Newer car or modify the vrs??? Help

[e30kev]

Hi folks,

as the title says I've got a decision to make and I'm not sure which way to go.

 

My octy vrs is a 51 plate with 106k and has some mods fitted under my ownership (vr6 clutch/ecs lightweight flywheel, ramair intake, turbo back 2.5" piper exhaust with matching sport cat) but to my knowledge hasn't been mapped yet.

 

The car as it stands is mechanically sound, I only do about 6k miles a year and only has a few small age/vag related  niggles but the bodywork is letting it down (front end laquer peel/ 1 rusty front wing at the bottom needing replaced but the other wing might be salvageable) and will need a respray once the small bodywork issues are resolved. 

 

So here's my two options in no particular order:-

 

Option 1: save for a new car (would be the end of 2017 at the very earliest, I don't do tick/brighthouse/borrow beyond my means to keep up with the jones') with a budget of £6k, cars I had been considering are mk5 golf gti, mk2 Leon cupra, mk2/face-lift octy, bmw 130i, i know at this money some of these would be leggy examples though which brings me to option 2.

 

Option 2:- spend around £3-4k on the octy, get it to stage 2, add a few other mods (wavetrac lsd?) and bodywork sorted and be able to eat properly/go on holiday/not have to sell the wife and kids.

 

Any thoughts appreciated.

 

Cheers,

 

Kev.

[Paul thornton]

I'd buy a newer car mate.

 

Pumping 3 - 4k into a car which is only ever going to be worth  £1500 - £2000 tops is senseless in my opinion.

 

 

[e30kev]

I hear you mate, never getting the cash back.

I bought the car for a grand back in Nov 2013 and have since spent about £3-4k in that time just keeping it on the road and upgrading areas as they failed, hence uprated clutch, exhaust etc but no mapping yet.

 

I'm not too bothered about not getting the money return on it, especially as I'd lose it on depreciation on a newer replacement, I'm more interested in which choice is the best way to have a good time driving over the next few years.

 

A standard ish newer example like i mentioned above or a more focused/tweaked octy?

[Leeboy]

Alternate view though,  if you buy a new car for say £5k, then in a couple of years or so it will only be worth what your Octy is worth now.   

 

You could quite easily upgrade downpipe, cat and maybe intercooler. Get it mapped and you'll make say 220-230 bhp on the original turbo.  The car will remain nice and driveable at that state of tuning. 

 

Keeping on top of bodywork would be optional.  Certainly sort front wings, keep an eye out for cars being broken on this forum and get hold of a pair of the right colour when they come up, saves any painting. 

 

Unless the car falls to bits or it gets written off,  you're at the bottom of the depreciation ladder so what you'd spend from your savings or a loan for a new car can be used periodically to keep it mechanically tip top, e.g brakes, wheel bearings, engine breather system, cambelt and water pump,  oil pick up, door locks etc.  Keeping on top of all this if you're mechanically minded is satisfying and there is so much good information on this forum and on YouTube to help you learn what's what rather than pay out on  £50/£60 an hour just for labour at a garage.

 

I've got a 53 plate vRS with 133,000 miles and I prefer driving it over my 2015 Superb despite it having no user tech.  I try to do as much of the work on it myself. 

 

 

[Girardi]

Depends what you want. MK5 Golf is more refined and handles better but ultimately as dull as dishwater, mk2 Octy same with a boot. I drove multiple mk2 octys before buying my Mk1 one because the mk2 is far from being as engaging or exciting despite handling better. Mk2 Leon just looks like a people carrier, some love it but meh and my experience of Seat build quality is not good. The BM would be fun but will be leggy, there's a lot to go wrong, and my god they are still ugly as sin.

 

Personal opinion but better the devil you know!

 

If you're happy with the car and it's sound then why save for ages and take a gamble on another that could be a lemon whilst not really getting you much more than you have now other than a newer reg plate and some soft touch plastics? You say yours owes you £3/£4k over say 4 years. If you saved £6k and bought a 'newer' car you'd still have similar maintenance bills over the same period if not higher and yet now with something that will still depreciate loads! Alternatively if you saved the same amount into a 'car' budget to use for maintenance on your octy over the same period, you'd be set to cover all bills for ages on a car you know, trust and love(?) - to me it's a no brainer.

 

6k would also more than cover a full respray if you were so inclined...

Edited 8 February, 2017 by Girardi

[octyal]

Another option (if your situation allows it of course) - keep the current car going until you have enough to purchase a newer model as a daily, sorting any issues out as you go along, then return the Mk 1 to standard, no need to have it insured/taxed etc if it's sat on the drive/in a garage. Sell the "add on" bits for some pennies towards the bits required to bring it back to "standard" and do a gradual restoration (look at how the values of original condition Golf's, Sierra's etc are going - I know it's never going to attain the same values as a decent Cossie, but the values should start to rise as they end up being broken/crashed/scrapped, remember, it was a game changer for Skoda after all) Run it on a limited mileage policy for the summer months only, and safely store it away in the winter (some caravan storage places will take cars as well, just make sure it's covered with good security).

Second option - save for a newer car, strip the Mk1 back and run it as a track day weapon, just make sure that the new car is able to tow it, and have fun!

[Saints92]

Stick a hybrid on it and spend your weekend laughing as you speed past folk financed to the hilt in their Focus STs... 

 

Really depends on your circumstances, and how long you realistically expect the car to last. 

[KenONeill]

I have an Octy 1, and access to Octy 2 pool cars at work. The 1 is just nicer to drive on the same roads.

 

So I'd go the further tuning route (and maybe sell the kids anyway, but that may be why I'm still single?   )

[e30kev]

Thanks for all the replies everyone, you've all made some very valid points and I appreciate you all taking the time to respond.

 

I think I'm going to keep the octy and finish what I've started. Give the car a new lease of life and fit some more decent mods.

 

I'll update my build thread and keep my eyes peeled for upgrades in the coming weeks and months.

 

Any pointers for parts suppliers welcome, I'll be looking at decent suspension/coilovers  (dpm seem pretty competitive), welly cooler and pipework (eBay?), superpro bushes for everything, wavetrac or quaife lsd, supersize tip and any other parts recommended?

[zxyogi]

Nothing like putting your own touch to your pride and joy, do it all the time with my Bikes!

I'd go the tuning and bodywork route.

[octyal]

So does that mean you are keeping it as a daily, or is it going into semi restoration/modification retirement? If you are going to be semi retiring it to do some work on, then check out http://www.buzzweld.co.uk/ for anti rust coatings and some excellent stuff for under sealing wheel arches etc

[e30kev]

It has to remain a daily mate although my work is only about 6 miles away so should keep the miles down, I average about 6k a year.

 

The idea is plenty fun mods to keep me busy and keeping up with maintenance etc at the same time, I can rely on a lift when the car would need to be off the road for the more lengthy upgrades too so that's a bonus.