Fun car for £7k

[Bampot]

This has probably been done to death by my search-fu is not the best.

I've been driving for over 20 years but never really been a petrol head. My cars have been rather mundane choices - currently it's a Ford Fiesta 1.1l on a 62 plate.

I'm a biker too so am not averse to waking at 4am on a Summer morning and riding out to Wales from SE London for the day - the Fiesta just doesn't have the same appeal.

I hope to be in a position to get a new (second hand) car later this year and would like to get something that is fun to drive and makes me want to choose it over the bike. Is this possible with a budget of £7k?

If I keep the Fiesta then practicality isn't an issue.
I do 10k miles per year at most, mainly on the motorway to be fair.
I live in Bromley and park in a residents' car park so insurance is an issue.
I would prefer auto/semi-auto as London traffic is killing my left knee.
I'm not a fan of convertibles.

One colleague has suggested a Golf R32. Another has suggested a 20-year-old Jag XK8 because of the number of motorway miles I do.

What other suggestions should I be considering?

I appreciate there are dedicated owners' forums I could register with but I'm quite a way from that yet.

[ZX10R NIN]

Firstly the bike will always be your first choice for a morning blat because at some point traffic will get in the way but that's not to say you won't enjoy the car.

My cars don't match my bike handling wise but they're fun in a different way once you work out if you want from your car then that will help you decide if you want a:

Junior Hot Hatch

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

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

Hot Hatch

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

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

GT

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

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

Sportscar

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

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

or something in between with pace & grace:

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

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

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

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

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

As you can see fun can come in a few different flavours, you just need to work out what it is you're looking for.

[Bampot]

ZX10R NIN said:

Firstly the bike will always be your first choice for a morning blat because at some point traffic will get in the way but that's not to say you won't enjoy the car.

My cars don't match my bike handling wise but they're fun in a different way once you work out if you want from your car then that will help you decide if you want a:

As you can see fun can come in a few different flavours, you just need to work out what it is you're looking for.

Thanks for your rather helpful post ZX10R NIN.

I must admit that I'm moving away from using the bike as a weekend toy, probably because I'm doing 80 miles a day on the bloody thing just to get to/from work.

Lots of food for though on your list, I didn't realize there was so much choice for £7k. The XK8 looks very tempting.

Was chewing the fat with a colleague the other day and he reckons that PCP is a better option than buying secondhand - something I hadn't previously considered but more food for thought.

Thanks again.

[ZX10R NIN]

If you PCP a car you'll always pay more than if it depreciates but there are some crazy lease deals to be found if you hunt around:

Audi S8 (this has the same engine as the RS6) 6x23 with 8k miles per annum at £479 plus vat. For 13k miles per annum it rose to £511 plus vat. Not bad for an £83k car as that's around £15k over 2yrs & the car will depreciate at least double that figure over the same time.

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