Does such a thing exist?

Don't worry, I'm not going off on my modern cars are crap because they are too good rant. What I'm wondering is this- are there any modern (lets say up to 5 years old) cars out there that are challenging and/or rewarding to drive without having to do speeds that could land you in hot water?

Whilst my car isn't exactly known for its handling the grip alone makes it very easy to carry quite alot of speed through corners and even though I only have just over 200bhp you don't need to work the engine too hard or for very long to be doing double the speed limit if you don't reign yourself in, not that I would allow myself to do that.

Is the only option for a rewarding drive without putting your licence on the line a classic?

Guess you could drive an old skool mini

Smart Roadster

MX5

MX5 if you can cope with the jokes

You could always find another way to get your kicks like this!!

Edited 8 April, 201016 yr by karlbar2k

Panda 100bhp? Suzuki Swift Sport? Renault Twingo GT?

I guess it comes down to what you mean by challenging and rewarding. There are plenty of cars with not much power that are great fun to drive but I suspect all of them are still capable of licence losing speeds.

Even most of the cars these days which offer a "pure" driving experience, ie without ABS, power steering, traction control, etc, have a lot of power and grip.

Chris

Twingo GT/Cup is a good raw drive. Quite fun for 120bhp

Generally I would think the answer lies in smaller cars such as th Swift Sport, Twingo, etc.

Twingo GT/Cup is a good raw drive. Quite fun for 120bhp

The GT is the 1.2 turbo with 98 bhp. Found it a bit lacklustre compared to the Panda when we looked at one recently. So much so that we ended up buying a second 100hp

The RenaultSport one with 130ish bhp is a bit better, but I'm not sure I'd describe is as a raw drive though, especially with the funny electric steering. Shame I was hoping for a supermini version of the Clio Cup which is a fantastically fun car to drive

Chris

Edited 8 April, 201016 yr by ScoobyChris

clio 182 trophy that is quick, i believe is minus ABS so that would classify it like that. also the new meganne allows you to 100% turn off traction control i believe

Challening/rewarding cars?

I gotta say one of the best cars I have driven remains to be the Fiesta 1.4 16v Zetec (was a 2002 shaped) Looked like a mini Focus but it was a hoot to drive.

Sure it only had 75BHP but with handling like that you just don't care.

If you want a classic......or approaching almost classic status

Skoda Favorit

Alfa Romeo 155 or the 164

Landmark cars and good rewarding drives. I wanted a 155 as it's just got that BTCC coolness about it

Of course there are others, these are just 2 I'm commenting on having owned and driven (bar the 155)

To be fair any car can land you in 'hot water' if you intend of driving like a braindead idiot, so I would say no to

Is the only option for a rewarding drive without putting your licence on the line a classic?

My Alfa has 150BHP and it handles great.

Some good replies, thanks.

At the moment my main problem is needing a big boot for work. However with the scrapping of our essential car user scheme and no (IMO) viable alternative being offered by my employer (I don't see a subsidised lease car or low interest loan as a comparable alternative) I'm tempted to get something smaller and say tough luck to them.

As good as my Octavia is I just don't get that same feeling when pushing it that I used to get from my 306 :( In that I felt like my limited driving talents were being flattered where as in the Octavia I'm left thinking "oh... I guess that gripped pretty well" without me being really involved.

So get another 306?

A later model one and perhaps a HDi engined one. Remap, decat, intercooler and you're on your way to 200hp with a decent amount of torque.

And you still have a decent sized boot (amazing what the boots in these will swallow up!) and get a 5 door and it's still practical too.

I find the 306 very fun to drive. They have a great chassis and have got quite a lot of grip I find. Even the N/A diesel we have now can be a hoot to drive and by no means slow!

Phil

So get another 306?

A later model one and perhaps a HDi engined one. Remap, decat, intercooler and you're on your way to 200hp with a decent amount of torque.

And you still have a decent sized boot (amazing what the boots in these will swallow up!) and get a 5 door and it's still practical too.

I find the 306 very fun to drive. They have a great chassis and have got quite a lot of grip I find. Even the N/A diesel we have now can be a hoot to drive and by no means slow!

Phil

Another 306 isn't really on my radar. I tend to buy cars at about 5 years old and keep them until 10 then swap to something else. A 306 would feel like a backwards step in some ways. You are right about the boot though. I used to run mini scrap heap challenge events for schools and I could fit all the "scrap" and full set of tools for 5 groups of kids in the 306 in one go... I just couldn't turn and accelerate at the same time without the rear tyres rubbing :p

Also on my next motor I think a downstep in power would be a good move. I like to work the engine a bit but with 200bhp on tap from quite low revs in the Octy that isn't possible. Our 1.4 60bhp Polo is the other end of the scale and feels painfully slow at times but I'm sure there is a happy medium in the middle somewhere :p

How about a very late Citroen Xsara then? Like the 306 it's basically a re-styled ZX.

clio 182 trophy that is quick, i believe is minus ABS so that would classify it like that. also the new meganne allows you to 100% turn off traction control i believe

I've just spent 24 hours in a modified Clio 182 (loan car). It had me grinning from ear to ear.

Not sure about a standard one, but a modified one is certianly in a completely different fun league to an Octavia.

Old Clio RS range. Nicci's got a 182 Full Fat with both Cup packs (suspension/spoilers) Not stupidly quick like the current turbo'd FWD hatches but its got old skool rawness about it. Despite 30BHP more than the old williams its got the same BHP per ton. Nice stiff suspension with great damping, loves to be rev'd to 7K and have nice steering feedback. Took the long way home last night from a friends and loved it

Not tried a Twingo RS but its based on the old clio platform so would imagine its similar however its got electric powersteering unlike the Clio

Edit Trophey still have ABS, it was the 172 cup that never. Trophey has recaro's, bigger rear spoiler, lower front spring and nice SACHs racing dampers that need to be rebuild ever 30K ish. Rebuilds cost around £800 for the fronts or £2K new. Rears can be replaced for £80ish each. Intersting the front dampers can be tweek'd to make them rebound adjustable.

Edited 9 April, 201016 yr by faboka vrs

Suprised no one has mentioned the BMW 3 series yet..... or would that be really out budget?

Suprised no one has mentioned the BMW 3 series yet..... or would that be really out budget?

I've never been in a 3-series that was interesting until you pushed it - at which point you're usually heading towards silly speeds. If the OP is finding the Octy vRS too tame at low speeds, I wouldn't have thought a 3-series would be solution!

Only thing I could think of that is difficult to drive-

I've never been in a 3-series that was interesting until you pushed it - at which point you're usually heading towards silly speeds. If the OP is finding the Octy vRS too tame at low speeds, I wouldn't have thought a 3-series would be solution!

I only had an older E36, but i always found i enjoyed driving my beemer. It may not have always been exciting, but everything always just felt right, and i felt like i was actually drivng the car.

Personally i'd sell the vRS, or the Cupra R in a heartbeat for a beemer. That said, i'd want an E36 again, as the later beemers are a bit more soft and cuddly, even the Ms.

Interestingly having started this thread today was the first time I needed to catch the backend of the Octy I was cornering rather spiritedly though

Smart RoadsterMX5

+1 for the mx5, can have a lot of fun at relatively low speeds. if going sideways is your thing, cant beat a Morris Minor 1300 for going sideway at little speed.

Some good replies, thanks.At the moment my main problem is needing a big boot for work. However with the scrapping of our essential car user scheme and no (IMO) viable alternative being offered by my employer (I don't see a subsidised lease car or low interest loan as a comparable alternative) I'm tempted to get something smaller and say tough luck to them.As good as my Octavia is I just don't get that same feeling when pushing it that I used to get from my 306 :( In that I felt like my limited driving talents were being flattered where as in the Octavia I'm left thinking "oh... I guess that gripped pretty well" without me being really involved.

So your employer demands you have a certain sized car for their use, but wont pay for it?

In that case, they need to supply a pool car for you.

So your employer demands you have a certain sized car for their use, but wont pay for it?

In that case, they need to supply a pool car for you.

I'd have said the subsidised lease that appears to on offer covers them...