My younger brother is looking at changing his Peugeot 206 1.1, he's thinking about getting a Toyota Celica VVTLi. I've given him a few alternatives he should consider, which one would you recommend (budget is under £2k). He is 25 and a student working part time.

mk1 Octy vRS

 

Also, a Seat Toledo. A good one can be bought for that money (A fair bit less than the Leon)

 

if it was one on the list, the Clio has a place in my heart

 

Had a 172 Cup, and it was probably the best handling car I've ever owned...

 

Thirsty as hell though

 

Damo

Get the corolla tsport 189bhp

Faster than the celica!

Alfa Giulietta 1.4TB Multair.

 

Could remap it at a later date to 200 bhp ish, with a small lightweight engine up front with as good a sountrack as any 4 pot can this side of a Scooby.

Corolla T Sport for me, owned 2 of them and would have another. Faster than the Celica and cheaper to insure. No reliability issues, lots of fun and great Toyota build quality. Wouldnt touch the Renaults unless you've got a good warranty. As for the GTI 180, had one before and was the biggest pile of crap ever. Driveshafts breaking, gearbox issues, headgasket failure (30k miles).

Day

(budget is under £2k).

 

 

Alfa Giulietta 1.4TB Multair.

 

 Oops! Missed that bit. He can dream then I guess.....

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/221267995191?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

 

Day

My vote would go for the Clio, they go really well and the handling is superb too.

Mk2 Golf GTi 16v. Legendary in just about every way. 

mk1 Octy vRS

Also, a Seat Toledo. A good one can be bought for that money (A fair bit less than the Leon)

if it was one on the list, the Clio has a place in my heart

Had a 172 Cup, and it was probably the best handling car I've ever owned...

Thirsty as hell though

Damo

Do you have driving gloves and a youtube account?

I went for the Celica, i would love a Celica GT4

May I suggest something else?  How about one like I've got?  It is the most fun I've ever had in a car (driving that is). I've been using mine as a daily driver for over a year now and it's cheap to run.  It falls into the old tax bracket of £135 per year, insurance is cheap and it is simple to work on. The S2 version has the 1.6 instead of the 1.3 in mine but both can be had for about £1500 at the moment.

Have a look here,

http://www.106rallyeforum.com/forum2008/showthread.php?t=89984

Okay, it's not the last word in refinement or straight line speed but if you want to go round corners....

 

edit : Here's an S2 with an original engine - quite rare these days.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Peugeot-106-S2-Rallye-Bianca-White-1-6-8V-Original-Car-/121157014425?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item1c35855399

 

Here's what VBH has to say on them,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K56XW3Ca9zc

Do you have driving gloves and a youtube account?

Ahh yes, I've seen that as well.    He has the fastest ever Clio Cup in the world 

 

As for the OP's question a clio cup as great fun none the less.

Ahh yes, I've seen that as well.    He has the fastest ever Clio Cup in the world 

 

 

I was clueless to Jase's comment until now 

Clio. I think a little piece of me would die walking out to a Toyota Corolla every morning...

Clio. I think a little piece of me would die walking out to a Toyota Corolla every morning...

You have to remember what Skoda used to be. Badge snobbery gets you nowhere:)

Day

Clio. I think a little piece of me would die walking out to a Toyota Corolla every morning...

No no!

Id be the opposite

French sardine can - which imo is a bit chav

The corolla is an awesome car! Will kick the nuts off a piddly 172 clio

You can get a facelift corolla which is quite cool actually (i had one)

It depends on what your brother is after.  If he wants dependable A to B transport then he should look at certain makes & models.  If he wants driver involvement then other cars will fit the bill.  Does he do a lot of long distance motorway driving or is most of his driving done within a 10 mile radius?  Is he handy with a spanner and does he like to service the car himself? 

 

If he wants to go fast in a straight line then all well and good.  When he gets to a corner the fastest car might not be the best to go round it.  My Mk1 vRS with a decent remap was great on the straights and was fantastic at long journeys.  However, on a spirited run with friends in other cars it all came unstuck in the corners & over undulations. My sense of smugness was soon gone when the 'slower' cars distanced themselves from me in a series of bends and over less than billiard smooth tarmac.  I realised that they were having fun & I wasn't.  They were aware of what the front wheels were doing and I was connected to the tarmac via cotton wool & a sense of numbness.  Some of the above will be easy to drive & don't require too much driver involvement.  They are also great for going to Tesco & McDonalds in after a spot of cosmetic modding.

 

If we knew more about his driving likes/dislikes and needs then it could be narrowed down a bit easier.

 

If he likes driving then this review might be useful...

http://www.evo.co.uk/carreviews/evocarreviews/48797/toyota_corolla_t_sport.html

I'd go for one of skinnymans 106 rallyes! tell your brother if he did that and looked after it, it would make him smile every time he drove it, he could do work on it himself for pennies, and it would probably go UP in value!

I felt the tsport had quite good handling!

There is another review out there and it says the opposite saying its good

Plus the 8.4s 0-60mph time is for insurance (why its gp14)

In the real world it cracks it in under 7s, with a helix clucth and fidanza flywheel in mine i could muller civic type r's for fun

I've never driven one Jase, so you'd know more than me on the Corolla.  I guess I was coming at it from a non-modified angle, so what the car is like straight out of the box and the fact that the insurance would be cheaper than if modded. 

Sharkrider is right on the smile front.  I go for drives in this car just for the sake of it and each journey is a small adventure!

Its not the badge. Its the fact its a boring looking box.

Its not the badge. Its the fact its a boring looking box.

The PFL are a little plain looking, ideal for the sleeper look. Means you dont get all the dickheads trying to race you from the lights. The FL have a little more kit on them and do look very nice. But as an all round car they're perfect, cheap to insure, ultra reliable, and with the 2ZZ it'll pretty much eat most cars for breakfast, including the Clio. They might not be everyones cup of tea. But as a Jekyll and Hyde car, you cant beat it. 

Day

The facelift one is nice

Tbh you seem to own a fabia vrs... Now that is a box