Mk1 Cupra R, Mk5 Golf Gti or Audi s3 8l?

[CraigA07]

Just looking for a bit of an idea which car would best or what car in people's opinion is better of the 3. Got a 4K budget so the cars are on higher mileage, round about 95-120k should this be a problem to worry about? Not bothered about mpg and insurance is pretty much the same price for all of them.
Cheers

[DoubleD]

The best would probably be a Ford ST

[CraigA07]

Insurance is a bit dear at the minute for a focus st. These work out cheaper

[Ahbefive]

I'd have a Focus ST or megane R26 over any of those too.

Mazda 3 MPS? CTR?

[CraigA07]

See I like the focus st but the insurance is killer, especially after announcing the mods. As is the MPS. Not very keen on the R26's also fancy something turbo

[Ahbefive]

CraigA07 said:

See I like the focus st but the insurance is killer, especially after announcing the mods. As is the MPS. Not very keen on the R26's also fancy something turbo

All the cars mentioned are turbocharged.

[CraigA07]

Ahh i never realised the R26 was turbocharged.

[DoubleD]

Go and try them all and see which you like best

[greenarrow]

think the Cupra R will be cheaper than the other two....I don't see many Mk5 Golf GTIs for less than £4K.

...of the three, I think the Golf is the best car...... also more likely to retain its value. I see these as a definite future classic.

[DoubleD]

The GTI is an ok car, but you will need to look elsewhere if you want an exciting hot hatch.

[Danxr46]

Cupra is a cheaper budget version of the golf gti with the s3 the premium. Focus st are not putting out much power for the engine it is and loves the fuel. Something which isn’t relative to its performance compared to the s3. Megane being French is more expensive and difficult to work on so becomes costly again in this way. The Leon is the more budget car but is still good, the golf is a classic and has good handling and heritage and the s3 is a fast hot hatch but is the slightly more premium one. Either can be remapped easily for good gains and pretty reliable. Buy with SH not necessarily dealer in event anything goes wrong then the VAG group to which these belong do often warrant this and offer help.

[CraigA07]

I've been more swayed towards either the s3 or the cupra r. 1 because insurance is cheaper on them and also I find them nicer looking cars and never heard anyone complain about the engines in them.

[Section 8]

They all have plus and negative points. Yes the Golf may not be the most exciting thing on the road but I wasn’t stting my pants with excitement when driving a Focus ST either. The Golfs trump card is it’s reputation for being a good allrounder.

Focus has the best engine for noise and the flip side is you will be cursing the fuel consumption.

Megane is probably the most fragile but the best handling car of your list.

Mazda 3 MPS is worth a look.

[xjay1337]

Mk1 Cupra R and S3 8L are older 1.8T lumps getting tired now.

I'd go for a GTI personally.

[CraigA07]

R26's up my way are around 4.5-5k. Found an s3 with 102k fsh and not been modified for 3.2k which has interested me

[ZX10R NIN]

greenarrow said:

think the Cupra R will be cheaper than the other two....I don't see many Mk5 Golf GTIs for less than £4K.

...of the three, I think the Golf is the best car...... also more likely to retain its value. I see these as a definite future classic.

The S3 will hold it's money the best & it'll probably cost the most to buy.

With your budget I'd take a good look at the Megane R26:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

[DUBS73P]

Neither of those are R26

R26 is the most special of all the ones you’ve listed and would be my choice, the one I owned was immaculate and didn’t have any mechanical issues whatsoever but that age of Mégane is pretty horrendous for little electrical problems, most of the time cheap to fix (window regulators are common) so I don’t think it’s worth discounting it.

Having a LSD really does make a difference to the grin factor, and the one in the R26 feels even more extreme than the 250 cups I’ve owned.

Be warned though, owning one makes finding a suitable upgrade difficult if you’re after driving pleasure in a similar package

[CraigA07]

I never listed the R26 in the first post, I've never been a great fan of Renault and not keen on the shape of the old megane either.

[Mr Tidy]

Back in 2003 I had an X plate Cupra that got to 60K, so needed a cam-belt change.

That plus a service at a main agent (it was still in warranty at the time) cost over £600 back then! Mind you it was a great car - much better than the MK4 GTi IMO!

Whichever option you look for I'd want to see a evidence of a recent cam-belt change, but that applies to all of your choices.

Despite the S3 and Cupra R having more power than a MK5 GTi, I think I'd go for the Golf.

[Ahbefive]

CraigA07 said:

I never listed the R26 in the first post, I've never been a great fan of Renault and not keen on the shape of the old megane either.

I was exactly the same until I drove one. The VAG offerings are dreary in comparison.

I also wasn't a fan of the looks but up close you find that they sit squat on the road and get many more admiring looks than a Golf or S3.

I loved my focus ST but the R26 kills it on road and track.