Saturday 22nd October 2016

£100K Garage: Josh Forzani

Two very different choices from Italy, with a campervan and Evo IV thrown in!

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Name: Josh Forzani
Previously owned: VW Mk4 Golf, Mk5 Golf lowered on coilovers, 2005 Seat Leon Cupra R with Milltek exhaust, Mk1 Audi A3...
Currently owned: Fiesta ST-03
On the shortlist: A classic, something silly fast and a fun practical? No kids so no SUV wagon thing... [Josh hasn't quite stayed within the 'rules' of new-school £100K demanding a front-wheel drive, four-wheel drive and rear-wheel drive selection ... but he's got his Fiesta so that kind of covers the front-driven option and we'll let him off on this occasion! Ed.]

1965 VW Camper
Cost: £23,000 [Josh's selected car has sold - here's a similar one for a little bit more]
Balance: £77,000
Why I chose it: "Got to love a classic VW camper, especially with the prices going up and up over recent years. This one being a 'splitty' is rather sought after, nice colour combination and the correct wheels on it. Always loved classic VWs, was a hard choice between a Beetle, Mk1 Golf GTI or this. Then I thought what has more wow factor? After driving a friend's camper, it confirmed this was the classic VW to have! It's not possible to drive one without a smile."

1999 Mitsubishi IV
Cost: £22,995
Balance: £54,005
Why I chose it: "This will be my silly fast option. Was looking at GT-Rs, but for the same power as a Litchfield GT-R you can get a Evo for £30,000 less... Have always wanted a big powered Japanese car. This particular one has some very trick bits under the bonnet and looks very clean. The only thing to change would possibly the wheels. Also love the fact that some might call it a 'chav' car, but this particular 'chav' car will destroy many unsuspecting supercars."

2011 Maserati Quattroporte
Cost: £44,950
Balance: £9,055
Why I chose it: "This has to be one of the coolest cars to cruise around in and would be my daily/practical(ish) car. Love that these are a bit of a sleeper until you hear the roar of the V8 - and what a noise it makes! I like the grey wheels against the black paint and then open the door and you have red leather. Only an Italian car could get away with that! Road trip to Italy anyone?"

1963 Fiat 500
Cost: £8,000
Balance: £1,055
Why I chose it: "Ever since visiting my wife's family's home in Sicily I have wanted a Cinquecento. When you see one driving though the beautiful hills of Sicily, they just make sense. This particular one looks clean and has a fairly low mileage. Love a classic car and the 500 is an icon of design and car history. The remaining £1,055 will go towards the very possible chance of repair/tinkering of the Cinquecento!"

[Sevenman]

I like that combination, it seems to tick all the boxes.

Apart from the VW van of course, but everybody has different tastes.

Not sure the Evo really compares with the GTR, it would be interesting to drive it and see how near 400 bhp / litre responds, I am sure it would take a different driving style but be fun.

[je777]

How long would such an engine as that in the Evo last? Surely there have to be some reliability issues (to say the least)?
Also, would the lag (or whatever it actually is - I've seen these debates before and still don't understand them) not be preposterous?
These are genuine questions - I haven't a clue what I'm talking about and would be interested to see answers.
If you don't have kids, could you stretch the Quattroporte cash to get a GranTurismo (maybe ditching the Fiat - which would only end up scarred for life in Sicily... never seen such driving)?

[Amanitin]

what's with that pink leather in the QP? Is that a joke?

[Wills2]

Amanitin said:

what's with that pink leather in the QP? Is that a joke?

Such a pity, even if the photos are over-saturated it'll still be very red in there, stunning car otherwise.

[GranCab]

I would have bought that QP weeks ago if it hadn't been specified with the dog dick red interior ...

[ozzyt17]

Like the garage but breaking the rules technically, 3 lots of RWD and one AWD, no FWD but still a unique and cool garage.

[kainedog]

You'de love my neighbour , he has a mas grand turismo , 2 x 500s and a karhman ghia

[rtz62]

The QP looks great until you open the door; obviously spec'd by some company chairman who didn't care about its future value. Or how much that colour could put off prospective buyers. Otherwise, the 'Darth Vader' look suits it.
The Evo? Hmmn. Quite exhilarating but I'd want to know who built the engine and the quality of the parts used, lest it 'handgrenade'
And I'd also want to check out the provenance of the dealer; the place selling the Evo has a Facebook page dedicated just to it and the, ahem 'experiences' of purchasers and potential purchasers; I'll let readers make their own minds up (it has had several name changes too iirc...) rather than make untoward suggestions myself.

[PoopahScoopah]

Don't fancy the EVO much. Assume it's been built for drag racing, so if that's your thing then OK, but on the road it'll be horrendous to drive I'd imagine. Look at that dyno print - barely any usable power until over 4k, then an extremely narrow power band between about 5 and 6k where it'll just hit you like a mallet. It's all or nothing and seems like it'd been a very frustrating experience on the road, and possibly the track too. Of course I'm basing that entirely on my perception of what a mahoosive turbo on a 2.2 4pot would feel like, and the dyno print, but it may be totally different behind the wheel.