tell me about: bread van CTRs

Siliconslave

Siliconslave

Siliconslave

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The search for a new car goes on... and moves into hot hatch teritory (don't worry mazda fans the 5s not out the picture yet.

so... The breadvan CTR, what are they like owning costs, tunability, day to day living with wise? Whats the model to go for, is the AC worth it (probably a yes from my point of view) road noise, competitors etc.

Cheers
Sam
 
owning costs - you will get around 30mpg if you drive sensible with some sprited driving in betweem, or you could see 20mpg if you cane it most drives. Servicing isn't cheap mind....check out the owners site for an idea on costs.

Tuning it can be expensive as it's NA. You can go turbo or supercharger kits but you're looking at £3-4k plus.

It's not too bad day to day, but it can get a little tiring on a long run due to it being noisey over 75mph. I would say get an AC version if you can as it mists up quiet bad in wetter weather and you'll need it in the summer.

You'll now get no end of posts telling you the TEG is a better car and why don't you go for a Cupra R instead as they are cheaper and more tunable etc etc.

It's a car which needs to be driven hard to get the best from it, but if you look after it, they are bullet proof and will take a caning and smile right back at you.

EDIT: if i were buying now, i'd aim for a prem version. i love the seats in those and they seem to be holding their value a little better
 
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Reality Bites said:
You'll now get no end of posts telling you the TEG is a better car and why don't you go for a Cupra R instead as they are cheaper and more tunable etc etc.

It's a car which needs to be driven hard to get the best from it, but if you look after it, they are bullet proof and will take a caning and smile right back at you.
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Teg wise i'd go for one if i wasn't going to commute in it, the Civic is a touch less raw as far as i can see. Cupras i'm going to look at as well but i do like a bitta jap ;)

cheers
Sam
 
Reality Bites said:
especially with underglo styleeeee :D
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LOL!

I love my CTR, but it has been a pain from time to time. Most recently the alarm mobo had to be replaced at a cost of £444. Everything else has been minor though, and only down to wear and tear.

They are great fun to drive, and I wouldn't change mine for an LCR; simply because I believe the CTR to be the better car for me (in standard form). Big numbers are quite possible, although it's going to be expensive as said.

Definitely go for A/C. Road noise is quite prominent, ride is rather firm and the back seats are totally horrendous for whoever has the misfortune of sitting in them. As a driver, I always feel connected to the car. The gearbox is fantastic, VTEC is massively grin inducing (8,200rpm limit is insane, the car sounds wild), steering whilst positive does feel a little vague (but you will quickly get used to this).

Without spending stupid money on turbo/supercharging, you'll see no more than ~230bhp changing the exhaust and fitting something like the Gruppe M.

Model to go for?

JDM all the way. :cool:
 
Nearer 215 probably. You don't get 33hp from exhaust and air filter.

edit, saying that it wouldn't be far off if it was something like a Toda manifold, decat, Toda b-pipe/back box. That'll probably be close to £2k though.
 
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exhaust, air intake and a remap will set you back around £1600 - £1800ish give or take and will give you around 230bhp.

any more than this will cost lots!

check out the owners site for all the mods etc
 
paradigm said:
Then you are smoking crack. The 1.8T is a very subdued engine, you'd be hard pushed to know its on boost, or even making a fuss when being thrapped to death. They are a very smooth engine for their size.
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What does smoking crack have to do with what I thought of a car I test drove....you're wierd
 
My mate spent £3k on his for about 235bhp. DC Sports Manifold, Toda cat-back, ITG Maxogen intake and K-Pro ECU (essential and £700!). You get a lore more mid range torque and more or less lose the VTEC kick but you get the benefit of a decent torque gain instead. It feels a lot different to mine, and I'd say in a positive way.

That was including fitting, mapping and all other bits and bobs required to fi like JDM ARBs etc.

I've had mine 13 months now, had no real issues at all, I still love driving it and i'm still learning about driving it every day. Tim assures me it goes on 3 wheels well too :D

The facelift and premier model are more refined than the pre-2004 non-facelift models. This includes more sound proofing and 1001 other little touches. Mainly interior quirks like full on branded Recaros which are very comfy, red carpet and other bits of trim.

Take a few test drives and see what you think. Very accessible cars and usable every day without driving on cam (although its virtually impossible to not drive in VTEC). I get 20mpg in mine although almost every other EP3 owner I know gets at least 25. I drive it fairly hard :S
 
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