Yet another ‘what car?’ thread ... Now NCD!!

strtdv

SteveRobinson said:

zedhex said:

Powering out of a decent corner with the rear wheels just on the edge of grip is a feeling like no other - and you cannot get that from front wheel drive. 

With respect (and maybe I'm an old guy) you shoudln't be driving at (or near) the limit of traction on public roads.

The problem is that modern cars that are designed for performance are so quick it's very difficult to drive anywhere close to the limit without doing silly speeds. 
Something 4WD or RWD with 300+bhp will be great fun to drive, but on most roads you'll be doing 80+mph to be anywhere near the limit, which is a) licence risking and b) irresponsible if for example you happen upon an unexpected cyclist.

It's a great shame we don't get kei cars over here, something like a Honda Beat or S660 would be great fun to drive at sensible speeds

strtdv

Back on topic, a quick search yields the Volvo C30 T5 R Design which is a great little car, wonderful 2.5L 5 cylinder, looks good, drives well, and there are a couple available at around 10-11k AUD which is right on budget.

Similarly, there's the Focus XR5 Turbo, which looks to be a Focus ST under a different name. Same great 2.5L 5 cylinder

Gassage

Scirroco. With as many horses as poss. 220 being optimum

stickyfiddle

SteveRobinson said:

zedhex said:

Powering out of a decent corner with the rear wheels just on the edge of grip is a feeling like no other - and you cannot get that from front wheel drive. 

With respect (and maybe I'm an old guy) you shoudln't be driving at (or near) the limit of traction on public roads.

Generally this. But also this is the whole point of an MX5 - you can get vaguely near the limit of grip well before speeds get scary

ICBM

VW Polo GTI

My daughter's boyfriend has one... very nippy and handles well. Cheaper than a Golf, not sure if it's faster but it looks like it.

strtdv

A fair bit slower than the Golf, up until recently they used a turbo 1.6 rather than a turbo 2.0, and generally are about 40bhp down on a comparable Golf.
The newest one uses the same ubiquitous EA888 in a lower state of tune so will be much closer to a Golf but will be well out of budget.

The Scirocco is nice, and certainly looks the part, it just starts to compare unfavorably to a similar priced Golf once you get to a Mk6 as the Scirocco hasn't been significantly updated since about 2006 (in terms of chassis). If you're comparing it to a Veloster though it looks like a good buy (with the exception of the excellent Veloster N which I think the Australians get but we don't).

crunchman

Emp_Fab said:

Get an MX5

an MX5

Don't forget now......


Mazda....


MX5



not 6

not 4

5

Mazda MX5

Why didn't you take your own advice?

rlw

https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/jaguar/xj/jaguar-xj-v6-se/10569852?utm_expid=.tpJdMtjvQA-ox8DOzal2LQ.0&utm_referrer=https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds?Category=used-cars&M=380&Page=2

rlw

zedhex said:

SteveRobinson said:

zedhex said:

If you want to have fun round corners, get the BMW. It's the only one on your list that has rearwheel drive. Front wheel drive is for grocery getters only.

Minis are great round corners

Not in my experience - I've never really had fun driving in a front wheel drive car, they just feel weird to me. Powering out of a decent corner with the rear wheels just on the edge of grip is a feeling like no other - and you cannot get that from front wheel drive. 

Of course you can.  My Scirocco is perfectly happy to let go at the rear at the limit, plenty of warning.  Have you ever driven a 205Gti - positively scary and inspring at the same time. 

zedhex

SteveRobinson said:

zedhex said:

Powering out of a decent corner with the rear wheels just on the edge of grip is a feeling like no other - and you cannot get that from front wheel drive. 

With respect (and maybe I'm an old guy) you shoudln't be driving at (or near) the limit of traction on public roads.

Generally speaking, I agree with you - but there are times when you're on a completely open road with no traffic and good visibility where it's possible to have a little fun without endangering anyone. For the real fun stuff though, you have to do track days, or even some proper racing. Regarding age, I'm 59, and I've been driving high-powered motorcycles and cars for 30+ years - I do know what I'm doing.

zedhex

strtdv said:

SteveRobinson said:

zedhex said:

Powering out of a decent corner with the rear wheels just on the edge of grip is a feeling like no other - and you cannot get that from front wheel drive. 

With respect (and maybe I'm an old guy) you shoudln't be driving at (or near) the limit of traction on public roads.

The problem is that modern cars that are designed for performance are so quick it's very difficult to drive anywhere close to the limit without doing silly speeds. 
Something 4WD or RWD with 300+bhp will be great fun to drive, but on most roads you'll be doing 80+mph to be anywhere near the limit, which is a) licence risking and b) irresponsible if for example you happen upon an unexpected cyclist.

It's a great shame we don't get kei cars over here, something like a Honda Beat or S660 would be great fun to drive at sensible speeds

There are quite a few low powered rearwheel drive cars around which are fun to drive - an MX5 is the obvious example, if you've got a little bit more money how about a Lotus Elise? If you're not too fussed about buying new (or near new), then your options get much much wider. How about an MR2? Or a Fiat spider? Or one of the smaller Alfas? (Maybe I am showing my age!). 

strtdv

I already have  
I've a '92 MX5, and it's perfect for that.

Bridgehouse

I’m loving the irony of Emp giving advice in a “what car?” thread.

Next, Boris will be giving advice on masks....





....oh.

zedhex

rlw said:

Of course you can.  My Scirocco is perfectly happy to let go at the rear at the limit, plenty of warning.  Have you ever driven a 205Gti - positively scary and inspring at the same time. 

It's not about skidding. I'm talking about steering on the throttle. On a rearwheel drive car you can tighten a corner with little more throttle - that's completely impossible on a front wheel drive car.

FastEddie

Subaru WRX but see if you can get one with the PPP, Prodrive Performance Pack.

We had a similar dilemma two years ago and got a WRX PPP wagon. A 2005 Blob eye in dark grey with black painted STI wheels. 100% standard.

I can tell you it is an utter joy. Bullet proof engine, if you change the oil every 6 months, a proper 4 wheel drive system, it's smaller than a new mini (hateful things), light, and disappears down the road faster than a dingo with a baby in it's mouth! (am I allowed to say that?).......  Do it.  I'll never sell ours and we are upgrading to something V12, 4 seats, and Italian (another thread).

I work for a motorsport charity and the head spanner is an Impreza nut. Our's gets hand jobs it's that pampered by him. Everyone at the charity loves them for all the reasons I mention and more. I bring it to Supercar events and it gets the chops from those who know.

Forget everything else. Close the thread down. Stop whatever you are doing and go search for one. Service history and condition are key. 

The End.

P.S: Can't wait to see the pics of your WRX PPP........Do I sound insistent? 

Edit; The wagon is perfect for humping gear as well. 've had a Mk4 R32 Golf, very cool but not WRX PPP cool.

cm01

JerkMoans said:

cm01 said:

I’ve got a shortlist going, ... so far its:

Hyundai Velostar

Fucking SO MUCH OF YES!

I couldn’t resist... 

rlw

zedhex said:

rlw said:

Of course you can.  My Scirocco is perfectly happy to let go at the rear at the limit, plenty of warning.  Have you ever driven a 205Gti - positively scary and inspring at the same time. 

It's not about skidding. I'm talking about steering on the throttle. On a rearwheel drive car you can tighten a corner with little more throttle - that's completely impossible on a front wheel drive car.

On a front wheel drive car you can do just the same by lifting off a tad.  I’m not talking about skidding but controlled oversteer.

Snap

@cm01 my choice would be the Mini, second the Subaru.

don't go diesel, waste of money imo. We've had two minis - the first was a first gen One, that is still going with no issues 18 years on. The second is a clubman special edition that is again still problem free and 9 years old. Great cars and superb to drive, at any speed. Brilliant handling and genuinely good fun to drive. Well built, good spec, etc etc etc

To all those MX5 zealots - he wants 4 chuffing seats !!!

Emp_Fab

crunchman said:

Emp_Fab said:

Get an MX5

an MX5

Don't forget now......


Mazda....


MX5



not 6

not 4

5

Mazda MX5

Why didn't you take your own advice?

I was taking the mick - everyone was telling me to get one before.  They're cute enough but you can't fill one up with gig gear and they rust like hell.

JerkMoans

Emp_Fab said:

crunchman said:

Emp_Fab said:

Get an MX5

an MX5

Don't forget now......


Mazda....


MX5



not 6

not 4

5

Mazda MX5

Why didn't you take your own advice?

I was taking the mick - everyone was telling me to get one before.  They're cute enough but you can't fill one up with gig gear and they rust like hell.

My Fiat 124 is essentially an MX5 with a different body and I can get a Princeton Reverb and a Les Paul in a hard case in, no problem.

cant take any passengers, mind you, but who wants company when there’s rock n roll?