New daily! help! Thread ??
Discussion
Good evening fellow vehicle enjoyers!
I'm currently in a bit of a conundrum.
In April I will be returning home from Germany as I've had a contract to finish off here and I'm looking for a daily
I'm very torn between picking up something new ish such as a manual M140i or an FK2 Type R possibly an I30N or! I'm seriously considering picking up another JDM Nugget and daily driving that, DC5 Integra/wrx sti/jdm ep3/evo/GT4 Celica. I dont particularly need the practicality just lots of fun and reliability,
I should also probably mention that I already own a fully built bbr turbo 1990 mk1 mx5 however that is just a weekend toy so ideally I need something to cover the daily duties such as your mundane shop run.
My budget is 20k and I suppose the main question I have is, what would you do ?
Thanks in advance!
I'm currently in a bit of a conundrum.
In April I will be returning home from Germany as I've had a contract to finish off here and I'm looking for a daily
I'm very torn between picking up something new ish such as a manual M140i or an FK2 Type R possibly an I30N or! I'm seriously considering picking up another JDM Nugget and daily driving that, DC5 Integra/wrx sti/jdm ep3/evo/GT4 Celica. I dont particularly need the practicality just lots of fun and reliability,
I should also probably mention that I already own a fully built bbr turbo 1990 mk1 mx5 however that is just a weekend toy so ideally I need something to cover the daily duties such as your mundane shop run.
My budget is 20k and I suppose the main question I have is, what would you do ?
Thanks in advance!
I recently had the same, not coming home but that sort of money to spend on getting a car.
I already have a MR2 with a 2zz engine, so very similar base as you.
I looked at golf R's and FK2's etc etc (you'll struggle fk8 at 20k)
after discussions with the wife, i decided actually rather than buy a "normal" ish car, but something i've always wanted. So tomorrow i pick up a monaro, with enough money left over to buy a 2.0tsi scirocco for normal daily stuff. and still save some extra money
hope is i have bought a fairly expensive car, that i have always wanted and fingers crossed shouldn't loose value
So ill have my mad jap nugget
nice turbo german daily
and a big silly v8, cos why not
pretty pleased with my 3 car garage
I already have a MR2 with a 2zz engine, so very similar base as you.
I looked at golf R's and FK2's etc etc (you'll struggle fk8 at 20k)
after discussions with the wife, i decided actually rather than buy a "normal" ish car, but something i've always wanted. So tomorrow i pick up a monaro, with enough money left over to buy a 2.0tsi scirocco for normal daily stuff. and still save some extra money
hope is i have bought a fairly expensive car, that i have always wanted and fingers crossed shouldn't loose value
So ill have my mad jap nugget
nice turbo german daily
and a big silly v8, cos why not
pretty pleased with my 3 car garage
That's awesome mate! Congrats on the Monaro! That Ls6 v8 is a proper beefy engine and it seriously commands respect driving it on greasy roads!
See for me I ideally want to keep the garage to just 2 cars as I only have space to store 2 cars safely and also want to avoid unnecessary costs of running 3 cars, that's where I'm genuinely stuck as I get my car show/back road blast and track day thrills from the bbr turbo mx5 but since I now will need a daily I dont want to just get something completely boring because I've got a weekend toy.
Ideally I want 2 nuggets 😂
But I do know its gonna be tough keeping a 20 year old jap car clean from rust If it's being driven daily every winter. That's where the idea of a new ish performance car comes but I'm just struggling with the choices as they dont inspire me with as much enthusiasm and passion as my favourite old jdm nuggets do lol
Sure m140i manual would be fun and very quick
I30N is a well built balanced hot hatch
Fk2 is a serious track weapon
A new mx5 would also be awesome but then my garage has no variety lol
370z would be awesome but I want at least some bare minimum mpg which I wont get from that big v6
Gt86 is too slow imo
Genuinely struggling with this lol
See for me I ideally want to keep the garage to just 2 cars as I only have space to store 2 cars safely and also want to avoid unnecessary costs of running 3 cars, that's where I'm genuinely stuck as I get my car show/back road blast and track day thrills from the bbr turbo mx5 but since I now will need a daily I dont want to just get something completely boring because I've got a weekend toy.
Ideally I want 2 nuggets 😂
But I do know its gonna be tough keeping a 20 year old jap car clean from rust If it's being driven daily every winter. That's where the idea of a new ish performance car comes but I'm just struggling with the choices as they dont inspire me with as much enthusiasm and passion as my favourite old jdm nuggets do lol
Sure m140i manual would be fun and very quick
I30N is a well built balanced hot hatch
Fk2 is a serious track weapon
A new mx5 would also be awesome but then my garage has no variety lol
370z would be awesome but I want at least some bare minimum mpg which I wont get from that big v6
Gt86 is too slow imo
Genuinely struggling with this lol
M135/M140i is a bit woolly as standard, not really as fun as you’d expect, and the manual gearbox is not very intuitive. Offset pedals are an annoyance and the gearshift itself is rubbery and crap. A sorted ZF8 is a fine thing but probably not the most involving either.
A manual Golf GTI would put a smile on your face down the backroads, but fade in to the background when you are just tootling around (if you want it to)
I’ve not driven a CTR but I can imagine it would be a bit too hardcore for me compared to a GTI.
A manual Golf GTI would put a smile on your face down the backroads, but fade in to the background when you are just tootling around (if you want it to)
I’ve not driven a CTR but I can imagine it would be a bit too hardcore for me compared to a GTI.
Interesting take on the m140i, I did fancy test driving one just to see what it's like as I know it's mostly about the engine as that's its main party piece.
When it comes to the golf I've got to be honest, I'm probably very ignorant but I'm not a big fan of them, they are a bit too bland and white goods like for me and never really interested me much even though I know they are great cars and its probably quiet ignorant from me, I've got the same opinion about the golf r, audi S models and most rs, all the a45 merc stuff and most of generic hyper hatch stuff that just drives itself and you're the passenger
When it comes to the golf I've got to be honest, I'm probably very ignorant but I'm not a big fan of them, they are a bit too bland and white goods like for me and never really interested me much even though I know they are great cars and its probably quiet ignorant from me, I've got the same opinion about the golf r, audi S models and most rs, all the a45 merc stuff and most of generic hyper hatch stuff that just drives itself and you're the passenger
RedefineAutomotive said:
Interesting take on the m140i, I did fancy test driving one just to see what it's like as I know it's mostly about the engine as that's its main party piece.
When it comes to the golf I've got to be honest, I'm probably very ignorant but I'm not a big fan of them, they are a bit too bland and white goods like for me and never really interested me much even though I know they are great cars and its probably quiet ignorant from me, I've got the same opinion about the golf r, audi S models and most rs, all the a45 merc stuff and most of generic hyper hatch stuff that just drives itself and you're the passenger
No, it’s completely understandable what you are saying and they probably aren’t very special, more reasonably fun do it all daily rather than a practical hooning machine. I’ve been in a Golf R and they are very much point and shoot, I don’t think its much of a weekend car.When it comes to the golf I've got to be honest, I'm probably very ignorant but I'm not a big fan of them, they are a bit too bland and white goods like for me and never really interested me much even though I know they are great cars and its probably quiet ignorant from me, I've got the same opinion about the golf r, audi S models and most rs, all the a45 merc stuff and most of generic hyper hatch stuff that just drives itself and you're the passenger
There are some tarted up, road racer models that are supposed to be special - search up the Golf GTI “TCR” it’s a road going version of a touring car
You might like one of the fast Renaults - check out the R.S.
Megane 300 Trophy - touring car looks and touring car feel
Hyundai i30N is a good shout but I hear it feels a bit cheap
If you like the M140i, check out the M240i, I hear they’re a bit more of a handful/dynamic on the edge.
20k could get you in to an 2014/2015 + Audi TTS - not as impractical and boring as you might think and the outgoing model lost the girly looks for a sharper “baby-R8” sort of vibe, with a pretty special but quintessentially German interior
Focus ST/Peugeot 308 GTI is a bit flat for me, so I can’t recommend.
Thanks mate appreciate the input!
I'm a massive motorsport fan so I've seen those tcr golds run in many championships in the tcr class but not really my cup of tea, to be honest german hyper hatches or cars of that sort apart from the mentioned m140i or possibly a 240i dont do it for me.
I've always been a jap man myself, well not literally lol but car choice wise yes, I'm not expecting to get the same feel as my weekend toy but similar would be nice,
To be fair the megane rs are absolute weapons and I've heard they are bags of fun and super underrated, I have had a little look at them and do respect the french hot hatch heritage and recipe that went into that car
All that then leaves me with the other choices which are to get an older jdm car as a daily, but once again I just dont want to absolutely ruin one daily driving it, that's why I dry store the bbr turbo over the winter.
TTRS/TTS are brilliant cars, well built and a mad 5 pot / 4 pot depending on the rs or an s badge, but its essentially built on a golf platform which is absolutely fine! And still is a great car, just invokes the same feeling in me as I have for the golf to be honest.
I just want to pick the right car that I'm going to want to keep forever and not regret,
I'm a massive motorsport fan so I've seen those tcr golds run in many championships in the tcr class but not really my cup of tea, to be honest german hyper hatches or cars of that sort apart from the mentioned m140i or possibly a 240i dont do it for me.
I've always been a jap man myself, well not literally lol but car choice wise yes, I'm not expecting to get the same feel as my weekend toy but similar would be nice,
To be fair the megane rs are absolute weapons and I've heard they are bags of fun and super underrated, I have had a little look at them and do respect the french hot hatch heritage and recipe that went into that car
All that then leaves me with the other choices which are to get an older jdm car as a daily, but once again I just dont want to absolutely ruin one daily driving it, that's why I dry store the bbr turbo over the winter.
TTRS/TTS are brilliant cars, well built and a mad 5 pot / 4 pot depending on the rs or an s badge, but its essentially built on a golf platform which is absolutely fine! And still is a great car, just invokes the same feeling in me as I have for the golf to be honest.
I just want to pick the right car that I'm going to want to keep forever and not regret,
I have the M240i manual, before it I had the the F82 M4 CP. I also owned the FK8 Civic Type R.
The M240i I personally find better to drive than the M4, it’s more comfortable, the steering is better (or more suited to the performance unlike the M4) and over all it’s just easier to drive in.
Briefly speaking, I don’t know why the m140/240is have such a bad name dynamically, I think my M240i was absolutely fine, the gearshift is great and works very well with the torquey engine when cruising and even better when pushing on in sport mode and the pedals are fine to me.
A lot of people say the handling doesn’t match the performance and the car is crap at high speeds but I’ve never felt that way, it sticks to the ground, has very good traction and doesn’t worry me at all. I think you’d need to be pushing it very very hard to expose those weaknesses however you’d need to be driving like an absolute nutter. I don’t have the skill, experience or balls to drive it that hard but even if I did, I wouldn’t discredit the car.
My M240i has been lowered with spacers, they call it the ‘Motech stance’ courtesy of Joe Achilles (check his vids out on YouTube, had a few m lites). It’s also been remapped at DMS, 460 ps on the duno and it still doesn’t trouble me or worry me.
Now to the Civic Type R. Before I bought the FK8, I test drove the FK2 and it’s a completely different proposition to the BMW. The FK2 is a lot stiffer than the BMW albeit more dynamic but in a different way, it’s FWD against RWD at this point so hard to compare.
The FK8 is more comparable because of its adaptive dampers and softer suspension but again it’s an entirely different proposition and I strongly suggest you drive both.
If I had to pick, at the moment I’d pick the civic because I’ve had my M240i for over a year but it would be the opposite if I had the civic.
Drive both, it’s very important
Just a few more points
To be clear, I didn’t mention owning an M4 to show off, it was more to tell you that I preferred the M240i to drive.
Secondly, the bad thing about the M240i’s is that a lot of the manuals are very basic and bog standard but don’t let that put you off.
Manual over auto every single day in the M140/240i, the auto is very good however the manual gives you so many more opportunities to experience the engine and control the car, it opens up a whole other section to explore unlike the auto which is a put your foot down and that’s it.
Make sure you test both
To be clear, I didn’t mention owning an M4 to show off, it was more to tell you that I preferred the M240i to drive.
Secondly, the bad thing about the M240i’s is that a lot of the manuals are very basic and bog standard but don’t let that put you off.
Manual over auto every single day in the M140/240i, the auto is very good however the manual gives you so many more opportunities to experience the engine and control the car, it opens up a whole other section to explore unlike the auto which is a put your foot down and that’s it.
Make sure you test both
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