Thursday 27th September 2018

£100K Garage: Jon Spriggs

More than half the budget on a Defender, but enough left for a V8 Mustang, BMW track car and more...

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Name: Jon Spriggs
Previously owned: Mini F57 JCW, VW Golf R Mk7, plus an array of other Minis, Jags and Land Rovers.
Currently owned: Triumph Stag, Volkswagen Beetle x2 and a classic Mini. 
On the shortlist:

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Ford Mustang GT
Cost: £33,390
Balance: £66,610
Why I chose it: "It's something worth celebrating in this day and age that you can still buy a Mustang with a big, naturally aspirated V8 and a manual gearbox.  No, they might not be the last word in refinement and handling, but over 400bhp and muscle car looks win me over.  Best get one quick before the nanny state means the only Mustang you can buy features Ecoboost in its name.

"I'd love to fire up the V8, hit the open road, whack some Kenny Chesney on the Shaker sound system and pretend I'm back on the I-40 cruising down from the Grand Canyon back towards LA."

Land Rover Defender 110 Heritage
Cost: £52,950
Balance: £13,660
Why I chose it: "I should have bought one of these when they were announced, and now you pay a premium for the privilege of missing out.  One of the last of the line Heritage Edition Land Rovers surely must be a great investment for the next 10 years.  Buy a good one and look after it, but use it, and you won't lose a penny.  Yes, you could spend £15,000 less on a normal 110, but in years to come, these Heritage ones will become like hens' teeth as more and more are squirreled away into private collections - the time to buy one and use one is now.

"As we all know, the Land Rover is the perfect do-anything truck.  It'll take you camping through the roughest fields, it'll double up as a van for tip runs, and it'll tow 3.5 tonnes, so would be perfect for towing my next choice..."

BMW 318iS track car
Cost: £6,450
Balance: £7,210
Why I chose it: "Surely one of the best ways to turn up at a track event, in a beautiful scarlet red E30 BMW Coupe.  My Mum had a 320i Convertible (G733 VMD) back when they were relatively new.  Always loved the shape, and the sound of that glorious straight six. I couldn't think of a better way to spend a weekend than trotting down to Goodwood in my Land Rover, and have a blat round in the E30. This one looks to have most of the sensible mods done for safety and handling, so it'd just be a case of cracking on and enjoying. 

"So, £7k left in the kitty.  Well I guess, a few grand will go on a decent trailer for the E30, so let's for argument sake say I have £4,000 left."

Saab 9-5 Aero
Cost: £2,995
Balance: £1,005
Why I chose it: "The Saab is the wolf in disguise! Cloaked in a relatively subdued, non-shouty exterior, underneath it packs 250hp and by all accounts is decent to drive.  I like the light colour interior on this one, and it looks ideal for soaking up a few long journeys, and being able blend into its surroundings when you park up at the end of them to help lower the risk of someone running a key down its flank.  Loads of toys considering it is nine years old, even ventilated seats.  A wonderful comfy backup car to have sat on the driveway ready to go."

 

 

[WCZ]

hmm.

[pb8g09]

Each to their own, but for me if I looked out onto my driveway at those cars, I'd feel I'd wasted a lot of money... (Mustang aside perhaps)

[re33]

Sounds like you might not have ever driven a defender and a 318 track car is going to be as dull as dishwater but it's your own fake money so why not! :-)

[Turbobanana]

Surely you could get just as much Defender for half the price (or less?), leaving more for the track car.

Makes a change form the default Porsche and fast Audi estate, though.

[Maldini35]

Agree with others

An older Defender for c.£20k will deliver the same experience.
I love an old Landie but best taken in short bursts.

318is track car looks sweet but will not be fast enough to entertain in the longer term.
I raced an E30 320i which was great in a grid of identically specced cars but on a trackday against 911's and Caterhams I was just a moving road block.

[Dr Interceptor]

Since I emailed this in, I did actually buy a Mustang... So a quarter there...

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

[TEKNOPUG]

Maldini35 said:

Agree with others

An older Defender for c.£20k will deliver the same experience.
I love an old Landie but best taken in short bursts.

318is track car looks sweet but will not be fast enough to entertain in the longer term.
I raced an E30 320i which was great in a grid of identically specced cars but on a trackday against 911's and Caterhams I was just a moving road block.

A track day isn't a race though. Why does it matter if other cars are faster than you?

[Turbobanana]

Dr Interceptor said:

Since I emailed this in, I did actually buy a Mustang... So a quarter there...

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Well done that man!

[Maldini35]

TEKNOPUG said:

A track day isn't a race though. Why does it matter if other cars are faster than you?

True, but it’s no fun lapping with your eyes glued to the rear view mirror.
You don’t have to be fastest but keeping up with the traffic helps.
On long straights this 318is would seem painfully slow and I’m speaking from personal experience.

[harleywilma]

I think if you ever drove a landrover defender and realised how terrible it was you would wonder why on earth you had spent that amount of money..

[Flyinv]

I like the principle behind all the cars nominated, apart from the Mustang I'd slightly tweak it though to make the most of the budget:
- Standard spec Defender 110 with the 2.4 or 2.2 Puma engine or even a TD5 to save 30k.
- E30 coupe is a great track car choice so you can use the extra budget to pay for an m52b28 motor swap, bigger brakes etc. Or upgrade to an E36 M3.
- With extra budget upgrade to the last Saab 9-5.

[Flyinv]

harleywilma said:

I think if you ever drove a landrover defender and realised how terrible it was you would wonder why on earth you had spent that amount of money..

I've done a lot of driving and towing in the work Defender 90 (3.2 tonne trailer) these last few months and it's definitely one of those 'never meet your heroes' cars. I kinda have a love hate relationship with it. As a modern work vehicle it's awful but it looks cool and you do become a much better driver having to tow big weight with poor brakes, moderate engine performance, no safety aids, bad ergonomics, vague steering, poor ride quality etc. A great way to earn your man points