Would I save much running a derv?

malc30 said:
I've driven most motors, Not all of course but most. Power delivery is completly different so although it's true you do get relatively quick dervs they stll feel slow & sound like trucks. When a Derv Beema, Jag or Audi/Golf passes me I cringe. Personally I like perky motors that are light & sound awesome.
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I'm far from a derv fan. I hate the sound of them and the way they drive.

My mates Fabia vRS gradually pulled away from my VTR when I left 3 rd gear.

Now it's 177bhp it isn't even a contest, he's off into the distance. Until we get to the corners, where the little Saxo is pinned to his rear as it bounces all over the place.

I'm incredibly tempted to get an E36 328i or something as i'm not sitting in much traffic anymore. I just think as the Clio will age, it will start to play up and I haven't the patient to deal with silly electrical issues anymore.

Maybe it's best if I give a 328i a test drive and see what I think. Get an Astra VXR or Focus ST when the insurance drops a tad.
 
I'm still totally undecided on a petrol or diesel.

One week I rack up 450 miles another 300 miles.

I fill my Saxo up usually once every 9 days - £40 ish but i'm getting 420/430 miles in return because I use Vpower.

I have looked at Clio 172's, test drove one but a friend has spent £1800 on keeping his running over the last year, crazy. I can't be bothered with the niggly faults.

I have had a look at Civic Type R's, I love them, the driving position is awesome, the gearstick, the engine and the gear box but not the MPG. £55 - 300 miles.

Then I thought actually why not prestige - BMW or Audi.

Had a look at E46's - can find some decent ones - mainly 6 pots which also do not return decentish MPG, well I guess 30mpg is decent for a 3 litre.

Had a look at A3 1.8T's, these do not really excite me to look at in all honesty but they are well screwed together, i'd try and push for a quattro but I think the turbo is something else to fail.

BACK TO DERV

Had a look at Golf GT TDi 130's, most seem to have over 80k on them and are getting on a bit now. They do not handle well? - nice,roomy and well screwed together mind.

Had a look at A3 1.9 TDi 130 sports, I like the interior in these and they handle better than Golf's apparently.

Budget £4500 - stretch £5000 if it's a nice example.


So yeah, I haven't got a clue what to do :(

I want something that I can have fun in, when I want to but also has decent running costs. I guess you could say the ammount i'd spend in repairs on a Clio would make the Civic cheaper to run!
 
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i would stick with the saxo mate, cheap motoring, run it till it dies and not worthy of a repair :), save your ££

imo of course,
 
It's time for an upgrade though. I need something with A/C as i'll end up crashing - I drive down a rural B road and even with the windows up my hayfever is getting bad and i'm sneezing a lot lol.

The front shockers on my VTS are also nackard.
 
How can you expect anyone to reccomend a car when you dont even seem to know what your priorities are.

You seem to want performance, low running costs and reliability. But at 20, insurance on a CTR or Clio 172 will cost you a small fortune compared to something like a 306 HDi. You also say you dont like the way diesels drive and the noise - perhaps you just need to get used to using low down torque rather than trying to rev the nuts off of it?

You need to sort out your priorities, find out what sort of thing you can afford to insure and then narrow down the list from there. A car that does all you seem to want doesnt exist for 5k...
 
iaind said:
How can you expect anyone to reccomend a car when you dont even seem to know what your priorities are.

You seem to want performance, low running costs and reliability. But at 20, insurance on a CTR or Clio 172 will cost you a small fortune compared to something like a 306 HDi. You also say you dont like the way diesels drive and the noise - perhaps you just need to get used to using low down torque rather than trying to rev the nuts off of it?

You need to sort out your priorities, find out what sort of thing you can afford to insure and then narrow down the list from there. A car that does all you seem to want doesnt exist for 5k...
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I'm 21 in September so insurance isn't a problem. I have had a quote for a Clio 172 at £890 FC and a Type R £1100.

The car needs to be atleast 8 seconds to 60. I drove my old VTR the other day and couldnt stand it.

I want something that handles well and I can have fun in when I want too but will also reward me for gentle driving. I physically cannot do crazy speeds to work as the roads are too busy.
 
digitalwolf said:
I'm 21 in September so insurance isn't a problem. I have had a quote for a Clio 172 at £890 FC and a Type R £1100.

The car needs to be atleast 8 seconds to 60. I drove my old VTR the other day and couldnt stand it.

I want something that handles well and I can have fun in when I want too but will also reward me for gentle driving. I physically cannot do crazy speeds to work as the roads are too busy.
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For one thing, 0-60 times arent everything. If you compare a 130bhp petrol to a 130bhp diesel, the derv will probably have a lower 0-60 but will have noticably more mid range grunt - depends on your driving style. Case in point, the focus that I suggested. The 2.0 petrol has 8bhp more and 0.1s less to 60 but I'd prefer driving the tdci any day...

Circa £1k is a lot of money to spend on insurance, if you got a sensible diesel like the 306 you mentioned before you'd probably be paying half that.

You need to decide whether you want performance or running costs as the 2 just dont go together. A faster car will cost you more in insurance, tyres, brakes etc etc so the real extra cost is much higher.
 
Are you ever actually going to change your car? For years we've had threads like this every few weeks!
 
Lol he's been posting about replacing his saxo for more than 2 years now!

Noticed a distinct pattern of "a mate just bought a xxx" followed by "I want to buy an xxx"
 
The reason why I never changed it was because the only thing I could find suitable, I could not get insured on - a Saxo VTS.

I replaced the VTR with a VTS in the end.

Now, i'm finding it very hard to replace that with £5,000.
 
digitalwolf said:
The reason why I never changed it was because the only thing I could find suitable, I could not get insured on - a Saxo VTS.

I replaced the VTR with a VTS in the end.

Now, i'm finding it very hard to replace that with £5,000.
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You never answered my original question, what are your actual priorities and what are you willing to sacrifice on? Its no wonder you cant find anything suitable when you seem to want everything under the sun for 5k
 
iaind said:
You never answered my original question, what are your actual priorities and what are you willing to sacrifice on? Its no wonder you cant find anything suitable when you seem to want everything under the sun for 5k
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I know I have been lucky to drive, since passing, one of the best standard handling road cars there is. My mums Mini Cooper handles well, aslong as it feels reasonably planted then thats good enough for me.

Size......I would like something with a tad more cabin room.

A/C a must.

Performance - a biggy. It needs to be pretty quick, especially if i'm going up in size etc. 0-100 <23 secs.
 
Why does it need to do 0-100 in 21 seconds? Where do you drive at 100mph regularly?

£5000 will get you a nice, comfortable, safe hatchback that'll pull more than enough on the motorway and backroads and have far more 'cred' than some crappy boy racer Saxo/Pug 106.
 
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