Forget the price of milk - have you seen the cost of a Golf GTI? In case you haven't, the base retail price for a three-door, six-speed Golf GTI is £25,305. Go crazy on the options list with DSG, 19-inch rims, touch screen nav, Adaptive Chassis Control and so on and you can get the figure to just about nudge past £35,000. That's thirty five grand...for a Golf GTI.
Of course, the Golf is a good car. But we couldn't help but wonder what kind of Porsche 911 you'd get into for 25 grand, so we went to have a look at a few...
With the 996 getting a little long-of-tooth now, values are probably about as low as they're going to get, with circa £10,000 (or even less) cars becoming increasingly common on the used market. So the fact that you could buy a modestly priced 911 instead of...well instead of the vast majority of brand new cars, isn't news. But how about a 993 or even a 997?
993 Carrera 4S
comes with a comprehensive service record, an equally comprehensive 12-month warranty, and what's more it's a VarioRam-engined example with a manual gearbox. It was built in 1995 and has covered a shade over 108,000 miles, which isn't an issue for a looked-after 993, but nevertheless the windscreen is starting to emulsify in one of the corners and the nose is sporting the odd stone chip. Other than that, the bodywork is spot-on and the wheels are shod with a healthy set of Toyos. It's yours for £24,995.
Despite not quite enjoying the same reputation as the 993, a good 996 is still a fine driver's car, and well within budget is this 2003 Carrera 2 Cabriolet. As with the 993 it comes with a full service record and has a high specification. It was previously owned by a lady, is well-spec'd, and wears a set of 997 Carrera wheels. Never mind coming in at under £25,000, this ragtop, 89,000 mile 911 is up for just £20,995.
Bringing things a bit more up to date is
this 2006 997 Carrera 2S
. The nose shows some very minor chips, there are some minor marks on the base of the driver's seat and some rather more self-evident wear to the outer bolster, which could do with being sorted out because the rest of the interior is near-mint.
Speaking of which, several trips around the car revealed no bodywork imperfections to speak of (aside from the chips to the nose). It was all ding, chip, and scratch-free and all the panels fitted perfectly, showing no signs of any repair. It's wearing a good set of Pilot Sports, too, and is a one-owner car with 86,000 recorded miles and a full history. The asking price is £24,990.
So, not only can you get an example of some lovely modern 911s for the price of a base-spec Golf GTi, but you could also acquire a decent one for significantly less if you look hard.
Before we sign off though, if you were thinking of buying a new specced-up-to-the-nines GTI and therefore had access to the required £35,000, you could even get yourself a bona fide 26,000-mile 996 GT3 like this. And still have a grand to spare...