buying a new car, HELP

dublinsdream

Hi folks,

So i have between 8 - 10k to spend on a car.

Im fairly confused as to what i want, not sure if i want to go sportscar or go turbo diesel route. ( 2 litre or less engine wise)

Iv been looking at s2000's, a3's, a4's, golf's, mondeo's (st220), b4 legacys, but cant decide.

Can anyone help, by suggesting other cars that might interest me, or give me an insight if you have had one of the above!

Anan1

Have you driven all these cars? If not then do so - you'll find out very quickly what you want.

Atomic Pineapple

Well what will you be using the car for?

How far will you be travelling every day etc...?

dublinsdream

i have driven all except the b4, the s2000 is always top of the list but i dont want to buy the car and find myself driving from petrol station to petrol station.

maybe a quick diesel car would suit me better, what would be top of your list for quick diesel in that price range??

dublinsdream

45-55 km comute monday - friday, and very little weekend use.

I would rather something "fun" to drive rather than something "sensible"

Atomic Pineapple

dublinsdream wrote: »

45-55 km comute monday - friday, and very little weekend use.

I would rather something "fun" to drive rather than something "sensible"

I assume you have no requirements for amount of doors? fwd or rwd? number of seats?

dublinsdream

no im completely open minded

Anan1

Do you do enough mileage for fuel economy to be a big factor in your calculations?

dublinsdream

i dont think i do tbh, 28mpg and up should be fine , i think

Atomic Pineapple

dublinsdream wrote: »

i dont think i do tbh, 28mpg and up should be fine , i think

Scratch the Legacy B4 and the S2000 off the list as they will return sub 28mpg

dublinsdream

does the s2000 not give 32mpg if driven easy in 6th gear??

kukori

dublinsdream wrote: »

does the s2000 not give 32mpg if driven easy in 6th gear??

Seriously, do you think you could drive it like that? I couldn't I was really happy when the V6 Laguna -which is a FWD- hit the 25 mpg average

From those, go for the S2000, if you like fun and don't wanna estabilish a family in a few years. Also need money on petrol and speeding tickets

Economical choice can be the Mondeo ST in diesel. 2.2 litre, 155 bhp and still very practical, i like the estate ST's shape. You can use it as a van as well

dublinsdream

Is there any other cars that fit the bill that i have overlooked??

Drove a s2000 today, probably the most fun car i have ever driven!

Tea 1000

Then the answer is simple. Go for the S2000. By far the best car on the list. The B4 is a savage car too, but you'll be doing well to find an unmolested one and also it won't break 20mpg.
You'll get well over 30mpg out of the S2000 after the novelty wears off.
You only live once. Life's too short to spend it in diesels.

Ferris

dublinsdream wrote: »

Is there any other cars that fit the bill that i have overlooked??

Drove a s2000 today, probably the most fun car i have ever driven!

What about a s15 Silvia, Rear drive and a little less power than the s2000 (although big power is easily attainable) and 30mpg.

Ditto on the s2000 tho, I keep on trying to convince the missus to buy one so I can rob it off her.

dublinsdream

i just checked out a couple of sylvias, they are nice alright, so il havta drive a couple and see what i think.

Do you reckon there would be much savings in importing an s2000??

VRT being 3 grand on them, but i've heard stories of people appealing the vrt on the grounds that the market price is not what it used to be.

Atomic Pineapple

dublinsdream wrote: »

i just checked out a couple of sylvias, they are nice alright, so il havta drive a couple and see what i think.

Do you reckon there would be much savings in importing an s2000??

VRT being 3 grand on them, but i've heard stories of people appealing the vrt on the grounds that the market price is not what it used to be.

No bringing in a car from Japan makes no sense in the current world economic climate.

bazz26

You also have to pay import duty on top of VRT on a car being imported from outside the EU.