What 4 seat super(-ish)car? - £20k

[Basil Brush]

Jonty355 said:

Sounds like we are certainly on the same wave length!

The only cars that fit most of the criteria are:

Aston Martin DB7 i6 (but they're all dropping to pieces)
TVR Cerbera (they will drop to pieces on a day to day basis)
Porsche 911 996 (which will last forever but I dont like them)
Jaguar XK 4.2 (but too many about and are only available as an auto)
Maserati 3200GT (potential bankrupcy)


I've just sent an enquiry about a straight six Cerb. If I can find a good one then maybe I'll just run that and give the 355 a break for a year.

A 996 is probably as likely to empty your wallet as a Cerb and nowhere near as quick or different. If you go the TVR route, you may find the 355 doesn't feel as quick any more...

[sputnik]

Jonty355 said:

It shares a lot of parts with the Ferrari F355 - and believe me I know how much they are!!! Not sure if they're another moneypit?

Really? No 355 parts seem to fit mine.

[Crusoe]

maurauth said:

deron said:

I'd have to say as mentioned earlier chuck another 10k at the problem and get a Maserati Granturismo.

Gorgeous, 2 seater with space in the back. Fairly reliable too. A lot get used as daily drivers.

Please point me at a GT that's up for £30k that isn't a CAT D or an absolute dog and I'll bite the owner's hand off.

page 2 http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/m...

or this one would probably haggle down a bit if you like silver with red better

http://www.exchangeandmart.co.uk/used-cars-for-sal...

Edited by Crusoe on Friday 29th May 09:35

[hornetrider]

Crusoe said:

page 2 http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/m...

They just look sooo good don't they. Lovely motor.

[Crusoe]

Yorkshire links so the OP can take a closer look:

Lotus £10k plus a budget to bring it up to they way you would want it.
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C620148

Jag XJC very nice looking thing in the flesh and reasonably brisk though maybe not super(ish).
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C616171

Cerbera
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C349366

[Steven_RW]

OP: I think some of your requirements are contradictory. Thus why you can't find the solution.

You want rare, but reliable, but sporty, but fun, but 2+2, but not a porsche etc.

If these cars existed we would ALLL be driving them, at which point they wouldn't be rare.

:-). I read the whole thread and some cool cars have come up, but the chap that highlighted you could have 4 of the 6 sounds like he is on the right page.

Good luck.

SRW

[Crusoe]

mini supercar looks and just about space for kids in the back, lotus evora? A bit over budget just now but you might get close for a higher mileage private sale.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

Edited by Crusoe on Friday 29th May 10:36

[Crusoe]

5lr XK just about in reach too rather than the 4.2
Dealer car with two year warranty
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

[Guvernator]

Crusoe said:

mini supercar looks and just about space for kids in the back, lotus evora? A bit over budget just now but you might get close for a higher mileage private sale.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

Edited by Crusoe on Friday 29th May 10:36

A Lotus Evora is actually a pretty good shout except I have heard the rear seats are pretty useless, can anyone confirm? I've also heard mention of questionable build quality although I don't know how true that is either.

The standard Evora engine is also a bit lacking but the Evora S is much improved, not sure how much you'd pay for one of those though.

[blueg33]

Guvernator said:

Crusoe said:

mini supercar looks and just about space for kids in the back, lotus evora? A bit over budget just now but you might get close for a higher mileage private sale.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

Edited by Crusoe on Friday 29th May 10:36

A Lotus Evora is actually a pretty good shout except I have heard the rear seats are pretty useless, can anyone confirm? I've also heard mention of questionable build quality although I don't know how true that is either.

The standard Evora engine is also a bit lacking but the Evora S is much improved, not sure how much you'd pay for one of those though.

Firstly have you driven an Evora? If not you can't comment about the n/a engine being lacking, because quite simply, it isn't. 0-60 is in line with a 997 Carrera S and quicker than a Cayman S unless ypu spend £60k on a new Cayman GTS. I Test drove a Cayman GTS last Friday and in manual form it is no quicker along my favourite roads than the n/a Evora, pdk is quicker purely because you can move through the gears so quickly.

The rear seats are only suitable for people under 5ft and then for a short time. I sometimes use mine on the school run and put a 13 year old in the back, but again its only a 15 minute journey.

As for interior quality, its not up there with Porsche but its actually ok. Premium pack come with lots of nice leather, the seats are comfortable, the satnav is ok as is the mp3 player, the rest of the head unit functions are poor, eg radio reception and Bluetooth phone..

Running costs are surprisingly low except for frequent rear tyres.

[Jonty355]

sputnik said:

Really? No 355 parts seem to fit mine.

Suspension actuators for a start, except you wouldn't know this because you wouldn't ever want to buy them as a Ferrari part. The only difference is one has a prancing horse badge on them and one has a Trident on them..... oh and yours are £400 a pop and mine are £600 each! (if memory serves correctly). But they are the same part.

[Jonty355]

UPDATE:


I'm off to look at a TVR Cerbera Speed 6 in the morning! If it turns out not to be a lemon its not a bad price and a lot of car for the money. Well within the budget too!

[Jonty355]

Crusoe said:

mini supercar looks and just about space for kids in the back, lotus evora? A bit over budget just now but you might get close for a higher mileage private sale.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

Edited by Crusoe on Friday 29th May 10:36

Just a bit too much over the budget or I'd have been all over that!

[Jonty355]

Steven_RW said:

OP: I think some of your requirements are contradictory. Thus why you can't find the solution.

You want rare, but reliable, but sporty, but fun, but 2+2, but not a porsche etc.

If these cars existed we would ALLL be driving them, at which point they wouldn't be rare.

:-). I read the whole thread and some cool cars have come up, but the chap that highlighted you could have 4 of the 6 sounds like he is on the right page.

Good luck.

SRW

Wouldn't say is contradictory, there are quite a few cars that fit the bill but not necessarily the budget. If my budget was £35k then there are plenty of cars to choose from like the Masser GT, Lotus Evora, Aston DB9 etc.

But there are a few that are in budget too, TVR Cerbera, Aston DB7 (although they all need work if in budget), Lotus Elan 2+2 (although a bit too old and unreliable) BMW M6, Masser 3200/4200, Jag XK. There's been some great cars mentioned here. Not all of them are to my particular taste but as usual the PH lot have come up with some cracking ideas.

They all have some sort of issue with them in some way but I'm willing to compromise on certain aspects. I'm off to look at a Cerbera tomorrow which means I will have to compromise on reliability. But I'm used to having problems with that after 7 years of Ferrari ownership!

[MC12]

Be interested to know what you think of the Cerbera. Should be a good alternative to the 355. I found the Tuscan was nice and raw with plenty of involvement which were the elements I enjoyed in my 360. Running costs are certainly lower ( and 360 was much less costly than a friends 355), but for a much lower investment due to house purchase. Find a good one with decent history, don't worry too much about mileage. If everything has been looked after then being driven will have done it good.

[cerb4.5lee]

Jonty355 said:

UPDATE:


I'm off to look at a TVR Cerbera Speed 6 in the morning! If it turns out not to be a lemon its not a bad price and a lot of car for the money. Well within the budget too!

Good choice look forward to hearing how you got on.

[Jonty355]

Well I don't mess about.....


I'VE JUST BOUGHT A TVR CERBERA SPEED SIX!!!!

The car I went to see didn't disappoint. My god, the Cerbera is such a good car and very very underrated! Very driveable, f**kin fast, comfy and feels so special.

When I said I wasn't supercar-ish well this isn't 'ish'.... Its a proper supercar! The looks, interior and performance are all supercar worthy! I love it and I cant wait to collect her. Its having some work done first as James Agger or James Agger Autosports is a bit of a perfectionist. Which works fine for me! The car is in exceptionally good condition, especially chassis. There were the odd bits that needed attention but they were pointed out to me straight away and I was told they would be done. The only reason they hadn't is because they hadn't had the car in very long.

Anyway, thanks for all of the input guys. If you're ever in the same position as me then please do go and drive Cerbera. So much more of an event than the DB7 I nearly bought!

Heres' a cheeky pic I took of it before I left. So excited!!!!

[MissChief]

Can't wait for the 'it's broken!' Thread! Lol J/K, looks like a good one.

[Jonty355]

Ha ha! Hopefully that wont happen for a while. Does seem like a good example from a great bunch of people that wouldn't want bad press of a car going wrong.

Who cares if it goes wrong though if the rest of the time it sounds, goes and looks as good as it does?

[speedtwelve]

Excellent choice. The S6 engine sounds great and has the most razor-sharp throttle response. Always wanted a Cerbera but bottled it and bought a Chimaera instead. Have fun, and get yourself onto the TVR forum sections here on PH.