Help me choose a new car OcUK

Soldato
Joined
26 Apr 2003
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5,744
Location
West Midlands
Hi Guys,

It's been a fair while since I had anything decent as I've had other priorities, however things have settled and improved greatly which now allows me to get back in to an "enthusiasts" car. My last performance car was a Monaro VXR and briefly a VXR8, probably 7 or 8 years ago now so I'm greatly out the loop.

Obviously it's my decision at the end of the day but I'm so out of the loop and I know all of these cars will have been driven by at least somebody from OcUK motors at some point. First of all I'd like to know which one's I should just drop straight away, I expect I'll be the Volvo, Ford and Kia. Then I'd like to hear your thoughts on the cars I've chosen and any other models I should consider.

You can sort of see the type of cars I'm looking for, well built performance cars with a reasonable size. I don't need the practicality as such as the girlfriend's car can cater for that but I do like larger cars to a degree. However, as you can see, I am not ruling anything out if I decide to go more for a more out-right 'toy' as I don't really need to daily anything as I work from home now.

If you hadn't guessed, then my budget is around £40,000 and no older than 10 years really (can be stretched a little). Running costs aren't a huge concern but if anything has anything like a £10k clutch or cambelt change then let me know!

I'll update this OP a bit later tomorrow with my initial thoughts on the cars I chose and why I chose them.

Sensible Head
----------------

2017 - 2018 - Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio £38,000 - £40,000
2015 - 2015 - Audi - RS6 Avant £37,000 - £40,000
2015 - 2015 - Audi - RS7 Sportback - £39,000 - £40,000
2017 - 2018 - BMW M3 Competition Pack - £37,000 - £40,000
2017 - 2019 - BMW M4 BiTurbo DCT - £33,000 - £40,000
2019 - 2020 - Ford Mustang V8 Auto - £35,000 - £40,000
2015 - 2015 - Jaguar XFR-S - £35,000
2017 - 2020 - Kia Stinger GT S - £28,000 - £35,000
2016 - 2018 - Mercedes-Benz C63 BiTurbo - £33,000 - £40,000
2019 - 2020 - Volvo S60 T8 Polestar - £38,000 - £40,000


**** it Head
--------------

2009 - 2011 - Audi R8 V8 Manual - £35,000 - £40,000
2009 - 2011 - Nissan GT-R - £33,000 - £38,000
2016 - 2016 - Porsche 718 Cayman S - £38,000 - £40,000
2009 - 2011 - Porsche 911 997 Carrera S - £35,000 - £40,000
2009 - 2010 - Aston Martin V8 Vantage - £34,000 - £40,000


Have at it.
 
Soldato
Joined
29 Jul 2004
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9,671
Location
Somerset
F Type R worth adding to both lists. I tried most of your bottom selection last year and ended up with a 4c, but I had no practicality requirement.

Edit: Also i8 for something a bit different. Welcome back btw, I remember the VXRs from way back when!
 
Associate
Joined
2 Jan 2012
Posts
683
So close to the V10 R8 at that price...

GT-R is a good shout in terms of depreciation. When I looked about 5 years ago, 2009 GT-Rs bottomed out at about 28k for non categorised. Looking today they still pretty much bottom out at 28k...
 
Associate
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Inside the M25
I'd drop the Jaguar XFR-S from your list. Colleague had one in 2015 (I was actually working at JLR then) and they're not in the league of some of the others on your list.
 
Soldato
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3,268
Location
Thunderdome
How long do you intend to keep this car?

In that context, your budget in several cases puts you at the higher end of the age/mileage scale for some of these cars (RS6, 997, GTR etc). Do you want to be in something 10years old with 70k+ miles with all the upkeep that comes with that, or do you prefer to be in the sub 5 year old, 30-40k territory?

There are exceptions but as a rule I no longer buy 10 year old, 70k+ miler performance cars as my everyday transport. I end up replacing too much parts due to wear and tear.
 
Associate
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Inside the M25
Another thought - guy at work picked up a 997 Porsche and I remember him telling me about needing to be careful about whether it had had some kind of gearbox fix. Apparently if it wasn't done under warrantee it was stupidly expensive. Worth googling if you find yourself going that way.

Personally I'd spend the 40k on a proper toy if you have access to a sensible car when needed - Cayman or GT-R sound fun to me. But then I'm in my 40s so proper mid life crisis time :). I have a caterham as my toy car !
 
Soldato
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10,583
Location
Kent
Could you get a Lexus LC500 for £40K?
If so, would that be any interest? Would certainly fit the bill of "well built performance" I would say, but I don't know if they're realistic at this budget.
 
Associate
Joined
27 Apr 2018
Posts
1,320
I would certainly rule out the following:
2009 - 2011 - Audi R8 V8 Manual - £35,000 - £40,000 Very underwhelming. I am sure the V10 would be a much better experience. The V8 is very me. Go drive one and you will see what I mean.
2016 - 2016 - Porsche 718 Cayman S - £38,000 - £40,000 Underwhelming performance compared to some of your options
2009 - 2011 - Porsche 911 997 Carrera S - £35,000 - £40,000 You are so so close to a 997 Turbo, that would be a much better buy
2009 - 2010 - Aston Martin V8 Vantage - £34,000 - £40,000 Nice cars, but very dated now. Performance is not great, and the clutch is heavy. But hey its an Aston?

2009 - 2011 - Nissan GT-R - £33,000 - £38,000
Any particular reason why this one is in the **** it section?
An early GTR will be relatively depreciation proof. Cars have been sat at £30k for years at the bottom of the GTR market. Repairs are not cheap, Similar to 911 Porsche prices. But its a rocket of a car.


Also OP all the cars you have listed are so different. Some are GT's, some are Sports cars, 2 seater, 4 seater. Etc, what are you really looking for?
 
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Soldato
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26 Jul 2004
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3,268
Location
Thunderdome
You can in principle, up to 14 years old and 125k miles, at the cost of the check and warranty, plus whatever remedial work the car requires. Note this would tie you in to no mods and using Porsche approved tyres only.

My concern at this end of the 911 Turbo spectrum, is that you're likely to end up with a tired car that maybe need quite a bit of money spending to get it back in shape.
 
Associate
Joined
27 Apr 2018
Posts
1,320
You can in principle, up to 14 years old and 125k miles, at the cost of the check and warranty, plus whatever remedial work the car requires. Note this would tie you in to no mods and using Porsche approved tyres only.

My concern at this end of the 911 Turbo spectrum, is that you're likely to end up with a tired car that maybe need quite a bit of money spending to get it back in shape.
He could negotiate as part of the sale, the Porsche 111 point check inspection is performed prior to purchase.
 
Soldato
Joined
26 Jul 2004
Posts
3,268
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Thunderdome
He certainly could, and it would be a recommended direction to take. He'd obviously need to find a decent car first. Many of the reasonable cars available at this budget have poor spec, are cabs or have horrible interiors. Things improve as your budget increases towards £50k.
 
Soldato
Joined
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2,603
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Livingston
I ended up with a F-Type V8S having broadly similar criteria this time last year, though I was coming from a 987 Cayman S (so ruled out the 911 as not enough of a change) and wanted a convertible again. Should be a decent selection of F-Type R coupe or convertibles around £40k including approved used. I didn't fancy the Aston or R8 due to age/running costs.

BMW Z4/Toyota Supra may be worth a look too.
 
Soldato
Joined
6 Jan 2012
Posts
5,502
Hi Guys,

It's been a fair while since I had anything decent as I've had other priorities, however things have settled and improved greatly which now allows me to get back in to an "enthusiasts" car. My last performance car was a Monaro VXR and briefly a VXR8, probably 7 or 8 years ago now so I'm greatly out the loop.

Obviously it's my decision at the end of the day but I'm so out of the loop and I know all of these cars will have been driven by at least somebody from OcUK motors at some point. First of all I'd like to know which one's I should just drop straight away, I expect I'll be the Volvo, Ford and Kia. Then I'd like to hear your thoughts on the cars I've chosen and any other models I should consider.

You can sort of see the type of cars I'm looking for, well built performance cars with a reasonable size. I don't need the practicality as such as the girlfriend's car can cater for that but I do like larger cars to a degree. However, as you can see, I am not ruling anything out if I decide to go more for a more out-right 'toy' as I don't really need to daily anything as I work from home now.

If you hadn't guessed, then my budget is around £40,000 and no older than 10 years really (can be stretched a little). Running costs aren't a huge concern but if anything has anything like a £10k clutch or cambelt change then let me know!

I'll update this OP a bit later tomorrow with my initial thoughts on the cars I chose and why I chose them.

Sensible Head
----------------

2017 - 2018 - Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio £38,000 - £40,000
2015 - 2015 - Audi - RS6 Avant £37,000 - £40,000
2015 - 2015 - Audi - RS7 Sportback - £39,000 - £40,000
2017 - 2018 - BMW M3 Competition Pack - £37,000 - £40,000
2017 - 2019 - BMW M4 BiTurbo DCT - £33,000 - £40,000
2019 - 2020 - Ford Mustang V8 Auto - £35,000 - £40,000
2015 - 2015 - Jaguar XFR-S - £35,000
2017 - 2020 - Kia Stinger GT S - £28,000 - £35,000
2016 - 2018 - Mercedes-Benz C63 BiTurbo - £33,000 - £40,000
2019 - 2020 - Volvo S60 T8 Polestar - £38,000 - £40,000


**** it Head
--------------

2009 - 2011 - Audi R8 V8 Manual - £35,000 - £40,000
2009 - 2011 - Nissan GT-R - £33,000 - £38,000
2016 - 2016 - Porsche 718 Cayman S - £38,000 - £40,000
2009 - 2011 - Porsche 911 997 Carrera S - £35,000 - £40,000
2009 - 2010 - Aston Martin V8 Vantage - £34,000 - £40,000


Have at it.
Alfa or Cayman S (manual if poss). I just got a 530d Touring as my far too sensible head was on at the time, big mistake!
 
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