Now what?

[NilsP]

Following the sad events of selling my cerbera. I am now looking for something to replace it.
And I kind of fell into a black hole
It's a pretty tough act to follow and the new car has got some pretty big shoes to fill.

Sooo… What would you buy if you were to replace your Cerb?
I've got about £50k budget MAX. Preferably less, so I'll have some left for a classic project
It HAS to be RWD, not too heavy and preferably a manual and it must be a bit dramatic
I need no comfort but a roof would be nice so the Caterhams and Ariel are not an option I'm afraid

However due to the wonderful world that is Belgian Tax, It has to be a small engine pretending to be a big one
Max. 3l to keep it affordable and CO2 can't be too high either.
Per example an 2014 Exige S3 its about 4000€ registration tax (one time fee) and about 1700€ a year.
I'm not willing to waste that kind of money on Taxes.

So far I've got an Elise SC/Exige S2 (yeey manual! and I do prefer a supercharger over a turbo)
Or a Alfa 4C (achingly beautiful but flappy paddles and turbo are a bit less yeey )


Hit me with you best Ideas!!

[NilsP]

gruffalo said:

Exige S1 with a Honda K20 engine and a big supercharger.

400BHP, 750Kg, roof and a bit older if that helps with tax.

That would be rather fun.
However you can't modify cars in belgium.
Not even stainless steel brakelines or polybushes. Let alone an engine swap.

[NilsP]

Jooles81 said:

I would have proposed a cobra replica of some sortsort, but the engine won't do...

Do you want a road car or a track day car?

Ariel atom ?
Caterham?
Dax?
Another tvr of some sort?

Julien

Well it would be my daily az well, so i'd like a roof. Not much more, bit a roof is nice

Tvr's are not an option.
You can't register Tvr's here. That's why i sold the Cerb

[NilsP]

Twinkam said:

M Coupe?

http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b...

I always found the S52/54 engine lacking.
My mother has one in her wiesmann and it find it quite gutless.
Even in a lighter car.

The Cerb spoiled me

[NilsP]

Noble is a good shout.
Butt ugly but it'll go like stink.
Hope i can get that in to Belgium.
Otherwise it'll probably be a supercharged elise or exige.

[NilsP]

TVRinBFG said:

Hi Nils - I'd guess the Noble would be registered using a sub-MAC same as your TVR, does anybody know? Out of interest, how muxh would the registration tax and road tax be on a 1.8 Elise SC in Belguim?

Yes I'm afraid I'll encounter the same problems with the Noble as with the TVR.
I've never seen one in Belgium.
A 2008 S2 Elise SC is pretty affordable. Registration tax is around €465 and the annual tax is cheap as chips at €310
A 2014 S3 Elise SC is a bit more expensive. Registration tax is around €1860 and the annual tax is the same at €310
A 2014 4c is a lot cheaper. Registration tax is €484 and the annual tax is just €267.

Just to compare a 2014 Corvette Stingray has a Registration tax €10450 and the annual tax is a staggering €4736

[NilsP]

snatchbox said:

How about Jaguar F type 3.0S

Loved how it looked, drove it, didn't like it.
I was really disappointed because I really wanted to love it.
But it was just to damn heavy.
But I think I'm missing the point on that car.
Probably is a marvelous long distance cruiser.
But just 2 cups short of a sports car to me.

I know I'm difficult

[NilsP]

Incognegro said:

Hi Nils,

Not sure on costs etc but what about a Marcos Aero 8 with Hardtop?

For me not in the same league as a Cerb (But not much is for sense of occasion). But I can imagine it would be liked in Belgium. Funny how I love the look but don't think I could stand it every day.

We had that engine in our first Weismann.
I really liked its character. very torquey and easy to handle.
But again a 4.8 is way to expensive yearly.

If I didn't have the tax problem, my life would be so much easier

[NilsP]

Rochester TVR said:

I sold my Cerbera a couple of months ago and had very similar requirements to you for its replacement.

I ended up buying an Alfa Romeo 4C.

Ooh interesting
How are you liking it?
What made you choose it over an elise or exige?
How is it as a daily?

[NilsP]

FarmyardPants said:

Our of interest, what happens if you get caught with mods (eg extra displacement which is hard to see)?

They won't notice extra engine displacement.
But that's usually a pretty expensive mod
But you won't get through MOT with any other mods.
If the Police stops you with a small mod they'll just Tell you to fix it and get it MOT'd again.
If they catch you with a big mod (airride, a turbo bolted on), you can leave your car, get it recovered and put back OEM.
Then you can get it MOT'd again and pay a big fine.

If you get in an accident with a modded car, you're properly f*cked.

[NilsP]

Rochester TVR said:

I have no regrets at all. Its very different drive from the Cerbera but it it gives me the same levels of enjoyment. Every drive puts a smile on my face and the car is just fun to drive! All the exposed carbon, the fact there is no sound deadening or power steering, silly things like hearing stones pinging off the underside of the carbon tub would piss most people off but its little flaws like these that makes me love it. The amount of positive comments and people that come over to look at it is unreal, I think there is only about 100 on the road so they are very rare.
They've had a really tough time in the media but go and have a drive of one, I'd be surprised if you didn't get out of it grinning ear to ear.

I don't use it as a daily, but there's no reason why you couldn't.

I chose it over a Lotus because they were just too far on the raw side to me. I like the comfort of the Cerbs interior and I think the 4C strikes a perfect balance between comfort and weight saving. Dynamically the Lotus is bound to be better but for me the 4C just has that wow factor. Every time I open the garage door and see it I get the same urge to drive it as I got with the Cerbera.

Plus if the rumours are true then residuals are going to be very strong. I'd be surprised if they dip much below 40k so don't expect to loose anything near the depreciation over a 3 year period as I would do on an Exige for example.

If you want to have a look over one without a salesman badgering you then you are welcome to come and have a look at mine.

Edit: Just noticed you are in Belgium.

Edited by Rochester TVR on Friday 24th June 10:06

Sounds like a really fun piece of kit.
I just need to get over the gearbox.
I can imagine it really does make you fizz down below whenever you open up the garage door.
I already had that in the showroom.
It's one of the most beautiful cars made in quite a while.
I've got a test drive booked next saturday an I'm anxious to see what it's like in the real world.

And I can bag one at a very reasonable price and it's even got the color scheme I like
Just 40K for 6200 mile Grigio Basalto one

Still 10-12k more then an Elise SC though (albeit an older one) but then again it's a bit more of everything I suppose

[NilsP]

Well I think I've decided and I'll go for a new M2
It's pretty different to the Cerb.
But I think it'll be a hoot to drive

If anyone wants some spare Cerb parts, I've some things left over