I am looking at replacing my Fiesta ST-3 MP215 and 17k on the clock with something between £15k-£20k with less than 50k on the clock and can get to 400bhp with a stage 1 remap, sound good and 0-60 of 4.6-4.8s but at the same time have reasonable running costs (so pre face lift C63s and M3s are out the question). What i've wanted for ages is a CLA 45 but they are well over budget at £24k minimum with the wheels/pan roof/sports exhaust and i'm just not prepared to sell my family car or my motorbike to get one and go down to one car.

I have drawn up the below list from looking on Autotrader in budget with performance figures and running costs within what i'm looking at:

RS3 2012 £19K - put off by the age and running/servicing costs and driven by a certain 'type' where I live
S3 2014 £18k - it's not an RS!
M135i 2014 £15k with M performance exhaust - cheapest option and most practical
M235i 2016 £17k with M performance exhaust - I do like these but they look tiny and are more money for what is the same as the M135i in a saloon shell
335D X drive 2016 18K - look bland without genuine M kit added which takes them out of budget if you can even find one and won't have the engine/exhaust sound being a diesel

Or sit tight for another year and hope the CLA 45 prices drop to <£20k with the release of the new model 45

I live close to DMS Automotive which from what i've read are good tuners so whatever I buy will be going to them for their stage 1 remap.

So what would you choose and why?

At the moment the M135i is looking tempting because it's the cheapest option for same performance as the others and I can get it in 5 doors and get the dogs in it if needed.

 

Also look at the Golf R DSG.

I've got a new one for the wife and they are quite frankly brilliant cars! Manuals suffer from clutch issues with standard clutches so would want uprated manual clutch or DSG model as we opted for.

 

C63, job done

 

Not sub 50k miles for £15-20k budget, unless on the V car or shockingly bad for some reason and mega old. I wouldn't advise that at all, it's a one way route to massive repair bills on those cars.

 

The latest Focus RS may just be in budget -

£19k - https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...cv211ts&page=1

£21k - https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...Trim=RS&page=1

What about an A45 as opposed to a CLA45?

Plenty within budget that meet your criteria,

 

sub 50k is possible under £20k is perfectly feasable, i've been looking at them for the past 3 months cos im considering one myself

 

I've been looking at C63's for close to 5 years now and very nearly bought one a few times. For the OP's budget he will get a low quality 2008-09 car realistically.

 

where you been looking?

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...us=1500&page=3

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...us=1500&page=3

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...at_cars&page=4

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...=de59tu&page=5

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...=de59tu&page=5

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...=de59tu&page=5

autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201902185054393?make=MERCEDES-BENZ&postcode=de59tu&model=C%20CLASS&onesearchad=U sed&onesearchad=Nearly%20New&onesearchad=New&radiu s=1500&minimum-badge-engine-size=6.0&sort=price-asc&advertising-location=at_cars&page=6


at least 7 pages of them on autotrader at the min, yes some are 2008, but some are later and nothing wrong with the quality of them, unless your trying to find one in near perfect condition. Add in owners clubs where you can find them for sale then you arn't struggling to find them within that price range unless you just want to pay to be fleaced.

 

I've been looking the same places as you have, but if you think owning a 10 year old V8 merc with 70k miles on is going to be a cheap sensible daily then you're mistaken. Coil packs alone on these are over £3k.

So your first link is a 9 year old car with 73k miles, second is 10 years old with 66k, third link is 11 years old with 50k, etc etc.

Don't get me wrong I absolutely love the C63 and would have one in a heat beat but if you want a trouble free daily then you'll need to spend a bit more for a newer one realistically. Besides, the likes of the RS3 mentioned by the OP will give twice the economy and half the servicing costs in a newer car for the same price and performance.

 

Well that's not what current owners are telling me. Also when i did some research into servicing its not that much more than the scoob if you go to a local indy

 

I've been on the MBworld forum for a while now, most owners agree to budget £500 a month to cover average fuel (7-21mpg) and servicing costs as they will do rear tyres every 5000 miles and things like front discs and pads will set you back £2.3k. They are crazy cars and none of these things would stop me owning one at some point. I do need a C63 in my life!

 

M135/M140 for me. Parts are reasonable if you shop around and service intervals are generous. A lot more efficient than most in that list.

Wouldn't get hung up on the m performance exhaust. Other options are out there, including standard exhaust box mods

 

that sounds like horror stories, i got quote from mb nottingham for alot less specificly for service items and brakes. i expect thats based on stealer prices which are daft money

 

A guy at work has just bought a right bargain, it's a white 2 door c63 amg on a 14 plate with carbon diffuser,spoiler etc,red leather and performance pack. He paid 20k from merc approved used, he said they had it for sale for ages so he went in with a cheeky offer and bought it. Although I'm not sure it has the performance pack as his calipers are not red.

Still a ****ing lovely motor though and inly 32k on the clock

 

Thanks for the replies. I specifically said in my post the pre face lift C63s are out purely on running costs I simply couldn’t afford the fuel bill let alone the maintenance costs. They are mega thirsty and expensive on servicing.

That’s why i’ve listed the stuff I have because the running costs are a fraction of a C63 with similar performance obviously without that glorious V8 soundtrack.

The Golf is a good shout but I don’t like the look inside and out and I don’t think they are as easily tuneable as the M135i/M235i. These can be got to 400bhp with just a remap.

The whole reason I like the CLA 45 is because it’s not far behind a modern C63 in performance but a tiny fraction of the running costs.

The Focus RS is a good shout but I thought they were well out of budget so i’ll take another look.

The A45 is a consideration but again really pushing the budget as I would only have one with the factory AMG sports exhaust and upgraded wheels and they all go above £20k for under 50k miles.

For price and performance the M135i seems the best ‘bang for buck’ especially as you can get them with oyster leather and i’m a big fan of cream leather interiors.

 

This is our new Golf R. This was £33k mind you as its only a couple of months old, but in general the golf R is 310bhp standard and 375bhp is achievable with just a £400 stage 1 tuning box and nothing else making these things do 0-60 in 3.5 seconds. Honestly, they are crazy cars and the standard engines and boxes are doing 500 bhp easy.

 

Very nice I'd be looking at 2014/2015 hatch model so 296bhp so lowest power out of the list above. The standard wheels would have to go too they are hideous. The ones on yours suit it very well.

 

The wheels on mine are a £4k VW option (madness) but you can get accurate replicas for £500 now. All the models regardless of the power 300 or 310 are just as fast. The DSG models are better than manual and all estates were DSG only. They really are a gem of a car. You'll be surprised how refined they are and just how fast they are for the power output. My. Wife's estate is every bit as fast as my 340bhp 420lb/ft Impreza.

When we were looking at ours I test drove a manual 2015 hatch at a main dealers with 40k on it for £16k and it drove like it had just come out of the showroom.

 

Cheers will give them a look they certainly are driven by a different demographic around here compared to the RS3 and M135i. Not seen a single Golf R being floored whereas it’t the opposite with the other 2.

 

How about a Leon Cupra - just rebadged VW but cheaper and available with either 3doors, 5 doors or estate

 

Lexus ISF?

 

You cant really go wrong with the M135i & as said above, don't worry too much about the M Perf exhaust as you can pick up a modded backbox for £180 and it just as good minus the shiny tips.

I picked up a 14 plate auto with 35k miles & FSH from a dealer for £14.5k in March, so you could probably get one cheaper than your budget depending on what you want from the options list.

 

Thanks but any Cupra that is 5 seconds or less 0-60 is above £20k

Thanks but again these are above £20k and CLA 45 money with C63 fuel economy.

 

Plenty of nice ISFs about for less than £20k. Real world mpg for M135i vs ISF is 29 v 23. Which is about £10 a week at 10k miles a year. The difference will be even less if you modded the BMW to 400bhp and started using it. Factor in the reliability and residuals of a premium Lexus compared to a generic German hatch with a 25% power hike and I know where I would be putting my money. There are a lot more expenses to consider than merely sticking petrol in.

 

Well obviously but I go on the provision that if it costs a **** load in fuel everything else about it will be expensive too. That's why I don't want a C63 but do want a CLA 45. Similar performance but very different running costs. Likewise the M135i will be a hell of a lot cheaper to look after than that Lexus.

 

Forget the Golf R - boring as hell to drive !
Focus RS Mk3 - not unless you want to keep having the head gasket changed !

this
https://www.pistonheads.com/classifi...1-2017/9900484
absolute weapon - and will hold price better than any M135,M140 - which are also very boring to drive unless tuned

 

Not within the £15-20k budget though.

Also not sure why you'd have a GTI over an R personally, the R is far superior to even a clubsport IMO.

 

Had both the R (tuned to 400) and the CS - again 400, much more of a drivers car, far better interior, faster than the R even in the wet, and better on both fuel and residuals - so I guess we beg to differ
But - yes over budget so academic really ...

 

Not only just over budget but more than the CLA 45 which is what I really want!

 

Bet they were fun. Fair play to you. They do look nice.