Car to compete with an m140i? sub 16k
Discussion
I would go for a Golf GTI Edition 35.
232 bhp as standard and lots of potential to increase that.
You can get a decent one for £15k which leaves you a grand to put towards insurance and a remap.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...
232 bhp as standard and lots of potential to increase that.
You can get a decent one for £15k which leaves you a grand to put towards insurance and a remap.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...
Edited by GreatGranny on Tuesday 28th March 11:26
Appreciate all the responses, I've ran quotes for most of the suggestions and I'm swaying towards either the mini or an n54 bmw.
sub 40k mile examples of the BMWs seem to be almost as much as an m135i, so most of the cars I'm looking at are in the 40-50k range on an 09-10 plate.
This originally put me right off as reliability was a main point in my decision. I'm now considering saving up 1k-1.5k as a slush fund for a 40-50k mile car - does anyone with experience think this would be sufficient?
sub 40k mile examples of the BMWs seem to be almost as much as an m135i, so most of the cars I'm looking at are in the 40-50k range on an 09-10 plate.
This originally put me right off as reliability was a main point in my decision. I'm now considering saving up 1k-1.5k as a slush fund for a 40-50k mile car - does anyone with experience think this would be sufficient?
LasseV said:
How much is BMW's insurance? It's your choice, but old japanese warhorse doesn't loose it's value and they are generally cheaper to run than turbo-BMW. So overall, maybe they are cheaper option?
335 is coming out at 2k with a hefty however manageable excess. Most of my other quotes seem to include an even higher excess! I'm 19, insurance renewal on my current car is coming out at 1700 so dont mind the extra 300 and slightly larger excess for the 335.
Before anyone says silly prices... Majority of people my age group are paying 2-3k in their first year for a corsa or similar. My postcode seems to be not bad for quotes either, with mates a few miles away paying a fair chunk more.
Peperami said:
Judging by your username are you born in 98? I dont even want to imagine the insurance quotes on some of these suggestions... ! 2-3k?
When you say keep up do you mean dual carriageway racing or a B-road blast?
Mixture of both to be honest mate, we regularly take a drive up north on a sunday if the weather permits.When you say keep up do you mean dual carriageway racing or a B-road blast?
Insurance is extortionate in the grand scheme of things!
A stage 1 remapped 335i will leave an S3 on a straight. Remapped 335i push about 360 to 380bhp without any other bolt on mods. But the n54 has lots of known issues such as the hpfp, injectors, carbon built up, vanos solenoid failures and coil packs.
Not sure if BMW sorted all the above issues with the n55.
Not sure if BMW sorted all the above issues with the n55.
Most n54 issues were resolved by the n55, but the extended warranty on sub 60k mile examples is worth it and reasonable as a protective measure.
If you can be disciplined and have a slush fund I would say 2k should suffice, worst case scenario is new turbos (more common on older n54s) which at a dealer is 3.2k. Can be done cheaper.
My '09 n54 has had new injectors and a HPFP go so far.
I doubt you will much go faster in a 'daily driveable' for £16k.
If you can be disciplined and have a slush fund I would say 2k should suffice, worst case scenario is new turbos (more common on older n54s) which at a dealer is 3.2k. Can be done cheaper.
My '09 n54 has had new injectors and a HPFP go so far.
I doubt you will much go faster in a 'daily driveable' for £16k.
ITP said:
Just get a fiesta ST for 10k, you'd keep up easy, apart from jail time speeds on motorways etc and probably have more fun in the highlands for loads less purchase and insurance/running cost cash than the other 2.
Agreed and put some of the savings towards a tyre budget and be super smug keeping up with "faster" cars.My general views on fast road driving is that commitment generally is a greater factor than power and for commitment read nutter!
How about an RS Megane? Pretty quick as standard, and should be more nimble in the corners than the s3 and the m140i. A remap, decat downpipe, and exhaust can take them to circa 300-320bhp, and make for a very quick and lively drive. I love mine if you couldn't guess.
https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds?Category=u...
https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds?Category=u...
Tony33 said:
greed and put some of the savings towards a tyre budget and be super smug keeping up with "faster" cars.
My general views on fast road driving is that commitment generally is a greater factor than power and for commitment read nutter!
You wouldn't need even that powerful to keep on bendy roads. A decent MX5 or MR2 would easily do it.My general views on fast road driving is that commitment generally is a greater factor than power and for commitment read nutter!
If you can't get insured on the BM try looking at the toyota gt86, a good second hand one is around 11k on autotrader. I recommend getting slightly wider front wheels and stickier tyres. It's 100bhp down from the BM but there aren't nearly as many body motions. The BM loves to lean around corners and for this reason I think I can push the gt86 much more down a country road.
Mike335i said:
Most n54 issues were resolved by the n55, but the extended warranty on sub 60k mile examples is worth it and reasonable as a protective measure.
If you can be disciplined and have a slush fund I would say 2k should suffice, worst case scenario is new turbos (more common on older n54s) which at a dealer is 3.2k. Can be done cheaper.
My '09 n54 has had new injectors and a HPFP go so far.
I doubt you will much go faster in a 'daily driveable' for £16k.
I'd had a quick look at the warranty on the BMW website, am I right in thinking its by an external company? Most of the examples I've been looking at have been 30-40k miles so the warranty would definitely be an option. If you can be disciplined and have a slush fund I would say 2k should suffice, worst case scenario is new turbos (more common on older n54s) which at a dealer is 3.2k. Can be done cheaper.
My '09 n54 has had new injectors and a HPFP go so far.
I doubt you will much go faster in a 'daily driveable' for £16k.
Seen it mentioned elsewhere that 2009 is the best year for the n54, any idea if thats the case?
ITP said:
Just get a fiesta ST for 10k, you'd keep up easy, apart from jail time speeds on motorways etc and probably have more fun in the highlands for loads less purchase and insurance/running cost cash than the other 2.
I've thought about this, the ST does appeal to me however I'm after something a bit more refined. My idea behind the cooper S was that it was a bit of a middle ground between something like an ST and the BMW.Chongwong said:
How about an RS Megane? Pretty quick as standard, and should be more nimble in the corners than the s3 and the m140i. A remap, decat downpipe, and exhaust can take them to circa 300-320bhp, and make for a very quick and lively drive. I love mine if you couldn't guess.
https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds?Category=u...
Theres a Renault dealer on my way home from work with a lovely yellow one on display at the front. The interior doesnt do anything for me if I'm honest. Cracking car though! Seems to be raved about by everyone who has one. Might stop off for a better look this week and see if I could see past the interior. https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds?Category=u...
Hammy98 said:
I'd had a quick look at the warranty on the BMW website, am I right in thinking its by an external company? Most of the examples I've been looking at have been 30-40k miles so the warranty would definitely be an option.
Seen it mentioned elsewhere that 2009 is the best year for the n54, any idea if thats the case?
It's through a 3rd party (mondial), but sold as BMW Extended warranty. Definitely worth it for lower mileage as the cost is not too bad. Seen it mentioned elsewhere that 2009 is the best year for the n54, any idea if thats the case?
Difficult to say which year was the best for the n54, you might find a 2007 one that has had all the issues fixed and a 2009 that hasn't, but as a rule of thumb the later the better. Also worth noting that after 2010 the n55 replaced the n54 so a facelift e9x could be either.
The really hard bit is finding the right spec. I would really try and find a facelift with the Harmon Kardon / Logic 7. Pro nav is great too
I had a similar dilemma at 19 (few years ago now), but decided to wait until I was 21 to get something more affordable to insure. Back then, you couldn't insure a "proper" car until you hit that age or spent a lot of money.
By the time I was 21, my mates with their 'quick' cars had hedged them and had no NCB with a few claims.
I went out and got myself a tidy Celica with pop up lights. Sounded good, looked good and could drop knickers from a distance. Girls thought it was a supercar because of the pop-up lights, and it did me well in those regards!
I'm not saying you should go out and buy an old Celica, but I guess I'm being one of those boring people that can suggest that, if you're able to, it can be well worth saving up/waiting to insure something much tastier when you're a little older with some more NCB.
By the time I was 21, my mates with their 'quick' cars had hedged them and had no NCB with a few claims.
I went out and got myself a tidy Celica with pop up lights. Sounded good, looked good and could drop knickers from a distance. Girls thought it was a supercar because of the pop-up lights, and it did me well in those regards!
I'm not saying you should go out and buy an old Celica, but I guess I'm being one of those boring people that can suggest that, if you're able to, it can be well worth saving up/waiting to insure something much tastier when you're a little older with some more NCB.
Gassing Station | Car Buying | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff