My Octy must go..but I love it tho...?! Help!

[Woo7dy]

Edited 17 August, 2010 by Woo7dy

[AndyC]

My brother had an RX8 for a time. Great car when it went well but a number of issues. It ate tyres, but the main one is the starting problem. Unless you let it warm up from cold, they can be impossible to restart, needs a call out from the Mazda breakdown line. Last time it happened to my brother, the guy on the truck said it was his 10th call that day for the same thing.

Andy

[Woo7dy]

Edited 17 August, 2010 by Woo7dy

[chicken_eyebrow]

A work colleague of mine bought an RX8 earlier this year and already wants to get rid of it due to getting less than 20mpg and putting a litre of oil in it every month! Having driven it I know what you mean about having to work it to get the power out, it's sort of like VTEC in a Honda in that respect (and you will find the same thing if you drive an S2000, although they are second to none for handling).

I took a mate to Gatwick last summer to buy a BMW Z4 and it was a lovely looking car but the doors felt like they are made out of tin foil compared to my Octy, not what you expect on a car that retailed at £25k new. And he also found it expensive to buy and insure (he's 27 and had a 10 grand budget and could only just about afford a 54 plate with the lowest power 6 cylinder engine, the 2.2 litre. It throws you back in your seat nicely though )

If it was me I would stick with what I know (VAG group) and get an R32 or TT but then the R32 would cost a fortune in petrol and tax and the TT is still a bit of a hairdressers car, albeit one with a turbo you can remap to 260bhp.

Have you thought about a Lotus Elise? Seen a few people recommending them as a fun car in that sort of price bracket.

Edited 28 June, 2010 by chicken_eyebrow

[furry]

go and drive a 350z, awesome cars!!

[Shroud]

I'm clearly biased having owned one, but so long as you can afford decent servicing ,a 98 or 99 E36 M3 SMG would give you huge performance, cheap tax, decent mpg, rarirty value and is a car that can be sold on in a couple of years for the price you paid assuming you buy sensibly. You'd have to shop around though, as the larger majority have fallen into the hands of owners who think they can service a super car on the cheap.

[lumac999]

A work colleague of mine bought an RX8 earlier this year and already wants to get rid of it due to getting less than 20mpg and putting a litre of oil in it every month!

That's a WENKEL engine for you!

Rubbish.

[peppyuk]

If I had £10k to spend, and didn't need a cheap to run family wagon I'd be off to get an E46 M3.. or maybe a 80's 911.

Edited 29 June, 2010 by peppyuk

[okenobi]

Your tax limit rules out the R32 straight away. From your description of the RX8 I would humbly suggest that anything NA is gonna bore you, so that rules out most Jap things. A TT is just a vRS with a different body. The only way to get a bigger thrill than the Octy is to go faster and better handling with similar power curve. That's gonna be tough to do without buying something very similar. I would save your pennies and throw a couple grand at the vRS. Suspension and then big turbo FMIC route.....

[chicken_eyebrow]

Some more ideas:

DC5 Integra Type R

Focus Mk1 RS

Seat Leon Cupra R

Or what about a Mk2 Octy VRS? You could probably pick up a 3 year old one for under 10 grand now.

[Bodge]

I've had a few drives in an S2000. It's a lovely looking car, and the VTEC is entertaining. But! The handling borders on dangerous, and Honda have revised the suspension about 4 or 5 times to try and sort it out, but have failed. If it's wet, you have to be on red alert for every corner! Also the engine can become a little tiring.

My mate had one for a few months, and always spun it on roundabouts in the wet, so knew it was a bit hairy. Then we took it to the Nurburgring, in the wet, and smashed it up! I think a Metro would be faster than an S2000 in the wet!

I still think it's a stunning car to look at though. It's just useless as an all-season tourer.

I've not driven a VX220, but a friend has one and I've been in it. It seemed a bit "home made" inside, and the general build quality seemed substandard to me. I think if you're thinking of a getting a VX220, you may aswell go the whole hog and get an Elise. Elise's are brilliant, and I'd have one if I had a garage to keep it dry in.

I've had some good times in an S1 Elise! The car has a soul, and just makes you happy to be in it. You'll see what I mean if you search for "Nurburgring - Lotus Elise S1 360 Spin" on youtube!

S2's are probably a bit expensive for you to look at, but they are great too. My dad's friend has a tweaked one, and he drives like a nutter, everywhere. He recently lost it on a bend, hit a tree, flipped it, and ended up upside down in a ditch. He survived with no broken bones, and the Elise is being repaired as we speak! Safe and repairable then!

I used to love Japanese cars, until I discovered the VAG! Jap cars just feel horrible inside, and I feel like I've been ripped off when sitting in them. It's not even a little bit bad, it's shocking. I've borrowed an '04 Impreza WRX a few times, and the interior is embarrasing. It makes the Skoda feel like a Rolls Royce in comparison!

I say Elise, R32, TT 225 Quattro or the rare TT 240bhp (1.8T) Quattro.

[banzaiman]

Skyline R33 or R34 or an Impreza STI

[Dan lewis]

M3

[Woo7dy]

Thanks for all for all your input guys, much appreciated. Very interesting to hear all your opinions...

I very much like the sound of an M3 but not sure on the old shape, very old car now and still insurance grp 20 :'(

Skyline or STI... indeed!! Skyline is awesome I guess but too expensive etc

Having looked at Elise's online, they are still really pricey...only ones under £10k are about five and they have like 80k on the clock, 5 owners etc. I really dunno if I like the look of them either, the exige then yes please if someone wants to lend me £10k!!

I do like the R32, again though, the few that are under £10k look pretty crap. I like the principle of a TT but I can't escape the feeling of 'Am I driving a hairdresser car'

I thought that about the VX220, it does look a bit basic. I do have to go on long journeys every now and then and think something like that will soon become tiresome...

Mk one Focus RS is alright, only just under £10k though for an oldish high miler. To me this one just looks like a boyed up Focus, whereas the new one just looks amazing

Integra is an import isn't it? Not really my cup of tea. Would a Leon Cupra R really be a huge step up?

Have heard lots of horror stories about the S2000 so yer I guess I would have to discount that too, would be too much of a gamble.

Z4 is still tempting, the 2.5 SE.....love this one http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201023360937441/sort/priceasc/usedcars/price-from/5000/transmission/manual/maximum-mileage/up_to_80000_miles/price-to/10000/seller-type/trade_adverts/model/z4/make/bmw/postcode/bs328bd/radius/1500/page/2?logcode=p

Edited 17 August, 2010 by Woo7dy

[chicken_eyebrow]

Would a Leon Cupra R really be a huge step up from my mapped Octy?

225 bhp as standard I'm guessing thats a little bit more than the Octy unless you've done more than just a remap. Plus they have twin intercoolers and better suspension and brakes than the Octy. Remappable to 260bhp, all you'd need is possibly a LSD to put that power down better.

If looking at Z4s with the 2.5 engine be careful as the later version of the 2.5 is actually no quicker than the 2.2 The combination of rear wheel drive and heavy torque delivery at low revs feels really nice. Had trouble keeping up with my mates one on the way back from picking it up

Edited 29 June, 2010 by chicken_eyebrow

[Woo7dy]

Edited 17 August, 2010 by Woo7dy

[Woo7dy]

:p

Edited 17 August, 2010 by Woo7dy

[Rhoobarb]

I think you need to lower a couple of your requirements to get what you want. Age, spec, power, looks, tax, insurance, mileage, price, CO2, Hairdressers car, etc, etc. I think your going to have to compromise. You get what you pay for, but I dont think your going to get all those things in your wants list or it will be a very short list. The Octavia VRS represents very good value for money, but as the badge gains more and more popularity it will change.

Personally Id go for an older, well looked after car.

Edited 29 June, 2010 by Rhoobarb

[Woo7dy]

I agree Rhoobarb

Edited 17 August, 2010 by Woo7dy

[chicken_eyebrow]

Just looking at Mazda MPS's, shame the co2 is so high

They're another one like the Focus ST, 5 cylinder turbo I believe and quite thirsty on fuel.

Neo_VR on here used to have an MPS. Watched it chase a Porsche 911 GT3 on the Ring last year, was quite funny (http://www.vimeo.com/6764811 2:45 in)

Edited 29 June, 2010 by chicken_eyebrow

[Woo7dy]

Tempting...will watch that vid now!

Edited 17 August, 2010 by Woo7dy

[Woo7dy]

LOL, that was ace.... :rofl: Did he get past it in the end?

Was that the mark one Mazda 3 MPS or the 2009> version...

Cracking (or should I say "crackling" ) video, very entertaining! Take it you guys were in a Leon Cupra...some very funny 'choice' language at times lol!

Edited 17 August, 2010 by Woo7dy

[DBP]

My advice would be to stay clear of RX8's especially JDM ones. My friend got a 55 plate from a dealer near London. From day one it wasn't right, little bits of gold over spray (it was a red car), Paint runs in the bumper and bits to sugguest it may have been knocked at some point. After 4 months? It started to have a starting fault when warm and of course the fuel and the oil was costing a fair amount.

The car was not practical at all and if you wanted to fix anything for it, it cost a bomb! Also certain things where rather hard to get hold of. Lucky enough he has managed to chuck it in and has now moved to a Audi TT mk1 225.

[chicken_eyebrow]

LOL, that was ace.... :rofl: Did he get past it in the end?

Was that the mark one Mazda 3 MPS or the 2009> version...

Cracking (or should I say "crackling" ) video, very entertaining! Take it you guys were in a Leon Cupra...some very funny 'choice' language at times lol!

Anyways, I'm sold now on the MPS now I know its quicker (or as quick!) as a 911!!!!

Yeah we were 4 up in a Cupra R... which didn't belong to the driver so he was taking it easy!

I think it was a pre-2009 version of the MPS. The owner is on here, his username is Neo_VR and I think he sold the MPS last year to buy a S2000 funnily enough!

[Woo7dy]

Edited 17 August, 2010 by Woo7dy