What car - £10k - 4 seat coupe/convertible
Discussion
Sadly, the big Jaguar that’s done sterling service for both me (twice) and my dad (once) for the last 7 years looks like it might not be long for this world.
A plethora of warning codes that used to disappear and reappear have now very much appeared. Coupled with creaking noises from the suspension and the likely need to buy 4 new tyres to get it through the MOT in September means it’s likely to be destined for the great big scrapyard in the sky. Or more likely to be made into bean cans in a waste processing centre on a nondescript industrial estate near Widnes.
As such, I’m likely to be in the market for a new car.
It needs;
4 seats (or space for a golden retriever)
Heated Seats
Bluetooth stereo (or easy fitment thereof, without resorting to a hateful fm transmitter)
Coupe/Convertible Preferred
Not 4 cylinder
Relatively quick - I’m coming from a 4.2 x350 Jaguar, previously had a Touareg (hateful) an m135i (expensively fast) and an MX-5 (fun). Currently driving my wife’s Volvo v40, which whilst it’s not slow, isn’t going to set the world on fire. It also sounds awful under acceleration.
Relatively interesting; it’ll go on at least 1 European road-trip a year. Two up, so space for luggage is preferable too, as is something that handles well enough to make the most of being near the Yorkshire Dales.
The kicker; I currently commute 60 miles/day. 40 on motorway/a road. 10 through the suburbs and 10 on mostly country roads. It’s looking quite likely that I’ll be moving to a job that will have a 12 mile/day commute.
Solely on country lanes, but will have the odd bigger trip to see clients etc.
So whilst another big barge would be ideal for the daily grind, the prospect of a smaller commute on small lanes renders a big diesel s-class or similar redundant.
Cars I’ve looked at so-far;
Porsche 996 - as a daily might wear thin.
Porsche Boxster (dog in footwell, not ideal)
BMW e92 - know next to nothing about them. 6 cylinder cars harder to find without a black interior)
Merc E-Class - do they understeer terminally?
Jag XK - Dog?
Audi A5 cab - do they understeer terminally?
Audi TT - do they understeer terminally?
Preference is for the Jag in coupe form (I’ve already got a Man) but I don’t know if I’ll fit the dog in the back.
Anything I’m missing?
What would you buy in my situation? Or would you spend £2k fixing a car worth £1k?
A plethora of warning codes that used to disappear and reappear have now very much appeared. Coupled with creaking noises from the suspension and the likely need to buy 4 new tyres to get it through the MOT in September means it’s likely to be destined for the great big scrapyard in the sky. Or more likely to be made into bean cans in a waste processing centre on a nondescript industrial estate near Widnes.
As such, I’m likely to be in the market for a new car.
It needs;
4 seats (or space for a golden retriever)
Heated Seats
Bluetooth stereo (or easy fitment thereof, without resorting to a hateful fm transmitter)
Coupe/Convertible Preferred
Not 4 cylinder
Relatively quick - I’m coming from a 4.2 x350 Jaguar, previously had a Touareg (hateful) an m135i (expensively fast) and an MX-5 (fun). Currently driving my wife’s Volvo v40, which whilst it’s not slow, isn’t going to set the world on fire. It also sounds awful under acceleration.
Relatively interesting; it’ll go on at least 1 European road-trip a year. Two up, so space for luggage is preferable too, as is something that handles well enough to make the most of being near the Yorkshire Dales.
The kicker; I currently commute 60 miles/day. 40 on motorway/a road. 10 through the suburbs and 10 on mostly country roads. It’s looking quite likely that I’ll be moving to a job that will have a 12 mile/day commute.
Solely on country lanes, but will have the odd bigger trip to see clients etc.
So whilst another big barge would be ideal for the daily grind, the prospect of a smaller commute on small lanes renders a big diesel s-class or similar redundant.
Cars I’ve looked at so-far;
Porsche 996 - as a daily might wear thin.
Porsche Boxster (dog in footwell, not ideal)
BMW e92 - know next to nothing about them. 6 cylinder cars harder to find without a black interior)
Merc E-Class - do they understeer terminally?
Jag XK - Dog?
Audi A5 cab - do they understeer terminally?
Audi TT - do they understeer terminally?
Preference is for the Jag in coupe form (I’ve already got a Man) but I don’t know if I’ll fit the dog in the back.
Anything I’m missing?
What would you buy in my situation? Or would you spend £2k fixing a car worth £1k?
Given some of the cars you've already mentioned, i'm going to take a gamble and say your budget is really looking at £15 - 20k?
You obviously love the Jag. The XK however is not doable. It's too shallow and tight for a decent sized pooch.
You'll struggle really i think with a coupe/vert that is a bit more modern and take a pooch that is fun to drive and comfortable with a dog.
You've listed most of the cars i would suggest.
The E-Class coupe would probably be the most comfortable and they are fairly good to drive and maybe large enough to accomodate the dog too.
I would suggest now that there are more estates that are fun that would give you room for the dog - and i hate to go against the brief, but, i would end up looking in that direction depending on your budget.
You obviously love the Jag. The XK however is not doable. It's too shallow and tight for a decent sized pooch.
You'll struggle really i think with a coupe/vert that is a bit more modern and take a pooch that is fun to drive and comfortable with a dog.
You've listed most of the cars i would suggest.
The E-Class coupe would probably be the most comfortable and they are fairly good to drive and maybe large enough to accomodate the dog too.
I would suggest now that there are more estates that are fun that would give you room for the dog - and i hate to go against the brief, but, i would end up looking in that direction depending on your budget.
stevekoz said:
Given some of the cars you've already mentioned, i'm going to take a gamble and say your budget is really looking at £15 - 20k?
You obviously love the Jag. The XK however is not doable. It's too shallow and tight for a decent sized pooch.
You'll struggle really i think with a coupe/vert that is a bit more modern and take a pooch that is fun to drive and comfortable with a dog.
You've listed most of the cars i would suggest.
The E-Class coupe would probably be the most comfortable and they are fairly good to drive and maybe large enough to accomodate the dog too.
I would suggest now that there are more estates that are fun that would give you room for the dog - and i hate to go against the brief, but, i would end up looking in that direction depending on your budget.
To be honest, I’m working on the principle that if the dog can fit on the back seat of a 3 door 1 series, he can fit on the back seat of a coupe.You obviously love the Jag. The XK however is not doable. It's too shallow and tight for a decent sized pooch.
You'll struggle really i think with a coupe/vert that is a bit more modern and take a pooch that is fun to drive and comfortable with a dog.
You've listed most of the cars i would suggest.
The E-Class coupe would probably be the most comfortable and they are fairly good to drive and maybe large enough to accomodate the dog too.
I would suggest now that there are more estates that are fun that would give you room for the dog - and i hate to go against the brief, but, i would end up looking in that direction depending on your budget.
I did think about an estate, but 3 series/c-class ones are a bit of a cop out. If I was having one, I suspect I’d want an E-class/5 series.
The other alternative is a 2010 Range Rover, which is neither sporty nor fast, but does fit a dog in the boot and would fit a load of french wine in the boot on return from next year’s holiday.
Edited by Tom_Spotley_When on Tuesday 11th August 11:39
I recently went through a similar search as yourself - but with the requirement for space for a baby rather than a dog.
The one missing from your list would be a Audi S5. You can get a coupe 07/08 with the 4.2 V8 and a manual for 10k. I looked at these for a while as, although an XK would be my preference, the audi's rear seats are far more usable. From research, look for one that has had a new clutch and flywheel fairly recently and also to check the front arches, as 2 I saw had gone a little crusty.
All that said, I went for an XFR for similar money in the end.
The one missing from your list would be a Audi S5. You can get a coupe 07/08 with the 4.2 V8 and a manual for 10k. I looked at these for a while as, although an XK would be my preference, the audi's rear seats are far more usable. From research, look for one that has had a new clutch and flywheel fairly recently and also to check the front arches, as 2 I saw had gone a little crusty.
All that said, I went for an XFR for similar money in the end.
I have an E500 coupe & no it doesn't have terminal understeer they're actually a very decent steer:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...
Audi S5
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...
Monaro
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...
Audi S5
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...
Monaro
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...
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