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A 4 seat Audi is really not a mid life crisis car, it needs to be loud and a little ostentatious. Preferably unreliable enough to make you want to sell it quite quickly, but have to keep it to make the point. Something like a Griffith, or a c5 Corvette.
A 'cheap' e60 m5 or e63 m6 fits the 'getting cheap to buy, but cripplingly expensive to run' criteria, but still very dad/grandad in most people's eyes.
There are so many fast dad cars being suggested on here, have some imagination!
Early Cayman easily in budget. Cracking drive as well.
R32 GTR, NSX. Both wise investments, the R32 even has back 'seats'....
25k will get you a 964 needing heaps of work. It'll cost you 2k per year most years once it's sorted, which seems like a lot but you'll feel absolutely alive every time you drive it. I LOVE mine. You can also fit a surprisingly large amount of stuff in them. And two children.
When I moved over here I drove my va for a while, but was always looking for what would have to replace it. I had considered, actually quite seriously, getting an Alfa 159 Sportback. Leaving aside the reputation for mechanical nightmares, they are a lovely car that is not too big and not too small, but which can also take dogs. I was partially swayed by the 159 Quadrfolia that is in our parking garage. It is mint and looks amazing.
Sadly, cooler heads prevailed and I bought a Passat when the van went to van heaven (RIP Jimmy the van, may your spare parts help other T5 in need) and I have less of a problem filling it with random DIY stuff than I would have done with an Alfa.
I still have the van itch though and my midlife crisis may well end up being a double cab T3 pickup. If I can find a Syncro one of those for sensible money, i may buy it just on spec.
Could someone clarify when exactly it's ok to have a mid-life crisis car? I'm quite keen to do this but fear I might be too early to justify it.
I actually did this, and bought a Cayman about 4 years ago.
Echo all the thoughts above about not really using it "enough", feeling a bit guilty about having 2 cars, impractical, can't really use it to even half its potential etc, but by god I love it when I do go out and it has, for me, the right balance between being silly enough to be a proper mid-life crisis car and not being outlandishly expensive to run...
I bought my 964 when I was 32, to avoid the inevitable mid life crisis 'jokes'.
Echo the Cayman comment above, too. A pal of mine, ten years older than me, bought himself a 2.7 987 Boxster this year. I had a wee shottie of it when we did a road trip to Czech and Austria in the summer and it was incredibly capable. More fun than folk would have you believe as well.
I'm going to prefix this with the fact that I had a very early midlife crisis combined with splitting up with my partner and going contracting - all at the same time. Hence the list of cars I probably shouldn't have bought..
V10 M6 - it spun a shell and locked the engine up bending the crank and various rods within 200 miles of buying it and just after a new clutch and flywheel. In 3 years I did less than 500 miles in it and it cost me in the region of £20k to put it right. And this was a low mile, one owner car - not some knacker. I wouldn't go near a V10 again and I certainly wouldn't buy a cheap one.
I also had a B7 RS4 which was....Ok...not crazy fast but brilliant on track. However for the money it cost to run and the compromise around having big seats (so you couldn't fit anyone in the back) and coking up issues that regularly needed sorting, I'd not have another one. Was eventually stolen which I believe most are. I think this shares the same engine as the one in the OP's first post - the engine is good but it doesn't have the shove of a turbo car. Also liked to understeer on track but that won't be a concern on the road.
335d - fast and boring. Rubbish on track, dreadful gearbox. Mental in a straight line. not a midlife crisis car.
135i - currently still have this, but it's quite highly modified now (running around 480bhp) and to be honest I've ruined it. Probably the most practical (when standard) and just a decent little car but not a midlife crisis car (I can never tell if one coming towards me is a 135/140 or a 116d - and I own one!).
Most fun cars I had were either a Cayman S or a 350z. The Cayman's handling was amazing, literally the best handling car I've driven including my other halfs 911 4s. Could have done with a bit more poke but then that would have probably upset the handling. The 350z was a late one before they brought out the 370z. Didn't handle as well as the Cayman but was so much fun - lazy engine, LSD for skids and looked mint. Utterly impractical - if I had to go away on business I'd have to unpack my case in the boot, fold the case up then repack it once I got to the airport - but so so much fun. They're a bit old now so I'd be looking at a 370z with the manual box.
TL:DR - Cayman S or 370z
The correct answer is a motorcycle of course. This was/is the centre piece of my MLC. In all seriousness the process has been very rewarding, filling a life long ambition, and giving a new respect for learning a bit more roadcraft. Also you don't need to strap yourself to a missile to have fun.
If I was to go for a car if probably prefer to sink the cash into bringing something back to life even if I wasn't doing it myself, there is a rather lovely black stacked headlight Merc on eBay that needs some TLC. Perfect 👌
Not a mid life crisis but a V8 story. Disco (3 or 4, not sure which one) was in front of my at a junction while I was cycling, pair of twin pipes at the back. Hoofed it off trying to make a gap, lovely V8 burble coming from that. Much better than a diesel job
Noise is a big factor, it's why EVs are hard to get excited about
benp1
Subscriber
Noise is a big factor, it’s why EVs are hard to get excited about
^This. Which is why, despite them being neither particularly powerful, or fast, a Morgan 3-wheeler is right up there on my list of "want".
More nowadays than every unless you want to spend your mid life crisis on a race track (which is a whole other can of gammon) having something that is very fun at very legal speeds makes terrific sense.
Could someone clarify when exactly it’s ok to have a mid-life crisis car? I’m quite keen to do this but fear I might be too early to justify it.
Would need to be before 40 and only really counts if you haven't had those sorts of cars. If you spent 20 years driving a Golf, Focus etc,. then suddenly buy a Ferrari when you hit 50 then that is a sign.
Whereas if you drove Porsches, Caterhams and the like from age 20 onwards you can't really have an obvious mid life crisis car. That sort of person (me) would have to get a motorbike for the first time in their life. I haven't done that yet so can confirm no mid life crisis here (also no hankering for tattoos, loud shirts, piercings etc,.)
For a 25K saloon Id have an E90 M3
Much better v8 than the audi Donk
Much better drive too
My current recurring autotrader browsing is Elise's,VX220s and i3s.
No help at all OP
What about a Merc AMG 55 SLK?
eBay has about 20 of them all under £15k FSH and under 70k on the clock... That leaves you change for the fuel..
IIRC the BBB organiser chappie has one.. ask him for some advice.
Not considered an Alpina? Quite a few nice looking ones on Pistonheads that fit the budget and a lot more unique than an Audi.
Another one going through the menoporsche - 986 Boxster here. For my budget I could afford a ‘good’ 986 or a bottom of the market 996, so went with the one that I hoped would be less likely to break me financially.
When it’s working right, it’s a lovely thing. Interactive (which is massively important), fast enough to get you into trouble, but not effortlessly so. Lightly tweaked exhaust so it sounds nice when pushed, but not offensive when pootling. Soft top has added another dimension to the experience - hearing the wind in the trees and being VERY aware when you’re passing a field full of cows.
But no 2 ways about it, running an old sports car is financially draining. I do most of the work on it myself, so save most of the labour, but I still need to shell out big lumps of cash at random intervals. I spent a chunk of today lying under it in a french car park patching up the hole that had just appeared in one of the cats. That will be between £200 and £1200 when I get back to the uk and decide how best to do the job something approximating “properly”. And after 100k miles the dampers are shagged, so that’s a BIG bill looming.
…but 4 seater MLC car? 911 or a Maser. Or what about a Ferrari 400 for a truly brave option? They were as cheap as they get pretty recently. Audi(unless an R8) really doesn’t count.
A few nice Jag Xkr 5.0 supercharged ones for that price.
My Dad actually did this a few weeks ago. He'd been putting a bit of money aside, and then found the right one...
13 plate XKR, nice spec (without being the garish Sport version with horrendous Bumpers) and original purchase price of over £95k! Just 17k miles on the clock, 2 owners, full main dealer history, not a mark on it... Just £25k on the nose!
Thing is, it's the car he's always wanted, but he's 65 now. He had a couple of E39 M5's in his late 40's when his reactions were still good and fuel was under £1 a litre. He won't admit that his reactions aren't what they were, but he has said the car is not only too quick but actually scary and difficult to use the performance on the road! As someone who owns several fast motorbikes, I do find that quite funny, but then when I think of cars I've owned/driven that have been the most fun, and normally they're not the most powerful ones. In fact, my most fun car I've owned was an early E85 Z4 3.0i sport, perfect balance of chassis and engine, not too much or too little of either...
Anyway... Cars... Meh! Motorbikes are sooooooooo much more fun!
Just thought of a suitable motor - Challenger Hellcat, 6.2 litres of supercharged hemi hooliganism, 6-700hp readily available.
Mustang GT all the way for me. i’m Starting to to see some 16 plate examples around £22-23k with reasonable mileage; insurance i’ve been quoted is less than i’m paying on my current BMW X3. Ok that’s with a low annual mileage, but I wouldn’t be doing 20k miles a year in a 5.0 V8 car that does about 20mpg
Example: https://www.haques.co.uk/used-cars/ford-mustang-5-0-v8-gt-fastback-2dr-bradford-201908181282708
I have always fancied an XK-R to be honest
Not sure about Mustangs, my mate has one
johndrummer - that one is Cat S, wouldn't touch it with a barge pole
£30k might get you one of the first Noble M12's.
They still look amazing even though they're about 17 years old. Seem to be steadily going up in price like just about anything else that was a bit of fun.
Just read the original post and I seem to have blown the budget by ten grand.
Nice cars though.
As per mboys post, all of these cars are so ludicrously fast, you can’t use them on our roads. I always wanted an RS4, but swapped it for an S5 after18 months cos I was always worrying about the 20 inch wheels and never getting close to using the power available. Just felt like a waste!
The S5 is quick, but great delivery and very smooth, so you can Potter around knowing it’s there if you need it.
johndrummer – that one is Cat S, wouldn’t touch it with a barge pole
You’re right, I hadn’t noticed that before. Turns out all seven Mustangs at that dealer are Cat-S
Aren’t Cat -S cars just minor damaged repaired .. bumpers, headlights or doors replaced etc.?
Aren’t Cat -S cars just minor damaged repaired .. bumpers, headlights or doors replaced etc.?
When I googled it, it said structural damage such as twisted chassis
What do you want it to do?!
- go fast in a straight line?
- go fast around corners?
- both?
- fit 4 people in?
- have a good boot?
- all of the above?
I bought a Cayman 2.9. Doesn't do all the above (2 seater) but love it, quick enough in a straight line, nice and revvy, corners on rails, 35mpg on the motorway, 2 boots = loads of luggage space, and the bikes go on top with a RockBros suction cup rack!
Insurance was cheap, £450 (and I'm 27).
I've always wanted an elise. When I have enough to buy a car purely for fun I'll get one!
Would love a Maserati GT for the looks and noise.
If your budget could go up a bit then the Nissan GTR is mind blowingly fast, sounds amazing and fits 4!
RS4/5/6 are all lovely. As is a C63 AMG... and the older ones sound like a thunder storm!
I would love a faster car but realistically theres nowhere you can use the speed unless you're on track. Having the cayman and having driven a bunch of faster cars (DB9, GALLARDO, F430, Atom, GTR) I'd get something with less power than the supercars but more usable, else I'd lose my license very quickly. I'm breaking most speed limits by the time I'm out of 2nd in the Porsche.
Flange does a good write up above. I've got a 135i which is a great little car - 8sp auto, 4.9 0-60 but 40mpg on motorway runs. Not a midlife crisis car though, too practical.
A mid-life crisis is supposed to be where you start acting like a teenager or at least like someone young. So you need a small hatchback which you can load up with your mates and go out being irresponsible, not an expensive "bahnstormer" to drive on your own like other people of your age who've managed to save up a bit having reached middle-age/management.
Just thought of a suitable motor – Challenger Hellcat, 6.2 litres of supercharged hemi hooliganism, 6-700hp readily available.
There's one for sale in a dealer near my place. Its a insanely, serious looking, very noisy mota.
What do you want it to do?!
– go fast in a straight line?
– go fast around corners?
– both?
– fit 4 people in?
– have a good boot?
– all of the above?
Pick up mine in 8 weeks or so. Seat Leon Cupra ST 300 4drive. Not exactly a MLC Car but it’s the best I can do for now!
A buddy drives a Challenger SRT. Reckons it’s 600+ bhp. Now that Is a pukka MLC car!!
I bought an Elise a few years ago. After 06 they're fitted with Toyota engines, mine was the 111R with the 190hp motor. Good for 0-60 in 4.5 seconds with superb handling and I think they look fantastic.
Cheap to run, you pay Toyota service costs even at the Lotus dealer. Cheap to insure, fully comp for me was £200. Fuel consumption was around 40mpg, could go a lot lower depending on how it's driven. I used it year round, commuted, toured, went to the shops, etc.
The downsides, it liked rear tyres, I didn't bother with the recommended Lotus fitment, went with Toyo Proxes. There's a definite knack to getting in and out but it's quick to get the hang of. I'm 6'1" and about the height limit.
OK, we've established it's not a MLC car and most folk on here would have something different, but I pick one up on Friday anyway.
The V8 is unreal - revs to 8250, Lamborghini derived, same engine as in the R8. It's a lot of fun
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Very nice indeed ..enjoy !
Enjoy!
Ahh, an A5... very Old Man Crisis.
Enjoy!
🤪👍
I am nearly 50 bikebouy 🙄 😂
That's very nice.
I am nearly 50 bikebouy 🙄 😂
No need to apologise.. we're all pretty much the same age on here.
Looks like a hoot, will you open an account at BlackCircles at the same time as picking it up?
I would.
🤡👍
18mpg... i reckon. G'wan, tell us when you get it after a week of hooning around in it..
😱👍
18mpg… i reckon. G’wan, tell us when you get it after a week of hooning around in it..
My mates got a pre-facelift and he reckons about 16 😂 it's a weekend toy tbf, won't be doing too many miles
I used to have an ee92 bmw m3, with the 4 litre v8, that managed 19mpg average , going up to 25mpg on the motorway if you kept it steady at around 65mph.
Love it !
The A5 is in my view the prettiest car that Audi make - very nice. I've never owned a V8 and probably never will now.
Not really my view of a "mid life crisis" car but I'm sure it will still be OK to drive.
That's lush, and there are few cars with the combination of V8 (mmmm), manual (obvs), AWD (for winter, innit) and such a lovely interior. Enjoy!
It may not be the first thing you think of, btw, but if you find the gearshift a bit rubbery, there are some good short-shift kits out there that make it a much nicer shift - you can fit it yourself in a couple of hours.