Best car for £12-15k

[maxmc2]

Looking for ideas on fun cars for around £12-15k.

Has to be a daily with semi decent mpg but also fun when you want it to be.

Reliable too would be great.

Currently toying with a mk5 golf r32.

Tia

[Mr Tidy]

At that budget I'd be looking for a BMW E46 M3.

[ZX10R NIN]

Megane RS265/275

[CubanPete]

Mx5 nd
130
Gt86

[Shiv_P]

You are looking at M135i territory with that budget. Way too much to spend on a 130i

[designforlife]

Honda FD2 civic type R

£13-14k should get an excellent example...and you won't lose any money on one as values are only heading up.

[95JO]

Pre-FL M135i or E90/92 335i

[LordGrover]

Boxster. More practical and way more fun than many think.

Edited by LordGrover on Tuesday 12th February 14:25

[Alex_225]

If you want reasonable MPG then any 2.0 turbo charged hot hatch would likely return something pretty decent. I'm a RenaultSport fan so I'd consider the Megane but that's just me.

If I didn't care about the fuel economy, I'd be looking at something with a V8 and an AMG badge. Again though that's just me.

[300bhp/ton]

maxmc2 said:

Looking for ideas on fun cars for around £12-15k.

Has to be a daily with semi decent mpg but also fun when you want it to be.

Reliable too would be great.

Currently toying with a mk5 golf r32.

Tia

Fun and a Golf???

Sorry, not my cup of tea at all. I know the R32 has some go and might sound ok with an aftermarket exhaust. But it's a pretty dull car really and even more dull to look at or sit in.

How many seats do you need?

[maxmc2]

My weekend car is a monaro so probably wouldn't want a V8, not really bothered about seat numbers either.

I know what you mean about the golfs especially the mk5 r32's they just dont seem to offer anything over the gti's other than engine, i do like the golf r's though.

[300bhp/ton]

maxmc2 said:

My weekend car is a monaro so probably wouldn't want a V8, not really bothered about seat numbers either.

I know what you mean about the golfs especially the mk5 r32's they just dont seem to offer anything over the gti's other than engine, i do like the golf r's though.

Could you not promote your Monaro to daily?

What sort of mpg would you consider reasonable. I'm not sure the V6 (think the MK5 is a V6) is really going to offer significantly better mpg than the Monaro does. Or will you be doing big mileages?

And what sort of roads will you be driving on?

For "fun" I think you'd have to go a long way to find anything better than an MX-5 (4th gen ND), which should be near your budget. And should be fairly frugal. And importantly, a different driving sensation from the Monaro.

[ZX10R NIN]

RS250 Lux with the Cup Chassis & Recaros

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

265 Cup

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

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

These would be a good fillet to your Monaro & they're a cracking drive.

Other options:

Fiat 124

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

370Z GT

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

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

Honda S2000

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

Infiniti G37

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

[300bhp/ton]

ZX10R NIN said:

Fiat 124

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

I've not looked, but is that price correct? 2016 car, 6000 miles and £12k today on a car costing £30k new. Seems a little too good to be true.

[Mafffew]

300bhp/ton said:

ZX10R NIN said:

Fiat 124

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

I've not looked, but is that price correct? 2016 car, 6000 miles and £12k today on a car costing £30k new. Seems a little too good to be true.

I believe you're thinking of the Abarth 124, the Fiat 124 is around £23k new.

[Ash170990]

Fiesta ST180. great fun and i get around 33mph on my commute which is just a short journey (3 miles each way)

[nunpuncher]

Can it go faster than 33mph?

[300bhp/ton]

Mafffew said:

I believe you're thinking of the Abarth 124, the Fiat 124 is around £23k new.

Maybe that's it.

[maxmc2]

Thanks for all the replies guys much appreciated, some little gems out there, going to have to do some serious thinking here.