So after years of driving new company cars I have been hankering after something fast and cheap. I've begrudged the cost of modern cars that are perfectly acceptable for their purpose but are lacking in character or excitement.

So after thinking about it and my last company car hitting 3 years I decided to enter the world of older performance cars.






It's not perfect on the body and needs some minor work doing with the most notable item being a broken skirt, the alloys also need cleaning up after some light curbing. The other thing missing is one of the RB5 fog light covers which looks quite odd at the moment.

What drew me to the car though was the fact it has fairly recently had a engine/turbo rebuild totaling over 5.8K and was well looked after.

From the advert;
WR sport, Prodrive special edition number 125. EVERYTHING done. New crank, Manley con rods, forged pistons, steel head gaskets, head studded down, Arrow lightened flywheel, exeedy clutch, all new gaskets and seals, updated bearings, ARP bolts everywhere, turbo rebuilt by AET, new engine mounts, new timing belt, tensioner and all idler bearings. Also new tires and new pads.

Thats on my "must own" list, looks cracking. Enjoy!

Quality motor, drive it like you stole it and enjoy!

215 or 240hp?

TX.

Looks like it has the Ppp due to the spoiler so it will have 240bhp

Thanks for the kind words chaps.

Nobody is quite sure to be honest as its had a massive engine rebuild and has some modifications for breathing although I've driven 200bhp+ cars plenty of times and this feels far higher than the 230 odd bhp I'd guess it at with breathing mods if it was a standard 214bhp model. The car does have all of the PPP kit however so I'm inclined to believe its a PPP + additional breathing mods.

I'm going to get the car a full service and get it mapped I think.

Yeah I had a good look after reading some buyers guides.

It has no problems with the window screen but on the drivers side it has very slight bubbling on the rear arch.

From a more than a yard away the cars looks perfect but when you closely inspect it, it has some minor marks around it, some will certainly t-cut out and some require a bodywork guy to sort.

Can anyone help me with trying to track down a RB5 fog light cover and a sideskirt? I've done a cursory search of e-bay but can't see anything.

If I need to the sideskirt can be repaired but I'd prefer a new one.

Mechanically the car is brilliant and the Revolution exhaust makes the car sound truly superb so I just need to do some minor work on the bodywork.

Yeah I kind of lost interest in cars after lots of company diesel cars that to be honest I found dull in the extreme.

However I hung around PH as lots of people have been seeking my opinion on all sorts of exercise stuff!

So after driving 100 or so miles back from London on Saturday and taking some outrageous detours yesterday so I could drive it a bit longer, I'm completely and utterly smitten.

Its a long way from perfect but then I'd kind of expected that with a 13 year old car, its got the minor cosmetic points I spoke about earlier and has a occasional slight banging noise at low speeds when I'm on and off the power which I think is the exhaust moving slightly and I've already learned this thing has a epic thirst for super unleaded which means the fuel gauge is going down quicker than a local Portsmouth girl!

Saying that it feels like it has so much character and I love the sound of the fuel pump priming and then it settling into a rather noisy idle (I hope the neighbours can get over my 5.30am starts ).

I also didn't realise it had a starting routine and if you don't start it within 30 seconds of getting in it switches the immobilizer back on, so there I was sat turning the key with the ignition telling me 'Check Engine' and me thinking oh please no! I eventually figured out what the problem was but not before the petrol station attendant told me very loudly over the loud speaker to move away from the pump whilst 5 cars queued behind me and I started to panic a little!

I hadn't started the car quick enough after trying to get the Alpine stereo working and when I did actually get it working it became apparent only one speaker works and it makes a terrible sound, so back to listening to the cars engine then (which I actually prefer anyway).

The passenger window's motor is on its way out as well I think, the motor is making a grinding noise and it takes 3x's as long to close that window as opposed to the drivers window.

Still, once out on the road and driving the car, all is forgiven with the sound of its off-beat soundtrack and mixed in with what I think is a blow off valve (whooshing sound when coming off the throttle) and the rush and sound of running at full tilt for short periods. It also pops and bangs a little when backing off at part throttle when driving around town.

So my list of priorities are;

1. Get a full service & consider mapping once I've had a chat with a knowledgeable person on the car. I'd also like to get the car on a rolling road although mapping should cover this to see what the car is actually producing. From this point the car will be having a oil change every 6 months and a full service from a specialist each year, I'm a big fan of preventative maintenance
3. Replace missing RB5 fog light cover or get a new fog light (the fog light with the RB5 cover is broken and falling apart so cover needs to stay in place)
4. Replace damaged side skirt or fix + respray existing one if repair possible, my preference however would be get a new one even if it costs more
5. Overhaul sound system and replace head unit although this is quite a low priority for me

Great read. Had 2 UK Turbos, both modded with Scoobysport exhausts and filters, and they were a HOOT.

Wouldn't have one now, but I do miss the sound of THAT burble.

Enjoy the RB5 - it's one of the best in the range (still).

Dan