My car history, the highs and lows...
Discussion
TotalControl said:
Excellent history. Out of all, which Jap car gave you the best ownership experience? Same for German and overall.
There's quite a few cars on that list I would like to own at some point before good examples completely disappear.
Seconded, and for some reason i have always hankered after an ST200 but never got round to looking for one in any detail, doubt there are too many decent ones left now, shame There's quite a few cars on that list I would like to own at some point before good examples completely disappear.
larsson7 said:
Yes you will probably have to wait a while to get a set at a reasonable price, the biggest alloys I've had on a car are 18" and my current car is also on them, I would probably wince at the price of anything larger but if you can afford them go for it, they will definitely look better but I don't think you will enjoy driving the car more, looking back at the car after you park it definitely, but I would leave as is and just enjoy having what you have.
Absolutely, I'm not taking the car/18" wheels for granted, they're nice enough and I agree that the car will most definitely ride better on them than the larger wheels... and to be fair, the sets of 19" option wheels which I've been offered have all been north of £1200 (for a set needing tidied up!) so unless I get wind of a bargain set, I think the car will be staying on the the standard wheels during its time with me!! 
Cheers,
Grant
TotalControl said:
Excellent history. Out of all, which Jap car gave you the best ownership experience? Same for German and overall.
There's quite a few cars on that list I would like to own at some point before good examples completely disappear.
Very good question!!There's quite a few cars on that list I would like to own at some point before good examples completely disappear.
It's really difficult to pick outright winners when you've been lucky enough to own some very accomplished cars... for instance, the Integra DC2 handling was phenomenal but the performance wasn't 'quite' enough, yet the ST205 GT4 with/without Castrol Graphics was amazing in a straight line but quite a lump to navigate round the bends.
The best Japanese car I've had overall would probably be the Dark Blue MY00 Impreza Turbo. It had the peace of mind of the Newage STi 6-speed transmission, a very low lag but punchy engine set up, was lighter than the heavier Newage cars along with more direct steering and it had the very compliant UK Turbo suspension which rides bumps and cambers on Scottish Highland roads extremely well... far better than the standard STi suspension in my current MY00 STi Wagon does.
The best German car I've had is without a doubt the E46 M3 and to be honest, it actually takes top spot overall. Going from the twin turbo, tower of torque in the 123d, I was a little worried that the M3 wouldn't put a big smile on my face and feel a little 'flat' to drive... but once I left Edinburgh after collection, pulling onto the city bypass and accelerating in 3rd gear soon put those fears to rest.
Being a Subaruphile and part of the Owners Club, when they were arranging a run in the Highlands in memory of a member who passed away I decided to take the M3 along although I fully expected to find it completely out of it's depth (and suspension travel!) on such Impreza/Evo territory. However, I couldn't have been more wrong. I started by following a 2007 Hawkeye JDM STi Type 20 and he couldn't get away from me, even on a particularly bumpy undulating stretch of road leading to Glenshee Ski Centre... in fact, when we stopped for a break at the Ski Centre he asked what I had done to it because he 'usually leaves them no problem' and was quite shocked to find out it was totally standard.
It's weird given some of the very 'normal' cars on the list (Omega, Transit Connect, Rover 216 etc), but all of them have held their own charm to varying degrees, apart from the bloody 205 GTi and 335i Touring!!
Would I re-visit any of the cars on the list?? Well, I have re-visited the Subaru fold and as I think I said; despite it's lack of use I don't think I'll be selling my Blue STi anytime soon. Part of me would really like to get another E46 M3, however mine was a low mileage immaculate example and I'd be worried that anything I bought might not measure up to that one.
The only other car which think I might buy another of would be a MK1 Focus RS... I only owned that car for a few months but when I think back, having the M3 at the same time slightly took the shine off what was a very accomplished car. I also drove a c380bhp MK1 FRS the other week there, which didn't do much to put that niggling feeling to bed.
Cheers,
Grant
Quote "Biggest. Mistake. Of. My. Life.
I will be doing a thread about this car and the ownership experience from the time it left Iver in Buckinghamshire to the time it returned to Iver in Buckinghamshire... but I traded my M3 in against this car and I cannot put into words how much I regret that decision every time someone mentions an M3 or I see an M3."
I'll be interested to read about this having made the same mistake (buying one, not PX'ing an M3 for it!)
Main dealer car owned for seven months, four times on a breakdown lorry before I gave it back to them
Hateful hateful car with the worst ride of any car I have ever driven and I've owned some dogs!
I will be doing a thread about this car and the ownership experience from the time it left Iver in Buckinghamshire to the time it returned to Iver in Buckinghamshire... but I traded my M3 in against this car and I cannot put into words how much I regret that decision every time someone mentions an M3 or I see an M3."
I'll be interested to read about this having made the same mistake (buying one, not PX'ing an M3 for it!)
Main dealer car owned for seven months, four times on a breakdown lorry before I gave it back to them
Hateful hateful car with the worst ride of any car I have ever driven and I've owned some dogs!
- 1997 Volvo 940 Turbo Estate
volvo1 by RS Grant, on Flickr
volvo2 by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
I've always liked an old style square Volvo estate, there's something funny/quirky/appealing about them for me... and after spending too much time looking at the Turbobricks forum and watching big boosting Swedes doing ridiculous things on YouTube, I made my mind up that I'd have to own one at some point. As 'luck' would have it, a friend of a friend also shared my interest in them and had a T34 turbo'd 940 Turbo Estate that was genuinely a quick car and this white one which had been half turned into a budget drift project with a welded differential, home made side-exit exhaust and grinder-spec lowering springs. It was DIRE, running standard boost which is about 4psi, so a bleed valve set to 11psi and an open cone filter made it much quicker with some comedy chatter noises on lift off. I've done very little else to it apart from fix a water leak from the rear window washer that was filling up the drivers footwell, strip the interior to look for rust (which there was none!) and let it run out of MOT and Tax. Going to try and get in about it at some point soon because it's a waste as it stands.
- 2005 Honda S2000 GT
IMG_4934 by RS Grant, on Flickr
IMG_4876 by RS Grant, on Flickr
IMG_4868 by RS Grant, on Flickr
P1000954 by RS Grant, on Flickr
P1000955 by RS Grant, on Flickr
IMG_4968 by RS Grant, on Flickr
IMG_4971 by RS Grant, on Flickr
IMG_4974 by RS Grant, on Flickr
After selling the blue Impreza, I was left with a gap in my unit for an interesting car and given the time of year I really fancied some thing which I could drop the roof on when the sun made an appearance.. or to be more accurate, whenever the rain stopped; day/night/warm/cold the roof would be down providing it was still dry!
I had narrowed it down to either a Boxster S or an S2000 and there were a few issues with the Porsche which put me off and shifted my focus more towards the Honda.. I felt like it was more of a 'known' quantity for me and probably a bit of a safer bet reliabilitywise. This car appeared a couple of hours away from me and I took my friend who's owned three S2K's with me, it was as described and drove really well, it wasn't that quick and that did concern me a little however you can still make reasonable progress in one and if I wanted to go a lot faster then I still had my Golf R to drive.. the noise (it had the UK exhaust mod done) and the ability to drop the roof within a few seconds were big selling points for me, along with great history, two of the previous owners were from the S2Ki owners club and the condition of the car reflected this. With the way these are appreciating I don't think that I'll revisit S2K ownership which is unfortunate because they are a great little package.
- 2005 Honda Civic Type R Premier (EP3)
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
3236B32B-6BE7-460C-BEC2-4E01FD59069E by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
I had got a bit of a trackday bug after taking the Golf on a few Knockhill days and over to the Nurburgring, but I was getting increasingly worried that if I ran out of talent/had a mechanical issue/someone else had a bad day and collected me then I'd be mighty annoyed climbing out of a car worth as much as the Golf; so I came to the conclusion that I would be better served with a more dedicated car for the job which I wouldn't be quite so precious about.
Having owned a few Hondas in the past I know just how much they thrive on revs and how sturdy they are given proper maintenence, added to the fact that one of my good friends has built his own Supercharged and Turbocharged EP3s previously, I was in a pretty fortunate position and went for an EP3. So far I've done the basic performance modifications (exhaust, manifold, intake and Hondata KPro4 ECU and map) with coilovers and semi slicks to help the chassis and some interior removal with proper seats/harnesses. I'll see what next year holds, I'd like a useable 350bhp turbo kit, but I don't think I'll get that done over the winter so possibly something to do next year/winter.
- 2010 BMW M3 Competition Pack
bmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-1 by RS Grant, on Flickr
bmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-3 by RS Grant, on Flickr
bmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-10 by RS Grant, on Flickr
bmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-18 by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
I've had a bit of a nightmare 2017 and while I hope that things have turned a corner, it's made me realise how quickly things can change.. and I definitely subscribe to the 'life's too short' way of thinking that bit more now! One of the things I've applied that to is cars, the Golf R that I had since the start of 2015 was absolutely fantastic after the small additions which I'd made to it but while it was so competent it wasn't 'exciting' and didn't feel that special when you weren't driving quickly.. which (after owning an E46 previously) is what led me back to an M3 and while I'd love another E46, they're getting on a wee bit now and finding one which is still immaculate is getting very tough and very expensive.. probably prohibitively expensive for me.
This E92 is quite a rare beasty, been told that there were only 22 manual Competition Pack cars registered in the UK and I love the colour combination of this car too because it's that little bit different to the more popular White or Black cars which I saw for sale. I'm over the moon with the car, it's given me that 'special' feeling that I was looking for and with an aftermarket exhaust it'll open up the V8 sound that bit more, which I think it's crying out for.
Well once again that's us up to date with the old posts repaired with new image links too!! I hope that there is a very uncomfortable place in hell reserved for the a$$holes in charge of Photobucket who have deliberately made getting hold of/saving my own photos a nightmare and re-linking them to Flickr very time consuming... but it's done now and it's actually far better then PB ever was anyway, so I'm happy.
volvo1 by RS Grant, on Flickrvolvo2 by RS Grant, on FlickrUntitled by RS Grant, on FlickrI've always liked an old style square Volvo estate, there's something funny/quirky/appealing about them for me... and after spending too much time looking at the Turbobricks forum and watching big boosting Swedes doing ridiculous things on YouTube, I made my mind up that I'd have to own one at some point. As 'luck' would have it, a friend of a friend also shared my interest in them and had a T34 turbo'd 940 Turbo Estate that was genuinely a quick car and this white one which had been half turned into a budget drift project with a welded differential, home made side-exit exhaust and grinder-spec lowering springs. It was DIRE, running standard boost which is about 4psi, so a bleed valve set to 11psi and an open cone filter made it much quicker with some comedy chatter noises on lift off. I've done very little else to it apart from fix a water leak from the rear window washer that was filling up the drivers footwell, strip the interior to look for rust (which there was none!) and let it run out of MOT and Tax. Going to try and get in about it at some point soon because it's a waste as it stands.
- 2005 Honda S2000 GT
IMG_4934 by RS Grant, on FlickrIMG_4876 by RS Grant, on FlickrIMG_4868 by RS Grant, on FlickrP1000954 by RS Grant, on FlickrP1000955 by RS Grant, on FlickrIMG_4968 by RS Grant, on FlickrIMG_4971 by RS Grant, on FlickrIMG_4974 by RS Grant, on FlickrAfter selling the blue Impreza, I was left with a gap in my unit for an interesting car and given the time of year I really fancied some thing which I could drop the roof on when the sun made an appearance.. or to be more accurate, whenever the rain stopped; day/night/warm/cold the roof would be down providing it was still dry!
I had narrowed it down to either a Boxster S or an S2000 and there were a few issues with the Porsche which put me off and shifted my focus more towards the Honda.. I felt like it was more of a 'known' quantity for me and probably a bit of a safer bet reliabilitywise. This car appeared a couple of hours away from me and I took my friend who's owned three S2K's with me, it was as described and drove really well, it wasn't that quick and that did concern me a little however you can still make reasonable progress in one and if I wanted to go a lot faster then I still had my Golf R to drive.. the noise (it had the UK exhaust mod done) and the ability to drop the roof within a few seconds were big selling points for me, along with great history, two of the previous owners were from the S2Ki owners club and the condition of the car reflected this. With the way these are appreciating I don't think that I'll revisit S2K ownership which is unfortunate because they are a great little package.
- 2005 Honda Civic Type R Premier (EP3)
Untitled by RS Grant, on FlickrUntitled by RS Grant, on FlickrUntitled by RS Grant, on FlickrUntitled by RS Grant, on Flickr3236B32B-6BE7-460C-BEC2-4E01FD59069E by RS Grant, on FlickrUntitled by RS Grant, on FlickrUntitled by RS Grant, on FlickrI had got a bit of a trackday bug after taking the Golf on a few Knockhill days and over to the Nurburgring, but I was getting increasingly worried that if I ran out of talent/had a mechanical issue/someone else had a bad day and collected me then I'd be mighty annoyed climbing out of a car worth as much as the Golf; so I came to the conclusion that I would be better served with a more dedicated car for the job which I wouldn't be quite so precious about.
Having owned a few Hondas in the past I know just how much they thrive on revs and how sturdy they are given proper maintenence, added to the fact that one of my good friends has built his own Supercharged and Turbocharged EP3s previously, I was in a pretty fortunate position and went for an EP3. So far I've done the basic performance modifications (exhaust, manifold, intake and Hondata KPro4 ECU and map) with coilovers and semi slicks to help the chassis and some interior removal with proper seats/harnesses. I'll see what next year holds, I'd like a useable 350bhp turbo kit, but I don't think I'll get that done over the winter so possibly something to do next year/winter.
- 2010 BMW M3 Competition Pack
bmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-1 by RS Grant, on Flickrbmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-3 by RS Grant, on Flickrbmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-10 by RS Grant, on Flickrbmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-18 by RS Grant, on FlickrUntitled by RS Grant, on FlickrUntitled by RS Grant, on FlickrUntitled by RS Grant, on FlickrI've had a bit of a nightmare 2017 and while I hope that things have turned a corner, it's made me realise how quickly things can change.. and I definitely subscribe to the 'life's too short' way of thinking that bit more now! One of the things I've applied that to is cars, the Golf R that I had since the start of 2015 was absolutely fantastic after the small additions which I'd made to it but while it was so competent it wasn't 'exciting' and didn't feel that special when you weren't driving quickly.. which (after owning an E46 previously) is what led me back to an M3 and while I'd love another E46, they're getting on a wee bit now and finding one which is still immaculate is getting very tough and very expensive.. probably prohibitively expensive for me.
This E92 is quite a rare beasty, been told that there were only 22 manual Competition Pack cars registered in the UK and I love the colour combination of this car too because it's that little bit different to the more popular White or Black cars which I saw for sale. I'm over the moon with the car, it's given me that 'special' feeling that I was looking for and with an aftermarket exhaust it'll open up the V8 sound that bit more, which I think it's crying out for.
Well once again that's us up to date with the old posts repaired with new image links too!! I hope that there is a very uncomfortable place in hell reserved for the a$$holes in charge of Photobucket who have deliberately made getting hold of/saving my own photos a nightmare and re-linking them to Flickr very time consuming... but it's done now and it's actually far better then PB ever was anyway, so I'm happy.
Good read that
.
Excellent varied car history fair play to you matey. I have owned and enjoyed several of the cars you have owned in the past. Nice Scoobies, I have never owned one but have always fancied one. I went the EVO route on 3 occasions. As commented earlier no Cosworths in the past???
.Excellent varied car history fair play to you matey. I have owned and enjoyed several of the cars you have owned in the past. Nice Scoobies, I have never owned one but have always fancied one. I went the EVO route on 3 occasions. As commented earlier no Cosworths in the past???
Johnny50 said:
Tut tut 
Hope you're well!
Have to say out of them all i loved the look of the Dark Blue Impreza!
Apologies for the delayed reply, even for me this is late!! Hope you're well!
Have to say out of them all i loved the look of the Dark Blue Impreza!
I'm good thanks, hope you're well too.. long time no see!
The DB Impreza was a cracker, probably my favourite all round Impreza to be honest. If time, money, space allowed then I'd love to put together another one with similar spec... wouldn't be getting rid of it for anything other than life changing reasons either.
Fury RS said:
Good read that.
Excellent varied car history fair play to you matey. I have owned and enjoyed several of the cars you have owned in the past. Nice Scoobies, I have never owned one but have always fancied one. I went the EVO route on 3 occasions.
Thanks mate. .Excellent varied car history fair play to you matey. I have owned and enjoyed several of the cars you have owned in the past. Nice Scoobies, I have never owned one but have always fancied one. I went the EVO route on 3 occasions.
...it's a similar situation with Evos for me, I'd love a TME Evo 6 but prices seem to be spiralling these days.. and I've found myself looking at Evo 9 GTs more and more, especially in the metallic blue colour. I wouldn't say I'll never have one but with costs rising I think I might struggle to justify one that I'd be happy with as an occasional/nice weather car, although the idea of replacing the Civic with an Evo 5 for track has crossed my mind a few times.Johnny50 said:
All these cars and still not a sniff of a Cosworth (of any type) anywhere.....
Fury RS said:
As commented earlier no Cosworths in the past???
Haha yup, I think I've well and truly missed the Cosworth boat.. I came very close to a deal with an immaculate Black Escort Cosworth about ten years ago and I still kick myself for not doing the deal. I was offered my friends White 3dr Cosworth a few years ago, same situation, an immaculate car which has now almost tripled in value since I was offered it. If I was in a position to buy a garage queen for >30 thousand then I don't think that I'd be able to put that money into an old Ford, however, I never say never and a petrolhead doesn't normally use their head to make decisions. bangerturner said:
I'll be interested to read about this having made the same mistake (buying one, not PX'ing an M3 for it!)
Main dealer car owned for seven months, four times on a breakdown lorry before I gave it back to them
Hateful hateful car with the worst ride of any car I have ever driven and I've owned some dogs!
I've updated that entry a little when I was changing the image tags, it's not a detailed account of ownership but it touches on a few of the areas which made me hate my 335i experience with a burning passion. The car was not a good example and the independent dealer was absolutely horrific, not sure they still trade in car sales by the looks of the website, but that REALLY doesn't surprise me.Main dealer car owned for seven months, four times on a breakdown lorry before I gave it back to them
Hateful hateful car with the worst ride of any car I have ever driven and I've owned some dogs!
ChickenvanGuy said:
I've just spent a very enjoyable hour with a good beer reading this.
Thanks for posting it, cracking read.
Brilliant, I'm really happy you enjoyed it... even if someone just looks at the pictures it's quite a thread to get through, but I'm glad to hear it's appreciated. Thanks for posting it, cracking read.
I like being able to look back at my history too, reminds me how fortunate I've been and brings back lots of memories for me; even if some are viewed through slightly rose-tinted glasses these days!!
- 2014 Ford Fiesta ST2 (Van)
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Having owned my Transit Connect for a few years and keeping on top of the mechanical stuff, the bodywork was juuust beginning to look a little rough in a couple of places; it wasn't anywhere near tatty, but I tend to freak out when I see the beginnings of any corrosion. I've got a burning hatred for rust and being a Scotsman, it's difficult to justify paying to rectify something which will (unless you go absolutely crazy and wade into a restoration) eventually come back and cause issues again. Around the same time it just so happened that one of my friends had this wee Fiesta which he'd done the van panel conversion on, along with some Stage 3 modifications taking it to ~300bhp... and after a few conversations, a deal was struck between the Connect and the Fiesta.
I enjoyed the performance of the Fiesta, it was a genuinely quick little car.. and sounded great with flutters from the intake and a subtle but noticeable burble from the Milltek exhaust. I enjoyed the car so much that I decided that I would strip the Gucci parts off my EP3 Civic Type R and sell it to one of my friends, intending to use the Fiesta as a part time track car(van?) instead.
However all was not well, while I loved the actual Recaro seats, the seat height was something which I couldn't stand. Felt like I was sitting ON the car rather than IN the car and after looking into lower seat rails, it seemed that a full seat change was required to run lower/aftermarket rails; which I didn't want to do because I liked the seats, used the car daily and didn't want to lose the heated seat function too.
Another area which quickly started to annoy me was the ride quality... it was non-existent. I've read that they improved it on later cars (with the ST200 set up) but again, I didn't really want to be spending money on adjustable coilovers or shocks and springs so soon after buying the car... so settled for moaning about it at any opportunity instead.
Anyway, the car didn't last long with me, only staying a few months before I actually sold it onto a guy who works for the friend who I got it from.
- 2002 VW Golf GTi 25th Anniversary TDi
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
This is Part 1 of my current deja vu collection.. you may think that this car looks similar to the MK4 Golf Anniversary that you saw on the first page... wellllll, that's because it is the same car. I bought the car off the original owner, then sold it to my aunt, who (after her dog car took its last breath) decided that she wanted a single 'do-all' car; so I found her a late E91 320d Touring and took the Golf back off her rather than me and/or her having to face the usual private sales rubbish which I dislike almost as much as the rust I mentioned before.
But all is not rosey and the situation is; I am really struggling to find any need or use for the car and as much as it'll pain me to let go of it and irritate me having to listen to the 'how much for a MK4 Golf?!!' and 'my brothers mates cousins friends uncle bought one for 50p' type crap... I think that selling it is unavoidable because having it sitting doing nothing will do nothing but cause issues long term and it's a waste of a really good (fairly rare) car.
- 2000 Subaru Impreza STi Version 6 Limited
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
This is Part 2 of my current deja vu collection.. haha! You may also think that you remember this car from earlier on in my car history and you'd be correct; it's the same car. When I sold the car to a PH member in 2016, I had said to Ian that I'd appreciate first dibs on the car if/when the time came for him to sell the car... we kept in touch during his ownership, with him letting me know about how the car was going and sending the odd picture too, which was great! But fast forward to this year and I got a message saying that once the car came out of winter hibernation it would be getting a full service and check by BHP Developments before going up for sale.. but if I was interested then he'd be really happy for me to take a look before it was advertised... he shares my dislike for private sales!
Realistically, I didn't need to view the car given I knew what a good car it was when I had it last and I knew how well Ian had taken care of the car.. so we just arranged a date for collection and unless there were any unforeseen issues which popped up then I'd be bringing the car home with me again.
I had forgotten quite how 'old school' a Classic Impreza interior was, but the way it gets down a B-road (especially after Ian switched to KYB/Eibach suspension) is absolutely brilliant.. there are very few other cars I'd like to be driving than a well sorted Classic Impreza on a Scottish B-road. I've no idea what power it's making, probably between 320-340bhp somewhere, but the reality is that I don't really care.. it could be making standard power and it wouldn't bother me. It doesn't get a hard life and provides plenty of thrust to dispatch overtakes at will when the mood takes you, which is all that matters to me.
- 2017 VW Tiguan SEL TDi
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
I'm afraid this is not very PH-ish at all, it's an 'SUV' with a 2.0TDi engine and isn't even 4Motion.. so I can't even start flinging up photos of it attempting and getting stuck greenlaning or anything exciting like that!! I parked on a soft verge whilst camping the other week there and after a rain shower I was a little concerned about whether I'd make it back to the blacktop..
What I will say is that it's an absolutely amazing daily driver, it is standard spec car (apart from the paint IIRC) but the SEL model comes with a LOT of kit as standard... panoramic sunroof, adaptive lights, massaging driver seat, active info speedo/instrument binnacle, sat nav, heated seats, etc. Anyone who has followed my E92 M3 thread will know what a 'manual gearbox diehard' I am, but I have got to say, for a daily driver which has no real involvement or offers any incentive to 'drive' the car; the DSG gearbox in it is perfectly suited, it just wafts around quietly and goes about it's business almost inperceptibly. If you need to hold it in a gear to use the torque to overtake, then the paddles work well, but at no point to I get the urge to go quickly and start banging up and down the gearbox.. which is great, it's a very relaxing car to drive.
That's the history up to date now, so at the moment I've got the Tiguan, Subaru, M3, Golf and Volvo.. but as I said, the Golf will be going sometime soon and I'm unsure about whether I can justify the Volvo sitting here doing absolutely nothing anymore as well. Granted it's not costing any money but just like the Golf, it's a shame seeing it sitting there when someone else could be using it and enjoying it... plus freeing up the space would be useful because I'd really like another car to use at Knockhill and I refuse to use either the Subaru or M3 as my track car.
Untitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrHaving owned my Transit Connect for a few years and keeping on top of the mechanical stuff, the bodywork was juuust beginning to look a little rough in a couple of places; it wasn't anywhere near tatty, but I tend to freak out when I see the beginnings of any corrosion. I've got a burning hatred for rust and being a Scotsman, it's difficult to justify paying to rectify something which will (unless you go absolutely crazy and wade into a restoration) eventually come back and cause issues again. Around the same time it just so happened that one of my friends had this wee Fiesta which he'd done the van panel conversion on, along with some Stage 3 modifications taking it to ~300bhp... and after a few conversations, a deal was struck between the Connect and the Fiesta.
I enjoyed the performance of the Fiesta, it was a genuinely quick little car.. and sounded great with flutters from the intake and a subtle but noticeable burble from the Milltek exhaust. I enjoyed the car so much that I decided that I would strip the Gucci parts off my EP3 Civic Type R and sell it to one of my friends, intending to use the Fiesta as a part time track car(van?) instead.
However all was not well, while I loved the actual Recaro seats, the seat height was something which I couldn't stand. Felt like I was sitting ON the car rather than IN the car and after looking into lower seat rails, it seemed that a full seat change was required to run lower/aftermarket rails; which I didn't want to do because I liked the seats, used the car daily and didn't want to lose the heated seat function too.
Another area which quickly started to annoy me was the ride quality... it was non-existent. I've read that they improved it on later cars (with the ST200 set up) but again, I didn't really want to be spending money on adjustable coilovers or shocks and springs so soon after buying the car... so settled for moaning about it at any opportunity instead.
Anyway, the car didn't last long with me, only staying a few months before I actually sold it onto a guy who works for the friend who I got it from.
- 2002 VW Golf GTi 25th Anniversary TDi
Untitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrThis is Part 1 of my current deja vu collection.. you may think that this car looks similar to the MK4 Golf Anniversary that you saw on the first page... wellllll, that's because it is the same car. I bought the car off the original owner, then sold it to my aunt, who (after her dog car took its last breath) decided that she wanted a single 'do-all' car; so I found her a late E91 320d Touring and took the Golf back off her rather than me and/or her having to face the usual private sales rubbish which I dislike almost as much as the rust I mentioned before.
But all is not rosey and the situation is; I am really struggling to find any need or use for the car and as much as it'll pain me to let go of it and irritate me having to listen to the 'how much for a MK4 Golf?!!' and 'my brothers mates cousins friends uncle bought one for 50p' type crap... I think that selling it is unavoidable because having it sitting doing nothing will do nothing but cause issues long term and it's a waste of a really good (fairly rare) car.
- 2000 Subaru Impreza STi Version 6 Limited
Untitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrThis is Part 2 of my current deja vu collection.. haha! You may also think that you remember this car from earlier on in my car history and you'd be correct; it's the same car. When I sold the car to a PH member in 2016, I had said to Ian that I'd appreciate first dibs on the car if/when the time came for him to sell the car... we kept in touch during his ownership, with him letting me know about how the car was going and sending the odd picture too, which was great! But fast forward to this year and I got a message saying that once the car came out of winter hibernation it would be getting a full service and check by BHP Developments before going up for sale.. but if I was interested then he'd be really happy for me to take a look before it was advertised... he shares my dislike for private sales!
Realistically, I didn't need to view the car given I knew what a good car it was when I had it last and I knew how well Ian had taken care of the car.. so we just arranged a date for collection and unless there were any unforeseen issues which popped up then I'd be bringing the car home with me again.
I had forgotten quite how 'old school' a Classic Impreza interior was, but the way it gets down a B-road (especially after Ian switched to KYB/Eibach suspension) is absolutely brilliant.. there are very few other cars I'd like to be driving than a well sorted Classic Impreza on a Scottish B-road. I've no idea what power it's making, probably between 320-340bhp somewhere, but the reality is that I don't really care.. it could be making standard power and it wouldn't bother me. It doesn't get a hard life and provides plenty of thrust to dispatch overtakes at will when the mood takes you, which is all that matters to me.
- 2017 VW Tiguan SEL TDi
Untitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrI'm afraid this is not very PH-ish at all, it's an 'SUV' with a 2.0TDi engine and isn't even 4Motion.. so I can't even start flinging up photos of it attempting and getting stuck greenlaning or anything exciting like that!! I parked on a soft verge whilst camping the other week there and after a rain shower I was a little concerned about whether I'd make it back to the blacktop..
What I will say is that it's an absolutely amazing daily driver, it is standard spec car (apart from the paint IIRC) but the SEL model comes with a LOT of kit as standard... panoramic sunroof, adaptive lights, massaging driver seat, active info speedo/instrument binnacle, sat nav, heated seats, etc. Anyone who has followed my E92 M3 thread will know what a 'manual gearbox diehard' I am, but I have got to say, for a daily driver which has no real involvement or offers any incentive to 'drive' the car; the DSG gearbox in it is perfectly suited, it just wafts around quietly and goes about it's business almost inperceptibly. If you need to hold it in a gear to use the torque to overtake, then the paddles work well, but at no point to I get the urge to go quickly and start banging up and down the gearbox.. which is great, it's a very relaxing car to drive.
That's the history up to date now, so at the moment I've got the Tiguan, Subaru, M3, Golf and Volvo.. but as I said, the Golf will be going sometime soon and I'm unsure about whether I can justify the Volvo sitting here doing absolutely nothing anymore as well. Granted it's not costing any money but just like the Golf, it's a shame seeing it sitting there when someone else could be using it and enjoying it... plus freeing up the space would be useful because I'd really like another car to use at Knockhill and I refuse to use either the Subaru or M3 as my track car.
Edited by RS Grant on Friday 31st August 17:17
There have been a couple of new additions recently:
- 2011 BMW E91 320d Sport Plus Edition
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Well the Tiguan has gone back to VW and replacing it was going to be a bit of a tough job given the amount of toys which came fitted to the VW and how useful/practical it was for us. As you'll know if you have read through the thread, I had an E91 335i previously which was an absolute lemon of a car and reeeally put me off getting another. However after almost nobody else I know having any issues with their similar cars, I came to the conclusion that mine was a full on Friday afternoon effort and waded in with the E92 M3, which has turned out to be a fantastic decision. Around 18 months ago, I helped my aunt find a nice low mileage E91 320d M Sport and when I collected it from Englandsire and drove it home, it made a great impression on me; frugal, nippy enough, comfy, practical enough. So when the time came to find a Tiguan replacement, a 320d Touring was right up there as a contender for me; however finding one with high spec was not a simple task... until this very high spec Sport Plus version appeared on Autotrader and I organised a viewing/flights down after talking to the owner.
It drives really well, it's got a massive specification and ticks almost every box which I had.. apart from DAB radio, with the original owner specifying a CD changer instead.. bugger!! But from a scan of t'internet, it would seem like I can remove the CD Changer and retrofit the DAB gubbins; then have the car coded to recognise the new hardware, so it's not the end of the world. In the meantime streaming media from my phone via USB or Bluetooth is absolutely fine.
- 1989 Ford Sierra Sapphire RS Cosworth
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
Untitled by Grant F, on Flickr
After saying that I could never justify the cost of a Cossie after they had a sharp rise in value, I could never justify having an expensive garage ornament, etc... well I've gone and bought one.
72k miles, 3 owners from new, huge history file and running between Stage 3 and Stage 4 hardware to give somewhere between 350-380bhp depending on the set up. It's a cracker of a Saph and I'm over the moon to have bitten the bullet... even if it took me the best part of two decades to do it!!
It's going to be a bit of a garage queen with me, but it won't stop me upgrading the wiring looms and ignition set up so that when the nice weather does arrive.. I can be confident that when I turn the key the car will run and perform as it should. Aside from that, the suspension will be addressed so that the exhaust can clear much more than it can currently and I will possibly switch the wheels for something else and a bit more 'motorsporty' too.
- 2011 BMW E91 320d Sport Plus Edition
Untitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrWell the Tiguan has gone back to VW and replacing it was going to be a bit of a tough job given the amount of toys which came fitted to the VW and how useful/practical it was for us. As you'll know if you have read through the thread, I had an E91 335i previously which was an absolute lemon of a car and reeeally put me off getting another. However after almost nobody else I know having any issues with their similar cars, I came to the conclusion that mine was a full on Friday afternoon effort and waded in with the E92 M3, which has turned out to be a fantastic decision. Around 18 months ago, I helped my aunt find a nice low mileage E91 320d M Sport and when I collected it from Englandsire and drove it home, it made a great impression on me; frugal, nippy enough, comfy, practical enough. So when the time came to find a Tiguan replacement, a 320d Touring was right up there as a contender for me; however finding one with high spec was not a simple task... until this very high spec Sport Plus version appeared on Autotrader and I organised a viewing/flights down after talking to the owner.
It drives really well, it's got a massive specification and ticks almost every box which I had.. apart from DAB radio, with the original owner specifying a CD changer instead.. bugger!! But from a scan of t'internet, it would seem like I can remove the CD Changer and retrofit the DAB gubbins; then have the car coded to recognise the new hardware, so it's not the end of the world. In the meantime streaming media from my phone via USB or Bluetooth is absolutely fine.
- 1989 Ford Sierra Sapphire RS Cosworth
Untitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrUntitled by Grant F, on FlickrAfter saying that I could never justify the cost of a Cossie after they had a sharp rise in value, I could never justify having an expensive garage ornament, etc... well I've gone and bought one.
72k miles, 3 owners from new, huge history file and running between Stage 3 and Stage 4 hardware to give somewhere between 350-380bhp depending on the set up. It's a cracker of a Saph and I'm over the moon to have bitten the bullet... even if it took me the best part of two decades to do it!!
It's going to be a bit of a garage queen with me, but it won't stop me upgrading the wiring looms and ignition set up so that when the nice weather does arrive.. I can be confident that when I turn the key the car will run and perform as it should. Aside from that, the suspension will be addressed so that the exhaust can clear much more than it can currently and I will possibly switch the wheels for something else and a bit more 'motorsporty' too.
Edited by RS Grant on Sunday 3rd January 13:51
Apologies for missing the comments, they are appreciated and it's nice to know that there are people still enjoying the journey!!
I've finally put the Golf Anniversary up for sale on a well known popular auction website, only took me a year and the realisation that it had only covered ~250miles between MOTs to nudge me into writing an advert.
I've finally put the Golf Anniversary up for sale on a well known popular auction website, only took me a year and the realisation that it had only covered ~250miles between MOTs to nudge me into writing an advert.
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