£4-6K -- CTR, RS Megane, Astra VXR or what else?
Discussion
Right, I currently drive an '11 plate Fiesta Zetec S. Whilst its a great car, I feel the need for something a bit quicker.
The car will be used mainly for my daily commute but will also need to transport my 3yo and 4yo sometimes. I have no problem with 3 doors as we manage with the Fiesta and they love being in the back of that.
I used to have a 106 Rallye stripped out and did a few trackdays in it. I would ideally like something that is fun and quick to have a hoon in when the kids aren't with me and to take on 2-3 track days per year.
I have narrowed it down to :
3-4k EP3 Civic Type R 03/04 plate
6k ish FN2 Type R 07 plate
4-5k RS Megane poss trophy of R26 if poss 05 plate
5k + Astra VXR
Opinions on these or alternatives in a similar vein welcome as long as you an justify your choice!
Out of the question include
Mazda MP3/6
Anything old or unsafe!
The car will be used mainly for my daily commute but will also need to transport my 3yo and 4yo sometimes. I have no problem with 3 doors as we manage with the Fiesta and they love being in the back of that.
I used to have a 106 Rallye stripped out and did a few trackdays in it. I would ideally like something that is fun and quick to have a hoon in when the kids aren't with me and to take on 2-3 track days per year.
I have narrowed it down to :
3-4k EP3 Civic Type R 03/04 plate
6k ish FN2 Type R 07 plate
4-5k RS Megane poss trophy of R26 if poss 05 plate
5k + Astra VXR
Opinions on these or alternatives in a similar vein welcome as long as you an justify your choice!
Out of the question include
Mazda MP3/6
Anything old or unsafe!
Edited by rallyeS2 on Thursday 30th August 18:09
EP3 CTRs are brilliant (not driven a FN2). For £6,000 you should be able to get an absolutely spotless one, probably even a Premier if you look hard enough (premier has Recaro seats among other things).
Only downsides I've had with my EP3 are the road noise/rattles (almost to be expected with a hot hatch but it does get tiresome on a long drive) and the paint being unbelievably thin so even the slightest mark shows up. Aside from that, awesome car for the money. Not sure what I get to a tank but they are pretty thirsty. Probably on par with other hot hatches but you'll forgive that for the noise when you WANT to hear it.
Word of advice though, make sure you get good tyres on it if you do go for a EP3. They're really badly affected by cheap tyres from what I've seen and general consensus on CTRO.
Only downsides I've had with my EP3 are the road noise/rattles (almost to be expected with a hot hatch but it does get tiresome on a long drive) and the paint being unbelievably thin so even the slightest mark shows up. Aside from that, awesome car for the money. Not sure what I get to a tank but they are pretty thirsty. Probably on par with other hot hatches but you'll forgive that for the noise when you WANT to hear it.
Word of advice though, make sure you get good tyres on it if you do go for a EP3. They're really badly affected by cheap tyres from what I've seen and general consensus on CTRO.
_Batty_ said:
I have an RS megane being p/x'd this weekend at under 3.5k.
43k miles. You'd have to be quick though!
Really pacey cars and very well spec'd.
Very light and decent on fuel, bearing in mind youve had French youll know what to expect!
if you still have it at the end of September I would certainly be interested!43k miles. You'd have to be quick though!
Really pacey cars and very well spec'd.
Very light and decent on fuel, bearing in mind youve had French youll know what to expect!
Neith said:
EP3 CTRs are brilliant (not driven a FN2). For £6,000 you should be able to get an absolutely spotless one, probably even a Premier if you look hard enough (premier has Recaro seats among other things).
Only downsides I've had with my EP3 are the road noise/rattles (almost to be expected with a hot hatch but it does get tiresome on a long drive) and the paint being unbelievably thin so even the slightest mark shows up. Aside from that, awesome car for the money. Not sure what I get to a tank but they are pretty thirsty. Probably on par with other hot hatches but you'll forgive that for the noise when you WANT to hear it.
Word of advice though, make sure you get good tyres on it if you do go for a EP3. They're really badly affected by cheap tyres from what I've seen and general consensus on CTRO.
MPG was in the 28 - 31 range for me. Only downsides I've had with my EP3 are the road noise/rattles (almost to be expected with a hot hatch but it does get tiresome on a long drive) and the paint being unbelievably thin so even the slightest mark shows up. Aside from that, awesome car for the money. Not sure what I get to a tank but they are pretty thirsty. Probably on par with other hot hatches but you'll forgive that for the noise when you WANT to hear it.
Word of advice though, make sure you get good tyres on it if you do go for a EP3. They're really badly affected by cheap tyres from what I've seen and general consensus on CTRO.
Tyres - Even the Bridgestones (that were standard fit on mine, at least) were very sensitive. Went off pretty quickly and allergic to rain for something that isn't a particularly specialist tyre.
Thanks for the replies so far guys, very helpful.
I am slightly reluctant to go as high as top budget (6K) on an EP3 when you can geth the FN2 for that money, there seems to be a no mans land around 4K where you either get a high mileage facelift EP3 or a lower mileage pre-facelift one!
The S3 is too old for me an da bit too modified!
A Mk1 FRS is a possible, added that to my list to investigate tonight.
Don't think I could live with the fuel economy of a scooby day to day, maybe as a weekend car but not for my commute...
The Leon Cupra R I have driven a tuned one and it didn't handle as well as I would want for the relative performance... Not sure how good they can be made for fast road / track use without spending a fortune?
Insurance I will check, had a few quotes for same insurance group cars (R32 and 130i when budget was higher) so I already expect to be bent over! The fact i have had 9 points in the last 5 years isn't helping my cause!
I am slightly reluctant to go as high as top budget (6K) on an EP3 when you can geth the FN2 for that money, there seems to be a no mans land around 4K where you either get a high mileage facelift EP3 or a lower mileage pre-facelift one!
The S3 is too old for me an da bit too modified!
A Mk1 FRS is a possible, added that to my list to investigate tonight.
Don't think I could live with the fuel economy of a scooby day to day, maybe as a weekend car but not for my commute...
The Leon Cupra R I have driven a tuned one and it didn't handle as well as I would want for the relative performance... Not sure how good they can be made for fast road / track use without spending a fortune?
Insurance I will check, had a few quotes for same insurance group cars (R32 and 130i when budget was higher) so I already expect to be bent over! The fact i have had 9 points in the last 5 years isn't helping my cause!
I did consider a 182 trophy but the wife is trying to put me off as her new car is red when it arrives!
I have heard the 197 isnt any better than the 182 and really it's either a 182 or spend more and get a 200...
I suppose I could get a 182 FF with cup packs and spend a little on suspension /tuning tweaks
The EK9 is a bit old for my liking, on the basis that the newer stuff should be safer when carrying the kids... Not that I drive fast with them in the car, it's other road users I worry about...
I have heard the 197 isnt any better than the 182 and really it's either a 182 or spend more and get a 200...
I suppose I could get a 182 FF with cup packs and spend a little on suspension /tuning tweaks
The EK9 is a bit old for my liking, on the basis that the newer stuff should be safer when carrying the kids... Not that I drive fast with them in the car, it's other road users I worry about...
if you're wanting track use out of it and your budget can stretch then the r26 would be the best option in my biased opinion. you should be able to get a decent one for about 6k now, and many of them have been remapped to at least stage 1 so if you're lucky you might find one for around that kind of money with thousands spent on aftermarket parts!
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