Hi all,
This might be a bit of a rambling thread so bear with me.
Over the last few months I've been considering replacing my car. The main reason for this is that I'd like something a bit newer, with similar or better performance and the same or higher levels of kit. Basically, an 'evolution' of what my car currently offers me. I'm also thinking that I should make the switch now whilst my car is actually still worth actual money (approx. £2.5k) and hasn't degenerated into a heap of rust and mechanical/electrical failures.
However, herein lies the problem. My car is an excellent all-rounder. So what do I replace it with?
I've been thinking about what I want from a car, and really I just want something capable enough to handle what my life throws at it whilst still having a reasonable dollop of petrolhead 'interest' and 'excitement'. So here's a list of my requirements, in a roughly-prioritised order:
- Well-equipped (my car has climate, bluetooth with audio streaming, xenons, heated electric seats, and electric everything else, and ideally I'd like at least these features to be present or retrofittable). I just want gadgets really
- Reliable. I don't want to be having to spend weekends (or hundreds at a garage) fixing myriad issues that might arise from an older performance car, i.e. an Audi S4 or a BMW M3. But at the same time I'm not going to delude myself in expecting Toyota Corolla levels of reliability from a performance saloon.
- Plenty of grunt. I don't want anything much slower than what I've got now. I know it's a very vague performance metric, but a 0-60 time in the order of 7s (or better) is preferred. To put things into perspective, I'd consider my car as having "plenty of grunt" although I know it's not high up on the overall performance car scale!
- Spacious and comfortable. I don't [or, at least I don't think I] want a small hot hatch.
- Newer (as new as possible) and lower mileage than my current car (04, 114k).
I'm thinking of spending up to £10k.
There are literally a couple of cars that I can think of which fit my criteria that I can see myself owning, and that's the Skoda Octavia VRS and the newer Mondeo 2.5T/2.0T Titanium X. But the problem with the Octavia is that I want Nav and the 'maxidot' display which supposedly much better-facilitate bluetooth functions and offer a generally improved infotainment experience, so it's not a case of knowing there's a high standard spec. The problem with the Mondeos is the rarity. I very much like the idea of a 2.0T Ecoboost Powershift Titanium X Sport (what a mouthful) but there isn't exactly a plentiful supply of them, and they're very expensive at the moment.
Other possibilities - which don't appeal to me as much as the above - include:
- Lexus IS250 SE-L
- Lexus GSxx SE-L
- Insignia 2.0T/2.8T Elite Nav (I know...)
Of course, the alternative is to just keep my car and run it into the ground whilst waiting for the above options to depreciate, but I do fancy a change, and I do fancy the idea of a turbocharged engine with tuning potential
.
There must be something better than what I have now, that matches my criteria.
If I didn't need a car to get to work then I'd probably buy something a bit more 'out there' like an E46 M3 or a Honda S2000 or whatever. "Sports cars" such as the 350Z and Z4 and the S2000 have crossed my mind but I think I'd get annoyed with the lack of practicality available from either.
It doesn't help that in the case of many cars there are 10000 diesel variants for sale nationwide, and 4 petrol variants. I don't want a diesel.
Thoughts?
This might be a bit of a rambling thread so bear with me.
Over the last few months I've been considering replacing my car. The main reason for this is that I'd like something a bit newer, with similar or better performance and the same or higher levels of kit. Basically, an 'evolution' of what my car currently offers me. I'm also thinking that I should make the switch now whilst my car is actually still worth actual money (approx. £2.5k) and hasn't degenerated into a heap of rust and mechanical/electrical failures.
However, herein lies the problem. My car is an excellent all-rounder. So what do I replace it with?
I've been thinking about what I want from a car, and really I just want something capable enough to handle what my life throws at it whilst still having a reasonable dollop of petrolhead 'interest' and 'excitement'. So here's a list of my requirements, in a roughly-prioritised order:
- Well-equipped (my car has climate, bluetooth with audio streaming, xenons, heated electric seats, and electric everything else, and ideally I'd like at least these features to be present or retrofittable). I just want gadgets really
- Reliable. I don't want to be having to spend weekends (or hundreds at a garage) fixing myriad issues that might arise from an older performance car, i.e. an Audi S4 or a BMW M3. But at the same time I'm not going to delude myself in expecting Toyota Corolla levels of reliability from a performance saloon.
- Plenty of grunt. I don't want anything much slower than what I've got now. I know it's a very vague performance metric, but a 0-60 time in the order of 7s (or better) is preferred. To put things into perspective, I'd consider my car as having "plenty of grunt" although I know it's not high up on the overall performance car scale!
- Spacious and comfortable. I don't [or, at least I don't think I] want a small hot hatch.
- Newer (as new as possible) and lower mileage than my current car (04, 114k).
I'm thinking of spending up to £10k.
There are literally a couple of cars that I can think of which fit my criteria that I can see myself owning, and that's the Skoda Octavia VRS and the newer Mondeo 2.5T/2.0T Titanium X. But the problem with the Octavia is that I want Nav and the 'maxidot' display which supposedly much better-facilitate bluetooth functions and offer a generally improved infotainment experience, so it's not a case of knowing there's a high standard spec. The problem with the Mondeos is the rarity. I very much like the idea of a 2.0T Ecoboost Powershift Titanium X Sport (what a mouthful) but there isn't exactly a plentiful supply of them, and they're very expensive at the moment.
Other possibilities - which don't appeal to me as much as the above - include:
- Lexus IS250 SE-L
- Lexus GSxx SE-L
- Insignia 2.0T/2.8T Elite Nav (I know...)
Of course, the alternative is to just keep my car and run it into the ground whilst waiting for the above options to depreciate, but I do fancy a change, and I do fancy the idea of a turbocharged engine with tuning potential
.There must be something better than what I have now, that matches my criteria.
If I didn't need a car to get to work then I'd probably buy something a bit more 'out there' like an E46 M3 or a Honda S2000 or whatever. "Sports cars" such as the 350Z and Z4 and the S2000 have crossed my mind but I think I'd get annoyed with the lack of practicality available from either.
It doesn't help that in the case of many cars there are 10000 diesel variants for sale nationwide, and 4 petrol variants. I don't want a diesel.
Thoughts?
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