which sub 12K sports car ?
Discussion
A friend of mine has 12k to spend and is looking for a sport car that is fast and realiable as he has to drive it to work everyday....he has started to look at the nissan 200sx and also a fiat coupe 20v Turbo. He likes the nissan as it's a lot of car for the money but not sure how good these cars are to live with. Anyone got any suggestions or Experience with this or other models ?
A friend of mine has just got a 20V turbo Fiat (4 years old and under £5k and it's immaculate !) It pulls to an indicated and articicially limited 150mph, although it begins to pull less dramatically after 130mph. Handling and brakes are not bad, but not fantastic (according to him). Nice inside..
Buy a chimaera and get a dirty old car (Like a Renault Clio)
There are loads of Tiv's out there at the minute, and prices are falling, and dealers are stuck with them for the winter now!!!!! You know you want the chimp!!
I just bought one and all the cars I was looking at are now reduced in price.
Otherwise, the Fiat is great, but get a big big warranty as my mates is just haveing the manifold replaced and Fiat and the warranty company are debating who pays.
What would your missus like?
Buy the chimaera!!!!!!
There are loads of Tiv's out there at the minute, and prices are falling, and dealers are stuck with them for the winter now!!!!! You know you want the chimp!!
I just bought one and all the cars I was looking at are now reduced in price.
Otherwise, the Fiat is great, but get a big big warranty as my mates is just haveing the manifold replaced and Fiat and the warranty company are debating who pays.
What would your missus like?
Buy the chimaera!!!!!!
and take them for a spin.... Bet I know which car they want!!quote:
quote:
Hows about an MR2 Turbo. Fast, reliable, RWD and good looks. Can pick up a good one for less than 5K. May even be able to help myself.
Chim, How quick are they and were would he be able to get it serviced ?
Standard un modified has a 0-60 time of under 6 seconds, top speed 155 ish. They handle pretty well too. Being mid engined they are a bit more forgiving than a front engined RWD like a TIV.
However I still managed to step the back out a few times in mine and had a fantastic 360 the first week of ownership.
Servicing isn't a problem, Toyota will service but are quite expensive IMO, a good independent who knows Jap turbos is more than adequate.
Insurance can be steep though, as all MR2 Turbos are Jap imports.
rustoni - i've run both of these as company cars. Both great cars.. RWD in the nissan is good fun, fiat is a blast, as long as you accept that some bits will fall off during your ownership 
Although the build quality isn't great, the car has bags of character.
HOWEVER, for 12k i wouldn't go for either of these (why mess around with these donkeys when you can buy a real sports car!) i'd get myself an esprit or tvr chim, or if practiality is an issue, a 911 with kiddie seats or if you REALLY want practical get an M5. The 3.8's had THREE HUNDRED AND FORTY horsepower, and you can get one easily within your 12k budget.
Just think - when someone in the pub asks "what do you drive?" do you really want to have to say "er.. a nissan"
One other to consider - Porsche 968. These are great value now, and fantastic handling cars.
Although the build quality isn't great, the car has bags of character. HOWEVER, for 12k i wouldn't go for either of these (why mess around with these donkeys when you can buy a real sports car!) i'd get myself an esprit or tvr chim, or if practiality is an issue, a 911 with kiddie seats or if you REALLY want practical get an M5. The 3.8's had THREE HUNDRED AND FORTY horsepower, and you can get one easily within your 12k budget.
Just think - when someone in the pub asks "what do you drive?" do you really want to have to say "er.. a nissan"
One other to consider - Porsche 968. These are great value now, and fantastic handling cars.
Rustoni,
Chims are seriously coming down in price, you only have to look at the 112 on the for sale board on PH today. I looked at a car 6 weeks ago which has just had a grand knocked off and they would have gone to a grand less. If you are patient and have 3 months, you might just get someone who needs to sell and get a bargain. I took 3 months, and had a result at the end.
Otherwise, why not wait til you can get what you really want and get a banger for a year (I had my banger for 5 years til I could afford what I wanted!)
The question is "What does your heart want, and will your head try to overrule?"
Does the timescale matter or are you willing to hang on a while?
Chims are seriously coming down in price, you only have to look at the 112 on the for sale board on PH today. I looked at a car 6 weeks ago which has just had a grand knocked off and they would have gone to a grand less. If you are patient and have 3 months, you might just get someone who needs to sell and get a bargain. I took 3 months, and had a result at the end.
Otherwise, why not wait til you can get what you really want and get a banger for a year (I had my banger for 5 years til I could afford what I wanted!)
The question is "What does your heart want, and will your head try to overrule?"
Does the timescale matter or are you willing to hang on a while?
hmm
mr2 turbo 0-60 5.9s, max speed 149mph, 245bhp (Car Import Guide). pre93 cars have notoriously bad handling on the limit... nasty snap oversteer afflicted early cars.
summary from Performance Car (jesus, I'm sad to still have the review and know where I kept it)...
"On the face of it, the MR2 is a brilliant idea. A sharp-looking, two-seater, mid-engined (how exotic) sportsc car for the price of a common-or-garden coupe.
"Tempting prospect, eh? Well, don't be too tempted because the sassy Toyota has a few foibles too serious to ignore, such as the fact that unintentional oversteer is rather simple to achieve, particularly in the wet, or that its 2 litre motor is a wheezy old lump that needs tharshing to perform.
"Most importabntly though, it's neither as entertaining to drive hard nor as quick as a competent hot hatch. Other than on a spec sheet, that mid-engined configuraiotn is completely wasted."
cant be bother to correct the typos
as for 200 vs Fiat Coupe, there was a heated debate on www.sxoc.com 's forum.
i shouldn't recommend the s14 200's cos it'll just boost up the price or something, but...
"Here's a car for heros. THough its chassis is a bit soft around the edges, the 200sx can set your soul on fire. With 197 turbocharged horses at your bidding, rear-wheel drive, and rather less traction than one might ultimately desire, the 200 is a real challenge to drive hard, but stunningly fast when you do. It has a 'natural' back road speed of about 120mph.
"Slightly dreary looks have stopped the 200sx accelerating into the public's affections, however. Also, people have trouble associating Nissan with a great driving experience, even though most of them do have classy chassis; no-one said life was fair."
I believe there are a couple of current motoring mags that have reviewed the 200sx S14 this month...
besides you can get an older S14 for about 5000...
mr2 turbo 0-60 5.9s, max speed 149mph, 245bhp (Car Import Guide). pre93 cars have notoriously bad handling on the limit... nasty snap oversteer afflicted early cars.
summary from Performance Car (jesus, I'm sad to still have the review and know where I kept it)...
"On the face of it, the MR2 is a brilliant idea. A sharp-looking, two-seater, mid-engined (how exotic) sportsc car for the price of a common-or-garden coupe.
"Tempting prospect, eh? Well, don't be too tempted because the sassy Toyota has a few foibles too serious to ignore, such as the fact that unintentional oversteer is rather simple to achieve, particularly in the wet, or that its 2 litre motor is a wheezy old lump that needs tharshing to perform.
"Most importabntly though, it's neither as entertaining to drive hard nor as quick as a competent hot hatch. Other than on a spec sheet, that mid-engined configuraiotn is completely wasted."
cant be bother to correct the typos
as for 200 vs Fiat Coupe, there was a heated debate on www.sxoc.com 's forum.
i shouldn't recommend the s14 200's cos it'll just boost up the price or something, but...
"Here's a car for heros. THough its chassis is a bit soft around the edges, the 200sx can set your soul on fire. With 197 turbocharged horses at your bidding, rear-wheel drive, and rather less traction than one might ultimately desire, the 200 is a real challenge to drive hard, but stunningly fast when you do. It has a 'natural' back road speed of about 120mph.
"Slightly dreary looks have stopped the 200sx accelerating into the public's affections, however. Also, people have trouble associating Nissan with a great driving experience, even though most of them do have classy chassis; no-one said life was fair."
I believe there are a couple of current motoring mags that have reviewed the 200sx S14 this month...
besides you can get an older S14 for about 5000...
Well, I know you're just waiting for me to be predictable and leap in with my recommendation, so I won't disappoint.
How about a Corrado VR6? £8k for a 96N-plate (they ceased production in 1995) gets you full leather, a 190bhp V6 engine (easily upgradable to about 210bhp with minor mods), 0-60 in 6.4secs, 150mph top speed and one of the finest handling FWD coupe's you can buy, even today.
See www.corrado-vr6.info for more info.
How about a Corrado VR6? £8k for a 96N-plate (they ceased production in 1995) gets you full leather, a 190bhp V6 engine (easily upgradable to about 210bhp with minor mods), 0-60 in 6.4secs, 150mph top speed and one of the finest handling FWD coupe's you can buy, even today.
See www.corrado-vr6.info for more info.
quote:
HOWEVER, for 12k i wouldn't go for either of these (why mess around with these donkeys when you can buy a real sports car!) i'd get myself an esprit or tvr chim, or if practiality is an issue, a 911 with kiddie seats or if you REALLY want practical get an M5. The 3.8's had THREE HUNDRED AND FORTY horsepower, and you can get one easily within your 12k budget.
interesting....
I'm facing a similar issue myself - want a reliable (fast) practical car. It will be replacing a 5 door Impreza WRX (with Prodrive upgrade), so I'm used to estate car levels of space.
Old M5? - how big's the boot on the 5 series?
911? - has anyone (with kids) managed to survive with a 911 as the day to day car?
but on the topic of *real* sports cars - how reliable is a 12k esprit?
How realistic is it to look for a 12k Chim? Are there really that many around?
>> Edited by NDT on Monday 7th October 15:16
For 12k you can get a mint Porsche 944 Turbo. One of the best handling sportscars of all time and very practical. 0-60 in 5.4 seconds, Top speed: 162mph+
Standard output is 250BHP for the later versions and they can be tuned for 300+
Or spend 6.5k like I did and buy an nice 944S2 which still puts out 211BHP, 0-60 in 6 seconds, Top speed 150mph
>> Edited by AJLintern on Monday 7th October 15:36
Standard output is 250BHP for the later versions and they can be tuned for 300+
Or spend 6.5k like I did and buy an nice 944S2 which still puts out 211BHP, 0-60 in 6 seconds, Top speed 150mph
>> Edited by AJLintern on Monday 7th October 15:36
NDT
I replaced a Prodrive Impreza Turbo with an Audi A8, fast, quite good handling and a boot the size of a small African country!! They depreciate for Germany in the first few years so can be had preety cheap now.
Chims for 12K
An ex business colleague of mine has just bought a 97P Chimaera 4.0 64,000 miles for a mere £11,500 makes some of the cars in the classified look a tad expensive.
On all of these though, watch the running costs, some of the cars mentioned when new were serious £££££'s and the cheapest sportscar we ever owned was the 944, cost buttons to run, never went wrong and was sold two years later for the same money that we paid for it!!
just my 2 pence
davidy
I replaced a Prodrive Impreza Turbo with an Audi A8, fast, quite good handling and a boot the size of a small African country!! They depreciate for Germany in the first few years so can be had preety cheap now.
Chims for 12K
An ex business colleague of mine has just bought a 97P Chimaera 4.0 64,000 miles for a mere £11,500 makes some of the cars in the classified look a tad expensive.
On all of these though, watch the running costs, some of the cars mentioned when new were serious £££££'s and the cheapest sportscar we ever owned was the 944, cost buttons to run, never went wrong and was sold two years later for the same money that we paid for it!!
just my 2 pence
davidy
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