Car died need a new one

CliffyG

CliffyG

CliffyG

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Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
18,050
Location
Cambridge
Bought an old rover when i moved house to get to and from work and has recently been causing me no end of problems. The final straw being a knackered head gasket. At the moment i'm driving the Scenic (family car) but am in a bit of a hurry to get a new one so the wife can take the kids out again :D. Here's my requirements:

Fun to drive
Good handling
Decent 0 - 60
Can be a backup in case the scenic needs repairing etc
No older than 2 years
Less than 20k miles
Less than £15,000
Not hugely expensive to insure / run

I've really struggled to find a car i like the look of and performance for the money. The amount of "Sport" models that don't even do sub 10 seconds is quite amazing. My first choice is an Astra VXR but out of my price bracket at the moment not even taking the running costs into account. Others were a Subaru WRX, Civic Type-R and a Leon Cupra R. Subaru is a nightmare in terms of running costs from what i've heard and the Civic is a little too small and boy racerish for me. Leaving me with just the Cupra, found this one in my price bracket:

http://www.seat.net.r66.co.uk/Search/car_view.aspx?carId=1850060

I really like the look of these cars and am arranging a test drive for next week some time but want to know if there are alternatives i've not thought of or any major problems i should know about the Cupra (everything i've read said they're good though).

Any advice would be welcomed.

EDIT
Added some major edits
 
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DaveyD said:
Focus ST perhaps?
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I don't particularly like fords for some reason and i don't really like the look of them.

Perhaps i should say, if possible i'd like to spend as little as possible, my max price isn't a target :D.
 
Ignore your milage and age requirements and buy a BMW, much better car than anything else on your list.

15k should get you a 2001 or 2002 330D or something similar.

Im sure Fox will pimp them much better than i can.
 
I'd completely forgotten about the RX8, what are running costs / insurance like?

EDIT

Just checked and it seems to be just out of my price bracket really which is a shame as the wife and i like them whereas she isnt so keen on the Leon.
 
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Audi A4 of some sort? Though that could be too sensible :D
VW Golf R32 ;) That would be very cool, though probably has obscene running costs!
 
CliffyG said:
I don't particularly like fords for some reason and i don't really like the look of them.
Click to expand...

Shame, as a Mondeo ST TDci ticks all your boxes and then some and there are plenty available for that sort of price range.
 
Not being funny or wanting to sound like Oracle, but what about a MG ZT-T. I had one as a company car and it would appear to meet your criteria.....
 
One thing i've noticed is that all these cars are pushing close to 15k, anything closer to 10 at all? Doesn't have to be the quickest in the range just under 9 seconds so i have something cheaper to compare too.
 
A 2004 Honda Accord 2.4vtec can be had for around 11k for the right deal, test drive one mate they're lovely cars. Dad has one, paid 10k for his 2004 2.2tdci 140bhp 250lb/ft but that was a bargain.
 
Just get a decent Focus. Boring, but do the job and well, well, within budget.

You're a family man, you're not allowed exciting.
 
Found a 2005 54 Reg HONDA ACCORD 2.4 VTEC Type-S with 16k miles for £12,700 which seems a very good deal. Over 2k saved on the Cupra R but it seems a bit big. Looking something smaller really.
 
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thepharcyde said:
Mondeo ST220 mate, ignore the Ford snobbery, if I had kids this is what I would have.
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I have a Renault Scenic for the kids.

What are the Mazda3 TS2 / 2.0 Sport like?
 
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