Looking to Buy an Older Car on a Budget, Help.

[Liddy]

Hey guys, appreciate people's opinions here.

Currently driving a 2015 Fiesta ST-2, love it.
I bought it as I was doing a moderate amount of travelling and wanted something fast and relatively new (old car has started giving a bit of bother with high miles.)

Now I'm doing 100 miles on a busy week, I just don't think the car is being used so I'm looking to sell and buy something around the price of 3k.

Went to see a MK2.5 mx5 at the weekend, but at £2k and with the amount of rust it had it was a no go.

Cars I'm currently considering are mk1&2.5 mx5's and e46 330ci's.

I'm just wondering, what other enjoyable cars are to be had out there for under a £3k budget?

 

[Liddy]

MX-5s do rust pretty badly. Even the mk3 (not sure about mk4 yet).

Yeah, I think I'd really enjoy owning one and modifying it, but the chances of me finding a clean one are slim to none it would seem.

 

[Liddy]

So you bought a new car to improve reliability and you're about to do more miles which means you want to go back to an old car? That's a failure of logic here from what I can see.

Edit - ooh wait, you're doing less miles? I get it now.

Yeah, considerably less miles.

the mx-5 and e46 at that age and price range will bring you trouble.

You really think about mx5 less than 3k would be trouble?

 

[Liddy]

This brings up a second question.

Anyone who has bought a car which is quite a distance away, how did it go?

I assume you weren't able to see it in person until you went with the intentions of collecting the car.

I'm only asking because in in Belfast but much better deals can be had if I was willing to collect in the mainland UK.

 

[Liddy]

Yeah, ideally I'd be looking a good Mk1 but even a 2.5 would be fine as they're far more reasonably priced here.

It's very slim pickings in Ireland, unless you want to pay stupid money for mk1's.

 

[Liddy]

If an MX5 is too practical for you then a good mk3 MR2 can easily be found within budget.

Less rust issues to live with but can be a nuisance as an only car due to the lack of any boot (There are lockable storage bins behind the seats that will take a couple of bags and you can always dump stuff in the passenger footwell if you're by yourself but even something like a weekend away with a passenger can mean squashy bags only.

I like the look of Mk2 MR2's, I just don't see me getting a MK3 and not being a laughing stock among friends, at least with the mx5 I'll like my own car haha.

Mondeo ST220 OP. Just as fast as your Fiesta once on the move and still fun to drive despite the size with a nice V6 sound. Reliable and cheap to run

Forgot about them, with have a look, insurance tends to be an issue with larger cars such as the mondeo, currently paying £1600 for the fiesta!

Yet same company will insure me in a mk1 mx5 for £700, huge difference.

Just to throw in another option, Toyota Celica Tsport can be had for under £2k. Quite fun to drive with the lift engine (goes nuts over 6k revs) but still has things like climate control and a fairly big boot.

I've also owned a mk2 mx5 and a ST220. Wouldn't buy a mk2 now as mine was rusting when I sold it 8 years ago, great fun at the time. Loved the ST220 and if you need a bit of practicality they are a fantastic all rounder. Find one before the car tax hikes though.

I have a friend who's dad has an ST220, might ask for a spin to see how it feels.