Bin men smashed my car up - What Car?

[gizlaroc]

Cabsi said:

Nothing wrong with FWD. All depends on the chassis.

And are you seriously saying that the Mk5 Golf GTI (aka Jetta 2.0 TFSI Sport) isn't a great car?

If your A4 is dangerous, I'd start with buying some decent tyres and getting the alignment checked.

The GTi for me was utterly disappointing, I swapped my 123d for a 2005 model, I took it as a part ex from the guy, it had a Revo map on it and was quick enough, and to be fair, felt better than the 2.0T S3 Sportback I had for a week when my A6 was in at Audi, but still felt detached when pressing on, it was a good little hatch, but felt like a £12k car with a bigger engine in it compared to the 1 Series, which felt like a compact, fun regular BMW.


I'll ignore the bit about alignment and decent tyres on the A4.

[Slow]

Buy back your merc and use it still? If he reversed into it, won't exactly be a dangerous amount of damage?

[gizlaroc]

Hoofy said:

gizlaroc said:

I went back to a 2.0T A4 S-Line recently, FWD version, big mistake, far more dangerous than any BMW I have owned when it got even slightly damp.

How come??

The problem for me was too much power for the chassis.
Also, Audi/Vag have a tendency to squat at the back when you put power down, the problem with this is it lifts at the front, lifting the front up while trying to get power through the front wheels means you end up spinning the wheels. I had this before on a 3.0 Cab of my wifes, I swapped to vredestein ultrac sessanta tyres on it from the goodyear eagle asymmetrics that were fitted after a few guys recommended them, the Eagles were new at the time and everyone was raving about them, and it helped overall grip levels, you could tell immediately on roundabouts, but didn't really make any difference pulling out of fast junctions or busy roundabouts.
You simply don't get that with RWD, mash the throttle and you go.

Torque steer. On the mapped 2.0T with only 250bhp it was hilarious, bury the throttle at 30mph and you could turn the wheel between 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock and it make no difference.
The guy I bought it from has a mapped XK-R that is tuned and stripped for the track, he warned me what it was like, I said I knew as I have had a few FWD Audis, I must admit I wasn't expecting that much!
I searched online and found post after post after post from people with Audis complaining of the same thing, especially the A5 where it is 225hp stock.
I was like the posts on the Sabb forums from years ago, everyone saying 200hp was the limit for a safe FWD car, but that isn't the case, as said earlier some manufacturers get it right.


The other thing with the A4 was it just felt hollow, not well built, mine had ned front suspension, dampers from Bilstein, springs from Eibach, new control arms and bushes all round and it just didn't feel solid at all, almost hollow when you hit a poor road surface, my mate who is VW mad thought I was nuts, he thought it was one of the best Audis he had driven, different expectations and all that?
I used to feel the same, until I bought a BMW, I went back to Audis and went through 5 in 3 years, trying to find one I liked, then realised I simply prefer RWD cars. Coming from BMWs and Mercs for the last few years back into an Audi I realised they are a compromise, you don't need to be doing anything other than up and down the motorway to even notice it.

Mine lasted a few weeks, I thought maybe it was just because it was FWD, but went to buy a Quattro version, as I do love the looks and interiors etc. and it made me realise the other negatives were still there too, so I am back in a Merc. A 2006 C320 Sport Estate, and it is on a whole different level, from drive to build. It just feels so much more planted too.

All personal, but thats my views.

[Hoofy]

gizlaroc said:

Hoofy said:

gizlaroc said:

I went back to a 2.0T A4 S-Line recently, FWD version, big mistake, far more dangerous than any BMW I have owned when it got even slightly damp.

How come??

The problem for me was too much power for the chassis.
Also, Audi/Vag have a tendency to squat at the back when you put power down, the problem with this is it lifts at the front, lifting the front up while trying to get power through the front wheels means you end up spinning the wheels. I had this before on a 3.0 Cab of my wifes, I swapped to vredestein ultrac sessanta tyres on it from the goodyear eagle asymmetrics that were fitted after a few guys recommended them, the Eagles were new at the time and everyone was raving about them, and it helped overall grip levels, you could tell immediately on roundabouts, but didn't really make any difference pulling out of fast junctions or busy roundabouts.
You simply don't get that with RWD, mash the throttle and you go.

Torque steer. On the mapped 2.0T with only 250bhp it was hilarious, bury the throttle at 30mph and you could turn the wheel between 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock and it make no difference.
The guy I bought it from has a mapped XK-R that is tuned and stripped for the track, he warned me what it was like, I said I knew as I have had a few FWD Audis, I must admit I wasn't expecting that much!
I searched online and found post after post after post from people with Audis complaining of the same thing, especially the A5 where it is 225hp stock.
I was like the posts on the Sabb forums from years ago, everyone saying 200hp was the limit for a safe FWD car, but that isn't the case, as said earlier some manufacturers get it right.


The other thing with the A4 was it just felt hollow, not well built, mine had ned front suspension, dampers from Bilstein, springs from Eibach, new control arms and bushes all round and it just didn't feel solid at all, almost hollow when you hit a poor road surface, my mate who is VW mad thought I was nuts, he thought it was one of the best Audis he had driven, different expectations and all that?
I used to feel the same, until I bought a BMW, I went back to Audis and went through 5 in 3 years, trying to find one I liked, then realised I simply prefer RWD cars. Coming from BMWs and Mercs for the last few years back into an Audi I realised they are a compromise, you don't need to be doing anything other than up and down the motorway to even notice it.

Mine lasted a few weeks, I thought maybe it was just because it was FWD, but went to buy a Quattro version, as I do love the looks and interiors etc. and it made me realise the other negatives were still there too, so I am back in a Merc. A 2006 C320 Sport Estate, and it is on a whole different level, from drive to build. It just feels so much more planted too.

All personal, but thats my views.

That's interesting to read. I can see where you're coming from especially on the handling front.

My Volvo isn't great but I'm not pushing it at all so it doesn't matter to me. At best I might accelerate onto the A3 (50 zone) hitting the heady heights of 4500rpm before the autobox changes up. Corners I take carefully because of the poor turning circle (still yet to figure out why but I wonder if it's a better set up for wet and snowy weather?) and because it's a heavy FWD car.

Do miss RWD.

[anonymous-user]

gizlaroc said:

Sabb, Volvo, Jetta, FFS??!!!

All of those are seriously crap choices, I have had a Sabb 95 for 2 months and it was a good motorway crusier and...no...nothing else, oh, seats wear nice.
S60? Extremely wallowy and that was coming from a 210 E Class. It was fine but no way engaging at all.
Jetta? Seriously?!! I don't even no where to start.


The problem you have is the C Class is actually not bad at all, it is softer than the BMW, but 100x better than the Audi A4 and it is RWD. I liked the Sabb, but it was not engaging to drive, and the torque steer was nasty, I was very glad when it went.


Someone offered an E91 325i above, that is an absolute peach of a car, I would enquire about that.

Having said all that, after messing around in a V70 for a couple of weeks and then an A4 2.0T S-Line, I have gone back to a C Class, a 206 C320 Sport estate, so, so much better than the pre facelift btw for build and overall feel. For me it is the perfect compromise of comfort, practicality and actually pretty fun when pressing on.
I also tried a C350 V6 coupe, preferred the engine but wanted an estate, this came up after I bought my diesel...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

I know you said you didn't like hatches, but maybe an estate?

Yeah that looks like a real treat! But I just want to steer away from an Auto box for this car, and as we know Mercedes are not renown for there manuals. But yes I would be open to estates if the right one came up.

[anonymous-user]

CGJJ said:

Stop your messing around.
Better think of your future.

Oh yes, however I'd be looking for a nice blob eye

[anonymous-user]

Slow said:

Buy back your merc and use it still? If he reversed into it, won't exactly be a dangerous amount of damage?

Waiting to hear back from there insurance company. My insurance said they would put me through to a third party company who they use, and said they'd sort it out all for me and charge their insurer. Is it worth waiting to see what the other insurer says or just go straight for the 3rd party company who will sort it?

[anonymous-user]

RicksAlfas said:

hornetrider said:

The obvious answer is the best 3 series you can afford.

With heated seats!

AB57 said:

4am commute in the mornings over winter

and heated wheel and screen

[phil_cardiff]

AB57 said:

gizlaroc said:

Sabb, Volvo, Jetta, FFS??!!!

All of those are seriously crap choices, I have had a Sabb 95 for 2 months and it was a good motorway crusier and...no...nothing else, oh, seats wear nice.
S60? Extremely wallowy and that was coming from a 210 E Class. It was fine but no way engaging at all.
Jetta? Seriously?!! I don't even no where to start.


The problem you have is the C Class is actually not bad at all, it is softer than the BMW, but 100x better than the Audi A4 and it is RWD. I liked the Sabb, but it was not engaging to drive, and the torque steer was nasty, I was very glad when it went.


Someone offered an E91 325i above, that is an absolute peach of a car, I would enquire about that.

Having said all that, after messing around in a V70 for a couple of weeks and then an A4 2.0T S-Line, I have gone back to a C Class, a 206 C320 Sport estate, so, so much better than the pre facelift btw for build and overall feel. For me it is the perfect compromise of comfort, practicality and actually pretty fun when pressing on.
I also tried a C350 V6 coupe, preferred the engine but wanted an estate, this came up after I bought my diesel...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

I know you said you didn't like hatches, but maybe an estate?

Yeah that looks like a real treat! But I just want to steer away from an Auto box for this car, and as we know Mercedes are not renown for there manuals. But yes I would be open to estates if the right one came up.

Well *cough* someone did offer you a nice manual estate with a silky smooth straight 6 engine. Just over the Bristol channel too...

[Chongwong]

thecremeegg said:

HerrSchnell said:

st.

I wish someone had told me that sooner or I never would've driven the three I've owned over the last ten years in these type of conditions.





Thanks for the info, I'm going to sell mine post haste now I know it will struggle to move on remotely cold ground.

Congratulations....you're obviously God-like!
BMWs do struggle on snow, you know that.

I'd beg to disagree. I park cars in a high volume outdoor carpark for a living, and so long as they have sensible wheels and tyres I find them absolutely fine. I'll say the same about virtually any rear wheel drive vehicle with sensible ground clearance. That said, a manual gearbox helps a lot.

[gizlaroc]

phil_cardiff said:

Well *cough* someone did offer you a nice manual estate with a silky smooth straight 6 engine. Just over the Bristol channel too...

I would have jumped on this by now.


The 325i is a peach, and in manual guise pretty rare.

[white_goodman]

AB57 said:

I've been dying for one, however I put getting a house priority, got 13k already so realistically I could start saving for one end of next year. However I feel this could be a great opportunity to get one now. It's only 1k a year of insurance so it's not that bad, and blobeye all the way

Any idea what price and mileage I should be looking @ for a blobeye?

Well, I sold my tidy 2004 Blobeye Wagon with 80k for just under 3k but that was 2 years ago! You should be able to get a decent "Blobeye" for 4k. Do it, you won't regret it! I found Admiral pretty reasonable for insurance (Churchill wanted me to fit a Tracker on a 6 year old car FFS, when I think the TWOCCERs moved on to high end German stuff years ago)!

The obvious answer is a BMW 330i Sport (probably an E46 for this money). This is probably what I would have got if I hadn't got the Impreza but you don't seem to get as much car for your money and I wouldn't say they're more fun. I wouldn't mind something more bargey now, like a Saab, Jaguar or Mercedes actually but then I am 35!

A Saab 9-3 Aero might be more engaging than a C-Class and potentially very quick with a remap but I don't know, as I haven't driven one. How about a V6 AWD Jaguar X-Type? They're pretty cheap and my grandfather-in-law always seemed to be driving his quite quickly!

[lostkiwi]

white_goodman said:

A Saab 9-3 Aero might be more engaging than a C-Class and potentially very quick with a remap but I don't know, as I haven't driven one.

Quick? Yes. Engaging? No.
Steering is too light and ride tends to be pretty fidgety on anything not billiard table smooth.
The post 2003 models may be the best handling Saabs ever made but thats like saying the last Trabant made was the best ever.

[white_goodman]

lostkiwi said:

Quick? Yes. Engaging? No.
Steering is too light and ride tends to be pretty fidgety on anything not billiard table smooth.
The post 2003 models may be the best handling Saabs ever made but thats like saying the last Trabant made was the best ever.

Ah, the correct answer is a Saab 9-2X then.

[lostkiwi]

white_goodman said:

lostkiwi said:

Quick? Yes. Engaging? No.
Steering is too light and ride tends to be pretty fidgety on anything not billiard table smooth.
The post 2003 models may be the best handling Saabs ever made but thats like saying the last Trabant made was the best ever.

Ah, the correct answer is a Saab 9-2X then.

Aka the Saabaru....
Rarer than rocking horse droppings in the UK.