Avi

I'm thinking of buying a cheap RWD car to have a bit of fun in.. just as a stop gap for upto 6 months. ANy suggestions..

thinking:

E30 325i BMW
2.? Capri
Nissan 200sx (turbo )

rik1471

It was nice knowing you.

rik1471

Nissan 200zx - insurance group 18!

Alec

Xr4i
Old shape supra turbo 200+bhp.
Nissan silvia (s12).
Mitsubishi starion.

Had an old silvia , that was quite a bit of fun and only set me back £150.

Alec

RB5320

Mk2 Escort RS2000. The daddy of rear wheel drive fun. Sell it in 6 months time for more than you paid for it. Cheap to run, simple to repair, classic insurance.

Steve

Avi

Err... No,... a 200sx is what i said , i've had a quote, and it's less than i'm paying now, i'd only want tpft on it anyway

TomM

I like the way everyone is avaoiding the recemondation of the BMW, for RWD fun under 2k nothing will come close to the E30 325i - its got a smooth silky 6pot with plenty of power and if its fun your after then this is the car for you.

I recently sold an E30 320iSE that I used as a runaround and although it was fairly slow, get a wet road and I was smiling all the way home!

The 325 has the power to double this smile!, and you can have fun on any road!!!. Good thing is that you will sell iton for what you paid for it!

cletterridge

http://www.benerridge.freeserve.co.uk/mymr2.htm

dave_the_B

If you are going for the Nissan 200sx make sure it is post 1992, thats when they fitted a LSD as standard

Up the boost to 15psi and fit a K+N panel filter......200bhp

I've just sold mine, with 275bhp, for £2250!!!!

Stacks out there and very easy to tune.
With the 200bhp convertion they are good for 150mph and 0-60 in just under six seconds

Need more advice: www.sxoc.com

Enjoy

Dave

[Edited by dave_the_B - 10/30/2002 7:22:21 PM]

Marky-San

How about a Carlton GSi 24V 3.0 litre.

Goes like a rocket, looks of a barge - they are great!!! Ultra reliable too.

RB5#295

Bang on Marky-San; that's what'll touch a 325, with it's silky smooth 6 pot 3-LITRE, and it hasn't got the "I'm a t*****r but I can't even afford a decent BM" image.

Apologies to BMW owners but there can't be a worse image than an early 325i, surely?

Fen

RAF1

iTrader: (5)

Gotta B without a doubt a Corolla GT Twin Cam AE86 Coupe RWD with a LSD fitted as standard!!!!!

U could donut all the way home......

Only problem is finding them as most are in Ireland

oh yeah and prices range from a few hundred quid to a few grand depending on age/mileage/condition and person selling it...
Dealer or private....

Raf.





[Edited by RAF1 - 10/30/2002 10:12:31 PM]

ustolemyname??stevieturbo

iTrader: (1)

Twin cams are very slow, and seriously overpriced. Lots of them are over here, and believe me, you wouldnt want to buy one. They are very rarely driven in a straight line at under 6000rpm, and rarely ever see 3rd,4th, or 5th gears. They do get some serious abuse, and most have been crashed, for obvious reasons. They are also only really good for sliding in the wet, as they dont have enough power for the dry.
You would be lucky to get a half decent one here for under £2k. I have even seen some people asking £5k for them?????? WISE UP
A good 325i will destroy any twin cam, be far more reliable, comfortable, and handle better. Also better build quality, and better value. They also look far batter.

Paulo P

iTrader: (42)

I have a capri 2.8 for sale very good fun in the wet Cool Capri HERE

Paul

RAF1

iTrader: (5)

"They are very rarely driven in a straight line at under 6000rpm, and rarely ever see 3rd,4th, or 5th gears"

isnt that the whole point

Raf.

ustolemyname??stevieturbo

iTrader: (1)

If they had some power, then maybe, but when they are so slow, and its the only 2 gears that are useful, then no. They dont slide that well in the dry either.
Just because it is rwd and has a diff, doesnt make it good value. It needs to have a bit of power to make it fun. I know I would be bored with a twin cam in about 15 minutes, and was. Lucky I didnt have to buy one to find out. Drove a friends.
And the noise they make.... NOOOOOOO it is one of the worst sounding engines around. Only one that may pass or reasonable is a local one that is supercharged...but still slow

RAF1

iTrader: (5)

Well...
someone must like them because whenever you see one advertised they are sold str8 away.... the ones in England that is, and most of the time they are sold to the irish!!!!!!!!
They must have something about them!!!!!

Raf.

TomM

BMW 325 has got a worse image than a Carlton GSI!!!

Ha ha ha fecking please!!!

Are you seriously saying you would rather drive round in a Carlton GSI that an E30 325i ???? - sorry each to thier own but thats hilarious!

A Carlton!, the GSI is the ultimate pikey mobile along with early shoguns!, dear or dear. Mmmm, good old Vauxhall or a BMW???

What a joke.

(wait for it - "yeah hello but look at the Lotus Carlton" - dont even bother, no comparison at all)

scoobysnacks

If you were considering a Carlton size car, surely you'd have to consider a 5 series BMW. They're cheaper than the 3 series. There's a 1991 535iSE with 100k on the clock near me for £1295 - bargain!

what would scooby do

I wouldn't touch any Vauxhall of that age as everyone I know who's had one (and me I've had a Monza GSE and Atsra GTE) - have had the same problems.... mainly the petrol pipes are made out of rice paper and leak. If you are lucky you will just lose a tank f petrol, if not <crumpf> <screeeeeeem> flame grilled human

TomM

My B reg Astra GTE caught fire as I left work one night, I didnt really feel like a tit as my car burnt away at the side of the A30 at rush hour! - split fuse pipe, one written off car, wasnt bothered though as I got a Cav GSI after that and that was a belter!

Vauxhalls are great when they are fiarly new but dont age well at all.

RB5#295

No I wouldn't drive a Carlton GSi because they're too old and downmarket these days, but I would NEVER have driven an E30 325i...

Fen

marty_t3

You cant beat a S13 200sx, S12 silvia turbo or RWD corolla for tail out fun.

200sx is the quickest and best. Insurance is group 16, though some companies class it as 17 alond with the S14 shape. Very easy to tune, very reliable but watch out for rattly big ends cuz they are soft as s***e.

You'll pick up a good 200sx for 1.5k and have enough cash left over to mod it to over 200bhp. At that spec it'll easily bounce off the limiter in top (actual 147mph i think, over 150 indicated) and pull 0-60 in about 6 secs. Handling in the dry is excellent but is a handful (ie. loads of fun) in the wet. Brakes are pretty poor and need uprated to bigger S14 or 300zx calipers.

You'd be a fool to buy anything else ... the 200sx is the quickest and best handling thing you can buy for under 2k. (even Clarkson rates the S13 200sx highly and you know what he thinks of Datsuns)

IMO the S13 is the most under rated car ever built. Nissan should be ashamed of themselves for not letting people know what it was capable of.

Marty (if you can't already tell.... i loved my 200sx, will get another one as soon as i get rid of this bloody subaru )

[Edited by marty_t3 - 10/31/2002 3:49:09 PM]

TomM

Why does everyone think that what Clarkson says is gospel?, I think he talks alot of crap personally!

He completely slated the SMGII box in the new M3, after a 45 minute test drive - ****.

I do like the 200SX and it makes alot of sense indeed for those figures!!

marty_t3

Tom, dont take my comments as a compliment to Clarkson. The man is an over opinionated fool when it comes to cars. Any 'real' motoring journalist looks at the merits and downfalls of a car rather than the badge. In Clasksons case "ferrari = good, nissan = bad", despite the hundreds of thousands of pounds difference in price.

What i meant with my previous comment was that despite Clarksons hatred of all things nissan he admitted to liking the 200sx. I believe in one of his books he compared the rear wheel drive handling of a 200sx with that of an Aston Martin Vantage and a ferrari 355.

TomM

Agreed - the man is a fool!

Sorry, wanst having a pop matey I just hate the way people use him in arguments sometimes as if to say well Clarkson says so so he must be right!

V-techland

As an ex 325i sport owner I think that pound for pound they are gr8, if I were you i'd get a mk1 as their LSD's are apparently easier to spin up and you'll have a selection for your £2K, just as long as you don't mind what is essentially and old car!

However I had a MK2 and I waited for ages to get it, looked at 8 and it was best, really mint with low miles (well 89k on a 90G) and I cracked the head (which is "THE" problem you'll get on these, apparently if you were to have a problem then this is it!) and the diff was sticky and it never went round properly.

From the above suggestions then I would go for a Toyota corolla GT Twin Cam, they are used by all the 'steer from the rear' crew and are a peach to drive (apparently).(eg all the boys from Northern Ireland at Max Power live). Only problem being good luck at finding one for this money!

If you fancy a BM then I would say get one which is as comfortably placed within your budget as possible, this way you'll avoid any tears b4 bedtime if problems occur!

OH and make sure its had a cambelt change! if this goes then it really is curtains. Plus my friends have had Carlton GSI's and they don't go around very well! If you've got a fuel card at your disposal then get a BMW 635 csi they go around a treat.

Avi

Thanks

What reg are the Mk1s BMw??

I'm really thinking about getting an early ish model, for peanuts.. doesn't really matter if i kill it completely mentality.

Just something to have some fun in, possibly run along side another car for a few months.

TomM

E30's were facelifted in 1988 on the F plate, thus anything beofre will be a Mk1 E30.

I just sold an Mk2 E30 320iSE for £900 with 82k and I was the 2nd owner from new!, full BMW history and the car was a minter with a years MOT and a brand new set of boots and CD player!!

I did adverise it on here with no interest, put it in the trader and I took over 30 calls for it!

V-techland

Yep Toms right! 86-88 for the first cars (MK1's) thats 'waiting at the showroom door' C-reg's up to late E plates.

My mate found one for £895 with under 100K miles! its sold though, but thats the kind of money you can get them for! isn't their 2 for sale on this site in 'for sale'? i think ones done 140k and 116k respectively! can't remember the costs.........sorry