Wednesday 22nd March 2017

£100K Garage: Jonathan Elstein

From Mehari to 928 to Coupe de Ville, Jonathan's garage is certainly a diverse one!

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Name: Jonathan Elstein
Previously owned: Quite a few: highlights would include Mk1 Ford Escort, Fiat Panda, Fiat 124 Spider, Maserati Bi-Turbo, BMW M5 Touring (E34), Fiat Multipla JTD (temporary backward step to accommodate kids/mother-in-law), Maserati 4200, BMW 850i, Lamborghini Silhouette, Lamborghini Countach LP400 S2
Currently owned: Porsche Cayenne S, Bentley Turbo R, Matra Murena
On the shortlist: It changes every day; at the moment I'd be happy with a Porsche 924 Carrera GT and a Cadillac Castilian.

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UK: Aston Martin Vantage
Cost: £32,925
Balance: £67,075
Why I chose it: "Looks, heritage, looks. This one seems to have been looked after, and the relatively high mileage is a plus in my view. Britain has a lot to offer and I'm conscious that I should really have included a saloon (or ticked the SUV box with a nice Range Rover), but the photos speak for themselves."

Germany: Porsche 928
Cost: £24,950
Balance: £42,125
Why I chose it: "Seems to be in immaculate condition. The later 1986 S2.5 model is supposed to be significantly better, but this original version will certainly do, particularly with the Pasha trim. Auto makes more sense for this type of car - in some ways it's a bit too similar to the Vantage on paper, but I suspect they would offer a very different driving experience in practice."

Rest of Europe: Citroen Mehari
Cost: €12,500 - call it £12,000 by the time it's delivered from Belgium
Balance: £30,125
Why I chose it: "£100K doesn't go that far across five cars, so no Ferraris (although a 400 was tempting) or even Panteras. A Fiat 124 Spider was tempting, but I've had one of those before. The fleet needed an open car, so this looks like fun. 26hp should just about get you to the beach. A Citroen CX would have been equally interesting, but there aren't many about."

USA: Cadillac Coupe de Ville
Cost: $15,200 - call it £15,000 by the time you ship it over here (you're going to need a bigger boat).
Balance: £15,125
Why I chose it: "USA means Cadillac (although a 1965 Buick Riviera would have been more than acceptable). This is a LOT of metal for the money. Supposedly just one owner? The complete antithesis of..."

Japan: Honda Insight
Cost: £7,295
Balance: £7,830 (to cover maintenance and a bit of fuel for the Cadillac)
Why I chose it: "Honda has always been one of the most interesting car companies. You can drive this when the petrol runs out. Beyond that it's innovative, rare and probably a lot of fun to drive on an intellectual level (low weight, manual and slippery; you can go fast by never going slowly)."

[diluculophile]

Some cars there that I would never even consider - but I'm glad someone else does.
The car world would be boring if we all wanted the same thing.

An eclectic mix of previous and current cars too.

[Futse]

Certainly an interesting selection, but indeed not my choices (and at that money, the Mehari certainly not). But good thing that there are different tastes and choices, and an interesting garage :-)

[smilo996]

Given how many but how quickly the decades 100K disappeared, is this the new marketing push for PH.

[Scho]

smilo996 said:

Given how many but how quickly the decades 100K disappeared, is this the new marketing push for PH.

wot?