WTF happened to bargain V8s ?!

[ZX10R NIN]

Jaguar S Type

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202104131...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202106133...

E500

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202104211...

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/255025040832?hash=item3...

GS430

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/124757888296?hash=item1...

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/294236149947?hash=item4...

745i

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202106113...

Haggle Hard CLK500

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/164920438326?hash=item2...

A fair few V8's for around your budget.

[Rob 131 Sport]

J4CKO said:

Rob 131 Sport said:

For a great V8 Experience you could do far worse the Rover SD1 3500.

It’s everything thankfully that the Rover 75 isn’t. For a car launched in 1976 it was so ahead of the time as regards styling and refinement.

What, they are nice but what's wrong with a 75 ?

Its a better car in every way objectively, and you can get a V8, that isnt that fast with 260 bhp, but its still got 120 bhp on a V8 SD1.

Only one I would have is a Vitesse.

The SD1 (especially in V8 Form) was and always will be a cool and desirable car.

The Rover 75 unfortunately has always been the polar opposite, hence the most unfortunate demise of Rover.

[alec.e]

kambites said:

alec.e said:

They can and do, in my case owned a M6 V10 for two years, spent a decent chunk on upgrades, ect. Still made around 2k 'profit' when I sold it. So it can happen, luck of the draw?

You mean you actually got more back for it than you spent in total? That's really quite impressive!

Yes I did, unexpectedly!

[Deranged Rover]

Trackdayer said:

By all means there are some great ideas on this thread but let's not pretend for a minute an SD1 is anything other than a skip on wheels with a dismally slow engine.

What exactly is a 'fast engine' and why do you consider it important?

[Trackdayer]

Deranged Rover said:

What exactly is a 'fast engine' and why do you consider it important?

You know exactly what I mean.

[Fady]

Trackdayer said:

Fady said:

I never get how anyone can make a 'profit' from virtually any mass produced vehicle. Nearly always a depreciating asset, often purchased on credit terms for which there is a charge. Then factor in running costs, servicing etc. Unless in some way exotic, those cars don't make money!

Nonsense. I ran an E46 M3 for 3 years and made 3k profit on it

Well that told me.

[Trackdayer]

Fady said:

Well that told me.

What about the other posters with similar stories?

Prices have been rising on modern classics for years. I have an old Calibra I paid £200 for worth around £10k now. Of course you can make a profit

[J4CKO]

Rob 131 Sport said:

J4CKO said:

Rob 131 Sport said:

For a great V8 Experience you could do far worse the Rover SD1 3500.

It’s everything thankfully that the Rover 75 isn’t. For a car launched in 1976 it was so ahead of the time as regards styling and refinement.

What, they are nice but what's wrong with a 75 ?

Its a better car in every way objectively, and you can get a V8, that isnt that fast with 260 bhp, but its still got 120 bhp on a V8 SD1.

Only one I would have is a Vitesse.

The SD1 (especially in V8 Form) was and always will be a cool and desirable car.

The Rover 75 unfortunately has always been the polar opposite, hence the most unfortunate demise of Rover.

I prefer the 75/ZT to the SD1

[Fady]

Trackdayer said:

Fady said:

Well that told me.

What about the other posters with similar stories?

Prices have been rising on modern classics for years. I have an old Calibra I paid £200 for worth around £10k now. Of course you can make a profit

I had two of those back in the day (and 8V and a V6). I wouldn't even give you your £200 back - compared to modern cars they handle like a brick!

[thepeoplespal]

Rubins4 said:

dylan0451 said:

ian316 said:

You need to be on the best smoker barge 1-5k page

Another facepalm.... assumed that would be a diesel thread...

The irony…

It's a reference to smoking about, rather than diesel fumes.

I joined the barge club, with a 4.2 lSupercharged V8 featured on this website last year, a Jaguar XF SV8, a real sleeper that most people can't tell from a diesel. It has high mileage 162k, but it rumbling about at 2000 rpm for the vast majority of the time with momentary runs to 6000rpm means it wears the miles well.

With my man maths hat on, the High tax on monthly direct debit is easier than £600 odd in one hit, doubling fuel consumption is handled by a lack of depreciation costs and higher maintenance can be covered by a monthly equivalent of a cheap monthly PCP payment.

If you are prepared to buy a V8 with lots of miles and maintenance there are still bargains.

[rallycross]

Fady said:

I had two of those back in the day (and 8V and a V6). I wouldn't even give you your £200 back - compared to modern cars they handle like a brick!

They handled like that when they were new! (
More like a blamange than a brick now I remember it)

[mat205125]

Trackdayer said:

Deranged Rover said:

What exactly is a 'fast engine' and why do you consider it important?

You know exactly what I mean.

It's a really valid point, as it's important to get the right engine and the right car to "scratch the v8" itch

You could go out and buy a transverse engine v8 Volvo xc90, or a northstar Cadillac. That itch ain't going nowhere

I stock 150bhp SD1 will be fun in a retro sense, and make woofly noises, but ain't gonna set the emotions stirring like many other options could

Same for all of the lazy but quite lovely v8s that are trapped in heavy German saloons, shackled to slushmatic auto boxes.

[Arnold Cunningham]

The common V8 itch is for burbly smoothness and gobs of torque.

Some people get a V8 horsepower itch too.

And some get both.

I’m guilty of both. The landrover (and it’s predecessor) are a nice V8 Burble. The RS and the boat are horsepower, as will the Ultima when I finish reengining it.

Owned my first V8 some 28 years ago, aged 18. And spent most of my measely earnings on fuel. Not much has changed really except I’m old now

[TheAngryDog]

jamieduff1981 said:

Trackdayer said:

OP - You could justify getting a BMW M3 V8. Although expensive, it's

a) An amazing car (let's be honest, a Rover isn't!)
b) At the bottom of it's depreciacion curve.

Buy one now, even with a loan, sell it in 3-5 years for a profit.

Amazing is a pretty strong word for a car that's undeniably competent but ultimately still a very predictable, mainstream choice. What people do with their money is their own business but stretching one's budget to just about pick up a BMW which is only made to look reliable by its V10 big brother's bork factor seems a bit unsound as an ownership prospect. If we then assume it will be sold on for a profit then we need to catch up on a lot of deferred maintenance such that a bottom-of-the-M3-market car is even usable after 3-5 years of earning its keep.

By way of direct comparison, and staying well away from any assumed borkage, everyone can agree cars which get driven need new brakes.

Genuine E92 M3 front discs - £440/pair
https://www.mlperformance.co.uk/products/genuine-b...

Rover SD1 front discs - £78/pair - £224/pair depending on plain or vented options
https://rimmerbros.com/Item--i-GRID009014

Sure, you should be able to get cheap(er) pattern parts to scrape an aging and pretty complex BMW through its MOT each year, but the point is that it costs a lot more just in parts to run a BMW M-car than most other stuff mentioned on this thread. That's before we get into more subtle differences such as VED and insurance which is drastically different between fairly wafty cruiser type cars and the Innit Bruv M3 that image-conscious young men love to crash regularly. That shouldn't be prohibitive in its own right but stretching your finances to buy a car certainly won't help you pay for its upkeep and will likely undermine any notions of keeping it on the road for 5 years, let alone selling it for a profit.

Jesus Christ.

[mat205125]

TheAngryDog said:

Jesus Christ.

Having owned three generations of M3s over a total of about a decade, its critical to put the cost of ownership into context, especially with the E92 V8 cars like i currently own.

Comparing them to their peers from Audi and Mercedes through the generations, and they're no different at all in their costs, problems or durability. Actually, get to a track day or race day and see how many M cars are there comparable to their peers. Robust and reliable if well maintained with some well known and understood preventative maintenance is the way I'd describe them.

Also, thinking of them just as an expensive 3 series is missing the point of how different they are to any other 3 series. In some ways people will then scoff at why a bonnet, brake rotor, lower arm, diff is "mental money" compared to what they can get from Ebay for their 318, however the more important way to look at is should be what a reliable and accessible bargain they are compared to something offering similar specs and performance from Porsche, Maserati, Aston Martin, Ferrari, Lamborghini etc

Please show me somewhere else on the used market, where £15k will buy a 400bhp+ normally aspirated v8, that'll scream to 8500rpm, and drive through an engaging rwd chassis, with an option for three pedals and a gearstick....... plus a huge amount of aftermarket tuning options to play with

[MikeM6]

mat205125 said:

Having owned three generations of M3s over a total of about a decade, its critical to put the cost of ownership into context, especially with the E92 V8 cars like i currently own.

Comparing them to their peers from Audi and Mercedes through the generations, and they're no different at all in their costs, problems or durability. Actually, get to a track day or race day and see how many M cars are there comparable to their peers. Robust and reliable if well maintained with some well known and understood preventative maintenance is the way I'd describe them.

Also, thinking of them just as an expensive 3 series is missing the point of how different they are to any other 3 series. In some ways people will then scoff at why a bonnet, brake rotor, lower arm, diff is "mental money" compared to what they can get from Ebay for their 318, however the more important way to look at is should be what a reliable and accessible bargain they are compared to something offering similar specs and performance from Porsche, Maserati, Aston Martin, Ferrari, Lamborghini etc

Please show me somewhere else on the used market, where £15k will buy a 400bhp+ normally aspirated v8, that'll scream to 8500rpm, and drive through an engaging rwd chassis, with an option for three pedals and a gearstick....... plus a huge amount of aftermarket tuning options to play with

Well said and totally agree.

[TheAngryDog]

mat205125 said:

TheAngryDog said:

Jesus Christ.

Having owned three generations of M3s over a total of about a decade, its critical to put the cost of ownership into context, especially with the E92 V8 cars like i currently own.

Comparing them to their peers from Audi and Mercedes through the generations, and they're no different at all in their costs, problems or durability. Actually, get to a track day or race day and see how many M cars are there comparable to their peers. Robust and reliable if well maintained with some well known and understood preventative maintenance is the way I'd describe them.

Also, thinking of them just as an expensive 3 series is missing the point of how different they are to any other 3 series. In some ways people will then scoff at why a bonnet, brake rotor, lower arm, diff is "mental money" compared to what they can get from Ebay for their 318, however the more important way to look at is should be what a reliable and accessible bargain they are compared to something offering similar specs and performance from Porsche, Maserati, Aston Martin, Ferrari, Lamborghini etc

Please show me somewhere else on the used market, where £15k will buy a 400bhp+ normally aspirated v8, that'll scream to 8500rpm, and drive through an engaging rwd chassis, with an option for three pedals and a gearstick....... plus a huge amount of aftermarket tuning options to play with

I think you missed my point. Let me explain it.

The poster I said "Jesus Christ" to is the one comparing a Rover SD1 to an M3. That's new level mental.

Btw, I own an E60 M5, you know nothing about bills

[braddo]

The OP is looking for V8s around £3k.

Ropey £15k E90 M3s being discussed as a bargain V8?

[s m]

braddo said:

The OP is looking for V8s around £3k.

Ropey £15k E90 M3s being discussed as a bargain V8?

There are lots of old V8 saloons, Jag, Mercedes, BMs, Audis at 3k or less
Probably all need jobs doing but if you want a V8 I guess you’ll expect that
No idea what the OP considers a fun car though? I suspect a lot of those will have a Rover V8 and/or be a non standard production car

[Trackdayer]

braddo said:

The OP is looking for V8s around £3k.

Ropey £15k E90 M3s being discussed as a bargain V8?

Yes it's worth considering because it's cheaper over the medium term. Easier MOT passes, less rust, appreciating value. And not a heap of st to drive like a £3k rustbucket.