Linus27

BMW era Minis are absolutely hateful in every possible way and I want to take a hammer to them all. Just horrid, horrid things. Well, I do agree with you but just thought I would suggest in case it floats ya boat

Just thought of another option. Slightly different but could be an interesting choice. How about a Mini Cooper S? Ok, so they are rather girly but could be good. I've never driven one on track but have driven a few on the roads and they seem quick and handle like a go kart. Still might be pants on track but then again.

As you know, I have a DC5 which I track and I was just about to say, you should be able to get an early one within budget but after just looking, geez, you are right, they have shot up in price Real shame as they are incredible track slags A Clio 172/182 are also superb cars for track. With your budget, I would get a decent condition 182 and then spend some money on getting it setup and running nice. That would be easy to do for a £4k-£5k budget. If you can, get either a 172 Cup or a 182 full fat. The hard part would be to find a nice low mile one but it's possible. Make sure it has had the cam belt and other bits done or factor that in to the price. Just remember, it won't be stupid quick but great on the corners. Another option is the 182 Trophy but just be aware that the Sach suspension needs regular rebuilds. The S2000 is actually a very capable track car. Very underrated but the early ones are a handful. They can have some adjust done yo make it more predictable, however, trying to find one in budget is going to be tricky. Possible for sure but limited. If it's going to be purely a track slag, then you know what your best bet would be, an EP3. Great out of the box, Honda reliability, cheap to buy, plenty available, very easy to mod and with a decent tyres, exhaust, induction, brake pads, springs and remap, you would have a very capable and fun track car. Easily within budget with all the mods and you could even afford the premier edition and get the Recaro's. Mine was great on track and never missed a beat.

I know, it's do annoying.

The greatest car auction in the world going on now in Scottsdale, Arizona. A must see for muscle and exotic car lovers. The Smokey and the Bandit car just sold now for half a million dollars by the great Burt Reynolds himself. Some amazing cars going through for not a lot of money. http://www.barrett-jackson.com/Live/Streaming/Video

I kind of agree but it also depends on the album/type of music. It's not worth it to me to get more modern stuff on vinyl. I just don't think it will do it justice or make much difference but a lot of the much older stuff, for example the old Jazz records I think will be incredible. It's important they are original as well. Some of the re-issue vinyl records are actually taken from a digital source rather than the analogue source so totally defeats the object. So original vinyl pressing is vital. Don't worry, I forgive you, 95% of my stuff is CD

I think I have. It rings a bell. Is Jude Law in it? Might have to watch again as I can't remember.

@Ekona - I thinking about getting a half decent record deck and buying some old classic Jazz album. Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Ray Brown, Sonny Rollins etc. Think it's going to sound totally amazing, especially the big old double bass thumping away. No compression, just pure analogue the way it was intended Might try and get some other classic albums like some Pink Floyd, 70's disco etc.

I think the 'theme' of what people are saying is maybe its time to grow up a bit, and take some responsibility in life . Who doesn't want a big house, nice car, no worry about cash, but real life isn't like that... As for moving to the US to chase the 'American dream', yes people here have nice lives….If you have the $$$$. I'm staying at the Hyatt Regency in century place in LA at the moment, looking out of the window I can see a row of homeless people who have no access to health care, no access to benefits, essentially get ignored and treated as no-bodies just across the street. I took a bus to Santa Monica beach yesterday for $1.25, the hotel concierge was shocked I would even consider taking a form of transport that exposed me to the great un-washed, and yes a few of the homeless uses the buses to move from one begging spot to another. No they didn't bother me, it was just sad to see people living like this in the most developed nation on the planet. How well do you think your get on in the US with an attitude of borrowing money like there's no tomorrow to waste on cars/toys?? Unless your a true genius/entrepreneur your 'American dream' is more likely to end up been an American nightmare. As others have said no one can walk into a nice car, big house etc, infact your borrowing habits is probably whats letting some fat cat banker in London do exactly what you want to do - live large for not much effort, by living off commission they get for lending out money. Also don't bank on your other half bailing you out just because she's going med school. Uni tuition fees are £9000 a year now, so 5 years of medical school will leave her with £45K of debt to pay off, starting salary for a junior doctor is £22,000 BEFORE TAX. You can do the maths your self on how long it will take her to pay of tuition fees . Great post and adding some reality to the discussion. To the OP listen to this guys, he speaks the truth.

I will speak to him and find out but generally they are great cars. Certainly have amazing road presence. Yeah out of all the cars he's been looking at this is the one I would prefer.... I honestly think this is a great choice. My only concern would be the lack of finesse that you have mentioned with regards to the BMW, Audi cars. I'm not sure what creature comforts come with the RS but being an RS, it will have a stiff firm chassis and hard suspension. It's a hooligan car so it will suit you but worth bearing in mind for Alex.

I will speak to him and find out but generally they are great cars. Certainly have amazing road presence.

Amazing cars, great chassis, incredible handling, notorious for awful fuel economy (17 - 25mpg), nicer place to be in than the Scooby. I liked my nephews, thought it was a great car as it was fast, comfortable and practical. No complaints from me apart from it's not a Scooby but then you know I am biased

So what does the OP think then after all this advice? Any closer to a decision?

I know, I can't believe someone took photos let alone release the video on the Internet. Paris Hilton's got nothing on our skills

Perhaps Linus can elaborate Perhaps you can elaborate???? Look Mr Already Abusing Your Power Too Much.......watch your step, you're already in my bad books!! Perhaps Linus can elaborate What she is trying to say is she's actually the pope and this is her car Oohh, good save Back on topic.......I think OP should get the mustang, to hell with boring mortgages No, worries, we can't let our secret out to the riff raff I say, save the money and come back and review the idea in 6 months. It's a big commitment and one that's does not seem 100% wise or the OP is 100% sure about. A lot can change in 6 months and something else might take his fancy. Plus, 6 months of hookers, cocaine and booze will be fun ride

Perhaps Linus can elaborate What she is trying to say is she's actually the pope and this is her car

Great bikes I've had a few zx7rs, first brand new bike I ever bought was a gsxr1000 k8 and someone ran me over whilst I was on it after only a few months. Ouch Were you ok?

So, if you don't own a place how do you get gas and electric? I'm assuming that then becomes the cost of renting? And would you factor that 85k on top of 20 years worth of rent? (silly example but a static amount of rent at 700 for 20 years is 168000 + 85000 = 253k lost). I don't think many people would consider paying for utilities as part of the investment of buying a house. That would be like including food, entertainment and other choices you make that cost you money. If you don't own a place then you either don't need gas and electric as you have no property or if you are renting then you are paying for it along with rent, council tax etc. and there is zero return on your investment. Using your example, you would be £253k out of pocket with nothing to show for it. My sister rents and I told her how much she has spent over the years and look at the property she could of bought. She was quite shocked and upset but for a lot of people this is their only option for various reasons. They may not consider it but sadly it is the case and its still an outgoing expense purely and 100% due to owning a property. Regardless of owning a property or not, you still need food and entertainment, it doesn't suddenly become a factor when you buy a property. Likewise, you do need to start paying for water, gas and electric bills when you own a property. Put it another way, if I bought a TAG Heuer Monaco watch in 1970 say for £500. Kept it for 30 years and its now valued at £8,000. What would be my overheads/outlay/cost of owning it be? Things that can't be avoided, have to be paid by law? Nothing, zero. My return on my initial purchase price would be huge so its an asset. Do the same for a property and regardless of anything else, you incur costs that can't be avoided. You need to pay electric, water, gas, council tax etc. You simply can't avoid paying for these things when you own a property. Food and entertainment is not a fixed requirement when owning a property, food is a human necessity and entertainment is a luxury. So you simply can't avoid financial outlays when you own a property. Anyway, we are going off topic quite a bit so we should draw a line under it. As I say, blow it all on hookers, cocaine and booze. Its the only way

Don't fall in to the trap thinking that buying a property is an asset. It's not, it's a liability. It rarely is an asset unless you, get on the ladder early, buy it dirt cheap or free, stay in it forever or buy a property to let. In simple terms, if you bought a house tomorrow it would not be giving you a return, in fact you would be paying out to keep it. For example, let's say you buy a house for £100k and over 20 years it's worth £250k. So you have a £150k in the pot minus any interest on the mortgage. Over that 20 years you would of had to pay out council tax, electric bills, gas bills, water bills, repairs, a new kitchen, carpets, plumber, builders, new taps, soft furnishings and all the other crap that goes on top of owning a house. Then the cost of selling the property and after all that, chances are, you won't be left with much. I've just added up very roughly what my council tax, water, electric and gas bill would be after 20 years and it's around £85k. Makes you think right. It's still worth getting on the property ladder as early as possible but don't look at it as an asset that's going to make you money. Not in the purest form anyway. What? Why would you take your gas/water bill etc away from the profit of owning your own home? I agree about a house being a liability these days, can house prices really keep increasing like they have? It's quite scary how much they're worth at the moment, they're already disproportionate in comparison to average incomes (in the South of England). It's because you have to pay for the gas/water bill out of your own money. It's classed as an expense, you can't not pay it unless you have your gas and and water turned off. Unless the property is a BTL where the tenant pays the bills, you need to pay. It's money going out for the ownership of the property.

Don't fall in to the trap thinking that buying a property is an asset. It's not, it's a liability. It rarely is an asset unless you, get on the ladder early, buy it dirt cheap or free, stay in it forever or buy a property to let. In simple terms, if you bought a house tomorrow it would not be giving you a return, in fact you would be paying out to keep it. For example, let's say you buy a house for £100k and over 20 years it's worth £250k. So you have a £150k in the pot minus any interest on the mortgage. Over that 20 years you would of had to pay out council tax, electric bills, gas bills, water bills, repairs, a new kitchen, carpets, plumber, builders, new taps, soft furnishings and all the other crap that goes on top of owning a house. Then the cost of selling the property and after all that, chances are, you won't be left with much. I've just added up very roughly what my council tax, water, electric and gas bill would be after 20 years and it's around £85k. Makes you think right. It's still worth getting on the property ladder as early as possible but don't look at it as an asset that's going to make you money. Not in the purest form anyway.

I'd say blow it all on hookers, cocaine and booze. You'll be screwed literally but you just won't care

Yo, VTEC just kicked in for Honda

Cooler than me.......no way, not possible lol Only the other week, someone at work said I'm the coolest person they'd ever met. Must have been their first time out in public haha Haha you have another title linked to the world mum

It's official, Dan has the coolest mum ............ EVER

I reckon he was more worried about his hair and image than being a bad ass Sith Lord. Can you imagine him standing up next to Darth Maul. Maul would be thinking, who's this pretty boy then It's very easily explained in just two words too; Disney villain. Even ignoring Abrams ineptitude at all things film, Disney was never going to let Kylo Ren be another Maul or Vader. I mean, they didn't even give him a theme tune... Damn, you are so on the money with this.