Associate
If you fancy a career as a hair stylist TT's could be worth a look 
A wild "spec me" thread appears...£4k, 200bhp'ish hot hatch fun
- Thread starter SixTwoSix
- Start date
Well booked a day off work tomorrow, plan is to phone around local sellers and test drive a load of cars through the day and over the weekend. Not necessarily the actual cars I will buy but just to get a feel for each.
Going to try and get in the following (all available in a 50 mile radius of me): Meganesport R26, Mazda 3 MPS, Civic Type R (EP3 and FN2), Corolla Compressor, Astra VXR, Fiesta ST, Subura Impreza, Nissan 350z, Chrysler Crossfire, BMW Z4 (3.0).
The last few are a couple I probably have no intention of getting but they're in my price range so curiosity has the better of me. The Fiesta is there as they're highly regarded for a small hot hatch and cheap, so tuning might be an option with leftover money.
As for other suggestions in this thread, if i've passed them by it's most likely due to cosmetic, not performance reasons.
I'm very impulsive though so fully expect to see a photo of something i've bought tomorrow not even on the list above
Going to try and get in the following (all available in a 50 mile radius of me): Meganesport R26, Mazda 3 MPS, Civic Type R (EP3 and FN2), Corolla Compressor, Astra VXR, Fiesta ST, Subura Impreza, Nissan 350z, Chrysler Crossfire, BMW Z4 (3.0).
The last few are a couple I probably have no intention of getting but they're in my price range so curiosity has the better of me. The Fiesta is there as they're highly regarded for a small hot hatch and cheap, so tuning might be an option with leftover money.
As for other suggestions in this thread, if i've passed them by it's most likely due to cosmetic, not performance reasons.
I'm very impulsive though so fully expect to see a photo of something i've bought tomorrow not even on the list above
Last edited:
Caporegime
Enjoy the supercharger whine of the Compressor. They're good fun but I don't expect you'll buy it having driven some of the others
What on earth is wrong with you!
Honestly look for one of the following
- Golf GTi
- Leon FR
- Audi A3 2.0TFSI (Or S3)
- Octavia VRS
All pretty much the same thing. The 2.0TFSI has it's weaknesses but one of the above is going to be a much better car than some of the stuff on that list. If you can tolerate the crossfire or corolla, i'm sure there must be at least one of the above you can tolerate the looks of!
LOL...I can see where you're coming from. I've had a soft spot for the xfire looks since they came out. Highly doubt i'd buy one, just feel like having a go in the 3.2l and see what they're like.
The problem with the cars on your list is simply the look, I find them utterly boring, possibly with the exception of the FR. However from my list, the MPS, EP3 and Corolla are the same level of dull in the looks department, possibly made up for by the performance. [/personal opinion]
But it's an Audi
They're the new beemer anchors Seriously question though...am I likely to be able to pick a decent one up and afford a remap within my £4.5k budget?
But it's an Audi
Seriously question though...am I likely to be able to pick a decent one up and afford a remap within my £4.5k budget?
Don't see why not?
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...tcode=WR1 1AA&searchcontext=default&logcode=p
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...rlynew,new&model=golf&price-to=5000&logcode=p
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...badge-engine-size=2.0&price-to=5000&logcode=p
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...atedTrim=TFSI&model=a3&sort=default&logcode=p
Maybe a bit of negotiation required on a couple of them, but all should be do-able in budget. And possibly a remap too. But remaps are cheap enough anyway, and could always be done later.
But it's an Audi
Seriously question though...am I likely to be able to pick a decent one up and afford a remap within my £4.5k budget?
Or a Skoda. Or a VW. Or a Seat
Yes, I picked up a 56 Reg Octavia VRS last summer for £3200 with reasonably low miles but low spec and in need of some paintwork. However it already had a remap, completely refreshed suspension and all of the common faults sorted. The paintwork cost me £300 so for a well sorted VRS I had £3500 into it.
I sold it a few months later for £3750 - not because it was a bad car, it was a hoot and not uncivilised, I'm just not a hot hatch kind of person. It was definitely fast enough to scare passengers just with acelleration and was great fun round the twisties too
I appreciate where you're all coming from with the Golf/Octavia/A3 suggestions but I just can't get away from the fact I don't like the looks. They're the sensible choice but just don't do anything for me.
Gonna be realistic and narrow my test drives tomorrow to R26, FN2, EP3 & FR.
Gonna be realistic and narrow my test drives tomorrow to R26, FN2, EP3 & FR.
Soldato
drive the mps!
I think the Z4 3.0 should go back on the list Had mine 7.5 years and still love it. I think ive spent less than £300 on non-service items that entire time (Balljoints/Arms, a window regulator, cracked brake light, rear spring and a roof motor which was save-able). Good crowd for forum drives/events too.
Pretty alarmed not to see a Focus ST3 but perhaps they aren't that cheap? I wouldn't go near a VW these days, but i think the Golf Mk5 was a good un and the TFSI as said is very easily remapped. The Leon FR is very marmite imo - i love the outside, but HATE the inside.
Had mine 7.5 years and still love it. I think ive spent less than £300 on non-service items that entire time (Balljoints/Arms, a window regulator, cracked brake light, rear spring and a roof motor which was save-able). Good crowd for forum drives/events too. Pretty alarmed not to see a Focus ST3 but perhaps they aren't that cheap? I wouldn't go near a VW these days, but i think the Golf Mk5 was a good un and the TFSI as said is very easily remapped. The Leon FR is very marmite imo - i love the outside, but HATE the inside.
Last edited:
Remember when I said Tax wasn't an issue, Mrs 626 found out earlier and put a stop to the chances of getting an MPS
I think the Z4 3.0 should go back on the list
Pretty alarmed not to see a Focus ST3 but perhaps they aren't that cheap? I wouldn't go near a VW these days, but i think the Golf Mk5 was a good un and the TFSI as said is very easily remapped. The Leon FR is very marmite imo - i love the outside, but HATE the inside.
Don't tempt me to put the Z4 back, I love the look of them
ST-3's haven't really dropped that low yet, if they had i'd have probably blindly snapped one up.
I can see what you mean about the Fr interior, been browsing a few sites and well...yeah
Associate
Early MPS's have lower tax I believe.
The mk1 Mazda 3 MPS is just under £500 a year to tax. The mk2 (out of budget) is much less.
I own a Mazda 3 MPS and came from an EP3 Civic type R.. So from experience here are some things for you to bear in mind:
The gearbox on the MPS can be a bit of a pain. For a Mazda 'box they're not particularly friendly, and can suffer from 1st to 2nd gear crunching and diff whine on full lock slow manoeuvring. It's essential that you check neither of these two problems exist.
Secondly, you want one that has ideally had it's timing chain and VVT done. Most of the mk1's will be due this (even though it says in the book 90k miles). The way to check is to start the car from cold with the bonnet up and listen for a rattle. There are videos of this on YouTube. If it hasn't been done it can cost £600 to replace. Not essential, but a good bargaining tool. Very few trusted specialists in the UK can do this job.
Thirdly, once you have driven the car hard let it idle for 5-10 minutes and check for any blue smoke coming out the exhaust. Give it a little rev also. If there is blue smoke, then the seals on the turbo could be bad and it may be burning oil. Another big job.
Hope this helps.
I own a Mazda 3 MPS and came from an EP3 Civic type R.. So from experience here are some things for you to bear in mind:
The gearbox on the MPS can be a bit of a pain. For a Mazda 'box they're not particularly friendly, and can suffer from 1st to 2nd gear crunching and diff whine on full lock slow manoeuvring. It's essential that you check neither of these two problems exist.
Secondly, you want one that has ideally had it's timing chain and VVT done. Most of the mk1's will be due this (even though it says in the book 90k miles). The way to check is to start the car from cold with the bonnet up and listen for a rattle. There are videos of this on YouTube. If it hasn't been done it can cost £600 to replace. Not essential, but a good bargaining tool. Very few trusted specialists in the UK can do this job.
Thirdly, once you have driven the car hard let it idle for 5-10 minutes and check for any blue smoke coming out the exhaust. Give it a little rev also. If there is blue smoke, then the seals on the turbo could be bad and it may be burning oil. Another big job.
Hope this helps.
Don
Out and about, day is going slow, only experienced an Audi A3 3.2 DSG, it's a bit nice. Might tempt me out of my audi dislike
If you like the A3 then don't discount the 2.0TFSI, as there isn't a huge difference in performance (a remap takes the TFSI from 197 to ~240hp, and the TFSI weighs ~150kg less than the 3.2)
WARNING: Sensible post ahead.
Had lots of fun driving a few different cars yesterday...most of the ones on my initial list.
Came home, chatted with the missus about it, ultimately though decided it's more a case of want versus need, 172 is in for MOT in 2 weeks. If it passes or needs work that's less than £300, will get the work done, if neither of those happen, will re-visit and look at getting another car sorted.
Right now though, that £4k is going on a decent holiday later this year.
Sorry for the anti-climax.
Had lots of fun driving a few different cars yesterday...most of the ones on my initial list.
Came home, chatted with the missus about it, ultimately though decided it's more a case of want versus need, 172 is in for MOT in 2 weeks. If it passes or needs work that's less than £300, will get the work done, if neither of those happen, will re-visit and look at getting another car sorted.
Right now though, that £4k is going on a decent holiday later this year.
Sorry for the anti-climax.