Hi,

Now that my MY03 WRX is advertised and gaining interest, I need to now look at a replacement. The reason I am selling is because I work from home and cannot justify the cost of running the Scooby.

I have about a grand to spend (maybe a touch more). Having looked around at what I can get, the options are looking to great.

Can I get anything fun and interesting for my money, or am I confined to a Fiesta, Escort and so on?

Any ideas would be appreciated! By the way, I will buy another Scoob in three or four years time, so if I do have to go the Fiesta route, it wont be too much time in pain

 

Depends on how old you are prepared to go. Quite a cheap car that's good fun for example is a 205 gti. Not to everyones taste but cheap and cheerful.

 

I'll go fairly old, as long as it isnt a pain to keep running. I wont be doing too many miles in it, so age isnt a major problem.

 

depends how practical you need the car to be - you can pick up a Mk1 MR2 for that kind of money. I had one for 7 years and loved every minute. Very cheap to run, totally reliable.

Steve

 

Me thinks your gonna get loads of votes for the 205 GTI .......

 

Mk 2 Golf GTi (8 or 16 valve, both great).

 

Mini Cooper!!!

 

Just having a look at the 205 GTI's and they certainly look interesting (and cheap). I would have no idea how to find a decent, relaible one though

 

its kinda a case of you pays ya money you takes ya chance im afraid at that kind of money........ there is a buyers help giude floating around somewhere that i used when i got mine.... Anyone know where it is???

 

Golf 8v or 16 v are good options but prices like the 205's seem to be holding steady as getting sought after.

If its a MK2 golf u go for drop me an email I have had a few over time and can give some pointers.

Pug has usual french build quality - various things can go wrong depending which 1.6/1.9 u go for. Lots of badly lowered ones out there and I think gear change can be like stiring soup if its been abused. Still great fun though and was always the arch rival of the golf.

Parts can be sourced dead cheap from euro car parts for both as well

 

**Cough**

http://bbs.scoobynet.co.uk/showthread.php?t=307446

Still feels a remarkably modern and responsive car. Took a brand new Focus to Nottingham and back a couple of weeks ago, and tbh the Citroen drove better. (And it doesn't sqeak or rattle either )

I just need the space.

 

The easiest way to sort out the pugs dodgey interior build quality is to rip the sucker out and stick a cage in it

 

Daihatsu Charade GTti. Easilly tunable to give Scoob scaring performance and with that 3 cylinder engine, they sound great too. I've got two along with the Scoob. For more info see www.gttioc.co.uk

If you need any help findng one let me know as I run the owners club.

205s are certianly abundant and cheap but I was never that impressed with them to be honest.

AllanB

 

You can find great little civics quite easily.

 

BMW E30 320i or 325i

 

Good little cars, great chassis and sound engine - that one looks a bargain. You could do a lot worse than one of these, great fun.

 

I've bought two cars recently and both of them for a £1000 each and the only thing they have in common is the colour!!!

Car for my mum: Chrysler Neon LX 2.0, 1997/R Reg, 60,000 miles, history, automatic, power steering, air con (needs brake pads changing and cambelt)

My car: Honda CRX 1.6 16v, 1991/H Reg, 124,000 miles, folder full of history, air con! (re-gass air con, fine the heatsheild rattle, find water leak, sort rust and look at steering rack)

The Neon is a dull car, but I drove it up to York and it soaked up the motorway miles with no issues, and the automatic made it much easier to endure the 2 hours I was stuck on the M25.

The CRX is a fantastic, but it needs a little work, but mint ones sell for £1800-2000! It is faster than my previous Mk2 Golf GTI 8v and Peugeot 306 XSi 2.0 8v.

Despite the way people go on about 205's on this board, they are not my cup of tea! I've heard too many horror stories about reliability, 'doggy' ones and also how common they are on here!

 

I'm a huge fan of the mk2 Golf GTI's but good ones are getting harder and harder to find, and reasonable ones are hard to find at £1000!

I had a Citreon ZX in the past, and will never have one again. I had ECU issues, which ended up costing a fortune to fix! If you have a look at one, make sure the keypad security works, because if that fails it's the ECU that causes it! I also had overheating issues, thanks to a faulty fan switch that went twice in 3 years!

 

You can pick up a tidy K or L reg Rover 220 Tomcat Turbo coupe for that sort of money. I did so twelve months ago with comprehensive history and caring previous owner who had car for eight years before I got it. Mind you, a bit slow: 0-60 in low sixes and runs out of steam once the needle gets near the 150 mph region... On the plus side, driving normally gets you 30 mpg. I would have bought one years ago had I realised back then that they are not two seaters!! They're surprisingly spacious for a coupe and can take four adults easily provided they are not giants. Try one and then decide.....

 

They only had keypad immobilisers from 1994 onwards so mine hasn't

 

What about an old(er) Nissan turbo? You can get S12 Silvias for a pittance - 135BHP as stock, RWD fun!

Or on the FWD front, the bluebird was my choice. Its a laugh-riot! The suspension is crap, its huge and heavy, but quite quick - just got to keep the wheelspin in check!

Plenty of mods available for these types of cars, and an example of the costs:
Bluebird ZX Turbo (T72) MY87
94k miles
Reasonable condition
Tax 8 months
MOT'd
Good tyres/Nissan Alloys
Electric everything
£170

OK, so I've bought some fluids and a brake master cylinder, but I'm way under your 1k budget, and you could be looking at 200BHP if you spent up to £1000

Great fun!
Damian

 

This is an eduation, keep the ideas flowing

 

Another vote for the Golf GTi or 205 GTi.

Pug is a superb entertainer, one of the all time greats IMHO. Believe everything you hear about the wonderful steering, handling and sharpness.

But the Golf is the better all rounder. Reliable, economical, easier to drive, fantastic build quality, cheap bits and easy to source if something gives. (as the Pug). Which it rarely does.

I can't split 'em, so I own one of each.