Hi guys,

I'm looking to change my car and I really am looking for a small, economical (40mpg+) but fairly quick (0-60 in under 9 secs.) I also need reliability and 4 seats.

I'm liking the look of the smart forfour brabus. Anything else I should consider? I did look at the fabia vrs but the new 1 is too expensive and the old one is a bit too slow.

Polo GTi? Lupo GTi?

Lupo gti like me

4 seats

0-60mph in 7.8s, as fast as a remapped fabia vrs

40 mpg and lots of fun

Bi-xenon headlights as standard too

I'd love a lupo gti but they are as rare as rocking horse poo! V.expensive for the age and mileage too. I had an arosa 1.0 a few years ago and loved it.

bit biased here but get an old fabia remap it and bang more economy and even quicker

It's an option but that costs even more money to map and get it right!!

only a few hundred quid, cant belive you find a standard one slow though? In gear they are great, standard ones run out of puff at just under 4k rpm, but feel alot quicker due to the torque

For 4k you'd get a half decent one

Love mine

Lets face it though being realistic the mk 1 vrs has a lot of quality issues

Fiat Panda 100hp? Evo mag raved about it and there's an expert owner on here.

Driven the 100hp but didn't feel quite up to the challenge. Wasn't especially quick and the pull out of a corner wasn't particularly fun. I'd like something that has the ability to be tuned at a later date..

Corsa vxr?

Whats the budget??

How about an ibiza fr 1.8t 150bhp can be remapped?

If you want to tune it best getting a turbo

I probably want to spend about 6k. The corsa is an option but I'm a bit concerned by the "chav" factor. I haven't looked at the Ibiza. The 1.8t is a good engine as I had it in my superb. Not going to get 40mpg+ though?

Bmw Series 1 120d?

or... Suzuki Swift Sport?

I cant see you geting 40+ mpg out of a the Smart Forfour Brabus, unless you drive like a granny, which would defy the point of having one in the first place.

A Fabia vRS with a re-map is far from slow and you will get over 40mpg on a spirited drive. Also 0-60 in well under 8 seconds.

Suzuki swift sport more food for thought! Wouldnt have a BMW. It's that image..

The fabia looks like the car to look into further.

Thanks for all your comments, I really appreciate it!!

Chris

Ibiza cupre tdi 160bhp

Everything the fabia is but better!

Suzuki swift sport more food for thought!

Chris

My boss has both the Suzuki Swift Sport and the Citroen DS3. Her husband is into rallying and convinced her that they needed two hatches that could be classed as warm/hot.

Anyway, she was telling me that around the dinner table over the weekend they has a discussion which car they'd prefer to take to the Nurburgring. Both of them and their son (who's a car nut and drives both cars regularly) unanimously agreed that they'd all choose the Swift, even though the Citroen is faster in a straight line. It all came down to feel and confidence in the cars handling capabilities.

Sounds a bit left field here, but how about a Mini Cooper S. Can get a Supercharged 1.6 one for under £6k and they go well.

I would vote for the Swift Sport though, as its a great wee car and has plenty of go about it. My mate has had 2 of them.

Sounds a bit left field here, but how about a Mini Cooper S. Can get a Supercharged 1.6 one for under £6k and they go well.

I would vote for the Swift Sport though, as its a great wee car and has plenty of go about it. My mate has had 2 of them.

I'd rather be seen in a Swift than a Mini. Very shallow I know, but some cars are meant to be driven by girls or men who like other men too much.

Sounds a bit left field here, but how about a Mini Cooper S. Can get a Supercharged 1.6 one for under £6k and they go well.

I would vote for the Swift Sport though, as its a great wee car and has plenty of go about it. My mate has had 2 of them.

Original supercharged S has a drink problem. No way you'd get 40mpg from it. The newer turbo S would do it but probably too expensive for now.

What about a Clio 172/182?

You didn't mention reliable....

The mini would be my dream car but the economy worries me. I have a Volvo s60 2.0t at the moment which is doing on average 26mpg. I can't afford it anymore and I need something that will do much better economy but is also fairly warm/hot. I want something fun and nippy because otherwise I'm going to end up in a unimaginative fiesta or equivalent! :(

As suggested, Polo GTi? Same engine as the Lupo, so same speeds (well, a bit slower as it's a tad heavier). Mines been faultless since the last gearbox rebuild.

Cheap to buy, cheapish to run too. Well, if you can call motoring cheap. . .

Edited 16 March, 201115 yr by TriggerFish

Mines been faultless since the last gearbox rebuild.

What's your take on the gearbox issues that are widely reported? Are they overstated?

Also, doesn't the Polo have a 5-speed gearbox - how well does that work in the car? Reviews of the Lupo suggest that the change to a 6-speed box in '02 was a big improvement.