Downgrade or give up?
Discussion
braddo said:
Not having to commute by car is one of the best things that a petrolhead can do - it removes driving from the daily grind and makes it just for pleasure and errands. It makes such a massive difference. You don't mind getting up early on the weekends for a hoon when you're not spending 10 hours a week doing the daily grind in a car.
Mk3 MR2 would be what I would do in your position.
If you need more than 2 seats it would be a RX8. Those two, along with the MX5, are the three massive bargains for cheap driving fun these days.
Thats my thinking mate! Mk3 MR2 would be what I would do in your position.
If you need more than 2 seats it would be a RX8. Those two, along with the MX5, are the three massive bargains for cheap driving fun these days. There's an estate about half hour walk along the river from work I'll probably move to. If I can't be arsed to walk, a bus will get me there in 2 minutes.I will never need more than 2 seats ever, so the MR2 seems ideal.
Wills2 said:
A bloody V6? I despair at this forum at times, they're for Toyota camrys, the BMW N52B30 is a stunning piece of kit, smooth a babies bum and revs out so keenly, gorgeous engine.
Moving on to your OP, who is going to want a Z4 with buggered auto box without paying buttons for it?
My 350Z sounded massively better, just saying Moving on to your OP, who is going to want a Z4 with buggered auto box without paying buttons for it?
Dunno but not my problem any more
Wills2 said:
A bloody V6? I despair at this forum at times, they're for Toyota camrys
There are good V6s and bad straight 6s.There are plenty of good V6s, like in the 350Z, Alfa's Busso, Maserati Merak, Honda NSX and yes, the Toyota V6 in current Lotuses. Toyota don't do glamour, but they sure know how to make engines - look at some of their legendary indestructible and tuneable stuff, from Landcruisers through the ages, Supras (80s and 90s), and Lexus V8s and V10s.
Straight sixes - well, there's BMW. A couple from Nissan's GTRs and maybe Mercedes. Otherwise, most straight 6s are uninspiring s
t - American and Australian stuff was particularly dire.Wills2 said:
TameRacingDriver said:
cerb4.5lee said:
I'm like that and since I've had the N52 engine it's made me appreciate a V6 engine far more, and the straight six just doesn't really deliver noise wise.
Really sorry to hear about the woes with the Z4 because I know at first you were really happy with it.
Yeah I'm with you on the V6 noise. I've come to the conclusion that, for me, V6s sound much better than a straight 6. I guess the latter howl better, but otherwise, not much competition.Really sorry to hear about the woes with the Z4 because I know at first you were really happy with it.
I've always struggled as to why straight sixes are rated so highly and presume it must be for their smoothness, for me a V6 is a much more tuneful engine.
cerb4.5lee said:
Don't get me wrong the N52 is a lovely smooth engine without doubt, but for me the noise it makes is very ordinary and I much preferred the V6 engines I've had previously for noise.
I've always struggled as to why straight sixes are rated so highly for me a V6 is a much more tuneful engine.
^^^ You're not alone in that.I've always struggled as to why straight sixes are rated so highly for me a V6 is a much more tuneful engine.
cerb4.5lee said:
I've always struggled as to why straight sixes are rated so highly and presume it must be for their smoothness, for me a V6 is a much more tuneful engine.
It comes down to the fundamentals of the engine. A straight 6 with the right firing order can cancel out all the 'primary' vibrations, hence the smoothness. A V6 will still have some pitching and yawing moments that can only be removed by balancing shafts. The firing order will depend on the bank angle; 60 and 90 are common but there are others. Taking the different firing orders, and mixing them in different ways (a V6 needs to draw together two manifolds, an I6 can be just one), gives you the different sound qualities. If you put enough effort into the manifold and exhaust design (and perhaps engine mounts) you could make an I6 sound similar to a V6, and vice versa, but invariably cost and packaging constraints get in the way. Throw in lots of other variables and you end up with a broad spectrum of engine notes. So some V6s will be tuneful, some won't, and ditto for I6s.
The Crack Fox said:
RedAndy said:
not wanting to be sexist but its a hairdressers car and hairdressers are often female...and they dont want to break a nail so they dont top up the oil every 1000 miles like the book says!
Thank you for the accurate and valuable insight into the MR-2 ownership demographic. I've no idea how you managed it without a comprehensive survey, though, lesser men than us PHers would wrongly assume you'd just hammered that tripe out without such diligent research. PH is a better place for such posts. I too face a similar dilemna to yourself. Have been contemplating selling my car especially as i'venow paid off the finance. Its on 92k and I know the water pump will eventually go (£500) and it':s on it's on it's original clutch, however, i've just spent £400 fixing a fkd caliper including new front disks n pads so I think i''ma just keep it no as it's a better the devil you know scenario for me now.... although i've had it 3 years now so the itch to move is pretty strong and i've barely experienced anywhere near as many cars as you.
I know you've sold it now but i'd have been tempted to keep it due to the lack of depreciation on the z4 coupe.
I know you've sold it now but i'd have been tempted to keep it due to the lack of depreciation on the z4 coupe.
lewisf182 said:
Its on 92k and I know the water pump will eventually go (£500) and it':s on it's on it's original clutch
The waterpump may be a thing which fails due to design but why do you expect the clutch to go? Is it slipping now? Provided you have good clutch control I see no reason to expect it to go really.Gutted to hear that TRD - you seemed to be really keen on your Z4C when you first got it!
Get onto Z4Forum - someone on there is looking for an Auto Sport Coupe!
Then go looking for a 325ti - it's like a 4 seater Z4 (I have one as a daily)!
A 325ti with 100K miles went on A/T this week with a trader for £1,295, but they have been cheaper!
Property goes up, cars tend to go down!
Get onto Z4Forum - someone on there is looking for an Auto Sport Coupe!
Then go looking for a 325ti - it's like a 4 seater Z4 (I have one as a daily)!
A 325ti with 100K miles went on A/T this week with a trader for £1,295, but they have been cheaper!
Property goes up, cars tend to go down!
Mr Tidy said:
Gutted to hear that TRD - you seemed to be really keen on your Z4C when you first got it!
Get onto Z4Forum - someone on there is looking for an Auto Sport Coupe!
Then go looking for a 325ti - it's like a 4 seater Z4 (I have one as a daily)!
A 325ti with 100K miles went on A/T this week with a trader for £1,295, but they have been cheaper!
Property goes up, cars tend to go down!
Car already gone mate.Get onto Z4Forum - someone on there is looking for an Auto Sport Coupe!
Then go looking for a 325ti - it's like a 4 seater Z4 (I have one as a daily)!
A 325ti with 100K miles went on A/T this week with a trader for £1,295, but they have been cheaper!
Property goes up, cars tend to go down!
I did really like the car, and I will always have fond memories of it. Shame it had to go that way.
I've got my sights on a decent looking MR2 on ebay.
Well I went and got one; a 2003 MR2 with 73K on the clock, the condition of it was really very good indeed for the price - £2k. Why didn't I do it sooner? What an absolutely hilarious little car it is. Makes the Z feel clumsy and paunchy. OK its not fast but wind it up and it goes well enough. It is unbelievably good fun, very exciting to drive without actually going all that fast! Can't stop thinking about the drive home back over Hartside today...
white_goodman said:
Normally, I would say that if you want a cheapish car that's not going to cause you any hassle, a Toyota would be a pretty good choice but the mk3 MR2 is possibly Toyota's least reliable car! A friend who buys and sells a lot of cars had his fingers burnt on one and he doesn't normally make a loss but I think he did on that one. I think that was a pretty early one though to be fair. Apparently, they're pretty good on fuel though, although I find the engine a bit lacking in character compared to a Type-R engine for example. I'm sure that it would make a great fun, relatively cheap 2nd car but I don't think that I would want to live with one as my only car due to the complete absence of a boot and the lack of refinement on longer motorway journeys. Also, the youngest one is going to be at least 10 years old (older than your BMW) and I would want to be looking at something younger as my DD. If you do go down this route, get the latest one you can afford, as these are most likely to have any reliability issues ironed out. I'm also not completely seeing where you'll be making a saving with the MR2, as it sounds like you have a few mods in mind. Would it not be better to spend this money on fixing the gearbox fault on the BMW, as you're going to take a hit on trading it in or if you sell privately, it may take some time or you may have hassle from someone trying to return it because they can't fix/afford to fix the gearbox fault? Even if you don't fix it, at least get the fault diagnosed so that you can be up front about what exactly the problem is and how much it will cost to fix.
My own experience after circumstances (working abroad/kids/buying a house) meaning I had to sell my last automotive love (a 2004 Impreza WRX) three years ago.
Since then, I have owned a sheddy Mercedes C250TD Estate, a 2004 Chrysler Sebring V6 (my car when working across the pond) and a 2013 Honda Civic.
The Mercedes and Chrysler were quite liberating because they didn't cost me much to buy, I didn't care what happened to them and they only cost me oil changes and fuel. The Civic, I regret a little. I had the peace of mind of Honda reliability and warranty but it was costing me a lot of money relatively in payments for not much fun/pride of ownership.
I've finally got back into something interesting, a 2010 MINI Cooper and I love it! A Cooper S would be great but I was concerned about reliability and I would have wanted one of the late R56 N18-engined cars, which were out of my budget. Having said that, the Cooper is still fun every drive, relatively light and very economical and on winter tyres very capable in the snow! For a small car, the control weights are surprisingly weighty and it actually has a BMW kind of feel to it! I can use most of the performance most of the time and it will even lift-off oversteer like my 205 GTi used to but in a far less snappy manner. Technically, it's a downgrade as it's older and the Civic was worth more but I got a very reasonable trade-in, my payments have gone down significantly and I have a car that I enjoy more, so win-win!
My friend has a mk1 Suzuki Swift Sport, which is also a fantastic little car. I'll concede that it has a nicer engine than my car but the ride is very firm and it's very loud on the motorway. I drive more motorway miles than him, so the better refinement, 6th gear and better fuel economy of the MINI works better for me. I can see why he likes it though, as in all other respects, it has a similar feel to the MINI without the retro. The latest Swift Sport fixes these issues with a 6th gear and better ride and refinement, although in my opinion doesn't look quite as sharp but it will be reliable and looks like fantastic value (just a bit more than I could afford).
Trying to find you something a bit different to what you have had before. If you don't mind older, VW Lupo GTi (unusual, holds its value and supposedly very good) or a Peugeot 106/306 GTi/Rallye (widely regarded as the best hot hatches of their time).
If you want more power/more of an all-rounder, a mk5 Golf GTi/mk2 Focus ST/mk1 Mazda 3 MPS/RS Megane 250 should all be reliable and fairly cheap to run.
Something a bit more leftfield would be a W203/W204 Mercedes C-Class. They're not as sporty as a BMW but still have a nice, more luxury-oriented ride/handling balance and are very comfortable, refined and stable. I really liked mine. Get an estate and you can have the Mercedes experience and a very practical car too. Go for a facelifted (2004-)? model to avoid the rust issues that some of the earlier cars can have. The W211 E-Classes are also lovely cars and more reliable post-2006 but still more complex, so on a budget I would stick with the C-Class, which looks like excellent value.
Great car history by the way though and all achieved on a relatively modest budget too. Good luck with the move and whatever car you choose.
EDITED TO ADD: I should mention the Abarth 500 too. My wife had a 2009 1.2 which was very economical and reliable but I didn't like the steering or the very choppy ride. Apparently these are better and quite tuneable as well from what I hear.
The missus has had a MR2 MK3 2003, 60k miles that has been totally reliable. Bought (with hardtop) for £2600 in nice condition.My own experience after circumstances (working abroad/kids/buying a house) meaning I had to sell my last automotive love (a 2004 Impreza WRX) three years ago.
Since then, I have owned a sheddy Mercedes C250TD Estate, a 2004 Chrysler Sebring V6 (my car when working across the pond) and a 2013 Honda Civic.
The Mercedes and Chrysler were quite liberating because they didn't cost me much to buy, I didn't care what happened to them and they only cost me oil changes and fuel. The Civic, I regret a little. I had the peace of mind of Honda reliability and warranty but it was costing me a lot of money relatively in payments for not much fun/pride of ownership.
I've finally got back into something interesting, a 2010 MINI Cooper and I love it! A Cooper S would be great but I was concerned about reliability and I would have wanted one of the late R56 N18-engined cars, which were out of my budget. Having said that, the Cooper is still fun every drive, relatively light and very economical and on winter tyres very capable in the snow! For a small car, the control weights are surprisingly weighty and it actually has a BMW kind of feel to it! I can use most of the performance most of the time and it will even lift-off oversteer like my 205 GTi used to but in a far less snappy manner. Technically, it's a downgrade as it's older and the Civic was worth more but I got a very reasonable trade-in, my payments have gone down significantly and I have a car that I enjoy more, so win-win!
My friend has a mk1 Suzuki Swift Sport, which is also a fantastic little car. I'll concede that it has a nicer engine than my car but the ride is very firm and it's very loud on the motorway. I drive more motorway miles than him, so the better refinement, 6th gear and better fuel economy of the MINI works better for me. I can see why he likes it though, as in all other respects, it has a similar feel to the MINI without the retro. The latest Swift Sport fixes these issues with a 6th gear and better ride and refinement, although in my opinion doesn't look quite as sharp but it will be reliable and looks like fantastic value (just a bit more than I could afford).
Trying to find you something a bit different to what you have had before. If you don't mind older, VW Lupo GTi (unusual, holds its value and supposedly very good) or a Peugeot 106/306 GTi/Rallye (widely regarded as the best hot hatches of their time).
If you want more power/more of an all-rounder, a mk5 Golf GTi/mk2 Focus ST/mk1 Mazda 3 MPS/RS Megane 250 should all be reliable and fairly cheap to run.
Something a bit more leftfield would be a W203/W204 Mercedes C-Class. They're not as sporty as a BMW but still have a nice, more luxury-oriented ride/handling balance and are very comfortable, refined and stable. I really liked mine. Get an estate and you can have the Mercedes experience and a very practical car too. Go for a facelifted (2004-)? model to avoid the rust issues that some of the earlier cars can have. The W211 E-Classes are also lovely cars and more reliable post-2006 but still more complex, so on a budget I would stick with the C-Class, which looks like excellent value.
Great car history by the way though and all achieved on a relatively modest budget too. Good luck with the move and whatever car you choose.
Edited by white_goodman on Thursday 8th December 17:24
EDITED TO ADD: I should mention the Abarth 500 too. My wife had a 2009 1.2 which was very economical and reliable but I didn't like the steering or the very choppy ride. Apparently these are better and quite tuneable as well from what I hear.
Edited by white_goodman on Thursday 8th December 20:47
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