[Closed] everyday fun/exciting car for 1500 stirlings...

Big / small / indifferent?

Best motor I've had in recent years is the mighty Mondeo. Might be a bit of a shock in London traffic after a Micra mind. (-:

old mx5

BMW 3 series, and probably an E36 compact as they were always a bit tail happy if driven hard.

Motorbike, definitely be more exciting in London traffic.

Wow you can get MX5 for that apparently, surprised.

Clio 172 / 182? They are cheap now and lots of fun. Not necessarily reliable but look for a good example and you might be lucky.

Whats a stirling?

My mates selling a Clio cup thingy

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I'm in the same boat budget-wise. Going for an MX5

The cheapest Mx5's are half that price

Mk1 MX5 or 6N2 Polo GTI. Owned both and both were great little cars...

You'll get more for your money if you buy north of the border with Scottish Dollars 😉

You don't want to buy the cheapest MX5 though

This cost us £1700 in June. It's flipping excellent. You can get decent Mk1s for less, this is a Mk2.5. We bought it from the owner's club as you'll get something well looked after, but provided the sills and cambelt have been done then you'll be fine as a general rule, and many of the ones on Gumtree and Ebay from private sellers are good.

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Ford Puma....

mx5 +1

easy to maintain, parts are cheap, and loads of fun

mx5/Puma

Yep MX5 would be the way to go. For living (parking) in London perhaps one with a hard top?

Drive an Mx5 first, not everyone likes them. I never saw the attraction

http://biomassauthority.com/precer-bioracer-biomass-car/

You mention BMW, you can probably get a Z3 for that kind of money.

mx5 + 1
or
Ford Puma
or
MR2 if you are feeling brave

If that's too small I'm sure Focus ST-170s are around that money now. Or Leon FR / Cupra (the older shape one based on the Mk IV Golf)

Mx5 good plan I like it may have to take a look at one over the weekend

Thanks all

davidrussell - Member
Clio 172 / 182? They are cheap now and lots of fun. Not necessarily reliable but look for a good example and you might be lucky.

Actually moar reliable than you'd think. Less toys the better though

As said above MX5 or Focus 170.
Toyota Celica (gen 7 facelift)
Toyota MR2 3rd gen, reliable but labour costs can be high
Nissan QX V6 if you want a q-car, would be big for London though
Fiat Coupe but reliability can be an issue

I was in the same boat 6 months ago, looked at a couple of MR2s but they just didn't click & I didn't fancy the MX5 at all. Went to look at an MG TF just because it was local & fell in love.

Surprisingly practical for a 2 seater, circa 40mpg, probably the largest luggage capacity in its class & bang on your budget. Only downside is that you may need to be the sort of person who enjoys tinkering to keep it sweet. Upside is there is a great community to help out with any problems, and the faults most people know about aren't that big a problem really.

Nonetheless, great value for money. Even the Red Arrows love it

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Rover Coupe Turbo

Impreza turbo - easy to find for that money and reliable generally.

Contrary to popular belief this is both fun and reliable - [url= http://www.alfaowner.com/Forum/classifieds/relistproduct.php?phoedit=18970 ]Our Alfa 147[/url]

The money you save on your budget will buy lots of fuel etc...

I'd buy a scabby CBR600. Or this

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ford-Granada-Hearse-/331302847806?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item4d2330453e

Only one choice and a very good choice at that. Exclusivity, power, character, Italian styling, gorgeous interior, 28mpg, cheap at the moment but values starting to rise now, far more reliable than anyone would have you believe (FIAT are actually ahead of all German manufacturers for reliability yet still dogged by their 70's/80's reputation), won all the group tests when it came out, lovely 5 cylinder engine sound.

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Okay, another choice then, second choice would be a VW Corrado but not quite as capable as the FIAT and quite a bit more thirsty.

Can't believe nobody has suggested an old golf gti. My 2000 mk4 has 136k on the clock and fits the everyday fun requirement completely. I'm not selling though...

Something at that price from BMW or Mercedes will probably get expensive in the long run.
Having owned an MX5 and a Clio 182, I would recommend both.
Both were equally reliable, but I would probably choose the Clio over the MX5 for practicality.

My 2000 mk4

Corrolla T Sport ..

Corrolla and M4 Golf? - I thought the OP wanted 'exciting'?

Ford Puma....

A Fiesta in a frock?

Mx5 if you fancy a softop and care what other people think, MG TF if you can get past the smell of old man and can find a good one (anything well cared for and had the head gasket replace before it went not after).

A Fiesta in a frock?

thisisnotaspoon - Member

Ford Puma....

A Fiesta in a frock?

Given that the Fiesta of it's day was widely known to have a fantastic chassis and great handling......is that a bad thing? Couple it with the 1.7 Yamaha developed engine and it's a very fun car to drive.

As above - I take it you've driven one....?

Ford Puma is a great drive, really nicely balanced and fun car. Good call 🙂

I just got a 2003 MX5.
1.8 Sport, as high spec as they got:
Heated leather seats
Electric windows and mirrors
Remote locking
16" alloys
Limited slip diff
Uprated brakes
Bilstein shocks

30,000 miles and full Mazda dealer history. Just north of £2k
Great car and feels like driving a new one.

Was cruising around last night. T-shirt on, roof down, heated seats - watching the mega-moon.

Digging it.

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2000'ish Fiesta Zetec S

Mk4 Golf? Could get a reasonable 1.8T for £1500 but you'd still need to factor in the engine and chassis work needed to make it fun.

Love my micra 160sr feels like I'm a blue bottle when I drive it.
Nothing fancy but it has 1.6 engine with slightly stiffer springs that won't shatter your back and is cheap to run. Think the sport+ is the same car just different badge. Should get a 2005 ish one for near your budget.

nissan pulsar gtr

mate had one and it was one scary car, it was heavily modified mind, think it was nearly popping out 300bhp

they're prob all dead now though

There's a [url= http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/mazda/mx-5-mk1/mazda-mx-5-1992-supercharged/2752365?isexperiment=true ]supercharged MX5[/url] on pistonheads at the moment 😀

Loved my Puma. You'd probably struggle to find one without the rear arches a rusty mess now though. Particular weakness for them.

My 2000 mk4

You had me until the mk4 bit - what!?

excitement is relative - OP's requirement is for something to commute across London in and I promise you I could get you quite excited driving you around town in mine...

Commute across London? By car?

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i dunno....

captain slow - Member

Can't believe nobody has suggested an old golf gti. My 2000 mk4

Pff, there's no such thing as a Mk4 gti 😉

I think you were onto a winner to begin with; BMW. You'd get a decent E36 for that money- silky smooth straight 6 and rear wheel drive. The earlier ones are reckoned to be more reliable (so one badged a 325i, rather than a 328i).

Keep an eye on [url= http://retrorides.proboards.com/board/1/cars-sale?.VBDDR_ldXU8=undefined ]Retro Rides[/url] for some inspiration. There's usually some 'interesting' motors for sale.

Can't believe nobody has suggested an old golf gti. My 2000 mk4 has 136k on the clock and fits the everyday fun requirement completely. I'm not selling though...

Don't worry, I'm not buying. There's a very specific reason why no one suggested a Golf GTi of that era.

Saxo vts 16v. Handling. Performance. Cheap as. Same car as the 106 gti but less desirable. Spend 1k on a good in and £500 on a holiday or bike bits.

Currently loving the mk3 Mondeo tdci. Cheap. Frugal. Comfy. Nippy.

Don't worry, I'm not buying. There's a very specific reason why no one suggested a Golf GTi of that era

The VAG car of that era to go for is the Leon Cupra.

Sure its not an MX-5 but they were a hell of a lot better handling and more fun to drive than the Golfs of the same vintage

For that money:

BMW 728i (E38). Surprisingly cheap to run and feels like a luxury tank. I've had 3 of them. If you get a good one, you can sell it after a year for about what you paid for it. Just MOT, Tax and petrol. E38s were the pinnacle of quality and luxury that wasn't ruined by electronics. Avoid large diameter fancy non-OEM alloys.
(EDIT: You can get a 29er with wheels off in the boot)

Nissan 300ZX. A bit more exciting. Get a good JDM 2+2 Auto non-turbo with low miles. Nissan reliability.

That's what I'd get but then I'm not exactly 'normal'!

no point.

What do you mean by 'fun / exciting'?

2-seat convertibles are universally 'fun' when the roof is down (imho) but definatively not when the roof is up / hardtop fitted.

At the budget you should buy on condition of the specific car not by the brand.

Shameless plug. This has been a lot of fun, reliable, reasonably economic and practical;

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121427799777?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649