy a break. He is interested in cars and likes talking about them. 
Yeah, OK. What the hell. He can talk about cars. That's what it's for after all.I just wish he'd said, upon launching the debate, "oh, by the way, I have a garageful of really tasty machinery, probably about £200k-worth all up, so it's a bit academic, but I just fancy a yap on a wet Sunday".
Yes, I do enjoy debate and discussion and tend to say things exactly as I see them.
BTW. Chip and shoulder is correct. If I sold all 4 vehicles tomorrow I would likely get £110,000 all-in. Or around 2 DAYS wages for Wayne Rooney.
I think your criticism of people having too much needs to be redirected elsewhere.
battered said:
ORD said:
Chip. Shoulder.
Nope. I have no reason to. As it happens I've enough money to do as I wish. I just don't talk about it.It's not that hard, strangely.
Anyway, the fact remains that I go down the route of several cars, many others do too for their sins, but ORD and some others choose one car which is flexible enough to cover the bases they want.
Relax.
ORD said:
battered said:
ORD said:
Chip. Shoulder.
Nope. I have no reason to. As it happens I've enough money to do as I wish. I just don't talk about it.Stop digging, Battered, (the soil is already up to your neck) and stop being such a misery guts!
Come on then, what car/s DO you own then?
Spill.
Battered, thanks for the info. We do have some common ground!
I also have a 2CV6, a 1987 green 'Bamboo' which has been from Buxton to Provence three times, most recently in June this year. (I have loads of photos of it in Provence and Paris, etc.) I am on my 12th 2CV6 and indeed have arranged many meetings through the 2CV owners club, etc.
This particular one has higher compression pistons, electronic ignition, a better coil and leads, iridium plugs and gas-flowed heads. On the three trips to the south of France (where we have a holiday home) it has only ever caused me trouble in one way. Despite a full engine rebuild by a mechanic I trust and know since way back, it burns oil when cruising at high (for a 2CV) speeds. A litre of oil every 500 miles is usual on the Autoroutes.
Otherwise, it is great and has never let me down.
Anyway the question was not meant as any kind of statement, I genuinely wondered if anyone happily gets one car to do all tasks.
I also have a 2CV6, a 1987 green 'Bamboo' which has been from Buxton to Provence three times, most recently in June this year. (I have loads of photos of it in Provence and Paris, etc.) I am on my 12th 2CV6 and indeed have arranged many meetings through the 2CV owners club, etc.
This particular one has higher compression pistons, electronic ignition, a better coil and leads, iridium plugs and gas-flowed heads. On the three trips to the south of France (where we have a holiday home) it has only ever caused me trouble in one way. Despite a full engine rebuild by a mechanic I trust and know since way back, it burns oil when cruising at high (for a 2CV) speeds. A litre of oil every 500 miles is usual on the Autoroutes.
Otherwise, it is great and has never let me down.
Anyway the question was not meant as any kind of statement, I genuinely wondered if anyone happily gets one car to do all tasks.
cwis said:
CorvetteConvert said:
It has an aftermarket oil filler cap and tube from ECAS. This seemed to cure a slight oil leak, too. Unless it was coincidence.
Nope - if it's working it will stop oil leaks too. So it's not that. Hmmm. I'd be tempted to pull the downpipes off and check for a sooty side next if you want to track it down. It may not bother you that much though!I miss my 2CV's and keep thinking about getting another one - prices seem bonkers now for what you can get though. Never mind eh?
I am thinking of putting a used BMW 1200cc flat twin into the 2CV this winter.
They will fit the Citroen, with adaptor plates and some other work, apparently, but raising the gearing is very difficult.
battered said:
CorvetteConvert said:
If you can get an S2000, do so. I don't think they will lose you much if anything if you buy wisely. You mentioned earlier that money isn't an issue, so why worry about tax bands and all the rest of it? Just buy something nice/special and pay for it!
Well, yes. That's true enough. I like getting something for nothing though, like everyone else, and if I can get just as much fun from an MX5 costing £3k and £200pa tax as a S2000/Boxster at twice those figures, then the MX5 gets it! A "better" car isn't always better after all, we've all had cheap cars that were just a laugh and the fact that they are worth nearly nothing makes it better still. We've all seen the guys in the scruffy Fiesta Si/old MR2/crossflow powered kitcar/whatever having a better time at a track day than the guy with the gleaming Atom/Caterham/Porsche who spends the whole time sucking his teeth about his brake pad wear rate.But yes, cheap stuff can be fun I suppose, they are just not me. I love cars to be in mint condition and all mine always are. I take immense pride in any vehicle I own.
Siko said:
E92 M3. Does it all....I know an earlier post said his didn't, but he's clearly very wrong 
It is devastating on the open road, a family friendly (yes really!) coupe that has fitted in 4 plus a dog with ease and the comfiest commuter car I've ever used. It is horrendously expensive to fuel up but the smiles per gallon more than make up for it.....plus you can leave it on the street/Aldi carpark and most scum wouldn't know what it was anyway. Short of a mapped 335D
it's the best compromise of a daily drive/fun drive I can think of and excels at both, IMHO.
Good shout. I am not sure why the mpg is so bad on these, I got 18.5 mpg out of the last tankful but they are very versatile cars.It is devastating on the open road, a family friendly (yes really!) coupe that has fitted in 4 plus a dog with ease and the comfiest commuter car I've ever used. It is horrendously expensive to fuel up but the smiles per gallon more than make up for it.....plus you can leave it on the street/Aldi carpark and most scum wouldn't know what it was anyway. Short of a mapped 335D
it's the best compromise of a daily drive/fun drive I can think of and excels at both, IMHO.
t cars. Running two cars is expensive, too, if you don't drive many miles. I have just been to the refuse tip with shed loads of bagged up garden waste. Then we went across a poorly surfaced road full of pot holes, to bring back a mountain bike bought privately from a local village. Grabbing some shopping finally, before heading home.
My M3 or Corvette would have just about done the job, with 2 trips to the local council dump, but it was the Mondeo keys I grabbed without thinking.
I am fortunate in that I can afford to run several vehicles. I realise it is something of an ambiguous question, where finances blur some peoples' natural answers.
My M3 or Corvette would have just about done the job, with 2 trips to the local council dump, but it was the Mondeo keys I grabbed without thinking.
I am fortunate in that I can afford to run several vehicles. I realise it is something of an ambiguous question, where finances blur some peoples' natural answers.
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