What should I buy?
 

I've had Imprezas for 10 years now as the best compromise of daily driver/b-road blaster/track day car for jaunts to the Nurburgring or the supermarket on my own, with the wife or the whole family. I've had my Spec C five years from new and still love it ... it has the Powerstation Stage 4 400bhp upgrade and TEIN electronically adjustable suspension.

We're moving up to East Yorkshire and the Spec C will get plenty of use on the A and B roads, but thinking I'd also like to get something a bit different for days out and the odd trackday. Something small, open-top, two-seater, lightweight, decent power. The last two are important ... I know people rave about MX-5s but I think after the Scoob it will just feel underpowered and frustrating no matter how sweet the handling.

So what do you think? I'm thinking about the obvious Caterhams and Westfields of various configurations, Elise (but worried about the weedy engine), Tuscan ... but also something off-the-wall like a Ginetta. Budget is no more than £20k or else I'd buy an Atom and be done with it.

Prize for the best suggestion: if you're in the E Yorks area and I go for what you recommend I'll pick you up for a drive out. Otherwise will just have to be copious :notworthy smileys.

Sounds like you need something a bit mad.

Westfield SEight or Caterham R400/R500s spring to mind.

This engine-transplant puts a 205bhp 2.3 litre unit in an Elise for starters. More mods are then possible.

http://www.swlotus.com/lotus-elise-d...n-details.html

Alternatively if you want something different to the thousands of Lotus 7 clones out there try this:

http://www.woodcotesportscars.com/ca...p?StockID=2075

10 k left over :thumb:


http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C168979/

I thought the OP was after an open car and that it would be principally for the road? Get those thinking caps on!

Tamoras are cheap. Here's one:

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1764563.htm

Not many things would outpace this on your trip to Tescos.

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1901726.htm

Would you take your own bag , i guess youd need to put your helmets in something :D

Thats jus up the road from me an all

There's 2 turbocharged S2000s for sale over on the S2Ki website -

2000 V Reg (620bhp) £12,000-

http://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=804532

2005 05 Reg (425bhp) £16,500 -

http://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=802971

Nick.

There's an R reg (97) Ultima GTR for sale in an Evo ad (been there for a while) for £26k. Now that is a FAST car. Can scan and send if needed. I reckon they'd take £20k.

R300 - right mix of pace and reliability. About the same pace at GT3 on track but MUCH cheaper to run.

Although from my own personal experience I would run the Spec C on track and get a Golf shopper for driving around day to day.

Cosworth do a supercharger kit for the MX5. It could be slightly more practical than the Caterham sector of the market.

Some great suggestions there ... keep them coming.

"Something a bit mad" is an excellent summary - has to be usable on the road but get the pulse racing. SEight and R3/4/500 are the 'default' choice; particularly the SEight. The guy who bought my last Scoob had one and let me have a drive ... definitely something a bit mad about cramming a V8 into a Seven body.

This is an interesting idea. Ideally I'm not looking for a modded car as I already have two 'project' cars and so something stock would be preferable. Having said that I love the idea of:

Always liked the S2000 but, like the Elise, put off by the weedy torque.

Interesting idea but I neglected to mention I already have a classic mini cooper S that I'm gradually turning into a rally car. The new car is definitely about the open-top sports car experience.

Tamoras and Tuscans are really interesting options. I love the idea of a TVR although a little dubious about the actual ownership experience. However the spec C has never missed a beat in its life so a car that isn't the last word in reliability wouldn't be a problem.

I've thought long and hard about a Radical but think its probably just the wrong side of the Track Car/Road Car divide. We're going to be living in a small village in the Yorkshire Wolds and I think it would really struggle on the roads round there. If it had a bit more ground clearance and suspension travel I would be very interested.

I love these cars and there was even a Spyder for sale a while back. If another Spyder comes up in my price range I'll be struggling to ignore it but I think they're rare as.

Thought about this originally but decided that it would be a waste of the spec C. Where I'm going to be living is proper Scooby country (hills, bumpy winding roads, open bends, not much traffic) and the thing I love about the spec C is that it is a car I can have great fun in even just going to the shops. So rather than stripping it out, putting a roll-cage in and making a full-on track car I'm going to live with the eye-watering fuel costs and have a big grin on my face even when I have to drive to work. So the new car will really be for weekend jaunts over the moors or to the coast and will probably come down to Cadwell Park along with the spec C so I have two very different cars to drive there.

Nice to have this sort of disposable :D

:thumb:

Not my cup of tea, but each to their own:

http://www.pistonheads.com/SALES/1741752.htm

Or a "proper" Tuscan, but with road registration (Yorkshire too!): These like Cadwell!

http://www.pistonheads.com/SALES/800217.htm

elise
 

http://www.rovertech.net/forum/viewt...?f=36&t=117899

how about a not so weedy elise.

Damn if only you had been a few weeks earlier you could of brought a car of me that filled the spec above....

was a nice standard mk2 mondeo.......1.8....verona as well.....

had all you wanted,

it was small, well smaller then a rolls royce anyway,open top-well all 4 windows opened and front 2 were electric as well WOW,was 2 seater as well-well was when i filled back full of crap to take to skips,lightweight-indeed it was-i dread to think how much lighter it is then current shape mondeo,decent power-i cannot lie, a ferrari beater it wasn't ( unless they was parked up) but hey it ran rings round pushbikes on the open roads.

As i said traded it in just other week so you missed it, ask me nicely tho and i will peruse local paper for another one for you, for a small finders fee of course :D;)

A friend of mine has a series I Elise with a Supercharged Type R conversion, circa 300\300 I believe. Insane and fun if you can find one :)

Actually really like this idea. Love Lotuses (friend of mine used to live near Hethel and we often went to watch them test, had a very early driving lesson in his dad's Esprit too) so would be very happy with a fast one.

Tell you what, if you get another one, maybe you'd consider the spec C in part exchange :lol1:?

I'd completely forgotten about Marcos. Might be fun to own a car even more flakey than a TVR! And congrats but I think you have found the first car I've ever considered too extreme for me :notworthy:notworthy:notworthy. Actually that reminds me that I met a bloke with a NOS'd Griff ... now there's an idea.

Arrggh, I feel my resolve not to get another modded car draining away. My wife isn't going to be too surprised, neither is my insurance broker.

They'll always been someone, somewhere with a madder road-registered car than you. My family had this for many years: it was the only road-registered one in the world.

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w...chassis_37.jpg

That's a real racing car from a real race car manufacturer, not just a jumped-up kit-car-based or bike-engined johnny-come-lately Ultima or Radical. ;)

Awesome. You get four :notworthy:notworthy:notworthy:notworthy and a :luxhello:

Re - S2000

Lack of to torque - I can see where you are coming from but I should strongly advise you to drive one first! You' be very surprised! Not apparent lack of torque at all!

I'm running 350bhp on my supercharged S2000 and it's pretty damn fast! 425 or even 620bhp and you really won't feel the 'lack' of torque!

nick.

A 620bhp S2000?!

Crazy!

That's been for sale for years :lol1:

TX.

620hp in a S2000 :eek:

TX.

I'm pretty certain that the supercharger fully addresses any concern with lack of torque :thumb:

I've driven a stock S2000 and that definitely wasn't fast enough but a super- or turbo-charged one may do it. Will try and get a drive of one.

I strongly advise you to test drive a charged one! A complete hoot! :lol1: