Unapologetic..
Discussion
...what car thread. This is pistonheads, I'm an active member that genuinely is struggling with what to focus my efforts on for my next car so I will use the forum as a tool to dip into the vast knowledge of the community and not feel bad about it.
Right, background situation is this. I'm 25 now, I had a clio 182 that I spent a fair bit of money on to get it running perfect in standard form, I had it for about 7 months and then got a job that required a 100 mile round trip commute daily on the m25. I put up with the 182 for 3 months doing that commute and while the power was useful, the lack of comfort and heavy clutch in traffic wasn't. Also £20 in fuel a day was becoming an issue, so I turned to the dark side and bought a 2007 golf match 1.9 tdi. That was just over 3 years ago and my commute is now 270 miles per week on a much quieter section of the m25. The golf has over 123k miles on it now (bought it on 36k) and while it has been and still is a very reliable steed, I would like to get back into something that better expresses the petrol head in me.
I have been considering a few different options, I'll list the negatives and positives for each one but what I am really looking for is some persuasion for one of the options I've listed or some alternatives that I haven't thought of. Before you list alternatives please bear in mind I like to have the top spec/halo model of a car. Maximum budget is £18k and that really would be stretching myself but I will for the right car, would much rather be around £10k. Car needs to be able to achieve 27-30mpg on a motorway journey. I'd ideally like 4 seats on those rare occassions that I do use the rear seats but as you'll see below I have no problem with a 2 seater.
Z4M Coupe - Love the styling and the powertrain. Like that they are fairly rare. Don't like that I will have to pay £16k+ for a 7 year old car, also the fact that I'm already driving a 2007 car means I was hoping for something a bit newer.
SLK55 AMG - Love the powertrain, styling is a bit feminine but I think I could live with it. Major put off is the automatic gearbox and unverified fear of high running costs?
Cayman S - Drove one of these on an experience day and really enjoyed it, more so than an Audi R8 I drove on the same day. Don't like the "trying to hard image" to non petrolheads and it does seem hard to find a decent low mileage example for less than £18k thats earlier than a 2006 model.
Civic type r FN2 championship white - Only just started looking at these, seem very reasonably priced but I think when the new type r comes out next year i'll be kicking myself when the values plummit.
S2000 - Like these, but would want a 2006 onwards car and to me for a low mileage car they seem very expensive for what at the end of the day is an 8 year old honda.
So that's where I am at the moment, your help really will be appreciated. I'm an automotive designer and have contributed to some cars that are very highly perceived on here, so give me a hand getting me out of my boring golf please!
Right, background situation is this. I'm 25 now, I had a clio 182 that I spent a fair bit of money on to get it running perfect in standard form, I had it for about 7 months and then got a job that required a 100 mile round trip commute daily on the m25. I put up with the 182 for 3 months doing that commute and while the power was useful, the lack of comfort and heavy clutch in traffic wasn't. Also £20 in fuel a day was becoming an issue, so I turned to the dark side and bought a 2007 golf match 1.9 tdi. That was just over 3 years ago and my commute is now 270 miles per week on a much quieter section of the m25. The golf has over 123k miles on it now (bought it on 36k) and while it has been and still is a very reliable steed, I would like to get back into something that better expresses the petrol head in me.
I have been considering a few different options, I'll list the negatives and positives for each one but what I am really looking for is some persuasion for one of the options I've listed or some alternatives that I haven't thought of. Before you list alternatives please bear in mind I like to have the top spec/halo model of a car. Maximum budget is £18k and that really would be stretching myself but I will for the right car, would much rather be around £10k. Car needs to be able to achieve 27-30mpg on a motorway journey. I'd ideally like 4 seats on those rare occassions that I do use the rear seats but as you'll see below I have no problem with a 2 seater.
Z4M Coupe - Love the styling and the powertrain. Like that they are fairly rare. Don't like that I will have to pay £16k+ for a 7 year old car, also the fact that I'm already driving a 2007 car means I was hoping for something a bit newer.
SLK55 AMG - Love the powertrain, styling is a bit feminine but I think I could live with it. Major put off is the automatic gearbox and unverified fear of high running costs?
Cayman S - Drove one of these on an experience day and really enjoyed it, more so than an Audi R8 I drove on the same day. Don't like the "trying to hard image" to non petrolheads and it does seem hard to find a decent low mileage example for less than £18k thats earlier than a 2006 model.
Civic type r FN2 championship white - Only just started looking at these, seem very reasonably priced but I think when the new type r comes out next year i'll be kicking myself when the values plummit.
S2000 - Like these, but would want a 2006 onwards car and to me for a low mileage car they seem very expensive for what at the end of the day is an 8 year old honda.
So that's where I am at the moment, your help really will be appreciated. I'm an automotive designer and have contributed to some cars that are very highly perceived on here, so give me a hand getting me out of my boring golf please!
Edited by Al U on Sunday 26th October 10:27
Mr2Mike said:
An invisible S2000?
Sorry, forgot to paste the link -http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2006-Honda-S2000-GT-Face...
9mm said:
Why couldn't you write 'new car thread' which would save an awful lot of people wasting their time.
As for your list, if £18k is a stretch, you'd be stupid to spend that much.
It's clearly to try and get more people to look at the thread and add their opinions.As for your list, if £18k is a stretch, you'd be stupid to spend that much.
I say it would be a stretch but I am willing to for the right car.
Al U said:
Mr2Mike said:
An invisible S2000?
Sorry, forgot to paste the link -http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2006-Honda-S2000-GT-Face...
Owning a S2000 myself, I'm biased, but I'd bank £10k and put £8k into a S2000. You'll find a decent one for that easily. I'd not be worried about age and mileage, be concerned more with condition. I don't have significant personal experience of the other cars on your list, but I'd suggest the running costs of the others will be significantly higher than the Honda.
The red one linked above seems very good value if it is legit - as someone else says, it may be too good to be true though.
Oh, and another edit to add, having said all that, if your commute is mainly motorway, make sure you test drive a S2000 on a motorway because that's not exactly it's forte, if you see what I mean...
The red one linked above seems very good value if it is legit - as someone else says, it may be too good to be true though.
Oh, and another edit to add, having said all that, if your commute is mainly motorway, make sure you test drive a S2000 on a motorway because that's not exactly it's forte, if you see what I mean...
Edited by forzaminardi on Sunday 26th October 11:31
A 635d should be in your price range; maybe even the face lifted model/lci version if you go towards the top end of your budget. My experience comes from a 2004 645 I bought last May; it is a wonderful place to sit, looks lovely (IMO - I know others don't agree) and has been relatively trouble free to run, both in terms of cost and day to day living.
ETA experience, not expletives!
ETA2 I mentioned the 35d to meet your mpg requirement but the 630 would probably get there too if you wanted petrol. My 645 averages 24mpg.
ETA experience, not expletives!
ETA2 I mentioned the 35d to meet your mpg requirement but the 630 would probably get there too if you wanted petrol. My 645 averages 24mpg.
Edited by parabolica on Sunday 26th October 11:36
forzaminardi said:
£8k into a S2000. You'll find a decent one for that easily. I'd not be worried about age and mileage, be concerned more with condition.
Mileage as an owner doesn't concern me as much, it's more the residuals when I come to sell it if that makes sense. A lower starting point will obviously mean it will have less when come to sell. Also having just had a look £8k doesn't seem to get you anything on the later shape with less than 80000 miles.parabolica said:
A 635d should be in your price range; maybe even the face lifted model/lci version if you go towards the top end of your budget.
I do think that these offer a lot of car for the money, but I do really like to have the higher up models. Everytime I see a 645, 650, M6 go past I'd wish I'd gone for one of those. I'm also trying to get away from diesel. Thanks for the suggestion though I'll take a look.Tickle said:
Keep the golf and use 10k or so to buy A weekend car? If you have the funds it would make sense; IMHO anyway. Two cars, one for 'driving' one for commuting.
I've considered this, but running 2 cars can get quite expensive. The majority of the driving I do is on my commute so if I had 2 cars one wouldn't get used enough to justify having it. Also I was looking to part ex the golf to contribute to the purchase of the next car.TheAngryDog said:
The Merc's arent known for their frugality, so I think you may struggle to get your 27-30mpg from one of those.
Nissan 350Z.
Fuel computer on my 55 shows just under 26 mpg over 5000 miles which includes motorway cruising and weekend blats. High 20s easily obtainable on just motorwayNissan 350Z.
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