Another what car? Fun, 25mpg. £6k
Discussion
Hi all,
As title suggests, I'm looking for a car. 25mpg combined, must have a decent amount of oomph. A lot of the cars I've been looking at would just be in budget at the very bottom of the market (I've fancied an E46 M3 for a while now, MPG??) and are leggy or tatty (or both).
330d?
Would an S4 (4.2) get the MPG?
Ideally 4 doors+
As you can tell my imagination is running fairly dry. Every time I see a "what car?" thread I'm always impressed with the answers and how something I'd never really thought of, after research, ends up being the pick of the bunch in my eyes.
This is one that has probably been done before in hindsight being the budget and criteria.
Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks
WanThyme
As title suggests, I'm looking for a car. 25mpg combined, must have a decent amount of oomph. A lot of the cars I've been looking at would just be in budget at the very bottom of the market (I've fancied an E46 M3 for a while now, MPG??) and are leggy or tatty (or both).
330d?
Would an S4 (4.2) get the MPG?
Ideally 4 doors+
As you can tell my imagination is running fairly dry. Every time I see a "what car?" thread I'm always impressed with the answers and how something I'd never really thought of, after research, ends up being the pick of the bunch in my eyes.
This is one that has probably been done before in hindsight being the budget and criteria.
Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks
WanThyme
Jag S-Type R. 400bhp of supercharged V8 loveliness. My 02 plate with 58k on it was £5995 so pretty much on price.
Averaging 23mpg but could easily get 25 if the result of a hard pressed right foot wasn't so tempting!
Was looking at M3 or S4 at the time and stumbled on one of them - no regrets so far :-)
Averaging 23mpg but could easily get 25 if the result of a hard pressed right foot wasn't so tempting!
Was looking at M3 or S4 at the time and stumbled on one of them - no regrets so far :-)
I'd be looking at:
E46 M3 - I was looking at this price range and there are some reasonable examples around, though hardly pristine. I think you could probably do 25 MPG in one of these. Only two doors though.
E36 M3 Evo - you can get an excellent example at this price and can also get them in saloon form. I averaged around the 30 MPG mark on mine if taken for a longer trip.
E39 M5 - These start around the £4k mark, I think you can get something reasonable for £6k, but you probably won't do 25 MPG.
Evo VI or VII - fuel consumption might be interesting.
Impreza Blobeye WRX PPP or Bugeye STI - I had a bugeye WRX PPP wagon and only got around 22 MPG, but then I did a lot of short journies in it. They stopped making STI wagons post bugeye and even these are very rare, so it would probably be a saloon in STI form.
B5 S4 - You'd probably get a very good example at this money.
B6 S4 - I'm not sure the V8 would hit your MPG requirements.
Focus ST - again, MPG constraints might kill this one.
mk4 Supra TT - probably only an auto at £6k, only two doors, the back seats probably aren't going to be big enough and it probably won't do your MPG requirements, but I think they're great even so.
147 GTA - as someone else has mentioned.
E46 M3 - I was looking at this price range and there are some reasonable examples around, though hardly pristine. I think you could probably do 25 MPG in one of these. Only two doors though.
E36 M3 Evo - you can get an excellent example at this price and can also get them in saloon form. I averaged around the 30 MPG mark on mine if taken for a longer trip.
E39 M5 - These start around the £4k mark, I think you can get something reasonable for £6k, but you probably won't do 25 MPG.
Evo VI or VII - fuel consumption might be interesting.
Impreza Blobeye WRX PPP or Bugeye STI - I had a bugeye WRX PPP wagon and only got around 22 MPG, but then I did a lot of short journies in it. They stopped making STI wagons post bugeye and even these are very rare, so it would probably be a saloon in STI form.
B5 S4 - You'd probably get a very good example at this money.
B6 S4 - I'm not sure the V8 would hit your MPG requirements.
Focus ST - again, MPG constraints might kill this one.
mk4 Supra TT - probably only an auto at £6k, only two doors, the back seats probably aren't going to be big enough and it probably won't do your MPG requirements, but I think they're great even so.
147 GTA - as someone else has mentioned.
That money would get a seriously sorted e36 M3 and they do a 4 version if you really must.
I'd also say Audi B5 S4, the 2.7TT is lighter than the V8 and being turbo very easy to get a lot more power from.
Evo's and Impreza's are also this sort of money, or a tidy late Jag X-Type 3.0 V6.
If you fancy something a little different you might find some interesting V8 Holdens for this sort of money, or indeed some tasty LHD V8 coupes (assuming an e46 M3 coupe is practical enough for you).
I'd also say Audi B5 S4, the 2.7TT is lighter than the V8 and being turbo very easy to get a lot more power from.
Evo's and Impreza's are also this sort of money, or a tidy late Jag X-Type 3.0 V6.
If you fancy something a little different you might find some interesting V8 Holdens for this sort of money, or indeed some tasty LHD V8 coupes (assuming an e46 M3 coupe is practical enough for you).
okgo said:
Why does the MPG matter?
The difference between 20mpg and 25mpg over a year at average miles is probably the cost of a tyre or something silly.
Someone smarter than me has done the maths before, and it makes very little odds unless you're doing mega miles.
+1 i'm always confused with people thinking about buying a 4.2 V8 but worrying about the MPG. Seriously, if you have to think the MPG you will probably struggle to afford running the car in general, tyres, brakes, servicing or any other problems that may arise with a £40k car will make the MPG meaningless to an extent IMO.The difference between 20mpg and 25mpg over a year at average miles is probably the cost of a tyre or something silly.
Someone smarter than me has done the maths before, and it makes very little odds unless you're doing mega miles.
okgo said:
Why does the MPG matter?
The difference between 20mpg and 25mpg over a year at average miles is probably the cost of a tyre or something silly.
Someone smarter than me has done the maths before, and it makes very little odds unless you're doing mega miles.
Doing 8000 miles a year:The difference between 20mpg and 25mpg over a year at average miles is probably the cost of a tyre or something silly.
Someone smarter than me has done the maths before, and it makes very little odds unless you're doing mega miles.
| Year | Month | |
|---|---|---|
| 20mpg | £2,473.02 | £206.09 |
| 25mpg | £1,978.42 | £164.87 |
Doing 12,000 miles a year:
| Year | Month | |
|---|---|---|
| 20mpg | £3,709.54 | £309.13 |
| 25mpg | £2,967.63 | £247.30 |
The main reason for 25mpg is I had a GTO TT before as a second vehicle. Whilst cruising MPG was surprisingly good, maybe 30mpg+. The problem, of course is the combined figures include a combination of driving and official figures will most likely have been massaged to a certain degree. I found I was getting nearer 10-15mpg on a "sunday drive".
I digress, I spend ~£60/week on fuel @ 30mpg (petrol) currently. for this to drop to 20mpg would be an extra £1,560 per year (maths?) which is a little more than a tyre. For the increased entertainment value I'd have to lower the consumption figure to a degree of course. I'd rather not have to come down to 20mpg.
As an aside, I don't fancy owning 2 cars again.
I remember being taken in an M3 Evo about 12 years ago and my memory was the acceleration was brutal. I'd rule it out, however down to it's (imo) dated looks.
Some very good suggestions I'm looking at now
Keep 'em coming!
I digress, I spend ~£60/week on fuel @ 30mpg (petrol) currently. for this to drop to 20mpg would be an extra £1,560 per year (maths?) which is a little more than a tyre. For the increased entertainment value I'd have to lower the consumption figure to a degree of course. I'd rather not have to come down to 20mpg.
As an aside, I don't fancy owning 2 cars again.
I remember being taken in an M3 Evo about 12 years ago and my memory was the acceleration was brutal. I'd rule it out, however down to it's (imo) dated looks.
Some very good suggestions I'm looking at now
Keep 'em coming!
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