Rare manuals, £30k cars with a social scene..

...and can a four-cylinder engine be better than a six?

By Cam Tait / Tuesday, 11 November 2025 / Loading comments

There are but a handful of seven-seater SUVs that won’t send the forums into a frenzied fury at the sheer sight of them. Cars like the Volvo XC90, the Land Rover Discovery and, er, maybe the Audi Q7. So to kick off today’s episode of The Gassing Station podcast, John ponders whether the new Hyundai Santa Fe can be ranked among them. It’s far more interesting to look at than most and, while it’s hardly a shrinking violet, it isn’t nearly as ostentatious as many other large SUVs, so he may have a point.

But worry not, today’s episode isn’t all about humongous family carriers, as we’ve got a properly PH-y topic to sink our teeth into. One, admittedly, nicked from Matt Bird’s recent ‘manual misfits’ Six of the Best piece, where he picks cars from the classifieds and auctions fitted with H-patterns where normally you’d find a big ol’ cobra head, including this F80 BMW M3 that’s currently open to bids and a 2021 Aston Martin Vantage. John, meanwhile, was once the proud owner of a manual Jaguar XJR6 at a time when nobody wanted them. But just because you can buy something with a manual gearbox doesn’t necessarily mean you should. Did you know, for instance, the the bog-standard Mercedes A-Class only recently dropped its manual option? Would you have wanted one? Thought so.

Cars you will definitely want, however, are the ones in this week’s buying challenge. This one’s been supplied by SFTWend, who’s looking to chop in their BMW M2 for something that will not only fit their 12-year-old son in the back, but can also contribute to a car meet’s car park (love that). Having trawled through what seemed like the classifieds in its entirety, John landed on this 2006 Maserati Gransport for £22,999, leaving plenty of spare cash for fuel, servicing and other potential ‘treats’ that come with Gransport ownership. I, on the other hand, decided to go with this Audi RS6 Avant that’s currently up for auction, as it’s got plenty of space and will definitely be a crowd magnet at a Sunday Service. But if you think you can do better, you can always pop your suggestions in the topic here.

To cap things off, we sink our teeth into americancrx’s ‘preference for 4-cylinder engines’ topic. In a nutshell, they argue that the ‘rumble and vibration’ from a four-banger can be more appealing than the smoothness of a six-cylinder engine, adding that their (unspecified) GTI was more enjoyable than their 911’s flat-six. A bold claim, but can a four-pot or other downsized engine really be better than something with more cylinders? It’s a real head-scratcher, but feel free to wade into the topic here. But only after you’ve listened to John and I ramble on for an hour, of course.

Listen here