Spec me... something fun :-)

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Well... time for another car... 7th in the last 12 months... lol

Anyway... budget around about £7k

Looking for something a bit fun, will be using it for the odd commute and maybe the odd business journey... not so fussed about comfort though :)

I'd rather it wasn't in the garage every week and I'd like to be able to play with it a bit...

Current top of my list is Honda S2000... I know £7k wouldn't get me the best of examples, but I'm not at the bottom of the pile either :)

I've had a bit of experience with them and love the handling... only standard road car I really like more than MX5s for handling... the balance is fantastic. Not enough power for my tastes, but the engines are rather bulletproof in non-modified form so that's a bonus.


Also tempted by:
Audi Quattro Turbo
E36 M3
Z3M
350Z
Skyline
Boxster
TVR Cerbera/Chimaera/Griffith
Monaro
S1 Elise

The last few I might have stretch the budget for...

Am I missing anything obvious?

Recommendations? I'm leaning towards the S2000 as the sensible choice out of the above...
 
I find the scoob a bit boring... don't get me wrong, it's a brilliant car... it's just too good, I can never get anywhere near having fun with it on the roads... S2000/MX5 can be brilliant fun :D

The scoob does force you to go extremely fast to do things you can do in a RWD car at more sedintary speeds, so I get your point.

:D

Lovely Type RA btw, and the best wheels :)
 
The scoob does force you to go extremely fast to do things you can do in a RWD car at more sedintary speeds, so I get your point.

:D

Lovely Type RA btw, and the best wheels :)

It was :(

Someone drove in to me on Thursday! Thankfully they admitted liability to my insurers on the phone, making the claim a bit effortless for me... but the darn insurers want to write it off.

I'd just ticked past the run-in period and was going to be taking her to an Oxford MC Autosolo in a couple of weeks too :(

All wheels wrecked... 3 buckled, one scraped to hell. Damaged door + drivers front wing + mirror + bumper. Apparently some of the passenger-side wishbones are bent too... could mean chassis is a bit off :(

Other bits ok... so i'll be buying it back... will try repairing her myself, but i think it's more likely to be stripped :( Really sucks... loved that car & I'm sure you know how hard it is to fund an un-molested example! Especially in the condition of mine :( Just sent the email off with comparison links to the insurers for valuation a few hours ago.

Judging by the examples I've found, with the rebuild I should be getting a settlement somewhere between £8-10k - will get confirmation next week. Depending on how much and how quickly it comes through, I may push my budget a bit too... or poor it back in to the scoob... just not sure yet.

Repair quotes have come in at £5-6k, with their 60% value write-off policy, it's almost certainly going to be written off :(
 
I do mate, sorry about your loss :(

I am sure you will make good money on the parts if you break it, or, if you can find a decent example, swap them in :)

subaru-impreza-saloon-turbo-2000-4wd-4dr-1785633303-640x480.jpg


Mine is a basic 1995 classic that is having a new gearbox and clutch monday, even though still basic it is still more than fast enough to have fun in :)

If they do write it off its worth asking to have it fixed if you want to, sometimes they will agree.
 
Ignore the tvr Cerbera at this budget. Griffith would be a cheap precat if you are lucky and tatty chimeras can be had.

In not too sure how good s1 elises are at thus price, Vx220s are a bargain at the moment. The prices didn't pick up over the summer and they've dropped again for the winter.
 
I do mate, sorry about your loss :(

I am sure you will make good money on the parts if you break it, or, if you can find a decent example, swap them in :)

subaru-impreza-saloon-turbo-2000-4wd-4dr-1785633303-640x480.jpg


Mine is a basic 1995 classic that is having a new gearbox and clutch monday, even though still basic it is still more than fast enough to have fun in :)
Nice one :)

I may be tempted to swap parts in to another scoob... the problem is finding a good one is so darn hard! From descriptions and pictures, there were only two I could find on various owners forums, autotrader, ebay and pistonheads that I would have considered to be viable replacements and I bet at least one of them wouldn't live up to the description/pics :(

It wasn't just the aesthetic condition either, everything had been so well looked after... all service items (including the ones most people don't even think about) done way before they were due, every time. It was set up so well, drove quite a few before finding it and could tell it had been properly set up within a few hundred meters it stood out so much. I just have that horrible feeling that i'll never find one as good :(

If they do write it off its worth asking to have it fixed if you want to, sometimes they will agree.
I may try that... I'm going to pick whichever gets me the best result.

If they come back from the examples I provided and say "we're fixing it"... then great

If they come back with a reasonable settlement figure and then let me buy back the salvage for 20%, then great.

If I get the option and the figure they're offering is ok... I'll probably go for the write-off as i'm thinking it will mean me being a few thousand up... I love the car, but I always fancy a change and it could mean a much newer S2000 or whatever i decide to pickup + I could fix the scoob myself if the chassis isn't twisted.
 
Ignore the tvr Cerbera at this budget. Griffith would be a cheap precat if you are lucky and tatty chimeras can be had.

In not too sure how good s1 elises are at thus price, Vx220s are a bargain at the moment. The prices didn't pick up over the summer and they've dropped again for the winter.

Worth bearing in mind... I've seen a few VX220 turbos without too many miles on the clock within budget which surprised me :)

S1s and Cerbera/Griffith - I would be pushing the budget for... can barely find anything for this money and what there is looks rather bad... i'd need to go up to 10-12 to start finding reasonable examples, still not great ones though and the reason I'm quite hesitant about them... i've always wanted a TVR though so tempting, but better to wait til I have more funds available.

Heck, if the scoobs a write-off and I get what i'm hoping for + strip it for parts... I should be able to scrape together £20k, but that's dependant on quite a few variables.... for that money I could get a reasonable T350/Tuscan Speed 6... but I'd rather not fork out quite that much at this stage.
 
I've seen precat griffs in budget that on the outside looked in good condition, not seen anything else that was nice, a good 500 really needs 20k. Speed 6 engines need to have been rebuilt or post 2003/2004 to be a safish bet, but you still need to go in with your eyes open.
 
search my nick and s2000 on ocuk motors posts and I've written literally pages on them.

I've not kept up to date with prices, but 7k should certainly get you something reasonable in the form of an S2000. I would try and get a car from s2ki if I was you, more chance it wont have siezed suspension adjustors, 4 mis matched tyres, and be soaked in rust with a torn roof and drivers seat.
 
Nice one :)

I may be tempted to swap parts in to another scoob... the problem is finding a good one is so darn hard! From descriptions and pictures, there were only two I could find on various owners forums, autotrader, ebay and pistonheads that I would have considered to be viable replacements and I bet at least one of them wouldn't live up to the description/pics :(

It wasn't just the aesthetic condition either, everything had been so well looked after... all service items (including the ones most people don't even think about) done way before they were due, every time. It was set up so well, drove quite a few before finding it and could tell it had been properly set up within a few hundred meters it stood out so much. I just have that horrible feeling that i'll never find one as good :(

I may try that... I'm going to pick whichever gets me the best result.

If they come back from the examples I provided and say "we're fixing it"... then great

If they come back with a reasonable settlement figure and then let me buy back the salvage for 20%, then great.

If I get the option and the figure they're offering is ok... I'll probably go for the write-off as i'm thinking it will mean me being a few thousand up... I love the car, but I always fancy a change and it could mean a much newer S2000 or whatever i decide to pickup + I could fix the scoob myself if the chassis isn't twisted.
Slightly OT here but if you do have your scoob written off and decide to buy it back as salvage I'd be interested in buying some parts off you should you decide to break it. The quick steering rack, dccd gearbox and AST coilovers are rather tempting...;)
 
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