Weekend Toy Shortlist
Discussion
I have now shortlisted my options for a weekend toy.
My original budget has now been stretched thanks to the volatile market and my magpie eyes....
It was the wildcard that someone here suggested that has now topped the list - the Merc AMG GT
Shortly followed by the Porsche 997 Turbo, Porsche 991 Carrera 4S and mmmmmaaybe an R8 V10 spyder if ever a decent one pops up.
My findings are as follows:
Merc:
Pros - incredible looks, rare, beautiful engine, exhaust note etc etc
Cons - worrying recalls, even cars outside of the recalls have lunched their transmissions and driveshafts!! Big Big worry :-( Highest price on the list
Porsche:
(Turbo) - Beautiful looking car, incredible acceleration (maybe too much), iconic engine, possible future classic.
However- Very strong prices, cars seem to be sitting for ages without selling? Expensive maintenance gremlins may pop up, dated interior.
Porsche:
(991) - lovely body looks of the 4S, stunning interior, very usable and enjoyable car with the last of the NA flat six engines.
However - expensive for the vert and very hard to find in 4S spec, those that pop up disappear in seconds :-( interior colours can be disgusting.
R8:
Amazing engine sound and performance,
However, maintenance is extortionate, very limited luggage space, shocks always go, everyone has had one, most have been used and abused.
So.... thats where I am at.
Some say the porsche is a boring option but they appear to be the "safest" of all of them in terms of reliability and horror stories (although they're not without).
Thoughts welcome - especially on the AMG GT, I can't seem to find much about these, apart from those who's car live in the dealership due to issues :-(
My original budget has now been stretched thanks to the volatile market and my magpie eyes....
It was the wildcard that someone here suggested that has now topped the list - the Merc AMG GT
Shortly followed by the Porsche 997 Turbo, Porsche 991 Carrera 4S and mmmmmaaybe an R8 V10 spyder if ever a decent one pops up.
My findings are as follows:
Merc:
Pros - incredible looks, rare, beautiful engine, exhaust note etc etc
Cons - worrying recalls, even cars outside of the recalls have lunched their transmissions and driveshafts!! Big Big worry :-( Highest price on the list
Porsche:
(Turbo) - Beautiful looking car, incredible acceleration (maybe too much), iconic engine, possible future classic.
However- Very strong prices, cars seem to be sitting for ages without selling? Expensive maintenance gremlins may pop up, dated interior.
Porsche:
(991) - lovely body looks of the 4S, stunning interior, very usable and enjoyable car with the last of the NA flat six engines.
However - expensive for the vert and very hard to find in 4S spec, those that pop up disappear in seconds :-( interior colours can be disgusting.
R8:
Amazing engine sound and performance,
However, maintenance is extortionate, very limited luggage space, shocks always go, everyone has had one, most have been used and abused.
So.... thats where I am at.
Some say the porsche is a boring option but they appear to be the "safest" of all of them in terms of reliability and horror stories (although they're not without).
Thoughts welcome - especially on the AMG GT, I can't seem to find much about these, apart from those who's car live in the dealership due to issues :-(
vanman1936 said:
Didn’t realise the R8 was so expensive to maintain (if you have a plus without mag)?
How about a California or Lotus Emira
Everyone says the mag ride is a must, despite it being a pain and guarantee'd failure at some point. I'd love a manual R8 but clutch replacements are verrrrrrrrrrrrry expensive. I think someone has quoted £9k at main dealer but I think specialist is between £3-£4k.How about a California or Lotus Emira
Unfortunately the R8 doesn't share many parts with many other models hence the higher cost of servicing. Even the RS6 mostly has different set and components.
I looked at the Emira, but its not really what I'm after. I've never been a huge fan of Ferrari's either.
MrPid said:
Merc:
Pros - incredible looks, rare, beautiful engine, exhaust note etc etc
Cons - worrying recalls, even cars outside of the recalls have lunched their transmissions and driveshafts!! Big Big worry :-( Highest price on the list
What year are you looking at?Pros - incredible looks, rare, beautiful engine, exhaust note etc etc
Cons - worrying recalls, even cars outside of the recalls have lunched their transmissions and driveshafts!! Big Big worry :-( Highest price on the list
The driveshaft was 15 to early 16.
The transmission should now be warrantied for 10 years IIRC.
There are very few other recalls.
Buy from Mercedes via approved used and you get 2 years warranty included.
They are awesome cars, very underrated and great fun to drive.
Zippee said:
What year are you looking at?
The driveshaft was 15 to early 16.
The transmission should now be warrantied for 10 years IIRC.
There are very few other recalls.
Buy from Mercedes via approved used and you get 2 years warranty included.
They are awesome cars, very underrated and great fun to drive.
My budget can just about stretch to a 2016 model. All the ones I've looked haven't had the recall and the sellers were unaware that this was a thing. This worries me slightly as they advertise all their cars will 5000 point checks etc etc.The driveshaft was 15 to early 16.
The transmission should now be warrantied for 10 years IIRC.
There are very few other recalls.
Buy from Mercedes via approved used and you get 2 years warranty included.
They are awesome cars, very underrated and great fun to drive.
It's not an issue to get it done though, just worried that dealers have no clue on what they're selling (which isn't much of a surprise).
I am going to look at a Merc extended warranty as they are such stunning cars :-)
MrPid said:
My budget can just about stretch to a 2016 model. All the ones I've looked haven't had the recall and the sellers were unaware that this was a thing. This worries me slightly as they advertise all their cars will 5000 point checks etc etc.
It's not an issue to get it done though, just worried that dealers have no clue on what they're selling (which isn't much of a surprise).
I am going to look at a Merc extended warranty as they are such stunning cars :-)
But are you GT budget or GTS budget?It's not an issue to get it done though, just worried that dealers have no clue on what they're selling (which isn't much of a surprise).
I am going to look at a Merc extended warranty as they are such stunning cars :-)
GT is 469bhp, GTS 510bhp plus various other goodies.
If you go for a GTS make sure you find one with premium pack.
Merc aftermarket warranty is 2.4k in the first year and 1.3k thereafter (2 years included if you buy approved used) so do factor that in.
Zippee said:
But are you GT budget or GTS budget?
GT is 469bhp, GTS 510bhp plus various other goodies.
If you go for a GTS make sure you find one with premium pack.
Merc aftermarket warranty is 2.4k in the first year and 1.3k thereafter (2 years included if you buy approved used) so do factor that in.
Defo GTS - looking at the models it seems to be the best of the bunch.GT is 469bhp, GTS 510bhp plus various other goodies.
If you go for a GTS make sure you find one with premium pack.
Merc aftermarket warranty is 2.4k in the first year and 1.3k thereafter (2 years included if you buy approved used) so do factor that in.
aftermarket warranty isn't too bad - although I've read horror stories of them trying to get out of claims, I'd rather have it just in case :-)
Hi,
A biased opinion here.
I bought an AMG GTS about 12 months ago, looked at porches, the jag f type V8, but used man maths and which car just felt special when I walked towards it, still absolutely love it now, the exhaust note is just superb, especially when in sport + or race mode, the interior feels a very special place to sit , I have the performance seats and are incredibly comfortable, I’m 6’ 2” and it feels like it was designed for me.
Had a service done in march and cost was reasonable given the performance available and the cost of the car when new.
I have extended the warranty through Mercedes’ for £1300 per year.
Had to replace a front shocker due to leaking which I thought was rather expensive but was needed to keep the car perfect.
The car is very wide, so much so that when I first got it home I could get it in my garage but couldn’t open the doors to exit the car .
The garage parking issue has been resolved with a rather ingenious engineering solution.
Love the car and the ownership experience so far, enjoy your selection process on deciding which car to pick, I’m sure which ever one you go for will put a smile on your face.
A biased opinion here.
I bought an AMG GTS about 12 months ago, looked at porches, the jag f type V8, but used man maths and which car just felt special when I walked towards it, still absolutely love it now, the exhaust note is just superb, especially when in sport + or race mode, the interior feels a very special place to sit , I have the performance seats and are incredibly comfortable, I’m 6’ 2” and it feels like it was designed for me.
Had a service done in march and cost was reasonable given the performance available and the cost of the car when new.
I have extended the warranty through Mercedes’ for £1300 per year.
Had to replace a front shocker due to leaking which I thought was rather expensive but was needed to keep the car perfect.
The car is very wide, so much so that when I first got it home I could get it in my garage but couldn’t open the doors to exit the car .
The garage parking issue has been resolved with a rather ingenious engineering solution.
Love the car and the ownership experience so far, enjoy your selection process on deciding which car to pick, I’m sure which ever one you go for will put a smile on your face.
mrbigshot said:
Hi,
A biased opinion here.
I bought an AMG GTS about 12 months ago, looked at porches, the jag f type V8, but used man maths and which car just felt special when I walked towards it, still absolutely love it now, the exhaust note is just superb, especially when in sport + or race mode, the interior feels a very special place to sit , I have the performance seats and are incredibly comfortable, I’m 6’ 2” and it feels like it was designed for me.
Had a service done in march and cost was reasonable given the performance available and the cost of the car when new.
I have extended the warranty through Mercedes’ for £1300 per year.
Had to replace a front shocker due to leaking which I thought was rather expensive but was needed to keep the car perfect.
The car is very wide, so much so that when I first got it home I could get it in my garage but couldn’t open the doors to exit the car .
The garage parking issue has been resolved with a rather ingenious engineering solution.
Love the car and the ownership experience so far, enjoy your selection process on deciding which car to pick, I’m sure which ever one you go for will put a smile on your face.
Good to hear you still love it, its hard finding real world feedback on these tbh.A biased opinion here.
I bought an AMG GTS about 12 months ago, looked at porches, the jag f type V8, but used man maths and which car just felt special when I walked towards it, still absolutely love it now, the exhaust note is just superb, especially when in sport + or race mode, the interior feels a very special place to sit , I have the performance seats and are incredibly comfortable, I’m 6’ 2” and it feels like it was designed for me.
Had a service done in march and cost was reasonable given the performance available and the cost of the car when new.
I have extended the warranty through Mercedes’ for £1300 per year.
Had to replace a front shocker due to leaking which I thought was rather expensive but was needed to keep the car perfect.
The car is very wide, so much so that when I first got it home I could get it in my garage but couldn’t open the doors to exit the car .
The garage parking issue has been resolved with a rather ingenious engineering solution.
Love the car and the ownership experience so far, enjoy your selection process on deciding which car to pick, I’m sure which ever one you go for will put a smile on your face.
Shame shocker wasn't covered under warranty :-( May I ask how much the shocker cost to replace? And the service?
Is it as compliant as you would expect in comfort mode? Thats a big draw tbh, a car that is essential a nice GT cruiser and also an animal when you want it to be.
MrPid said:
Good to hear you still love it, its hard finding real world feedback on these tbh.
Shame shocker wasn't covered under warranty :-( May I ask how much the shocker cost to replace? And the service?
Is it as compliant as you would expect in comfort mode? Thats a big draw tbh, a car that is essential a nice GT cruiser and also an animal when you want it to be.
Service is between £800 & £1100 depending on whether it's an A or B.Shame shocker wasn't covered under warranty :-( May I ask how much the shocker cost to replace? And the service?
Is it as compliant as you would expect in comfort mode? Thats a big draw tbh, a car that is essential a nice GT cruiser and also an animal when you want it to be.
It's a very comfy car but it's not a rolls or S class so expect a firm but comfy ride. I leave mine in comfort suspension but sport plus everything else.
The GTS as standard will come with comfort seats which are nice (and erm, comfy).
There is an option on the GTS for the performance seats (standard on the GTC) which are much more deeply bolstered and what I have now. I prefer them but my wife preferred the comfort seats I had in my old GTS.
I've done several hundred mile plus journeys in both the GTS and in my current GTC and have zero complaints at all, luggage space in the coupe is obviously greater than the soft top. Premium pack would get you the burmester stereo as well which is IMHO a must have.
Hi again
Service was about £800
Replacement shocker was just over a grand(ouch) I live in West Yorkshire and the roads round here are shocking so I think any car can pop a shocker given a big enough pothole.
It’s difficult for me to be subjective on the ride quality due to just loving the car generally, I don’t use the merc as a daily, I have a shed car for normal day to day and play with motorbikes too, I would agree with zippee in that it’s a sports car so is firmly sprung, even in comfort mode it doesn’t soak up the imperfections in our modern road surfaces, when “ making progress” the back end can break traction even in the dry with warm tyres, I guess all cars in this class do the same.
Also great for long weekends away, enough storage for two easily, thinking of doing a European tour this autumn two up which may be a challenge .
Apps available from merc are nice, let’s you play on the phone re range, locking doors remotely, tyre pressures and intelligent sat nav, that’s a further £310 per year for this feature.
If you want to know anything else just ask away, I struggled to find good data prior to buying but after watching Chris Harris testing it and reading the feature in EVO I just got sucked in and went for it….
Service was about £800
Replacement shocker was just over a grand(ouch) I live in West Yorkshire and the roads round here are shocking so I think any car can pop a shocker given a big enough pothole.
It’s difficult for me to be subjective on the ride quality due to just loving the car generally, I don’t use the merc as a daily, I have a shed car for normal day to day and play with motorbikes too, I would agree with zippee in that it’s a sports car so is firmly sprung, even in comfort mode it doesn’t soak up the imperfections in our modern road surfaces, when “ making progress” the back end can break traction even in the dry with warm tyres, I guess all cars in this class do the same.
Also great for long weekends away, enough storage for two easily, thinking of doing a European tour this autumn two up which may be a challenge .
Apps available from merc are nice, let’s you play on the phone re range, locking doors remotely, tyre pressures and intelligent sat nav, that’s a further £310 per year for this feature.
If you want to know anything else just ask away, I struggled to find good data prior to buying but after watching Chris Harris testing it and reading the feature in EVO I just got sucked in and went for it….
Where are you getting your figures from for the r8, I’ve had mine for 5 years and while there have been a couple of decent bills, the annual servicing is no different to my wife’s Audi s3.
I would bet a Porsche would be more expensive over that time and I know a few Porsche owners.
Naganast do replacement shocks, I’ve done the fronts on mine and it was 1/4 of the dealer option. Now I am on the other side of the world but I see an r8 once a month and Porsches daily, anyway the engine is epic.
I would bet a Porsche would be more expensive over that time and I know a few Porsche owners.
Naganast do replacement shocks, I’ve done the fronts on mine and it was 1/4 of the dealer option. Now I am on the other side of the world but I see an r8 once a month and Porsches daily, anyway the engine is epic.
mikiec said:
Where are you getting your figures from for the r8, I’ve had mine for 5 years and while there have been a couple of decent bills, the annual servicing is no different to my wife’s Audi s3.
I would bet a Porsche would be more expensive over that time and I know a few Porsche owners.
Naganast do replacement shocks, I’ve done the fronts on mine and it was 1/4 of the dealer option. Now I am on the other side of the world but I see an r8 once a month and Porsches daily, anyway the engine is epic.
One of my pals is service manager for Audi, and the other is service manager for Porsche so I'm lucky to have the workshop pricing for parts and labour for comparable items :-)I would bet a Porsche would be more expensive over that time and I know a few Porsche owners.
Naganast do replacement shocks, I’ve done the fronts on mine and it was 1/4 of the dealer option. Now I am on the other side of the world but I see an r8 once a month and Porsches daily, anyway the engine is epic.
MrPid said:
One of my pals is service manager for Audi, and the other is service manager for Porsche so I'm lucky to have the workshop pricing for parts and labour for comparable items :-)
Have a chat to Ricky at REPerformance about r8s, I took mine to Audi once, about 3x my indie. At least in NZ there is no way I’d believe 911s are a significantly cheaper option to run then r8s.Zippee said:
Service is between £800 & £1100 depending on whether it's an A or B.
It's a very comfy car but it's not a rolls or S class so expect a firm but comfy ride. I leave mine in comfort suspension but sport plus everything else.
The GTS as standard will come with comfort seats which are nice (and erm, comfy).
There is an option on the GTS for the performance seats (standard on the GTC) which are much more deeply bolstered and what I have now. I prefer them but my wife preferred the comfort seats I had in my old GTS.
I've done several hundred mile plus journeys in both the GTS and in my current GTC and have zero complaints at all, luggage space in the coupe is obviously greater than the soft top. Premium pack would get you the burmester stereo as well which is IMHO a must have.
So I had pretty much settled on the GTS and went to test drive one locally last week. Fully specced out with the Premium pack etc. Absolutely beautiful car, although slightly higher mileage at 50k on the clock.It's a very comfy car but it's not a rolls or S class so expect a firm but comfy ride. I leave mine in comfort suspension but sport plus everything else.
The GTS as standard will come with comfort seats which are nice (and erm, comfy).
There is an option on the GTS for the performance seats (standard on the GTC) which are much more deeply bolstered and what I have now. I prefer them but my wife preferred the comfort seats I had in my old GTS.
I've done several hundred mile plus journeys in both the GTS and in my current GTC and have zero complaints at all, luggage space in the coupe is obviously greater than the soft top. Premium pack would get you the burmester stereo as well which is IMHO a must have.
One thing that has been the back of my mind is styling, it looks stunning close up, but from a distance it looks a bit dull, like a beefy SLK/SL500. In fact I drove past the chaps house a couple of times as I thought it was Bmw 6 series coupe from a distance :-( The interior is stunning though.
I wasn't allowed to drive (which was crap) but as a passenger the performance is blistering quick, but it does feel very heavy and harsh on the back roads. I'd go as far to say a bit crashy over bumps and dips.
The other thing that people keep saying is "ooooo depreciation on them is horrendous" which, like most AMG cars, has an element of truth in it. I decided that smiles were more important than depreciation until I ran my insurance quotes again.
The GTS had dropped £4k in a week. This was checked on WBAC, and on the saved cars I have, these to have been reduced between £2-£5k in the past week. It appears just the AMG have had this drop, not the R8's I am still watching (they dropped earlier in June, but not this much). So now this is really making me think twice about the AMG.
I was happy to overlook the bland styling, trashy ride and lardy road position - but now im not so sure.
The last thing I want is buyer's envy and keep looking at other cars after committing to what ever it is I purchase so I need to be 100% sure.
I have been trying to test drive an R8 close to the GTS but they keep getting sold before I can make it there :-(
mrbigshot said:
Have look at myparker.com, I had one of these installed, far cheaper than having to move house
I push the Ferrari into the garage and pull it out - far cheaper than Myparker 
Even though its uphill both ways (stupid drive levels)TBH - narrow garages and wide cars are irritating
MrPid said:
R8:
Amazing engine sound and performance,
However, maintenance is extortionate, very limited luggage space, shocks always go, everyone has had one, most have been used and abused.
I’ve owned a v10 r8 for 3yrs and the maintenance is far from extortionate. Audi fixed price servicing and warranty make it a class leader in those areas, compared to Porsche they are cheap to run. They are very well built and rarely go wrong. Mag can be a issue but as everything else there is favourable work arounds so shouldn’t put you off. Again if you take official Audi warranty those are covered for leaks. Amazing engine sound and performance,
However, maintenance is extortionate, very limited luggage space, shocks always go, everyone has had one, most have been used and abused.
Can’t say they are known to be used and abused any more than other cars either nor everyone had one, not sure that comments fair.
Try one you’ll love it - https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jsudmRyxLjc&feat...
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