Morning all,
I have now had my Leon Cupra (MKII) for around 18 months now an TBH I fancy a change. The Leon has been a fun car but Wooly handling, poor interior quality and continuous issues with the ignition / coil packs has lead me to hanker after something new (new to me).
My budget is between 15 and 20k and I am looking for a genuine upgrade from the Leon. I have a few specific requests if you will read on:
- Must be as quick or quicker than my Leon (Leon has ~ 250BHP and 0-60 in around 6.2 seconds).
- Must be sporty, either a sports trim or a specific sports model (eg Audi S line or S3)
- I would prefer petrol to a diesel as I do around a max of 15k a year (including commuting and "pleasure") and don't see much point in getting a diesel for my use.
- I would prefer a car with plenty of "toys" (such as Xenons, Climate, Leather, Decent stereo, Auto lights & wipers etc), I am not too bothered by it having Sat nav or not.
- The car must have sports seats. This is a requirement as I need the extra lumbar support for my back.
- As I want to garage the car it can only be up to 4.5 metres long. It must also have reasonable ground clearance as (this is difficult to explain) my driveway itself has sunk leaving almost a kerb like entrance to the garage itself. To give a quick guide my Leon will fit but a Astra VXR will not (I am NOT thinking of buying a VXR only using it as an example as it has a low nose
).
- I would prefer a car with a reasonable amount of boot space and seating for 4 (unfortunately this discounts cars such as the Z4)
- I would like a car that has reasonable running costs. By this I mean something that won't cost a lot more than my Cupra to run. (The Cupra does around 30mpg so matching that would be nice).
- Better built than the Cupra (this shouldn't be too hard).
This is not a requirement, more a wish - I would like something that is in the same age bracket as my Leon. I like the piece of mind of a warranty and so I am not interested in cars that are too old. Alas this means the likes of the E46 M3 are out (they are out for the running costs as well but age is a factor).
To summarise:
- Something quick
- Relatively reasonable to run
- Sporty with decent lumbar support
- Under 4.5 metres long and not stupidly low
- Decent level of kit (be it standard or factory options)
- not too old (newer than '06').
- I do < 15,000 a year so Petrol is preferable but I will look at the right Diesel.
- I plan on keeping the car for quite a while so would prefer something without stupid miles on it.
Anyway sorry for the long list of requirements but its best to be as detailed as possible to get the right sort of suggestions. I have currently short listed two cars that meet most of the requirements above, they are:
BMW 135i M sport - Red, 2008 '08', 34,600 miles, Extras include Adaptive Xenons, PDC F, Full Leather, Heated seats, upgraded stereo, Auto lights wipers (auto dimming), Elec folding Mirrors, Poplar wood trim (I really like this), Sunroof, privacy glass - £19,495
This is my current favourite as it meets all of my criteria above. I do understand they suffer from HPFP issues but I assume this will be covered by the warranty (please correct me if I am wrong though). Is there anything else I should look out for?
Audi S3 (8p) - Sprint blue, 2007 '56', 19,000 miles, As far as I can tell it's standard spec which is similar to the BMW above. - £16,995.
To me this would feel more like a refined version of the car I currently have. The interior quality should be a massive step up (as this is the Leons' biggest failing) but I can't help but think it will be more of a side step than a upgrade.
Megane 250 CUP - (Rank outsider) - 2010 '10', 5,000 miles (Ex demo), Yellow, Again this appears standard spec but due to its CUP nature it is missing quite a few of the extras the other cars have. - £18,995.
I have only really included this as a comparison. It is a lot newer than the other two cars but is really a side step from the Leon rather than a definitive upgrade.
Frustratingly both the 335i and 335d are a smidge too long to fit in my garage. If I could find a way for them to fit I would but it just doesn't look possible.
For additional information cars I have either owned, reasearched, driven already or are not interested in (due to various reasons) are:
MKV GTI - In this price bracket a GTI would simply be outclassed (easily by the S3).
MKV R32 - Owned one, good car with gorgeous engine note, drank like a fish and didn't have the pace to justify its running costs.
MK6 Golf GTI - I am not paying over 20k for a Golf GTI.
VW Sirrocco - I don't like the way these look, I could get a TT for less.
Focus ST - Same issue as the GTI really, good car but outclassed by the S3.
Focus RS - Too expensive (cheapest I could find was 21,995).
Astra VXR - Not interested.
Mazda 3 MPS (new model) - Same issue as GTI
Octavia vRS - Too long due to the garage issue (would prefer a 335i anyway)
Nissan 350Z - Only a two seater and a bit of a heavy drinker
BMW Z4 3.0si - Too low on the nose to fit in the garage, only a 2 seater.
Evo X - Possibly too expensive but too long anyway.
Subaru Impreza WRZ STI (hatchback model) - Does speed well but doesn't do the interior quality I am looking for.
Anyway, informative or not, I have waffled enough so could I please ask for your ideas, opinons and suggestions to help me either make a decision on the above cars or sway me into something else I may not have thought of.
Thanks all.
I have now had my Leon Cupra (MKII) for around 18 months now an TBH I fancy a change. The Leon has been a fun car but Wooly handling, poor interior quality and continuous issues with the ignition / coil packs has lead me to hanker after something new (new to me).
My budget is between 15 and 20k and I am looking for a genuine upgrade from the Leon. I have a few specific requests if you will read on:
- Must be as quick or quicker than my Leon (Leon has ~ 250BHP and 0-60 in around 6.2 seconds).
- Must be sporty, either a sports trim or a specific sports model (eg Audi S line or S3)
- I would prefer petrol to a diesel as I do around a max of 15k a year (including commuting and "pleasure") and don't see much point in getting a diesel for my use.
- I would prefer a car with plenty of "toys" (such as Xenons, Climate, Leather, Decent stereo, Auto lights & wipers etc), I am not too bothered by it having Sat nav or not.
- The car must have sports seats. This is a requirement as I need the extra lumbar support for my back.
- As I want to garage the car it can only be up to 4.5 metres long. It must also have reasonable ground clearance as (this is difficult to explain) my driveway itself has sunk leaving almost a kerb like entrance to the garage itself. To give a quick guide my Leon will fit but a Astra VXR will not (I am NOT thinking of buying a VXR only using it as an example as it has a low nose
).- I would prefer a car with a reasonable amount of boot space and seating for 4 (unfortunately this discounts cars such as the Z4)
- I would like a car that has reasonable running costs. By this I mean something that won't cost a lot more than my Cupra to run. (The Cupra does around 30mpg so matching that would be nice).
- Better built than the Cupra (this shouldn't be too hard).
This is not a requirement, more a wish - I would like something that is in the same age bracket as my Leon. I like the piece of mind of a warranty and so I am not interested in cars that are too old. Alas this means the likes of the E46 M3 are out (they are out for the running costs as well but age is a factor).
To summarise:
- Something quick
- Relatively reasonable to run
- Sporty with decent lumbar support
- Under 4.5 metres long and not stupidly low
- Decent level of kit (be it standard or factory options)
- not too old (newer than '06').
- I do < 15,000 a year so Petrol is preferable but I will look at the right Diesel.
- I plan on keeping the car for quite a while so would prefer something without stupid miles on it.
Anyway sorry for the long list of requirements but its best to be as detailed as possible to get the right sort of suggestions. I have currently short listed two cars that meet most of the requirements above, they are:
BMW 135i M sport - Red, 2008 '08', 34,600 miles, Extras include Adaptive Xenons, PDC F, Full Leather, Heated seats, upgraded stereo, Auto lights wipers (auto dimming), Elec folding Mirrors, Poplar wood trim (I really like this), Sunroof, privacy glass - £19,495
This is my current favourite as it meets all of my criteria above. I do understand they suffer from HPFP issues but I assume this will be covered by the warranty (please correct me if I am wrong though). Is there anything else I should look out for?
Audi S3 (8p) - Sprint blue, 2007 '56', 19,000 miles, As far as I can tell it's standard spec which is similar to the BMW above. - £16,995.
To me this would feel more like a refined version of the car I currently have. The interior quality should be a massive step up (as this is the Leons' biggest failing) but I can't help but think it will be more of a side step than a upgrade.
Megane 250 CUP - (Rank outsider) - 2010 '10', 5,000 miles (Ex demo), Yellow, Again this appears standard spec but due to its CUP nature it is missing quite a few of the extras the other cars have. - £18,995.
I have only really included this as a comparison. It is a lot newer than the other two cars but is really a side step from the Leon rather than a definitive upgrade.
Frustratingly both the 335i and 335d are a smidge too long to fit in my garage. If I could find a way for them to fit I would but it just doesn't look possible.
For additional information cars I have either owned, reasearched, driven already or are not interested in (due to various reasons) are:
MKV GTI - In this price bracket a GTI would simply be outclassed (easily by the S3).
MKV R32 - Owned one, good car with gorgeous engine note, drank like a fish and didn't have the pace to justify its running costs.
MK6 Golf GTI - I am not paying over 20k for a Golf GTI.
VW Sirrocco - I don't like the way these look, I could get a TT for less.
Focus ST - Same issue as the GTI really, good car but outclassed by the S3.
Focus RS - Too expensive (cheapest I could find was 21,995).
Astra VXR - Not interested.
Mazda 3 MPS (new model) - Same issue as GTI
Octavia vRS - Too long due to the garage issue (would prefer a 335i anyway)
Nissan 350Z - Only a two seater and a bit of a heavy drinker
BMW Z4 3.0si - Too low on the nose to fit in the garage, only a 2 seater.
Evo X - Possibly too expensive but too long anyway.
Subaru Impreza WRZ STI (hatchback model) - Does speed well but doesn't do the interior quality I am looking for.
Anyway, informative or not, I have waffled enough so could I please ask for your ideas, opinons and suggestions to help me either make a decision on the above cars or sway me into something else I may not have thought of.
Thanks all.
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