Seeking advice on potential car purchase

[Z3Lass]

Right, first off if I've posted this in the wrong part of the forum etc I apologise. Figured Scotland........... because I'm in scotland lol

Anyway... to the point.

I'm thinking about changing my car (again), this time round I fancy something turbo, something with tidy BHP figures, something perhaps 4 x 4 so I don't end up in fields over winter, something with a bit of "cool" factor.

Current possibilities:

Scooby (to be honest they are great cars but I've never had the urge to own one - yet!)
Evo
Skyline (I believe there are 4 x 4 versions, which are 4x4?)

What other options do I have? and if anyone owns or has owned the above cars can you offer me advice on them, servicing costs, reliability, performance etc etc

Not looking at a new car prob somewhere about P plate on.

Any assistance greatfully received.

[GetCarter]

Some sort of Audi Quattro?

[M5Dave]

GetCarter said:

Some sort of Audi Quattro?

RS2 Avant ticks all your boxes.

It's a turbo, its got good horsepower, it's four wheel drive and it's as cool as a cool thing.

[driverrob]

I could be wrong but I think it's the R33 and R34 Skylines that are 4x4, as is the Mitsubishi GTO. None of them are really suited to off-road driving, though.

[Z3Lass]

Its ok, not planning on taking them offroad (my fault for mentioning fields I suspect) just meant that would like something with 4 x 4 to avoid sliding about in winter

[stiglet]

GetCarter said:

Some sort of Audi Quattro?

Another vote for an Audi quattro - a good 20v (RR) perhaps? Now getting a bit thin on the ground , but fab. to drive

JP

Z3Lass said:

..my fault for mentioning fields I suspect

PS I've had one of those in a field , with the 1stLotus guru Andy Walsh in the passenger seat no less ...but that's another story

[ViperScot]

Skyline GTRs (not GTSs) are sort of 4WD (they're effectively rear wheel drive until the rear wheels lose grip and then power's diverted to the front) - that includes R32s, R33s and R34s. I've owned an R33 GTR which was avery nice and fast car (not standard). They're emminently tuneable but expensive if you want to do it properly (i.e., reliably). For fun factor, there's nothing better than a big engined, rear wheel drive car, although I'm clearly biased these days!

[Kingdom]

Idea of your budget might help...

[hemibum]

Z3Lass said:

Its ok, not planning on taking them offroad (my fault for mentioning fields I suspect) just meant that would like something with 4 x 4 to avoid sliding about in winter

Whoa, wait a minnit. AVIOD sliding in Winter!!! Er, this is what we wait for. More fun for less mph.

How about a nice Nissan 200 X ?

[Z3Lass]

Budget............ hmmmmm really looking at the under £10k mark. Which might be cutting it fine but am mindful of the running costs of some of these beasties.

[Z3Lass]

Has anyone had personal experience of a good jap import company? Would be interesting to look at their sites and see what sort of prices they are bringing them in for.

[KB_S1]

Z3Lass said:

Has anyone had personal experience of a good jap import company? Would be interesting to look at their sites and see what sort of prices they are bringing them in for.

Have heard good reports of Mackay Trading in Edinburgh and if you want to risk a car you have not driven Newera have a very good rep.

[Mattymouse33]

Z3Lass said:

Has anyone had personal experience of a good jap import company? Would be interesting to look at their sites and see what sort of prices they are bringing them in for.

Greer sport brought me in a 94 Impreza RA with 72000 km's on it, mint condition and for a bawhair less than £4000, this was 2 years ago. I just stripped it down for the track and its ass has been kicked since, only done 1000 miles on it mind you and I've already replaced the clutch and gearbox!

[Mattymouse33]

Z3Lass said:

Right, first off if I've posted this in the wrong part of the forum etc I apologise. Figured Scotland........... because I'm in scotland lol

Anyway... to the point.

I'm thinking about changing my car (again), this time round I fancy something turbo, something with tidy BHP figures, something perhaps 4 x 4 so I don't end up in fields over winter, something with a bit of "cool" factor.

Current possibilities:

Scooby (to be honest they are great cars but I've never had the urge to own one - yet!)
Evo
Skyline (I believe there are 4 x 4 versions, which are 4x4?)

What other options do I have? and if anyone owns or has owned the above cars can you offer me advice on them, servicing costs, reliability, performance etc etc

Not looking at a new car prob somewhere about P plate on.

Any assistance greatfully received.

Spend a wee but more and buy a Z3M roadster, so much car for the money and very reliable. its not a Z3 imo. The real bonus is you could keep it for a year or two and sell it for the same money!

[ViperScot]

Although hard to find, un-abused Nissan 300ZX would be great fun and cheap. For a bit more cash, an early 350Z?

[Broomsticklady]

Eileen Gsardner or Liam Wood at Glenburgie Subaru might be worth talking to - 44(0) 1309 676787
24 hour mobile: [phone] (recovery only)
e-mail: [e-mail]
fax: [phone]
Glenburgie Cars Ltd
Easter Lawerenceton
Forres
Moray
IV36 2RL

Don't just do subaru but lots of Japanese stuff. Both Liam and Eileen were at fintray in May and may well be at the sprint at alford in July so you could meet them there - and you never know, if the Broomstick isn't fixed (see Doune thread...) you may see my Z3 on the track too!!

a

[tuscan_thunder]

VX220

proper sportscar, just a bit more habitable than an Elise.

Be massviely cheaper to run than a Scoob, Evo or Skyline (servicing on an Evo is crazy and all three are gutsy, never mind insurance)

[Jack Blag]

If you need 4x4, then go for the best Evo you can afford, otherwise get an Elise... they are very different cars to drive, but both are thoroughly addictive!

[G4Addicted]

Z3Lass said:

Its ok, not planning on taking them offroad (my fault for mentioning fields I suspect) just meant that would like something with 4 x 4 to avoid sliding about in winter

Don't be fooled that a 4x4 performance saloon will be great in the winter - we had a 4x4 Cavalier years back (OK, not a Scoob or an Evo, but the issues are the same). The low profile tyres and setup you get with these things mean that you can usually keep moving, but not always in the direction you want to go - and stopping is no easier either. If you want performance, buy a lightweight sportscar for the reasonable days, and buy a secondhand 'real' 4x4 to use when the weather gets mean. You can also use it to tow the sportscar to all the hillclimb and sprint events you end up entering....

[VetteG]

I have a scoob as a daily driver and can confirm what G4 says about winter driving, the performance tyres are fine in the wet but big broad low profile tyres are not what you want in snow, so to that extent the 4wd doesnt count for a lot. On the plus side scoobs are generally as reliable as anything (if they havent been regularly thrashed), I'm sure I'm going to regret saying this, but all I have done to my 98 is, apart from replacing the discs, have it seviced every 6 months. Mind you mine is standard, no chips or other mods and that makes a big difference to the long term reliability.

G