What car?

[00dave]

I've got 11k saved up now and I want a new car, not brand new maybe 3-4 years old. I'd prefer to have some change left over and I want something 1.6 sporty looking with 3 doors but I cannot decide which car to spend my money on, however I have narrowed it down to a few possibilities:

Honda civic type R/ Vtec, I like the look of them and I hear they're extremely reliable and are priced fairly decently. The only problem being the insurance on the type R and fuel consumption (athough the vtec should be fine) and the weird gearstick position.

Vauxhall astra Sri or Sxi sports hatch, they look nice and I've never had a problem with any of the 4 vauxhalls I've ever owned, but I'm not sure they're worth 8k+ as that's the cheapest I've seen one for.

Ford Focus, not done a lot of research into the focus as I value my soul but I could be persuaded for a sporty little number for the right price.

Audi A3, again not sure on specific types but I'm sure there's a sporty little number out there.

So your experiences of these cars would be appreciated and recomendations also. But if anyone mentions peugeot or anything French for that matter, I will hunt them down. And don't start listing things like evos or subarus, I have a 30 mile commute to one of the worst towns in England for traffic and with cars being powered by liquid gold atm I don't want to sell a kidney to refuel it every week.

 

[Himse]

MG ZR!

1.4, looks swish as, design fault with the head gasket tho, but you can now buy a stronger gasket to replace it,costs about 200 quid.

You can also pick up ZR's that are 120bhp with 1.8l engines, 160bhp with 1.8 again if you are looking for a bit more power.

they do look lovely tho

 

[dysfunction]

Ive got the 2007 Vauxhall 1.6 SXI and its a lovely car! Really great to drive!
I got mine from The UK's No.1 Car Supermarket - Trade Sales! just before Christmas for £7k.

I'd definitely recommend it!

 

[DaGaffer]

Best car for the money if you want something "sporty" is the Focus ST; best in class, but a touch thirsty. After that the Civic type-R you already mentioned (great handling, but when I had one for a weekend I found keeping the engine on the boil all the time a bit wearing), and of course the Golf GTI, but you may be looking at one a year or so older, but they have good residuals (although second hand residuals are going to get a huge shake-up in the next few years because of C02 taxes, so don't rely on resale value).

Personally I'm not keen on Vauxhalls (I had an Opel Astra hire car last week and was unimpressed), and I think with an Audi A3 you'll be able to afford one that looks sporty (S-Line kit etc.) but actually won't be. The only really sporting Audi hatch is the S3, the rest are a bit "wooden" to drive (lovely to sit in though).

 

[Jupitus]

Never thought I'd say it, but if you can get the Focus ST they certainly shift. Personally, after driving one for about a week, I wouldn't get a Golf GTI for love nor money... found it to be horribly skittish at speed, although that was a while back/older model.

 

[Tom]

All the cars you've listed will be piss in the wind compared to this:

TVR : TVR Chimaera 450 - Price Reduced

or this:

Oliver Cars Ltd : MG ZT 260 SE V8 4.6

or this:

BMW : 2002 (52) 540i Sport Rare 6 Speed Manual 48K miles

 

[DaGaffer]

All the cars you've listed will be piss in the wind compared to this:

TVR : TVR Chimaera 450 - Price Reduced

or this:

Oliver Cars Ltd : MG ZT 260 SE V8 4.6

or this:

BMW : 2002 (52) 540i Sport Rare 6 Speed Manual 48K miles

...and...

I don't want to sell a kidney to refuel it every week

See the slight flaw in your proposal Tom?

 

[Tom]

Combined fuel costs and depreciation on those cars will be less than the depreciation on the cars the OP suggested.

 

[00dave]

there had to be one didn't there . I live in Lincolnshire where your average speed will not get above 40mph during any journey thanks to the road quality so a big thirsty engine would be a waste of money. I just wanna be a poser and look good in my car. But keep em coming this is exactly what I'm after.

 

[00dave]

Combined fuel costs and depreciation on those cars will be less than the depreciation on the cars the OP suggested.

I'm not looking for an investment, I want a car that will last me for some time.

 

[DaGaffer]

Combined fuel costs and depreciation on those cars will be less than the depreciation on the cars the OP suggested.

You can't know that for two reasons; you don't know how much the price of fuel will rise over the next couple of years and you don't know how fast the second-hand value of less fuel efficient cars will collapse over the same period; not just because of fuel prices, but because of Darling's C02 car tax bandings. In addition, although this isn't relevant in this particular case yet, if Uncle Ken gets re-elected tomorrow (God help us) then he'll have a mandate for C02 emissions charges and other cities will follow this time (I understand Manchester is thinking hard about it), which means any car with C02 over 220g will end up being worth two-tenths of fuck-all pretty damn quickly.

 

[Tom]

Manchester is a bit of a tight spot - one more council that votes against the congestion charge, and its out of the window, and a couple of the constituencies up for grabs are very close indeedy.

Anyway, you know my thoughts. Why drive in something new and small when you can have something old and big, and ridiculously non-PC I may buy myself a mid-nineties cl600 at some point, and put a 'friends of the earth' sticker on it

 

[old.user4556]

Your requirements are:

- reasonably sporty looking and to drive
- 3 to 4 years old, but not old
- less than £11k
- 3 doors

I'd recommend based on that:

Ford : Ford Focus ST170

For the following reasons:

- independent rear suspension, I think the handling is great
- good spec including 17" alloys, half leather, 6 speed box, xenon headlights, heated front/rear screens, 6cd changer, climate control, etc etc..
- full ford service history
- right age, right price
- it's sporty enough without being thirsty; it might not win drag races but it's no slouch (170 PS, 2 litre petrol)
- it meets all your requirements

 

[Yaka]

read wot prolly was a scaremongering article on car prices droping coz of fuel prices rising. it does turn out to be true then it would be best to slap that cash in a high intrest account and get your self some wheels later when/if prices do drop.


anyways big gs suggestions not bad and i agree with it

 

[Wij]

Your requirements are:

- reasonably sporty looking and to drive
- 3 to 4 years old, but not old
- less than £11k
- 3 doors

I'd recommend based on that:

Ford : Ford Focus ST170

For the following reasons:

- independent rear suspension, I think the handling is great
- good spec including 17" alloys, half leather, 6 speed box, xenon headlights, heated front/rear screens, 6cd changer, climate control, etc etc..
- full ford service history
- right age, right price
- it's sporty enough without being thirsty; it might not win drag races but it's no slouch (170 PS, 2 litre petrol)
- it meets all your requirements

Luvly car. You could buy my 05 plate for 11k

/edit: 7.5k for a 54 plate with no option packs ? Mine's got full leather and a bass-bin and it's 05 23,000 miles !! Someone told me it was only worth 7k

 

[00dave]

Thanks all for your suggestions (Except Tom and his usual nonhelpfulness ) but I've gone for a black 1.6 Honda civic vtec so all I have to do is get used to the weird gearstick.

 

[old.user4556]

Fool

 

[00dave]

Please don't tell me you put ford above honda.

 

[DaGaffer]

Please don't tell me you put ford above honda.

Well the ST is the better car. Always amazes me when people slag Ford; they make damn good cars (in Europe anyway).

 

[00dave]

That's probably because the focus st is a more powerful car than the vtec, but not as powerful as the honda civic type r because when compared to the ford st it gives better mpg, is 1.60 secs faster at 0-60, has a 12 mph faster top speed, and gives 23 more bhp (both are 2 litre).

The honda civic type r would be a better card to have in top trumps wouldn't you say.

 

[DaGaffer]

The honda civic type r would be a better card to have in top trumps wouldn't you say.

Yeah but Top Trumps is no way to choose a car. If you want to play that game, buy an Astra VXR. Then torque-steer it into the nearest ditch.

 

[00dave]

I fear this conversation is going in the direction of all car related conversations anyway. Not interested in speed, handling and all that, that's what the alfa romeo that I rally in is for. I'm interested in fuel consumption, reliability, cost and drive comfort so I'm sticking with the honda.

 

[Bodhi]

*yawn*

Well done on buying a domestic appliance. For similar money (or a lot less) you could have had

Alfa Romeo : Alfa 147 2.0 GTA Interior

BMW : BMW M3 Evo

Fiat : FIAT GRANDE PUNTO SPORTING 130BHP

Perrys of Portsmouth : Fiat 500 1.4 Sport 3dr

Fiat : **FIAT PANDA 100HP EXCELLENT CAR**

 

[00dave]

Unreliable

too many miles

Too orange

Too expensive

Too ugly

The thing is I've been informed by several people including two mechanics, an engineer and two car salesmen (Not the ones I'm dealing with so no bias there) that Japanese build quality is top notch at the moment, and a honda civic is a good choice for my current driving demands.

 

[Jupitus]

Fool

That's a bit strong in my view - at the end of the day both are pretty nice motors, and I don't think there is a 'fool comment' between them...

I would probably have gone for the Ford myself, but I don't doubt I'd be happy enough with the Honda

 

[ECA]

I have a panda atm but I was driving a honda civic a while back, tend to go with whatever cheap company lease hire deals are available.

Got to say, the civic is dreamy to drive in terms of handling+accel, the panda is a bit of a brick in comparison.

Oh how I long to turn 25 so I can buy an exige and have insewerance.

 

[Gumbo]

I have a panda atm but I was driving a honda civic a while back, tend to go with whatever cheap company lease hire deals are available.

Got to say, the civic is dreamy to drive in terms of handling+accel, the panda is a bit of a brick in comparison.

Oh how I long to turn 25 so I can buy an exige and have insewerance.

There won't be a great deal of difference when you reach 25. A good bet, if that's your plan, would be to get something sporty but cheaper to insure now, and build some experience. A lot of insurance companies are scared when people first get Elises/Exiges with no experience of sports cars as if you're going to stack, you're very likely to do so in the first year. Get over to SELOC | Lotus Enthusiasts Club for Lotus information.

<-- Elise owner for almost 5 years.

 

[Bodhi]

Unreliable

too many miles

Too orange

Too expensive

Too ugly

The thing is I've been informed by several people including two mechanics, an engineer and two car salesmen (Not the ones I'm dealing with so no bias there) that Japanese build quality is top notch at the moment, and a honda civic is a good choice for my current driving demands.

Really? Because the one thing I've never associated with Honda is build quality. I've been in a few now, from a previous shape Accord to a new shape Civic and found them deeply tedious and plasticy. Sadly my 9 year old Punto seems to have nicer plastics inside than me mates 06 model Civic. The driver of the civic Type-R I saw on the side of the M6 this morning in a cloud of steam might hae something to say about Jap reliability as well.

Still, enjoy your pensioners' car.

 

[Raven]

What, you saw a broken down jap car???? they must be all bad then!

 

[TdC]

heh I was soooo tempted to get a 200hp Civic the other day. Pity I don't have a garage or I certainly would have. Bodhi's full of incurable illnesses and Sony brand vibrators