What fun small thrashable car for £15k tops

[MOBB]

I need a change - I'm utterly bored with cars at the moment, I want to go back to the old days where I loved my car, cleaned it regularly, looked back at it with love etc. And the most important bit, I want to be able to thrash it and get a thrill out of it rather than huge torque making it all too easy. But it has to be a decent daily.

In recent years I have had;

F10 M5
M235i
Cupra 290
Fiesta ST
Cayman S
Jag S Type R (bloody great)

The Fiesta came close to being perfect, and I may well get another one if nothing else proves suitable. My all time favourite was probably a Ford Puma and I want to try to recapture as much of that as possible. I am so used to turbos, I need to get over it and rediscover thrashing!

I don't want anything older than say 5 years old. Also no old Porsches etc.

I also have a Panigale for crazy thrills.

No desire to impress friends and family, badge doesn't matter, not fussed about soft touch plastics etc etc

My current shortlist;

2018 VW Up! GTI - test driving this weekend, probably favourite at the moment. Still a VAG turbo but maybe, just maybe..................
2018 Suzuki Swift Sport turbo - due out soon, looks like it could be great
2016 Suzuki Swift Sport NA - a hoot apparently
2015 Toyota GT86 - engine concerns me, not that nice to thrash?
2016 MX5 - enough said, but I have driven a few older ones and the engine just felt meh to me
2015 Renaultsport Megane - back to a turbo though. I had a 182 once and it was unreliable, so Renault worry me a bit

Anything else to consider?

As a side note, I'm known as a car nut by friends, family and work colleagues and have had some nice and expensive cars - they all now think I'm mad, surely it has to be German/White etc lol.

Edited by MOBB on Wednesday 21st February 16:30

Edited by MOBB on Wednesday 21st February 16:31

[Mo28]

Mini JCW or the Challenge 210?

[Trevor555]

Please let us know what you think to the Up Gti

Not sure you'll beat the Fiesta ST though.

[Integroo]

What about the Abarth 595C? 180hp, excitable handling (described as enthusiastic if lacking poise), sound great with crackles and burbles, weighs almost nothing.

[MOBB]

Integroo said:

What about the Abarth 595C? 180hp, excitable handling (described as enthusiastic if lacking poise), sound great with crackles and burbles, weighs almost nothing.

I had a 595 Turismo a couple of years back, it was certainly exciting but the seating position and ride quality were terrible. The Fiesta ST replaced it and it was massively better in every way, if not such an event to drive.

Good shout though thanks.

[MOBB]

Mo28 said:

Mini JCW or the Challenge 210?

<has a look on Autotrader>

[MOBB]

Trevor555 said:

Please let us know what you think to the Up Gti

Not sure you'll beat the Fiesta ST though.

Will do - I have high hopes as I had an Aygo a few years ago that was slow and wallowy, but such a hoot to murder everywhere.

Something similar, with decent poke and handling appeals a great deal, I hope it delivers!

[Hammy98]

Peugeot 208 GTI?

Turbo again unfortunately but most modern hot hatches are. Reviews for it were glowing and it appeared to stack up well against the ST. I had an 'XY' 208 as a hire car last year and thought the interior was not bad, definitely better than my mate's ST.
If you manage to find a 'By Peugeot Sport' model then it should be a step up again - mechanical LSD iirc. You also get some lovely buckets in it.

There's a lovely pearl white one that I see driving home from work, looks great with carbon arch trim.

I'm in a Mini Cooper S F56 at the moment, great car but its a bit diesel-like in its power delivery which doesn't match your criteria.

[born2bslow]

Cheap daily and either a track car or a trip to the ring every month in a car you hire there...if you’re thrashing a car on the roads you could potentially lose your licence and then the fun is gone completely. Roads are too busy to have proper fun nowadays...

Sorry to sound so sensible, but having done some track driving, even relatively enthusiastic road driving just doesn’t do it for me any more...you just end up stuck behind the next car in the line...

[Yipper]

Honda Integra Type R.
Honda S2000.

[Trevor555]

Yipper said:

Honda Integra Type R.
Honda S2000.

I thought these when the OP said "I want to thrash it and get a thrill out of it"

But he then said nothing over 5 years old.

So OP you really should reconsider, unless you really want modern tech to connect your phone etc..

The beauty of a nice example of an S2000 is also that depreciation should be low unless you put loads of miles on.

Or better still, do what many people do.

£10,000 on a fun car, £5000 on a modern supermini for every day use. Although I realize not everyone can have two cars at their house.

[Desset]

Fiat 500 Abarth

[Ahbefive]

Out of your list I'd go Renault.

Also a nice WRX STi would be on my list at that price range.

[Flibble]

MOBB said:

2015 Toyota GT86 - engine concerns me, not that nice to thrash?

Depends on your position on modifications. It's ok standard, but much better with a manifold and remap.

[kieranblenk]

Mazda 2 GT Sport? Naturally aspirated 1.5 115bhp engine so it won't be quick, but I'm told the Skyactiv engines love to rev and the 2 is meant to be a decent steer.

Edited by kieranblenk on Thursday 22 February 09:37

[ZX10R NIN]

I'd say get either the 2.0 N/A last of the line Clio RS200:

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

Or go for a last of the line Megane RS:

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

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

[akirk]

Suzuki Swift sport from your list is def. worth driving - drives exactly as you are wanting...

[Ilovejapcrap]

I have this -

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=16...

Ask away

[JQ]

Mo28 said:

Mini JCW or the Challenge 210?

This is a good shout.

My last car was a Golf R - boring

Have had a 280bhp MX5 Mk1 - awesome on track but frustrating on the road as difficult to thrash as it was brutal.

Mini JCW R53 - awesome fun and put a smile on my face every time I got in. I believe the lastest MINIs are back to the fun of the R53, I'm certainly tempted.

[BigStu34]

A vote for the GT86 here. Certainly give one a try and see what you think. Certainly one of my most favourite cars to take down your nearest B road