Interesting stop gap car, up to £5k
Discussion
With very heavy heart, I'm in the process of selling my 996 to make way for an E-Up arriving (I know, I'm not thrilled about it either!).
If it sells quickly, I'm going to need a stop gap car for a few weeks as the delivery of the new car keeps being pushed back. I quite fancy taking the opportunity to own something a little bit interesting, quirky, fun, silly that I perhaps might never get around to owning otherwise. Obviously it will depend what is available semi locally at the time but just fishing for ideas.
Being totally sensible about this, I want to keep it cheap because it would be daft to expose myself to losing significant money if I bought a wrong-un or something difficult to sell on after. It also needs to seat me and under 10's with relative ease. It probably ought to be somewhat robust, it needs to work for a few weeks and then be sold for similar money. Even for a temporary car, I'd want to be able to get a good example in budget. I hate selling on cars with faults and I detest rust! Otherwise, I'm open to ideas.
Things I've thought about and not necessarily dismissed
Early Swift Sport
Panda 100hp
Panda 4x4
Jimny
Alfa GTV (worried about this one but it's tempting!)
Clio 172/182
Audi A2 (they intrigue me from a nerd perspective but not sure I'd get much out of owning one)
Impreza WRX (5 door hatch)
I briefly pondered something convertible then I remembered it's October and I live in the North East so not sure there is any point.
If it sells quickly, I'm going to need a stop gap car for a few weeks as the delivery of the new car keeps being pushed back. I quite fancy taking the opportunity to own something a little bit interesting, quirky, fun, silly that I perhaps might never get around to owning otherwise. Obviously it will depend what is available semi locally at the time but just fishing for ideas.
Being totally sensible about this, I want to keep it cheap because it would be daft to expose myself to losing significant money if I bought a wrong-un or something difficult to sell on after. It also needs to seat me and under 10's with relative ease. It probably ought to be somewhat robust, it needs to work for a few weeks and then be sold for similar money. Even for a temporary car, I'd want to be able to get a good example in budget. I hate selling on cars with faults and I detest rust! Otherwise, I'm open to ideas.
Things I've thought about and not necessarily dismissed
Early Swift Sport
Panda 100hp
Panda 4x4
Jimny
Alfa GTV (worried about this one but it's tempting!)
Clio 172/182
Audi A2 (they intrigue me from a nerd perspective but not sure I'd get much out of owning one)
Impreza WRX (5 door hatch)
I briefly pondered something convertible then I remembered it's October and I live in the North East so not sure there is any point.
I drove my GTV every day for two years and the only thing that went wrong was the rear brake booster, a £30 part. Wouldn't have any reservations about owning one that's been looked after especially if you are only keeping it a short time.
However it took forever to sell so if you're worried about that then you might need to sell it cheaply to move it on once the new motor arrives!
However it took forever to sell so if you're worried about that then you might need to sell it cheaply to move it on once the new motor arrives!
Most of those are pretty small - any particular reason for tending that way?
If it were me, I'd probably see it as a golden opportunity for to squeeze in a (possibly last) big and interesting lump... Which most likely means a bigger car.
Being a particular fan of Volvo's it'd probably be an S80 4.4v8 or 3.2 i6 - I'm sure plenty of others will recommend a similar thing with different brand preferences, but that's mine!
If it were me, I'd probably see it as a golden opportunity for to squeeze in a (possibly last) big and interesting lump... Which most likely means a bigger car.
Being a particular fan of Volvo's it'd probably be an S80 4.4v8 or 3.2 i6 - I'm sure plenty of others will recommend a similar thing with different brand preferences, but that's mine!
its nearly winter so 4 wheel drive will be easier to shift on in a couple of months
its practical, and hilarious fun
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207177...
its practical, and hilarious fun
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207177...
Gad-Westy said:
With very heavy heart, I'm in the process of selling my 996 to make way for an E-Up arriving (I know, I'm not thrilled about it either!).
If it sells quickly, I'm going to need a stop gap car for a few weeks as the delivery of the new car keeps being pushed back. I quite fancy taking the opportunity to own something a little bit interesting, quirky, fun, silly that I perhaps might never get around to owning otherwise. Obviously it will depend what is available semi locally at the time but just fishing for ideas.
Being totally sensible about this, I want to keep it cheap because it would be daft to expose myself to losing significant money if I bought a wrong-un or something difficult to sell on after. It also needs to seat me and under 10's with relative ease. It probably ought to be somewhat robust, it needs to work for a few weeks and then be sold for similar money. Even for a temporary car, I'd want to be able to get a good example in budget. I hate selling on cars with faults and I detest rust! Otherwise, I'm open to ideas.
Things I've thought about and not necessarily dismissed
Early Swift Sport
Panda 100hp
Panda 4x4
Jimny
Alfa GTV (worried about this one but it's tempting!)
Clio 172/182
Audi A2 (they intrigue me from a nerd perspective but not sure I'd get much out of owning one)
Impreza WRX (5 door hatch)
I briefly pondered something convertible then I remembered it's October and I live in the North East so not sure there is any point.
My two picks are the best Focus ST you can find:If it sells quickly, I'm going to need a stop gap car for a few weeks as the delivery of the new car keeps being pushed back. I quite fancy taking the opportunity to own something a little bit interesting, quirky, fun, silly that I perhaps might never get around to owning otherwise. Obviously it will depend what is available semi locally at the time but just fishing for ideas.
Being totally sensible about this, I want to keep it cheap because it would be daft to expose myself to losing significant money if I bought a wrong-un or something difficult to sell on after. It also needs to seat me and under 10's with relative ease. It probably ought to be somewhat robust, it needs to work for a few weeks and then be sold for similar money. Even for a temporary car, I'd want to be able to get a good example in budget. I hate selling on cars with faults and I detest rust! Otherwise, I'm open to ideas.
Things I've thought about and not necessarily dismissed
Early Swift Sport
Panda 100hp
Panda 4x4
Jimny
Alfa GTV (worried about this one but it's tempting!)
Clio 172/182
Audi A2 (they intrigue me from a nerd perspective but not sure I'd get much out of owning one)
Impreza WRX (5 door hatch)
I briefly pondered something convertible then I remembered it's October and I live in the North East so not sure there is any point.
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202112230...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202209270...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202208309...
Or the CLK500:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202208098...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202202022...
Rare 5.5:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/334588618268?hash=item4...
Hippea said:
Honda Civic Type R EP3
Quite like this idea greeneggsnsam said:
I drove my GTV every day for two years and the only thing that went wrong was the rear brake booster, a £30 part. Wouldn't have any reservations about owning one that's been looked after especially if you are only keeping it a short time.
However it took forever to sell so if you're worried about that then you might need to sell it cheaply to move it on once the new motor arrives!
That's good to hear (other than selling bit). I do feel I missed out on these back in the day so do like the idea of giving one a try even if it's not the most sensible answer to the question. I assume there is enough space in the back to have one small child if another small child is sat in front of them? There is a high mile V6 for sale at present that is very tempting. No room for it until the 996 goes though. However it took forever to sell so if you're worried about that then you might need to sell it cheaply to move it on once the new motor arrives!
Brassblaster said:
Most of those are pretty small - any particular reason for tending that way?
If it were me, I'd probably see it as a golden opportunity for to squeeze in a (possibly last) big and interesting lump... Which most likely means a bigger car.
Being a particular fan of Volvo's it'd probably be an S80 4.4v8 or 3.2 i6 - I'm sure plenty of others will recommend a similar thing with different brand preferences, but that's mine!
Not totally adverse to a larger car but I do already have a 3l petrol 5-series as the sensible family car so gravitating to something a little opposite. Hot hatches appal a bit because there were maybe a few that I fancied when younger but never got around to owning. The Clio definitely falls into that category though EP3 suggestion above appeals too. If it were me, I'd probably see it as a golden opportunity for to squeeze in a (possibly last) big and interesting lump... Which most likely means a bigger car.
Being a particular fan of Volvo's it'd probably be an S80 4.4v8 or 3.2 i6 - I'm sure plenty of others will recommend a similar thing with different brand preferences, but that's mine!
On the larger car front a Lexus LS might be nice!
andburg said:
its nearly winter so 4 wheel drive will be easier to shift on in a couple of months
its practical, and hilarious fun
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207177...
Never really liked the Forester though I know they're really popular. Can't say why they don't float my boat. its practical, and hilarious fun
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207177...
ZX10R NIN said:
My two picks are the best Focus ST you can find:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202112230...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202209270...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202208309...
Or the CLK500:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202208098...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202202022...
Rare 5.5:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/334588618268?hash=item4...
Quite like the Merc suggestions and Focus, cheers. https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202112230...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202209270...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202208309...
Or the CLK500:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202208098...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202202022...
Rare 5.5:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/334588618268?hash=item4...
I should probably caveat this whole thread by saying that this could all come to nothing if the EV arrives before the Porsche goes. Good to have a plan though!
Brassblaster said:
Being a particular fan of Volvo's it'd probably be an S80 4.4v8 or 3.2 i6 - I'm sure plenty of others will recommend a similar thing with different brand preferences, but that's mine!
Was looking at this £4,995 S80 4.4 V8 yesterday. 92,000 miles, a full Volvo history and an advisory-free MOT from three days ago: https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202209270...Bar the selling-a-£630-to-tax-V8-Volvo-in-an-economic-meltdown factor, it looks like a safe bet…
Well to draw this topic to a close. I bought a 2013 Panda 4x4 Twin Air.
I did actually consider quite a few suggestions on this list but I started to get a bit of a pang of sensibility which I can only apologise for.
I ruled out a number of hot hatch and Coupe options quite early on because many of the more interesting options were 3 doors and I couldn't be bothered with more of that on the school run any more. I also found that so many hot hatches at this end of the market were heavily abused in one way or another.
Lots of stuff was ruled out on the grounds of distance from me as I was just too busy to go take hours out of time over the last couple of weeks.
I really liked the idea of a C6 or something similarly quirky but started to get concerns that I could just inherit a load of headaches if I was unlucky for the sake of only a few weeks of ownership.
I started to focus on 4x4 options on the basis that if we had it for longer than expected, it could serve us well in winter but if we didn't need it for long, it could equally sell easily in winter. I looked at a Jimny but 3 doors again obviously and the one I looked at was terrible in almost every way.
I really fancied a 120 Series Land Cruiser but rapidly realised I'd really need to spend a little bit of money on a reasonable one and be prepared to travel anywhere to buy one.
That left me with the Panda on my original list which appealed for its simplicity, 5 doors and £30 tax. That last bit gives me half a chance of keeping it as a winter car long term but we'll see. I did look at a couple of these but the one I bought was bought privately from an enthusiastic owner and has four good winter tyres already fitted. Most stuff at this end of the market has four different never-heard-of-them brands on each corner.
Pretty pleased with it so far. It's certainly not quick, has quite a narrow power band and has zero steering feel but it reminds me a bit of our old Smart FourTwo in that it's quite fun to push along without ever doing daft speeds. It's not particularly economical though. 35-40mpg for 0.9 litre small car seems pretty thirsty.
Just need a big dump of snow our lane this winter as I have high hopes that it will be unstoppable!
I did actually consider quite a few suggestions on this list but I started to get a bit of a pang of sensibility which I can only apologise for.
I ruled out a number of hot hatch and Coupe options quite early on because many of the more interesting options were 3 doors and I couldn't be bothered with more of that on the school run any more. I also found that so many hot hatches at this end of the market were heavily abused in one way or another.
Lots of stuff was ruled out on the grounds of distance from me as I was just too busy to go take hours out of time over the last couple of weeks.
I really liked the idea of a C6 or something similarly quirky but started to get concerns that I could just inherit a load of headaches if I was unlucky for the sake of only a few weeks of ownership.
I started to focus on 4x4 options on the basis that if we had it for longer than expected, it could serve us well in winter but if we didn't need it for long, it could equally sell easily in winter. I looked at a Jimny but 3 doors again obviously and the one I looked at was terrible in almost every way.
I really fancied a 120 Series Land Cruiser but rapidly realised I'd really need to spend a little bit of money on a reasonable one and be prepared to travel anywhere to buy one.
That left me with the Panda on my original list which appealed for its simplicity, 5 doors and £30 tax. That last bit gives me half a chance of keeping it as a winter car long term but we'll see. I did look at a couple of these but the one I bought was bought privately from an enthusiastic owner and has four good winter tyres already fitted. Most stuff at this end of the market has four different never-heard-of-them brands on each corner.
Pretty pleased with it so far. It's certainly not quick, has quite a narrow power band and has zero steering feel but it reminds me a bit of our old Smart FourTwo in that it's quite fun to push along without ever doing daft speeds. It's not particularly economical though. 35-40mpg for 0.9 litre small car seems pretty thirsty.
Just need a big dump of snow our lane this winter as I have high hopes that it will be unstoppable!
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