Hot hatch Conundrum...
Discussion
Ok, so I currently drive a '57' Fiesta ST as a daily and a '08' Lotus Elise S 134 Touring
I'm wanting to buy a house, and change the 2 cars for something I'm going to use for the next couple of years. Until I buy the house the daily has to sit in a random car park, so I don't want it to stand out too much.
In the past I've have had, amongst others
206 GTi 180
Lotus Elise S1
Renaultsport Clio 200
Peugeot 208 GTi
I'm choosing between,
a Late(N18 Engine) R56 Cooper S - Nice build quality, lovely to drive, quick, decent on fuel, But has it got rid of the engine probs of past?
FN2 Civic Type R - always fancied a VTEC, Hold money well, poor on fuel, heard of paint problems(?),Bit older but cheaper
Peugoet RCZ - Used to sell them back in the day, fantastic looking, looks more expensive than it is, good tourer, too big
Another Clio 200 - Probably the best car to drive I've experienced bar a Lotus, good spec for the money but I've already checked it off
Budget is about £9,000 which was more than I originally wanted to spend but man maths always prevails! Aiming for under 30,000 miles
also on a side note, anyone know a popular Mini forum? All the forums I've been on noone seems to ever post, you'd think they'd have a massive following?
Jonny
I'm wanting to buy a house, and change the 2 cars for something I'm going to use for the next couple of years. Until I buy the house the daily has to sit in a random car park, so I don't want it to stand out too much.
In the past I've have had, amongst others
206 GTi 180
Lotus Elise S1
Renaultsport Clio 200
Peugeot 208 GTi
I'm choosing between,
a Late(N18 Engine) R56 Cooper S - Nice build quality, lovely to drive, quick, decent on fuel, But has it got rid of the engine probs of past?
FN2 Civic Type R - always fancied a VTEC, Hold money well, poor on fuel, heard of paint problems(?),Bit older but cheaper
Peugoet RCZ - Used to sell them back in the day, fantastic looking, looks more expensive than it is, good tourer, too big
Another Clio 200 - Probably the best car to drive I've experienced bar a Lotus, good spec for the money but I've already checked it off
Budget is about £9,000 which was more than I originally wanted to spend but man maths always prevails! Aiming for under 30,000 miles
also on a side note, anyone know a popular Mini forum? All the forums I've been on noone seems to ever post, you'd think they'd have a massive following?
Jonny
When I was looking at FN2s the only paint problems were around the top of the windscreen rubber. I think it was fixed on facelift models though (2009 onwards) which you should get into at that price.
They aren't bad on fuel either, obviously depends how it is driven but my friend has one and 35MPG is normal in daily driving without excessive VTEC y0.
They aren't bad on fuel either, obviously depends how it is driven but my friend has one and 35MPG is normal in daily driving without excessive VTEC y0.
HustleRussell said:
If you're going to become a homeowner and single car owner, perhaps the more grown up and spacious Renaultsport Megane would be a consideration? I have driven one briefly and was very impressed.
Did think about one of those, however I know the big bummed jobs have quite a few reliability issues and the newer ones are a bit too expensive.Used to sell them too
hahaHustleRussell said:
If you're going to become a homeowner and single car owner, perhaps the more grown up and spacious Renaultsport Megane would be a consideration? I have driven one briefly and was very impressed.
This, you will be moving, DIYing etc...Id consider a Focus ST, or perhaps if you want something more stealthy, a Focus with the 180hp ecoboost and fettle it a bit yourself. Same would go for a megane, get a GT and fettle it. More stealth in the carpark, but still plenty fast.
Perhaps something GTI with some debadging?
For 9k I'd probably be inclined to go with a Mk5/6 Golf GTI or Mk5 R32
Neither are the last word in dynamics but are very good, the mk6 has better build quality but does have the timing chain tensioner issue, something that should be changed at purchase IMO
Out of your choices, the Clio ticks my boxes, however if my mates R26 Megane is anything to go by, parts prices can be hideously expensive
Neither are the last word in dynamics but are very good, the mk6 has better build quality but does have the timing chain tensioner issue, something that should be changed at purchase IMO
Out of your choices, the Clio ticks my boxes, however if my mates R26 Megane is anything to go by, parts prices can be hideously expensive
I was in a similar position and went for the FN2, Honda reliability and that engine/gearbox combo swayed it for me
The Clio would be a hoot to drive but the civic will be much more practical being slightly bigger and having the rear seats that fold completely flat. It's also lighter than the other medium size hot hatches
The Clio would be a hoot to drive but the civic will be much more practical being slightly bigger and having the rear seats that fold completely flat. It's also lighter than the other medium size hot hatches
Great replies, some that I haven't considered too 
Good point on a bigger car for skip visits etc, however I do have access to a couple of vans, so that shouldn't be too much of an issue.
Got to be relatively gf safe too as she may start using it once we have moved.
I've driven all the cars in the past with Cooper S being the most recent but possibly the more impressive (also sounded awesome), But type R is swinging me to tick off the VTEC box but it's going to be older and probably cost more to maintain (insurance, fuel and Tax)
I would really love a newer shape Megane RS but it does seem out of budget, I don't want to risk the older one as even my short time selling Renaults I saw some 'dodgy' cars with phantoms in the electrics!
I've been looking for a few weeks now and managed to sell the fiesta at the weekend, which would normally be a great thing, but I'm kinda stuck and don't want to rush and buy something that I'm going to immediately plan on replacing (which is what I did with the 208)
Good point on a bigger car for skip visits etc, however I do have access to a couple of vans, so that shouldn't be too much of an issue.
Got to be relatively gf safe too as she may start using it once we have moved.
I've driven all the cars in the past with Cooper S being the most recent but possibly the more impressive (also sounded awesome), But type R is swinging me to tick off the VTEC box but it's going to be older and probably cost more to maintain (insurance, fuel and Tax)
I would really love a newer shape Megane RS but it does seem out of budget, I don't want to risk the older one as even my short time selling Renaults I saw some 'dodgy' cars with phantoms in the electrics!
I've been looking for a few weeks now and managed to sell the fiesta at the weekend, which would normally be a great thing, but I'm kinda stuck and don't want to rush and buy something that I'm going to immediately plan on replacing (which is what I did with the 208)
Last car was a Civic, albeit a 1.8 not a Type-R but not the best chassis and I only had it for 18 months, as I found it rather boring. Current car is a MINI Cooper (my budget only stretched to an early Cooper S or a later Cooper, so I went for the Cooper, as I was concerned about engine problems with the S too). Loving the MINI so far, no problems "touchwood" and I will probably keep it for 2-3 years but would consider like yourself, a late N18-engined Cooper S as my next car, as my car with more power would be hilarious. I'm not so keen on a regular hatch but do need rear seats for my kids, so may consider this or a GT86/BRZ or Audi TT quattro as my next car.
If you want more practical though, the Golf GTI as mentioned is the ultimate do-anything car or the Scirocco equivalent. mk1 Mazda 3 MPS (very subtle-looking, fast and practical) and the mk2 Focus ST (great engine and gearbox) as already mentioned would be excellent shouts too. Golf R32 with that snarly V6 makes it quite an event but there are some potentially expensive issues, so I would choose carefully and buy the best that you can afford and in my experience the GTI is nicer with the manual and the R32 with the DSG.
EDITED to add: They are a little older but a pre-hatch Subaru Impreza WRX offers an awful lot of bang for your buck. They're pretty reliable if left standard or lightly tuned and fairly practical as well, especially if you had the Wagon like I did. I notice that you haven't owned anything with 4WD yet, so it would be something a bit different and I heartily recommend them. The only drawback is fuel economy really but I used mine for a short daily commute. A Forester XT would be worth a look too but not quite as focussed and we're getting a little further away from the hot hatch that you said you wanted now!
If you want more practical though, the Golf GTI as mentioned is the ultimate do-anything car or the Scirocco equivalent. mk1 Mazda 3 MPS (very subtle-looking, fast and practical) and the mk2 Focus ST (great engine and gearbox) as already mentioned would be excellent shouts too. Golf R32 with that snarly V6 makes it quite an event but there are some potentially expensive issues, so I would choose carefully and buy the best that you can afford and in my experience the GTI is nicer with the manual and the R32 with the DSG.
EDITED to add: They are a little older but a pre-hatch Subaru Impreza WRX offers an awful lot of bang for your buck. They're pretty reliable if left standard or lightly tuned and fairly practical as well, especially if you had the Wagon like I did. I notice that you haven't owned anything with 4WD yet, so it would be something a bit different and I heartily recommend them. The only drawback is fuel economy really but I used mine for a short daily commute. A Forester XT would be worth a look too but not quite as focussed and we're getting a little further away from the hot hatch that you said you wanted now!
Edited by white_goodman on Wednesday 30th November 14:36
I'd say a few options not mentioned are:
2010 Megane RS250
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...
2011 Mazda3 MPS
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...
2009 Leon Cupra
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...
2010 Megane RS250
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...
2011 Mazda3 MPS
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...
2009 Leon Cupra
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...
skinnyman said:
Clio 182, less monies, so more monies for house, move into house quicker, join the lease brigade quicker.
Everyones a winner
I think this is a good bet all things considered. Permitting you're okay with the size of the car, it will be a very good daily as well as cheap, fast and fun.Everyones a winner
9k is alot of money to spend on a car when it can contribute towards your deposit. A decent 182 can be had for under 3k, leaving you a far bit of cash left over.
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