NEW car!?

[gumpy000]

Hi all,

SO i think I may have sold my beloved Zed. unfortunate times but hey...

 

If i was going to spend around 6k on another car, would would you suggest to buy?

 

I want either FAST! or stunning looking.....both would be amazing obviously. I dont mind age as long as its a good relaible car and not renault.

 

what do you suggest?

[Davectr]

A Zed 😄.

[brillomaster]

fast, reliable and cheap - pick two

 

if £6k is the budget, the fastest reliable car I think would be a high miler BMW 335i, remapped easily enough to 360bhp.

 

£6k would get a nice Nissan 300zx, again with bolt on mods it'll see 350bhp, but I doubt it will be reliable. Similarly you can probably get 350 maybe 400bhp from a Subaru impreza, but again it wont be reliable.

 

 

and there will be al manner of big engine jags and bmws that will technically be fast (in a straight line) but again, let down by reliability.

Edited September 28, 2016 by brillomaster

[brillomaster]

also more criteria would be good... number of seats, practicality requirements would help narrow it down.... fortunately Renault don't make any fast or pretty cars, so you'd never need to buy one of them

Edited September 28, 2016 by brillomaster

[gumpy000]

A Zed 😄.

This is obviously the first thought, but i kinda want a 4 seater. I love the zed but want more power and ideally 4 seats.

 

BMW i have previosuly considered but aftercare and costs are so high.

 

Impreza I would consider but want to find the right one if i did!

[coldel]

Would get you a forged Celica GT4 maybe

[valy]

when I sold my first Zed 2 years ago I went and bought a nice M3 E46 black convertible with red napa interior...not quite a Zed but definitely enjoyed it

[brillomaster]

faster and four seats has got to be a 335i. servicing and parts aren't as bad as you might think, its just a normal 3 series with a powerful engine. Unlike M cars which have the M tax, and parts are twice the price. just watch for a rattly turbo wastegate, other that that you'll be fine.

 

And 0-60 in under 5 seconds is not to be sniffed at! huge gobs of turbocharged torque available right across the rev range.

 

you might be able to get a quick older audi for that money, an old RS4 for example. but i'd worry about servicing and reliability of an older RS car. would maybe an Audi S4 suffice in the speed stakes?

[Ekona]

£6K? Eeep, not a lot out there that's much faster. Impreza sure, but you'd need a remapped STi and they're either going to be a dog or too pricey.

 

Is a 335i really that much quicker than a 350?

 

You might get an E46 M3 for £6K, but like Brillo correctly says the M tax is horrendous.

 

If you can stomach FWD, a tweaked Lean Cupra R is going to muller a 350 in regular driving.

 

 

Personally I'd forget speed and just get something different. Ever had a convertible?

[coldel]

A cat d VX220 NA? Might just squeak one in at the bottom end of the price range for £6k but running costs are peanuts, its does 30mpg+ easily even when giving it some beans. Fast, looks cool, very different driving experience.

[gumpy000]

hmmm I have had a convertable before and not really a fan.not used enough and can ruin a shape.

 

6k i kinow isnt much but thought id see what i could get reccommendations for.

 

possible just go for a hr zed? lol

[Ekona]

Not for £6K you won't.

 

VX220 is the best shout here for something different, but not 4 seats. If you want that, then a 335i is the one to grab.

 

 

Or a 645ci

[docwra]

Is a 335i really that much quicker than a 350?

 

Same engine as my car, so potential for 400hp and 500+ lb/ft. Id call that a yes

6K is very much bottom end though, and youll need to spend another grand to get the powers. If anything goes wrong youre looking at £££ too, its not a low budget car for me.

 

You might get an E46 M3 for £6K, but like Brillo correctly says the M tax is horrendous.

 

I wouldnt touch a 6K one with a very long pole. £8K+, ideally £10K IMO. E36 M3 though, youre bang on the money

[coldel]

VX220 mechanics are made up of standard vauxhall parts easily (and cheaply) available...

[brillomaster]

that's what im saying, its the unholy trinity of speed, reliability and cost. the zed actually does very well, its near 300bhp quick, very reasonably priced and reliable. to go faster you either need unreliable turbos, or a more expensive larger capacity engine.

 

Or you can go fast by going light, but then you lose rear seats. And actually, the cheapest VX220 that isn't in the wilds of Scotland is £8k, so that's over budget. and lotus Elises start at £9.5k. An S2000 would make a nice change from a zed, in budget, but its no faster.

[Richf]

I'd struggle to look past a Golf to be honest , £6k will get you a 2007-2008 GTI , stock not much slower than the 350z but much better on fuel, easily tunable, fun, reliable and cheap to run

 

Get and edition 30 and you will lose very little during ownership if you keep it nice

[HaydnH]

It's not 4 seats but MR2 Turbo? If you're not a fan of convertibles the T-Bar is a great compromise, you could always go tin top if you really wanted. Reliable, fast, cheap (ish considering age) and won't depreciate... unless you bend it.

[docwra]

S2K is a bit of a disappointment after a 350Z, on the road at least. The Alfas are the best looking cars for that money I guess, fastest would probably be a 400hp 200SX of some vintage.

 

Actually, £6K would buy a nice 200, get one of them in

[coldel]

that's what im saying, its the unholy trinity of speed, reliability and cost. the zed actually does very well, its near 300bhp quick, very reasonably priced and reliable. to go faster you either need unreliable turbos, or a more expensive larger capacity engine.

 

Or you can go fast by going light, but then you lose rear seats. And actually, the cheapest VX220 that isn't in the wilds of Scotland is £8k, so that's over budget. and lotus Elises start at £9.5k. An S2000 would make a nice change from a zed, in budget, but its no faster.

 

Unreliable turbos? They are what you buy, like any car, poorly maintained and they fail, just like a poorly maintained NA V6 will fail. My turbo unit is 21 years old and still going good guns.

 

A quick PH search for sub 7 seconds car for under £7k (assuming you can stick in a bid of £6k) turns up a reall good mix of cars:

 

Porsche Boxster

Focus ST

R32 Golf

Golf GTi

Monaro (high miler but hey so are all the 335 beemers and Monaro is V8 yummyess)

Audi S4

Mazda 3/6 MPS

Mk1 V6 Audi TT

Leon Cupra R

SLK350

[GMballistic]

...you might be able to get a quick older audi for that money, an old RS4 for example. but i'd worry about servicing and reliability of an older RS car. would maybe an Audi S4 suffice in the speed stakes?

You will not get any Audi RS4 for anywhere near £6K sorry to disappoint you brillo.

 

You're talking a £10K-£13K car all day long and that's the higher mileage examples (90-100K plus miles). I spent a lot of time looking at those before buying my S3 and they do hold there value well so no bargains to be had.

 

You're right though that you can get in the S4 for that sort of money. Still a nice 4.2Ltr V8 with Quattro drive train but unfortunately just a little bit slower than the RS version.

 

 

What about a Honda Integra Type R DC5?

Yes a high mileage example but cracking motors these by all accounts: http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201603081771613?search-target=usedcars&make=honda&model=integra&price-to=6000&zero-to-60=fast&maximum-seats=5&page=1&sort=default&radius=1500&postcode=cf832nq&searchcontext=default&onesearchad=new%2Cnearlynew%2Cused&logcode=p&adPos=3

[Ewen@Clark Motorsport]

Not any faster than a Zed but is has 4 seats http://www.350z-uk.com/topic/111268-for-sale-skyline-350gt-2003-very-good-condition-nice-mods/

[GMballistic]

Not any faster than a Zed but is has 4 seats http://www.350z-uk.c...tion-nice-mods/

I'm still surprised that's for sale still, ...cracking motor.

[Ewen@Clark Motorsport]

Not any faster than a Zed but is has 4 seats http://www.350z-uk.c...tion-nice-mods/

I'm still surprised that's for sale still, ...cracking motor.

 

So am I, I thought it was well priced compared to others but I've not had anyone contact me about it. Will happily take a sensible offer on it.

[gangzoom]

I wouldn't touch a £6k 335i with a barge pole. Turbos, water pump, oil gasket, high pressure oil pump, gearbox seals, radiator leaks, the infamous steering lock failure are the things guaranteed to hit any 335i.

 

Fast, good to drive, practical, all ture... But running one on a tight budget with no BWM warranty cover, not a good idea.

[Jetpilot]

I havent looked for a while but you may get a freshly rebuild Rx7 for that (with 2 year warranty on the build), achingly gorgeous, awesome to drive with 50/50 weight distribution, 4 seats "ish".

 

Again i havent looked for a while but guessing you may get a na Supra, r33 gts?

 

Or sensible says R32 Golf (good shout Codel)