impossible criteria?

[2gins]

CABC said:

That's a real possibility.... she quite likes them in certain colours. Leave your coat, bring up a chair.

A modified 86 is the logical answer.
This car is tainted as it's been deemed uncomfortable on really bad roads - roads we often use to see family. It is true that 86 doesn't deal with uneven surfaces well. That said, if we're compromising then she has to give too!

As per my op, it's a case of normal cars that could track rather than track cars that could daily. I'll make up my annual hardcore track days with the Elise, track hire and experiences such as Palmer, Driftworks etc Hence thinking of Cooper S, not GP2 or Works, and Meg Sport not Cup.

Well, if you don't need 4 seats they're certainly practical enough. Comfy is subjective but I did 700 miles over the bank holiday weekend and felt fine for it. They only weigh 1050 kgs iirc so even though a base 4.0L only has 230 bhp it still goes well enough. Plenty of people track them and there's even the Sprint championship in the TVRCC. You'll probably want to upgrade the brakes and shocks, add a roll cage and baffled sump. Not that I know anything about tracking them except what I read in passing.

£10k should get you a decent early 400, or a later model that needs work. Plenty of buying guides in the TVR section. People carry on about outriggers but these days it's a £1.5-2k bill every 10-20 years as long as you after them. The only rub is they need constant maintenance, being older hand built cars there's always something to do.

[QBee]

I love my Chimaera and do take it on track, regularly.
As 2gins says, all you really need to change it for the track is beef up the front brakes, and if you can afford it, adjustable dampers, as these allow you to run stiff for track days but comfortable for the road. They do cost you 20-27 mpg on the road, so be aware of that. And i would recommend you take Erin Dawes out in one before buying, as mine hates the car due to the wind noise etc.

Where are you based?

[CABC]

London. which is problematic for the Chimp.

i'm leaning towards a 2012/13 Cooper S atm.
revised suspension and it'll be a great London car and new experience for a handful of track days.
i was thinking of combining 3 cars, but if i can combine 2 at a cheap price then i can replace the 3rd with something more interesting and still have met the objective from Erin Dawes (i'm going to reuse that!).
3rd car will be a TVR, AM, Jag or similar.

[CABC]

Ellb123 said:

DC5?

I daily mine and use it on track too, such a great car all round. Really comfortable on the road, different animal when your pressing on up the revs. LSD, nice interior, plenty of space too.

Or maybe an FN2 Type R if your after something abit more modern?

good call.
it would need to be practical, so FN2. i'll give it a closer look. though it's still a bit loud even if nothing like the FN8.

[QBee]

CABC said:

London. which is problematic for the Chimp.

i'm leaning towards a 2012/13 Cooper S atm.
revised suspension and it'll be a great London car and new experience for a handful of track days.
i was thinking of combining 3 cars, but if i can combine 2 at a cheap price then i can replace the 3rd with something more interesting and still have met the objective from Erin Dawes (i'm going to reuse that!).
3rd car will be a TVR, AM, Jag or similar.

I would go for the Cooper S. Get a JCW if you can, but don't worry about ultimate power etc - as you already know, on the track its all about how fast you can drive the corners, and the other 98% of the time on the road its about how convenient the car is in traffic etc. Minis are fun, always have been, always will be. If you can find one that has just had a new clutch all the better - they reliably need them every 70-90k, and its a £700 job.
Erin's sister had a Cooper S automatic in London and said it was the best London car she ever had - and that was following a Merc 500 CL and followed by a BMW estate.

[CABC]

current s'list is:
Clio 200
Mini Cooper S (2013 to avoid chain issues)
Type R

I'm tempted just to go for the Clio as it's a true modern classic and Evo benchmark.

Minis are great for the road, but they still seem a little fragile and not up to track work (with recurring issues)

Honda, great reliability. FN2 had silly stiff suspension, but i wonder whether aftermarket adjustable coilovers would do the trick?

[NNH]

Given you're already losing the battle on weight, how about a BMW E46 3-series? That gives you rwd, an acceptable badge, decent ride once you ditch the run-flats, and good aftermarket support.

[CABC]

NNH said:

Given you're already losing the battle on weight, how about a BMW E46 3-series? That gives you rwd, an acceptable badge, decent ride once you ditch the run-flats, and good aftermarket support.

Actually already thinking of that. Although it would need a diet and look like a council wagon pretty quickly. I've managed to remove my OH's badge criteria If I'm combining cars in the fleet there are too many conflicting requirements. So now it's down to a track car that can perform limited travel duties (3k pa incl to/from track days, so not much). An mx5 with 200+ horses would be ideal but it doesn't do occasional trips with practicality. So something bigger that can carry dress/suit carriers. I'll test the Meg, but I suspect it'll feel too heavy for my tastes.. maybe not. Have to reiterate, I'll also do more track hire as well. But it's always good to get back in a familiar car.

[NNH]

CABC said:

NNH said:

Given you're already losing the battle on weight, how about a BMW E46 3-series? That gives you rwd, an acceptable badge, decent ride once you ditch the run-flats, and good aftermarket support.

Actually already thinking of that. Although it would need a diet and look like a council wagon pretty quickly. I've managed to remove my OH's badge criteria If I'm combining cars in the fleet there are too many conflicting requirements. So now it's down to a track car that can perform limited travel duties (3k pa incl to/from track days, so not much). An mx5 with 200+ horses would be ideal but it doesn't do occasional trips with practicality. So something bigger that can carry dress/suit carriers. I'll test the Meg, but I suspect it'll feel too heavy for my tastes.. maybe not. Have to reiterate, I'll also do more track hire as well. But it's always good to get back in a familiar car.

FWIW I have a FiST as my only car, and it's not a bad little do-it-all machine. For reference, my previous cars were a Porsche 996 and a 987, and I'm not at all disappointed with my current car. I haven't spent enough time at the track in the FiST yet, so I'm still relearning the hooligan approach needed to get a fwd car to work properly!

[CABC]

NNH said:

FWIW I have a FiST as my only car, and it's not a bad little do-it-all machine. For reference, my previous cars were a Porsche 996 and a 987, and I'm not at all disappointed with my current car. I haven't spent enough time at the track in the FiST yet, so I'm still relearning the hooligan approach needed to get a fwd car to work properly!

FiST was also buzzing around in my thoughts.
some say... that they're quite soft for track. as a road hot hatch it seems to be 10/10, especially the recent one.
i'm not ruling it out. in fact a hot hatch that delivers on comfort while also being able to go on track with *at least some ability* is very appealing. i'm leaning towards more arrive & drive and then more comfort for my own car after a few years with track specials and earplugs!
In fact, although an E46 ticks a lot of boxes, the reality is that the comfort and reliability of a newer FiST is more to my liking right now. And then the Clio 200....a modern benchmark, yet new enough to be reliable and relatively civilised.

[NNH]

CABC said:

FiST was also buzzing around in my thoughts.
some say... that they're quite soft for track. as a road hot hatch it seems to be 10/10, especially the recent one.
i'm not ruling it out. in fact a hot hatch that delivers on comfort while also being able to go on track with *at least some ability* is very appealing. i'm leaning towards more arrive & drive and then more comfort for my own car after a few years with track specials and earplugs!
In fact, although an E46 ticks a lot of boxes, the reality is that the comfort and reliability of a newer FiST is more to my liking right now. And then the Clio 200....a modern benchmark, yet new enough to be reliable and relatively civilised.

It's a surprisingly civilized car - two weeks ago I drove 800 miles each way from LA to Salt Lake City and back across the backroads of Nevada, and I was still in decent shape to do a Ford track day in SLC. I imagine that values are still holding up in the UK, but over here dealers are offering huge discounts to get rid of the last of the 4-cylinder models.

[braddo]

CABC said:

current s'list is:
Clio 200
Mini Cooper S (2013 to avoid chain issues)
Type R

I would be surprised if any of those options are more comfortable for your other half than a GT86, especially for low speed stuff around town? Better quality dampers with the factory springs on the GT86 might give you the best compromise?

I guess you already know this but I would say the only way to get track fun without a really firm ride is through light weight and a low centre of gravity/roll centres. For your budget, and wanting a modern car, I'm not sure anything else could beat the GT86 in that respect (except Elise derivatives).

A 2009+ 2.9 987 Boxster would be ideal but they're a chunk more money.

Perhaps too similar to the GT86 and a little heavier, but a late model RX8 might be worth a test drive?

[CABC]

the search continues.... purchase will be early next year anyway.

The Clio is a classic and remains tempting. However, the current thought is a 2013 FiST. highly regarded, comfortable and good value. cheapish to run i guess too. They have a softness that will be appreciated. Definitely thinking of a fwd hatch for this car before reverting to a GT86/MX5 in a couple of years.