Best hot hatch upto £3500??
 

Looking for a hot hatch as new as possible. Think this only really leaves the 306gti-6, but are there any other options?
What are the 16v golf mk3's like??

Lardy pieces of crap that aren't very fast or agile. Buy the 306GTI if you're so hard up you can only afford 3.5K.

I had one for three years and loved it (a mk3 Golf 16V Gti).
In fact at one point me, Mum and Dad had one each and had a six pager in "Volkswagen Driver!"

I'd say the Pug has the edge on handling and it's slightly quicker but the Golf is WAY more solid and is a good MWay cruiser.
The engine is bombproof and very cheap to run - Just make sure the cambelt has been changed at 70k - Vital.

Many go for the VR6 but it's much thirstier, pricier and softer than the 16v in set up. The 16v is a much better balanced car.

If you can find a good one, I highly recommend them - Go for as late as possible (mine was one of the last built) and avoid any S African built ones.

Torpid - Hmm, must take you out for a pint one day.

NOT.

172 clio's can be got for this money now

Saxo VTS would be a good choice :)

Jesus, torpid, what is it with you?
Hard up? I think that buying my own place with my fiancee, saving for a wedding, running my old mans business since he had a stroke over a year ago, being 24 and being able to afford a 3.5K car is not exactly hard up!

You really can be an ar&ehole sometimes.
Now f%ck off!

106 GTI!

I'm not interested in the sordid little details of your life. You asked for information I gave it.

The MK3 Golf 16V GTI is not a good hot hatch in my opinion. Despite what the other poster says they are poorly built compared to the MKII or MKIV, are not a good drive and command lower values than a MKII, which has to say something about them. I've driven 8v, 16V and VR6 and don't rate any of them other than the VR6 as a cruiser.

Of the cars available to you in the hot hatch class I'd take a GTI-6 above all the other choices. Although as you are clearly potless perhaps a Mondeo or Vectra diesel might be a smarter choice?

What are the 106/306 like for reliability?
And I wouldn't be seen dead in a saxo!
Have also heard some horror stories about the 172's!

I had a mk4 golf 1.6 16v for 3 years. That WAS poorly built! 10 trips to the dealers for warrenty work in 2.5 years!

Only the South African mk3s suffered on build - Any German built ones were rock solid.
Mine never missed a beat in 25k miles and three years of ownership.
And I had a mk2 before it and a mk4 after it so have a fairly good idea of how they compare.
Mk4s handle appallingly - Apart from the R32 I had. Mk2s handle pretty well but have no brakes.

Mk3 is a good blend of reasonable performance and comfort.

And they'll outlast anything French by years.

Potless...... or maybe smart enough to blow all my savings on a new car. :rolleyes:

Torpid, you gave some "information" then had a little dig with your "so hard up" line.

People like you bore me to tears.

The MK3 8v Golf GTI was woefully slow - however the 16v pushes 150bhp so is quite brisk and as for the handling - well nothing that a few hundred quid couldn't sort as for poorly built, your having a laugh arn't you. I owned a MK2 and ok the MK3 wasn't as sharp driving wise but the build quality is as good if not better.

Loads of these for 2-3k

Feel free to ignore my comments then.

BTW I also think MKIV golfs are ****, just not as bad as a MKIII.

3.5K spent on a MKII Golf Gti and a brake upgrade would be a smarter move and get you a car that might actually be worth something if you don't wreck it.

3.5K, for a MK2! You're having a giraffe! :rolleyes:

I'll second that. :thumb:

Could get a very well sorted 16v track one for that.

AS NEW AS POSSIBLE :D

Didn't see that bit.:cry:

Sprinkler system armed....

Mg ZS180!

There i said it! They are wicked!

Nova 1.3 SR!


free parking space at mc 'd's

:brickwall

It will be worth 3.5K when you come to sell it unlike a MKIII.

VolksWizard - VW Audi specialist near J3 M42

GTi-6 defo!

What do you want to do with it? Mway cruising? round town stuff daily driver or occasional blasts?

m.

General driving, mixture of both motorway and town work.

If you can do without little comforts like electric windows and air con try and find a 306 Rallye. There basically a lightened GTI-6. I had one and regreted selling it :(.

Wolfie.

He will want those creature comforts if he has any sense and is using the car as a daily driver.

The rallye is one of those cars I always wanted but never got round to owning but a GTI-6 is more or less the same thing isn't it?