Fast/fun under £1000??

[Alexford93]

Hi all I’m thinking of getting another car just for the drive to and from work Somthing fun to brighten up the 15hour shifts 😂 im not really wanting to spend over £1000 so far I have seen

St170
Mondeo st Tdci
Mg zs v6
Vectra Sri cdti

Can anybody add to that list or help me choose the best all rounder. I think the st170 is the best Handling of the above but I’m sure the st would be best in a straight line any suggestions? Thanks

Edited by Alexford93 on Sunday 11th November 18:38

[InitialDave]

I'd say the MG is the best handling, but likely a bit flakier than the ST170, more likely to need a bit of work doing.

If you want a bit of grunt, a Saab 9-5 Aero might be possible for your budget.

A Golf, A3, TT etc with the 1.8T engine could be worth a look.

Under a similar brief for myself, I bought the MG, but I don't mind having to fix bits on it (It was very cheap), and I don't care about fuel economy (last tank was 20mpg average, which is a little lower than you'd expect for the performance on offer).

[Alexford93]

Thanks for the reply I do like the Saab’s but I was worried about finding a good 1 for that money. I think the mondeo is out of the question struggling to find 1 that doesn’t need injectors. I have found 2 mg zs+ though 1 is a 1.8 the other is 2.5 was yours the v6 how reliable are them engines? I don’t mind fixing it to be honest I’ve always liked the zs and zs+. I’m not a big fan of German cars although I do like the 20v turbo engine. I’m just wanting something fun not 2 bothered about power

Edited by Alexford93 on Sunday 11th November 20:03

[meehaja]

TT is a good shout but for the money I'd be looking for a lightweight deathtrap Saxo VTR/VTS or similar. light, reasonably quick etc

[Fermit and Sarah]

I'd be looking for a tidy 17/82 Clio Sport at that price.

[meehaja]

in fact, I've found the answer for you..https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ford-Puma-Track-Car-2001-reg-very-reliable-and-nippy-silver-track-modified/233001744351?hash=item363ffc77df:g:hjUAAOSwNptb6Fsi:rk:9f:0

[InitialDave]

Alexford93 said:

Thanks for the reply I do like the Saab’s but I was worried about finding a good 1 for that money. I think the mondeo is out of the question struggling to find 1 that doesn’t need injectors. I have found 2 mg zs+ though 1 is a 1.8 the other is 2.5 was yours the v6 how reliable are them engines? I don’t mind fixing it to be honest I’ve always liked the zs and zs+. I’m not a big fan of German cars although I do like the 20v turbo engine. I’m just wanting something fun not 2 bothered about power

Well, the 1.8 is the K-series, and has the higher potential for head gasket malarkey (though they're by no means guaranteed to let go). The 2.5 is the KV6, much less likely to have head gasket issues, but they have similar potential for leaking water pumps along with their own niggles (variable intake system is made of plastic and can fail, thermostat assembly is made of plastic and probably will fail at some point, cambelt setup involves three belts and - while not actually a bad design or anything - is a more involved job to do than the 4-pot, and paying someone to do it can get pricey.

I would (did) buy the V6, it is actually a pretty nice lump, plus I generally see little reason to piss about not buying the more powerful engine when available in a given car.

Oh, the clutch hydraulics are also made of plastic, aren't designed to be bled, and are pretty much guaranteed to fail at some point. There's what's known as a "Sheddist" conversion (named for a guy on an MG forum who designed it) using metal Honda parts that's dead easy to do and actually works properly. The usual method is to buy a new bracket for the Honda slave cylinder, but you can modify the factory bracket if you have a welder.

Also, check for rust around the front end, inside the front wheelarches and under the footwells near the front jacking points. Mine was pretty bad (again, it was cheap), all relatively simple to patch up, but another one where paying someone to do the work might be hard to justify given the value of the car.

This makes it sound like they're money pits, but TBH, any car like this has an issue where as they get older/cheaper, they don't get looked after very well, and if you're the first person in years to give much of a damn about it, you end up digging through a load of stuff.


Puma is certainly a really good suggestion too.

[RSTurboPaul]

MX5.

[SpanishTony]

I'm currently driving a 2.0l petrol Alfa 147 which is a lot of fun.

[Alexford93]

I had a cammed vts and crashed it into a round about because I pressed the accelerator instead of the break haha never again the pedal lay out is terrible and I thought about a try but not keen on the shape

[ZX10R NIN]

206 GTI reliable swift & good fun not as good as a Clio but a good car nonetheless.

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

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

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

Celica

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

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

ST 170

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

[bluesmoke2stroke]

What about an SLK?
2.3 supercharged,rear wheel drive and the option to chip/pulley if you feel it needs more than the 192bhp out of the box.
A lot to choose from around this price point.

[Jonny_gti]

for under the grand I agree with you on the MG ZS180 or even try a MG ZR160

[WCZ]

meehaja said:

in fact, I've found the answer for you..https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ford-Puma-Track-Car-2001-reg-very-reliable-and-nippy-silver-track-modified/233001744351?hash=item363ffc77df:g:hjUAAOSwNptb6Fsi:rk:9f:0

rare that you see someone modify a car and raise the suspension !

[Chiefbadger]

InitialDave said:

Well, the 1.8 is the K-series, and has the higher potential for head gasket malarkey (though they're by no means guaranteed to let go). The 2.5 is the KV6, much less likely to have head gasket issues, but they have similar potential for leaking water pumps along with their own niggles (variable intake system is made of plastic and can fail, thermostat assembly is made of plastic and probably will fail at some point, cambelt setup involves three belts and - while not actually a bad design or anything - is a more involved job to do than the 4-pot, and paying someone to do it can get pricey.

I would (did) buy the V6, it is actually a pretty nice lump, plus I generally see little reason to piss about not buying the more powerful engine when available in a given car.

Oh, the clutch hydraulics are also made of plastic, aren't designed to be bled, and are pretty much guaranteed to fail at some point. There's what's known as a "Sheddist" conversion (named for a guy on an MG forum who designed it) using metal Honda parts that's dead easy to do and actually works properly. The usual method is to buy a new bracket for the Honda slave cylinder, but you can modify the factory bracket if you have a welder.

Also, check for rust around the front end, inside the front wheelarches and under the footwells near the front jacking points. Mine was pretty bad (again, it was cheap), all relatively simple to patch up, but another one where paying someone to do the work might be hard to justify given the value of the car.

This makes it sound like they're money pits, but TBH, any car like this has an issue where as they get older/cheaper, they don't get looked after very well, and if you're the first person in years to give much of a damn about it, you end up digging through a load of stuff.


Puma is certainly a really good suggestion too.

Would agree on all of this. I bought a pretty crappy Mk1 ZS 180 for £480 on fleabay back in April. It needed discs and pads - £150 odd for a set of 4 drilled/grooved etc - however it also needed new calipers - which are fairly expensive as they're very hard to find. I've also had the clutch kit fitted (ebay second hand for £50) and a few other bits. I did nearly 2000 miles in 6 days in it for the 1Ktour in the summer and it's still going strong. It's tatty as hell, the roof lining is held up with staples, the door card has broken off, the boot leaks, but it drives brilliantly. I can't imagine more fun for your money tbh.

Mine has no history and no idea when the cambelt was last changed - I figure I'll just keep driving it till it goes bang, but the more I do, the more I want to look after it and get them changed. They also sound epic with a straight through pipe btw!

[Chiefbadger]

It made it to the top of Scotland and back to Brighton and was driven ‘enthusiastically’ ??

Edited by Chiefbadger on Monday 12th November 13:13

[Billy.RS]

Puma

[Aiminghigh123]

My Saab 9-3 aero cost me £500 a year ago. Past MOT jan and has plenty of poke. Was playing with an 18 plate golf gti the other day, the look on his face when I was glued to his bumper.