Car advice (7.5K - 9K)

Bakedgoods

Bakedgoods

Bakedgoods

Capodecina
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Joined
31 Dec 2003
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5,172
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Barrow-In-Furness
Morning all,

It's very nearly new car time and I just want to make sure i've not missed out of anything. My budget is between 7.5K and 9K (let's be honest, it's going to be closer to 9).

I want a quick, good looking and relatively modern and low mileage car, I want it to feel pretty new. Practicality isn't really an issue.

Insurance will be difficult, anything aboive group 17 is probably out of the question, i'd be more comfortable group 16 and lower. (21, 1 years NCB and experience).

The shortlist....

RX8 231: 2004-2006, under 40,000 miles

This is my choice at the moment. I understand the running costs, I love the looks of both the interior and exterior. Performance is a little dubious (Mazda's claims in relation to reality) but will be a big jump up for me. Low, sporty rear-wheel drive appeals massvely.

Focus ST

I've noticed these have started to creep into this price range now. Decent performance, not bad looks, practical, nice enough interior. Not too sure about the running costs though. I can imagine tyres/petrol being similar, but unsure about servicing and consumables?

Megane Sport 225 Cup

I like the looks, the performance seems pretty good, the interior is better than the Clio but not up to scratch with the rest. I'm unsure about this would, I would prefer the F1 Team version but this is possibly out of the price range, i'm also uncertain about the insurance.

Clio 182/197

There's a few 197's creeping into this range but they are the bottom of the barrel, and to be honest i'm not a huge fan of the new looks and I don't think the Cup is quite cheap enough yet. I could however get a 182 for this price easily, but I would be reluctant to spend lots of money on the old model now. Decent performance, good looks, interior sucks.

Fiesta ST

Much prefer the interior here to the Clio, a little on the slow side but insurance reflects this. Some performance mods could see it on par with the Clio, and the insurnace would probably match it after these i'm guessing. Cheaper to run than the others which is a bonus.

Seat LCR, Audi TT, BMW 3 series

These are on the fringes but i'm pretty certain I wouldn't bother with any of then, with the exception of possible the LCR, but it's unlikely.
 
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Cooper-S, missed off by accident. At this budget i'm not sure i'd want to. They seem to be a a bit older than the others with typically an extra 20,000 or so miles. (I know this isn't the end of the world). I would just rpefer something a little more fresh.

Type R - Insurance is too expensive. Could always spend less on the car and more on the insurance, but I would rather not do that.

I just want something pretty quick, good looking, sporty and not stupidly expensive to insure. Practicality isn't a big issue, I could even manage with only 2 seats (I had looked at the VX220, but it's way too expensive to insure).
 
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SoliD said:
For me from that list would probably be the Focus ST, probably gives you the best combination of all worlds, although if practicality isnt an issue why not consider something 2 seater and convertible? S2000/Z4/350z?
Click to expand...

S2000 is too expensive to insure and the othrs aren't in the budget really. Good suggestions though, things like a BMW 3-series don't appeal that much, I can get something like that when I'm older :)
 
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That's my only gripe Fox, the performance isn't BAD, but the fuel and oil consumption isn't justified. However, servicing isn't too bad.
 
Budget does not include insurance, will be buying outright.

The S2000 is group 20 so there's no way. The insurance will be pretty expensive for almost all of them cars with the exception of the Fiesta.

Your correct in thinking I want something sporty rather than a big lump.

I think I'll be able to insure the RX8 for around 1.5K, the focus will add a coule of hundred to this, but it maybe too much I'll have to confirm over the phone.
 
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QUick check on confused to give me a rough idea on the Focus ST is around £2,200'ish.

I know this site isn't the best but chances are i'm not going to get it down to much under 2K.

I don't partiuclarly fancy paying more than 1.8K/year.
 
Adrian have given me better quotes for the RX8 etc, so i'll check with them as well, I just tend to sue it to give me a rough guide.

I'd be shocked if it was under £1,500
 
I'm waiting for a quote back on the Focus ST from Greenlight and Adrian Flux.

To be honest, i'm probably just going to give Adrian a call when I get chance, and give them a list of cars to check the insurance for.

Looking at the Fiesta ST, the 185 kit takes it down to 0-60 in 7 seconds (would prefer faster) and 0-100 in around 15 I think. A similar kit on the focus costs nearly half what it does for the Fiesta, brings the 0-60 down to 5.9 seconds, but the 0-100 mph time is only a second quicker.
 
Ahh fair enough, I was just quoting what I had seen on the Mountune website, it did seem a little optimistic that a Focus ST tuned to 260bhp+ was only a second faster to 100mph (I know it's heavier).
 
The problem with the LCR us that I so
etimes think they look nice, and other times don't, and I'm not a fan of the interior at all really.

I need to make sure I buy sensibly but I've got to truely like the car, otherwise I'll regret it
 
Hello again all, my current car is up for sale now and I can hopefully **** that fairly easily.

Regarding the new brum brum, i'm really leaning towards a CTR now. I'm prepared to pay for an RX8 and the petrol, so I may aswell consider the CTR which will cost less to run but will be more expensive to insure (and is a little faster).

Only problem I have is I just love the styling of the RX8s, everytime I see one I always take a couple of looks. It's lower, more sportier etc.
 
Any thoughts on what mileage CTR I should be aiming for here? Within this budget they seem a little higher than the other cars, and less than 40K isn't common.
 
I don't mind the newer S3s, but out of budget unfortunately :(

Still keen on the RX8 and they just seem to keep getting cheaper! Shame about the performance and petrol though, but as I said, cheaper to insure than my other options.

Civic Type R - If I can find a decent example not lightyears away, under 40,000 miles hopefully, I would be perfectly happy with this.

Focus ST - Same as above really, but may be pushing it a little.

Need to sell my car first though and take it from there, really excited though! :D
 
I do quite like the Focus ST, i've not found much on the running costs etc, but I think the combination of the petrol and higher insurance may well rule it out for me.

I absolutely love the RX8, I think it looks great. But low 20's MPG on average, and much lower if you decide to have your fun, it's a bit nasty considering it's only 0-60 is 7.0 seconds! (I know that's not everything).

Fox, i've very briefly drove a Cooper S JCW and was a passenger in it for many miles. No doubt it's fun to drive, but I don't like the looks unless the right colours have been picked and they hold their value pretty well so i'd be looking at a older/higher mileage car compared to the others, and I want something to feel a little newer. Yes I know if they are cared for they could still be in great condition.
 
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There's around a £600+ a year difference for me to insure a Focus ST over RX8.

RX8 servicing a pretty cheap, I don't have the figures now but I was pretty suprised. The main cost really is the MPG, which sucks a little for the performance, and after that the oil. Tyres it's up to you, but probably £100-£150 per corner, more if you want to.

I'm not sure what you mean by a ST being cheap compared to an RX8? I would say it is quite possibly more expensive overall.
 
Not really a Golf fan besides the new, still too expensive ones.

Audi TT - I would be looking at a much higher mileage example than the RX8/Focus ST.

LCR is out for me, the interior is poop.

There's nothing decent for sale near me at the moment so it looks like I might have a bit of a trip.
 
TT 225 is group 18 I think, too pricey!

I've decided against the RX8, just too many things putting me off even though I love the styling and the fact it's a low down, rear wheel drive sports car. The range has been discontinued, the engine may well do down that route too (although they have built a new rotary). There's potentially some very exepensive problems unless I get a well cared for version more so than other cars, the economy is naff etc.

So time to do some really browsing.

I've got £9K to spend. I'm going to look again tonight at:

Cooper S
Clio 197 Cup (Would love an F1 but not sure of the cost)
Megane 225 Cup
Civic Type R (Maybe, expensive to insure!!)

Z4 is creeping under 10K now, but i'm not sure how clean these examples are and they are all above 50K miles.

There is a almost new Fiesta ST for sale locally in the budget but I know if I got one, it's pretty slow and i'd probably look to sell it the year later when my insurance would let me pick up something like an S2000 at a decent price.

I've applied for my first credit card with 6 months interest free for new purchases to pay for the insurance rather than paying monthly, will be interesting to see what my limit is like in the current climate.
 
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