TBH i really don't know what can replace the octy. Fantastic car and cheap.

Possibly thinking about the Mk2 octy vrs but imo they are a little ugly on the front end....hmmm

Loving the Mk1 for now

Either the Alfa GT Cloverleaf 1.9jtdm 170 q2

Or if I get a bit more cash

The Alpina D3 (Would love the new twin but I will never be able to afford one short of a lottery win)

I'm torn between a few.... but all VAG, either an

A4 2.0TFSI Quattro Sline Avant (B7) or,

A4 2.0TSI Sline Avant (B8 - but it would have to be a lease cause of the cost of one) or,

Mk2 vRS combi (petrol) or,

SEAT Leon Cupra K1,

but if finances are still tight a late model Mk1 vRS combi

Next car I would like:

Skoda Octavia vRS.

But in truth I can see myself in a roomster scout as will consider trading the fabia in if sprogs arrive and move to a diesel scout.

If it were not a Skoda I would say a Golf but I'm pleased with Skoda at the moment and defo plan to get another one.

My next car will be a Mk2 vRS and i'm keeping the mk1 as my play thing.

Ahh so that's the new plan is it?

More than likely to be VAG again for me next, and probably Skoda. Audi A3 3dr would be a contender too.

An Octy2 Combi tempts, or maybe just the hatch. Depends what my needs are at the time, but it would be a vRS either way. Will probably buy something at 3-4yrs old and would want a new CR unit if I keep with diesel (quite likely). I am interested in the new range of VAG turbo petrols though, especially that new chain driven 2.0T that Audi are going to use first - the combined MPG cycle looks bloody impressive.

A purchase would be a while off anyway, so just as well - gives the engines time to improve and evolve, and the prices to come down a bit as well!

Cheers,

Steve

My next car will be the following. I only got the MX-5 in March though, so there's time for the second hand values to stabilise and petrol prices to rise, but what the hey. I'm avin it!

Scirocco - :drool:

That colour looks ace as well.

Steve

Been thinking about one of these

Just unsure whether can remap it or not -

Drive Clever Lite LS Walking Frame with Wheels - Walking and Zimmer Frames

Drive Clever Lite LS Walking Frame with Wheels

The clever lite LS walking frame with wheels has push down brakes and a flip up seat to allow the user to be seated or standind inside the walking frame.

The clever lite walker easily folds up for travelling or storage due to its dual side padded release.

Features

Push down brakes.

Comes with flip up seat with built in carry handle.

Allows individual to be seated or raised to step inside the frame.

Easily folds with dual clever side paddle release.

Soft, flexible backrest provides comfort and security while seated.

5`` fixed front wheels.

Rear glide brakes.

Sturdy 1`` diameter anodized, extruded, aluminum construction.

Could still benefit from a rear ARB. I say go for it

Weekend plaything... :rubchin:

Steve

Could still benefit from a rear ARB. I say go for it Steve

Trust you to be picky :P

Weekend plaything... :rubchin:

I was rather hoping for something more interesting

I was rather hoping for something more interesting

Oh do tell

Oh do tell

Well, was hoping there'd be, erm , au, pair of them

Phaeton for me, V6 TDI, when they are £10k... :drool:

F' that, the V10tdi is going to be cheap soon enough.

As for me, my next car is going to be a Mini Cooper D in red with white roof, mirrors, bonnet stripes and wheels, Chilli Pack, red colourline interior, darkened rear glass, heated washer jets, space saver spare wheel. Not what I would like, but a business decision.

Chris

Most likely at the moment is a Fiat Bravo , which is why I've wandered over to fiatforum.com for a while

Nice cars for the outlay. Watch the warranty small print, it is 3 year unlimited miles / 5 year 60,000 miles. I would quite possibly have had one as a school car apart from rear visibility. The 1.9 16v diesel looks very nice. Check out car brokers for some very good deals.

Chris

I'm sure you'll grow to like it Chris

Steve

F' that, the V10tdi is going to be cheap soon enough.

As for me, my next car is going to be a Mini Cooper D in red with white roof, mirrors, bonnet stripes and wheels, Chilli Pack, red colourline interior, darkened rear glass, heated washer jets, space saver spare wheel. Not what I would like, but a business decision.

Chris

Bloody nice spec though. Take it you didn't get the speaker upgrade, but what wheels did you settle for in the end 16" or 17" ?

I'm sure you'll grow to like it Chris

Steve

It is a sort of love hate thing. First car I ever had was a REAL Mini. 850cc, no slowing down for corners, ****ed water out of the heater matrix, rear subframe mounted on wheatabix. It made me smile every time I drove it.

The new one is an ******isation of the original idea visually and that is what puts me off. The interior is an incoherent dogs dinner of switchgear spattered about and the radio is a mini adventure just figuring out how to use it.

On the upside, the driving experience is special. Turn in is quite a lot like the original car, very nose lead and very very accurate. Handling is pretty much as good as front drivers get (Integra Type R excepted) and is truly an interactive experience. Ride and damping make the Fabia look like a joke TBH. The damping is very well judged and the ride quality / road noise an improvement over the Fabia even though it is more stiffly sprung.

Main thing is customer appeal though. Speaking to more instructors, two of them were able to carry £2 per hour extra after getting the car. That and the 61mpg that a fellow instructor is averaging.

Bloody nice spec though. Take it you didn't get the speaker upgrade, but what wheels did you settle for in the end 16" or 17" ?

I really could not justify the extra cost. I am already over budget and the extra few hundreds would be too much. The stock system is liveable, if inferior to the Fabia item.

Wheels wise, I really wanted the 15" option. Trouble is that to get the seats I wanted and match them in with the rest of the interior made it good sense to go with the Chilli Pack which puts 16" wheels with 195/55 tyres on it. At resale, the Chilli Pack seems to make a significant difference.

Interestingly, the sales guy told me he had sold 32 Minis this month and that 27 of them are Cooper D models. I just cannot see that many Mini owners covering high enough mileages to justify going diesel myself.

Chris

:rofl:

:rofl:

quicker than the one you have now

F' that, the V10tdi is going to be cheap soon enough.

But the V6 TDI maps to about 280bhp, and is a bit more conventional when it comes to maintenance... and its more fuel efficient too.

As for the Mini - I think you'll learn to love it!

Hopefully next year sometime I'll be after an old 200SX or Toyota Soarer or something similar as a bit of a project, I think that will be a suitable amount of time for me to have gotten completely fed up of FWD Either that or wait for three years and treat myself to what I really want, an R32 GTR

Either way, will definately be going back to Jap, and will definately have at least one turbo!

Tata Nano..

...and one for the other foot too

:rofl:

:drool:

No short-term plans to replace Samantha, but considering a Kia pro-ceed next.

Haven't been a great fan of BMW's lately, but they have released some details of the facelifted 3-series due next year and the engines look mighty impressive:

335i: 306bhp/295lb ft 3.0-litre six-cyl DI twin-turbo, 5.6sec, 155mph, 31.0mpg, 218g/km

330i: 272bhp/236lb ft 3.0-litre six-cyl DI, 6.1sec, 155mph, 39.2mpg, 173g/km

325i: 218bhp/199lb ft 3.0-litre six-cyl DI, 6.7sec, 155mph, 40.0mpg, 170g/km

320i: 170bhp/155lb ft 2.0-litre four-cyl DI, 8.2sec, 142mph, 46.3mpg, 146g/km

318i: 143bhp/140lb ft 2.0-litre four-cyl DI, 9.1sec, 130mph, 47.9mpg, 142g/km

335d: 286bhp/428lb ft 3.0-litre six-cyl TDI twin-turbo, 6.0sec, 155mph, 42.2mpg, 177g/km

330d: 245bhp/384lb ft 3.0-litre six-cyl TDI turbo, 6.1sec, 155mph, 49.6mpg, 152g/km

325d: 197bhp/295lb ft 3.0-litre six-cyl TDI turbo, 7.4sec, 146mph, 49.6mpg, 153g/km

320d: 177bhp/258lb ft 2.0-litre four-cyl TDI turbo, 7.9sec, 143mph, 58.9mpg, 128g/km

318d: 143bhp/221lb ft 2.0-litre four-cyl TDI turbo, 9.3sec, 130mph, 60.1mpg, 123g/km

Both petrols and diesels seem to blend high outputs with low emissions better than other manufacturers.

A 330d Touring could make it onto my next car list.