Help me pick a new car!

[PhilUK]

Hey all.

I've currently got a MK2 Focus ST 225. I'm looking to get a new car in the next 18 months so I'm starting to look and save for whatever it is that will be my next car.

My budget will be around £15,000. I'd preferably like something with lowish mileage, decent power and stylish looks. I would ideally want something with a bit more power than I have now, not too old and with a good mod platform, but not too lairy in its looks. I was looking at the Nissan 370Z, but it's a bit too loud for my liking. I haven't done too much with my ST because it's already 10 years old now and, although low in mileage (45K) I feel that as it starts to get older I could end up spending money on bits and pieces more regularly and I don't want to sink a lot of cash into it. 2 door is fine, and 4 seats is essential.

I was thinking about the Audi TTS, any thoughts on this model? I'm open to anything so fire away!

Thanks.

[PhilUK]

That's not a bad option actually. I'm not 100% on the looks though. How are they to mod? Lots of options?

[PhilUK]

Blanchimont said:

I'm not sure, I know with just a remap, they can go to 310/320hp. Other than that, I'm not sure. The great thing about my RS is that it feels almost N/A. It pulls like a bd to the Redline.

Okay cool. Can I ask some questions seeing as you have one?

What is LSD? And do you know what year this model started at? Any problem years or major issues? I see there's a 250 version, which one is the 265, the Cup?

Thanks.

[PhilUK]

SwedishSoul said:

LSD is a limited slip diff ( a trick differential )

Ah okay.

Any other suggestions?

[PhilUK]

Yea, I have. It's fine for what I need. I rarely take more than one person and it fits a baby seat fine and we have another car so I'm fine with the space.

[PhilUK]

unsprung said:

Some not-so-usual suspects...

MINI JCW

Mazda RX-8

Alfa Romeo 159

Mustang (say 2011, 2012)

In terms of the Mustang, you mean an import?

[PhilUK]

I like the idea of the Monaro, but the insurance is a little high. The same with the M3 and Mustangs. I'm not a fan of the BMW 130i shape, but I like the 135i. That could be within budget and the insurance isn't massively high.

So far, the 135i and the Megane RS are looking like contenders.

[PhilUK]

clarki said:

If you're going to do the odd trackday then the megane IMO.

If not, i'd go TTS with the S-Tronic 'box. Impressive car tbh.

Yea. This is what I'm thinking. The 135i looks like a nice car, although seems to be automatic and quite heavy. Do they come as manual too, does anyone know?

rb5er said:

Hatchback Subaru impreza wrx sti

BMW E46 M3/z4mc

Porsche gayman

Toyota Gt86 with a turbo conversion

Jag XKR

Also what colour is your Focus? 3door? ST3? If yes to these then I'm looking to get another one if you want an easy sale.

Edited by rb5er on Saturday 13th February 14:33

I think the running costs of a Porsche and Jag would be a bit too high! And the M3's insurance is ludicrous for me.

3 door blue ST2. Not looking to sell for over a year really as I want to pay the loan off before I get another one.

[PhilUK]

Innowaybored said:

Mini Cooper S

Then save the rest of your money.

If you want something that looks stunning, is getting rare but isn't that quick then a Alfa 159 Ti with Bose upgrade. This would save you thousands on your budget as well.

IF you want something quicker but equally rare and a real Q car then Saab 9-5 Aero. Spend a bit more on the sound system because the stock one is rubbish. These are laughably cheap at the moment.

I appreciate the suyggestions, but I just don't like the look of any of them. The Saab is just a bit to plain for my liking. It's shallow, I know.

It's between the TTS and the Megane for me right now.

[PhilUK]

So, you have the Standard which is a 250, the Cup which is 265 and the Trophy which is 275?

I can't find much used for the Trophy, is it a new model?

Thanks.

[PhilUK]

hufggfg said:

I think it's a bit more complicated than that, I don't remember entirely, but I think it's something like... Initially there was a 250, which was available with Cup spec (LSD and suspension differences). Then they upgraded to the 265, which was also available with Cup spec, there was also a Trophy special edition (Cup plus a few other bits, such as akrapovic exhaust). Then it went to 275 (I can't remember, but maybe all 275s are Cups), and the Trophy was a special edition of the 275.

While it's certainly the "best" (aside from the stripped out Trophy-R), I don't think there have been any 275 Trophys sub £20k yet, but I guess 265 Trophys are somewhere around £15k.

Thanks. I've spoken with a couple of my car friendly friends and mentioned both the Megane and the TTS. Both said the Renaults are of poor quality, although I did point out that they have Recaro seats and are of a higher quality. And they both said that the TT was more of a 'ladies' car. But when I showed them the pictures they were more enthusiastic about them.

[PhilUK]

unsprung said:

For your given budget, you can buy a quality Mustang in the UK or import one, yourself.

Each of the not-so-usual suspects above addresses your qualitative criteria in a distinct way, without going to the usual hot-hatch candidates.

I don't think that I could drive one of them, they're massive! But they do look amazing. I went and had a look at my local Ford dealer at the 5L monster they've got there, and it is awesome.

I've been thinking about a 2008-2009 Boxter 987. I was told tyre changes are like £1000 for a whole set, but when I looked on a local tyre garage it had normal and even budget tyres. Does this seem right? Pirelli and Continental etc for the normal £100-£120?

Also it seems that a service could cost a bomb from a dealer but aside from the £60K (£700), a yearly service from a specialist independent garage would only be around £250. Pads and disks I can do myself, so really, it's not all that bad.

The insurance is £1200/year but whatever, I can afford that and it'll come down after a year or two. Am I dreaming or are the running costs a lot more affordable than it seems?

Edited by PhilUK on Tuesday 16th February 01:40

Edited by PhilUK on Tuesday 16th February 01:40

[PhilUK]

The Cayman does seem to be in budget if I were to get a 2006-2008. But I think that maybe the Porches of that age could require a fair amount of work, even if I were to get a low mileage one.

The TTS seems like a good bet, but the Cayman and Boxster are candidates also.