Exciting Cars (£1k - £5k)

[V8Triumph]

Bookmarked will browse classifieds and see what I can come up with later, mine probably won't win any speed contests but will make you change your mind on what's exciting about driving ....

[roystinho]

Oh dear, Mrs roystinho will not like this thread. A fun car for short commute is coming next year

[MartinQ]

kiwifraser said:

What are the thoughts on an E46 330 Sport? Not a sports car, but surely a capable/ fun/ exciting all rounder with loads of kit for well under thread budget.

I have one of the coupe variety. I was thinking of selling up recently, but I couldn't think of anything to replace it that would give the same or better performance / running costs ratio. Mine's been reliable (as in not left me stranded anywhere), but did spring a £400 bill at the last MOT (front control arm, corroded brake pipes, handbrake). Also I don't know if it's just mine, but sometimes I'll put my foot down and get a good turn of speed and other times in similar circumstances it'll feel a little flat. I'll be taking it for a slight fettle in the next couple of weeks, so I'll see if that helps.

[TinyCappo]

kiwifraser said:

Sound of Thunder said:

I think these two are good value at the moment


http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2012...

Good call, i hadn't realised that the 350Z had dropped below 5k! No idea how they drive, but they look quite good, and the performance numbers stack up on paper.

Wow sub 5k 350s did not know they had dropped that far

[pstruck]

I see the Fiat Coupe 20V Turbo has already been mentioned. I’d support that suggestion, as I set out with just this criteria and bought my20VT in the spring this year for well under the max spend suggested here. Even with the work I’ve carried out to date to get/keep the car in tip-top order it still falls within budget. An ageing Fiat is not for everyone, but it is a lot of fun for the money. Plenty of other possibilities to suit all tastes though. Why spend more?

[ATM]

eliotrw said:

http://classifieds.pistonheads.com/classifieds/use...

306 GTi-6
Quick : Check
Handling :Sublime
Steering Feel: Unlike anycar ive ever driven
Condition: 127k (but wait) Engine replaced at 65k with a brand new one by Peugeot. ( I assume the cambelt snapped)
Suspension recently refreshed : check
Interior ripped : NO!! (Wow)

But it right now.
Check the cambelt was done recently, if not get it done somewhere were they no what they are doing.
1.5k bargain


EDIT: just read cambelt done recently.
BUY BUY BUY

I've noticed some 306 xsi 16v cars for sale which are less barry'd than the 306 [generally] and appear to be less in demand and therefore cheaper. Is there much difference between the xsi 16v and the gti 6?

[V8RX7]

_Neal_ said:

PH lurker said:

Very nice TVR, probably a lot better than a £5000 Chim?

Absolutely right

Having owned 3 S series and recently sold a Chim for sub £5k you are both VERY wrong.

Most cheap Chims are cheap because they need a bit of TLC - as mine did but I'd rather have faded paint and a 240bhp V8 than good paint and 170bhp V6

[so called]

PH lurker said:

Very nice TVR, probably a lot better than a £5000 Chim?

But I only paid £3,500 for my last Chimaera. 1998 4.0lt needs a few basic mechanical attention but otherwise fantastic.

[VinceFox]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-M3-EVO-COUPE-INDIVID...

[TeaNoSugar]

lunchbox said:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Peugeot-306-Rallye-in-Ch...

I can't believe nobody commented on this one. 820 quid for a red 306 Rallye? Someone's got themselves a right bargain there.

At that price you could maybe run it for a year, and (with a bit of luck) get your money back or even better. Or am I being hopelessly optimistic?

[V8 Disco]

http://classifieds.pistonheads.com/classifieds/use...

R33 GTS-T, good reliable jap motor with 260 BHP turbo 6 - bought one ourselves this year and it's fantastic. Easily tunable too so long as you don't get greedy. We will go for an easy 300 on ours to preserve the motor.

[Japveesix]

real4star said:

Can you get a decent Mitsubishi FTO in the £1-5k price range?

Neal

Yes you can (probably won't find one over £5k now) but the good ones are very very hard to find. If I was looking for another I'd go with this though:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2012...

Infact that's about the only "nice" one I can find anywhere

Could be tempted away by something like this though, 260bhp 200SX:

http://classifieds.pistonheads.com/classifieds/use...

[Hoofy]

These any good?



Many coming in at £2-4k now.

[anonymous-user]

That 200sx looks quite tasty but £4500 seems a bit steap if you ask me. It got some years under its belt and as discussed you can scrape a 350z for that sort of money.

I do like the wheels though and the black.

[Emeye]

Hoofy said:

These any good?



Many coming in at £2-4k now.

Well, my mum has one...

tis the 2.0. Tis ok.

[anonymous-user]

ATM said:

I've noticed some 306 xsi 16v cars for sale which are less barry'd than the 306 [generally] and appear to be less in demand and therefore cheaper. Is there much difference between the xsi 16v and the gti 6?

Never driven the XSI but one thing it will do better than a 306 gti/rallye is 3 point turns and mini roundabouts. The gti/rallye had the turning circle of an oil tanker I believe due to the 6 speed box protruding into the wheel arch.

[Wadeski]

If i was back in the UK and doing low miles, I'd be very tempted to put aside 5k "piggy bank" and try to flip through as many of these fun coupe's as possible, keeping each one for 3-4 months.

It would be a great laugh to run a 20V Coupe, RX-7, M3 Evo and a 306 GTi in a year. So long as you keep the resale loss to within a few hundred on each one, and be willing to call it quits if an engine goes bang...

[Jordan Clarkson]

Well for this kind of money, you could get a nice M3 E36, or R33 GTS-T Skyline. Supra's and RX-7's are also really nice cars, then at the cheaper end of the scale some really nice and cheap MX-5's and MR2's. I like the Porsche 944 as well.

[pstruck]

Japveesix said:

Yes you can (probably won't find one over £5k now) but the good ones are very very hard to find. If I was looking for another I'd go with this though:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2012...

Infact that's about the only "nice" one I can find anywhere

The wheel/tyre sizing just looks all wrong on that. A touch of lowering and slightly deeper profile rubber might fill the arches a bit more and make the whole thing look in better proportion. Oh and that rear wing would need to go!

[TurboBlue]

There's not enough nut's cars on this thread, so here's a few more:

Jaguar XJ6 Twin Turbo (no, not a diesel S type)
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1990-JAGUAR-XJ40-CHASSEU...

Renault Alpine GTA V6 Turbo (yes, engine in the boot, plus turbo)
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1987-D-Renault-Alpine-V6...

VW Polo G40 (supercharged but no power steering)
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1992-Volkswagen-Polo-G40...

Mazda MX-5 Supercharged (PH favourite plus added whine)- There's a BBR turbo on e.bay too
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Supercharged-UK-MX-5-MK1...