Performance and practicality for £12kish
Discussion
Hello there,
After years of exploring the limits of fairly low-powered stuff, I find myself able to purchase a vehicle with performance fairly well up the priority list.
Needs to have a decent boot and rear legroom for rear-facing child seats, 200+ horsebeans and dependable. I enjoy changing gear, too, so manual preferred. And petrol too.
So far the Octavia VRS mk3 is top of the tree. Incredible value, though the good ones are getting snapped up well quick.
Also looking at Focus ST wagons, but the rear legroom in them might come not be enough.
I'm open to all manner of suggestions. Budget a bit flexible for a stonker. Cheers!
After years of exploring the limits of fairly low-powered stuff, I find myself able to purchase a vehicle with performance fairly well up the priority list.
Needs to have a decent boot and rear legroom for rear-facing child seats, 200+ horsebeans and dependable. I enjoy changing gear, too, so manual preferred. And petrol too.
So far the Octavia VRS mk3 is top of the tree. Incredible value, though the good ones are getting snapped up well quick.
Also looking at Focus ST wagons, but the rear legroom in them might come not be enough.
I'm open to all manner of suggestions. Budget a bit flexible for a stonker. Cheers!
Thanks for the suggestions so far chaps.
After a bit of pondering time I've concluded an estate with some poke is the best bet for my needs.
I'm still favouring the Octavia but have discovered Vauxhall did a 200bhp Astra Sports Tourer which is relatively swift but not at all showy. Tons of kit in Elite trim, and I suspect it would be enjoyable, but possibly with less fun factor than the Skoda.
There's a nice looking Astra for sale at the mo for around £9.5k. Whereas the decent Octavias are knocking around the £13k mark.
Would I rather have a less fun car with a £3.5k bonus, or a £13k car which will bring a few more smiles?
Entertainment is fairly high up the agenda which is why I am still leaning in the Skoda's direction.
The 328i in wagon form is also an interesting option but I fear running costs/maintenance/bork factor could be a bit higher on that.
@ZX10R NIN, if you have any thoughts on the Astra I'd be interested to hear them. It is tremendously well equipped (heated rear seats!) and reviews suggests it is fairly decent to drive, if not mesmerising. Though perhaps the Octavia wouldn't be mesmerising either, but it seems the more amusing prospect.
After a bit of pondering time I've concluded an estate with some poke is the best bet for my needs.
I'm still favouring the Octavia but have discovered Vauxhall did a 200bhp Astra Sports Tourer which is relatively swift but not at all showy. Tons of kit in Elite trim, and I suspect it would be enjoyable, but possibly with less fun factor than the Skoda.
There's a nice looking Astra for sale at the mo for around £9.5k. Whereas the decent Octavias are knocking around the £13k mark.
Would I rather have a less fun car with a £3.5k bonus, or a £13k car which will bring a few more smiles?
Entertainment is fairly high up the agenda which is why I am still leaning in the Skoda's direction.
The 328i in wagon form is also an interesting option but I fear running costs/maintenance/bork factor could be a bit higher on that.
@ZX10R NIN, if you have any thoughts on the Astra I'd be interested to hear them. It is tremendously well equipped (heated rear seats!) and reviews suggests it is fairly decent to drive, if not mesmerising. Though perhaps the Octavia wouldn't be mesmerising either, but it seems the more amusing prospect.
Thanks again.
We already have a 2012 Mondeo wagon with the 1.6 160bhp Ecoboost, it's been brilliant, had it nearly three years now. Keeping that for a good while
I had the Focus estate on my list for a while but space in the rear was a concern. However I've not sat in the back of one yet, so I need to get out to have a proper look, see how the child seat does etc. There's one not too far away from me so I might have chance to check one out soon.
If there's enough space in the back the Focus will be hard to ignore. It might not have the 5-pot warble but it still looks rather splendid and goes well.
Shame about the Astra gearing, I wonder if it's as long as the Colt I'm running which will do over 90 in 3rd on derestricted autobahn.
We already have a 2012 Mondeo wagon with the 1.6 160bhp Ecoboost, it's been brilliant, had it nearly three years now. Keeping that for a good while
I had the Focus estate on my list for a while but space in the rear was a concern. However I've not sat in the back of one yet, so I need to get out to have a proper look, see how the child seat does etc. There's one not too far away from me so I might have chance to check one out soon.
If there's enough space in the back the Focus will be hard to ignore. It might not have the 5-pot warble but it still looks rather splendid and goes well.
Shame about the Astra gearing, I wonder if it's as long as the Colt I'm running which will do over 90 in 3rd on derestricted autobahn.
griffter said:
I’ll put this out there as you’ve mentioned the Astra. It’s a little over budget and not a manual (but a decent Getrag dual clutch flappy paddle used elsewhere in the Renault Sport range). These are rare so here goes:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...
Wow, I had no idea about those. Pretty nice! https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...
How reliable are those gearboxes?
ChrisH72 said:
If you already have the mondeo estate, why are you looking for another estate which will be basically the same?
I’m not being funny, just checking you’ve thought this through.
From what you’ve said the Octavia is probably the right choice. Never driven one myself but I’m sure they’re great cars. But it’ll be just like the Ford you already have, a bit quicker maybe.
Could you use the mondeo for family duties and open up the options a bit?
I have asked myself this quite a few times as at first it seemed daft having two decent sized estates. I’m not being funny, just checking you’ve thought this through.
From what you’ve said the Octavia is probably the right choice. Never driven one myself but I’m sure they’re great cars. But it’ll be just like the Ford you already have, a bit quicker maybe.
Could you use the mondeo for family duties and open up the options a bit?
My wife loves the Mondeo so it's effectively become her car for commuting etc. When she's not working she'll use it for local trips with kids in the back.
Meanwhile I use the second car for getting to my own workplace (or at least I would be when I'm not working from home) and nursery drop-offs/collection.
There have been times when one car had to be used instead of the other to carry children if one of us ended up working late or one of the cars was broken or being serviced or something. It seems a bit excessive perhaps, but having the flexibility of both cars being a decent size seems to work for us.
A couple of years ago I considered changing our second car to something like a Roomster, which is generous in the back and has a decent boot. And although the 1.2 TSI version with 105bhp wouldn't be slow, I am in a position to get something with a decent amount of performance this time around and really want to experience that while I have the opportunity to do so.
I wonder if there are any more conventional hatches with decent rear legroom and a boot that can easily swallow the usual baby clobber?
I hate unconcluded threads—time for an update!
Last week the car arrived. Helpfully, someone came to view my old car (Mitsu Colt) and agreed to buy it on the same day the new motor was delivered.
So what did I get?
2016 Skoda Octavia vRS TSI 230 hatch. With a manual 'box. Despite the love for the DSG I'd still rather row my own cogs for now.
I very nearly bought a standard 2015 220 vRS but the dealer's walkaround video revealed a rougher car than its 25k miles implied. Meanwhile, the 230 was lurking online without pictures or much information at all really, and turned out to be a hidden gem.
Really liking the extras the 230 came with—heated seats, extra power of course, VAQ diff, I even like the 19" wheels which look a lot nicer in the flesh than pictures. Also the black exhaust tips, mirrors, grille etc work well on a Moon White car.
Absolutely loving it so far. The power is breathtaking. Weird to think 230bhp is fairly low by modern standards. I thought the Colt did a decent job blasting around with 94 horses, and now I have an extra 136, though if internet people are to be believed, it'd put out a fair few more on a dyno.
Last week the car arrived. Helpfully, someone came to view my old car (Mitsu Colt) and agreed to buy it on the same day the new motor was delivered.
So what did I get?
2016 Skoda Octavia vRS TSI 230 hatch. With a manual 'box. Despite the love for the DSG I'd still rather row my own cogs for now.
I very nearly bought a standard 2015 220 vRS but the dealer's walkaround video revealed a rougher car than its 25k miles implied. Meanwhile, the 230 was lurking online without pictures or much information at all really, and turned out to be a hidden gem.
Really liking the extras the 230 came with—heated seats, extra power of course, VAQ diff, I even like the 19" wheels which look a lot nicer in the flesh than pictures. Also the black exhaust tips, mirrors, grille etc work well on a Moon White car.
Absolutely loving it so far. The power is breathtaking. Weird to think 230bhp is fairly low by modern standards. I thought the Colt did a decent job blasting around with 94 horses, and now I have an extra 136, though if internet people are to be believed, it'd put out a fair few more on a dyno.
MiniMan64 said:
Nice one and welcome to the club! They’re great do it all cars, I got mine at the end of January
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Hey man I was looking at your thread during the long wait for delivery of mine. Love the Race Blue! I see yours has a healthy dose of extra grunt, must be pretty fun in a straight line.https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Even with just 230 beans I'm finding myself heading for the brake pedal soon after indulging in some full-throttle fun, in a bid to keep out of trouble. Some great, annoyingly straight roads around here. I just know plod will be waiting around the corner as soon as I let my guard down.
Thanks to all for the comments. I will get an RR thread going one day, it's been quite a journey to this point after buying a 45bhp Fiat Panda 17 years ago for 360 quid.
Meanwhile, it's becoming clear the P Zeros on my car are absolutely dog eggs. It's like driving in snow sometimes. Hopefully they won't last long!
Here's a quick pic!
The biggest surprise on this car has been the gearbox. It's got just the right throw on it and shifts really sweetly. The ratios are well chosen, too, with 2nd, 3rd and 4th feeling quite close together.
VAG aren't renowned for good shift action so I went in with quite low expectations. Pleasantly surprised by the 'box after a week's use.
The biggest surprise on this car has been the gearbox. It's got just the right throw on it and shifts really sweetly. The ratios are well chosen, too, with 2nd, 3rd and 4th feeling quite close together.
VAG aren't renowned for good shift action so I went in with quite low expectations. Pleasantly surprised by the 'box after a week's use.
Edited by Fuzzarr on Wednesday 3rd March 23:12
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