As I respect everyones opinion on here I require some help. I have £4500 cash ready and need to buy a car asap.

Been out test driving today and have come up with the following options:

1. Rover 220 Coupe Turbo/3dr Turbo L/M/N Reg
2. Toyota Celica GT4 J/K Reg
3. Nissan Sunny GTi-R H/J Reg
4. Honda Prelude 2.2 Vtec ?
5. Fiat Punto GT Turbo M/N/P Reg

So far, the Rover has been the most pleasing for the money - 200bhp, full spec, 32mpg, etc, but has problems of crap traction and head gasket worries.

Please advise on what I should go for, to include running costs, performance, reliability etc.

Are there any other cars I have overlooked at this price range?

DW

 

GT4
Had one ,very reliable.

 

Cheers Luke

Just read GT4 has similar fuel econ to a Scooby though. One of the reasons I decided I couldnt afford a Scoob yet, as I do 20k miles a year.

Any more?

 

For a trade view of these have a look at the Telegraph's Honest John.

 

Has to be a GTI-R, fuel economy can be a bit heavy though. My brother had one for 2 fun years until a 100mph incident got captured on camera

Excellent handling, top performance, improve brakes and you will have a well sorted car which will stay and past the rest.

Matt

 

DW,

How about a Nissan 200SX? Had one for about a year (36K miles) - never had a problem (except 6k service intervals). Fuel around 30mpg (sometimes better).

Only problems were tyre wear (rears only around 13k and I wasn't pushing it) and it encourages you to be a bit careful in the wet.

At that price, you should be into the 2 litre ones (I am not so sure the earlier 1.8s were as good).

Neil.

 

GT4

 

I was getting around 25-27mpg.I think it was ok. my legacy get 23-25.

 

An off the wall suggestion. Rover 620Ti. The same engine and power as the turbo coupe. But the handling has been tamed. One of the best 'Q cars' on the road.

You can get them modifed etc to around 280Bhp too

 

GT4, but I would say that

Seriously, if you are doing big miles, forget a turbo.

GTi-R is even worse on fuel.

I would suggest a good atmo car that can cruise well but use little fuel, but still has power when you need it.

That basically means something like the Prelude, or even an older BMW. Think E30 M3 (if you can find a cheap one) or maybe anything VTec from Honda.

Another choice you may not have considered is an Alfa Romeo, say a 155 2.0 TwinSpark. Economical on cruise, but still has some good power and not a bad soundtrack. The V6 is even nicer but can be heavier on fuel if you spend all the day booting it. SportPack 155 comes with many toys, handles well for a FWD and looks good too. Black 155, lowered, on black 5 spokes, leather, QuickRack steering etc. Nice. Think Touring Cars.

Or you could just forget something nice and just go an buy a 1.8 Mondeo, 1.8 Carina E etc. YAWN !!!

Cheers

Ian

 

GT4

 

Rovers have a habit of letting go with the gearbox ... plus cr*p residuals ... just got rid of a L' plate 420 turbo. Most parts standard run of the mill rover stuff, but turbo specifics are expensive. Wouldn't recommend unless v cheap

 

I would forget the Rover, I had a 220 Coupe (non-turbo) and although it was a 'nice' car build quality sucks (my Impreza is a lot better), they do have problems and so on. Having said that they are cheap on bits and I still think the coupe looks great.

I would probably go down the GTi-R / GT4 route to be honest, although if you are doing lots of miles why not get a turbo diesel something (you would get a good Mondeo for that much).

I still have a soft spot for Cavalier GSi2000's, you would get a great one for that and they are nice to drive, pretty quick, practical, would rather have on of those than the Rover.

 

GT4 ( Carlos Sainz edition if you can )

 

GTIR or GT4 anyday of the week!

 

GT4 or the GTI R

 

I've had GT4, GTiR, Scoob, Cerbera(still got it) and they're all great fun.

But, the car that guarantees me a smile when I get out of it is the 16V Clio I use during the week for economy. 40+mpg on the motorway, yet still buzzes around the country roads.

And the handling!!! it makes me laugh!!!!!
more turn in than the magic roundabout.

Phil.

 

I did over 60,000 miles in my Carlos Sainz GT4 - utterly faultless, although fuel economy wasn't brilliant.

 

I would say avoid the Rover and Fiat, they are likely to give the most trouble. Both the 220 and 620 have headgasket problems, oil leaks. The 220 will suffer from cracked rear trailing arm bushes and front anti roll bar links. Both also suffer from gearbox trouble and clutch cables. If you are prepared to pay out to have those faults fixed, ie build it into the cost when buying, you should be OK. Or get an insurance warranty to cover the car, but make sure it's not from Warranty Holdings or any of it's sister companies.

The warranty option would be a must on the Jap cars as they tend to be very much more expensive to repair should the go wrong.

That said that the 220/620 are quick cars, but suffer very badly from torque steer, and in the wet - well it's just wheel spin all the way

I had a 620ti for a while and it was a good car to drive, and has potential for tuning. If you go the Rover route look for one with A/C. In it's defence the Rover 220 Coupe is a great looking car IMHO.

David

 

Just to muddy the water a bit - What about a Civic VTI - 158 BHP - 177 BHP per tonne
0-60 in 6.9
135 MPH easy - i had mine off the clock
35 mpg
quite annonimous - low ins and not knicked

Bullet-proof mechanics,great handling, fantastic build quality.

Paul

 

Paul i agree a Civic Vti would be an excellent choice, great cruiser, and drives wildly when in the VTEC. A fun car with excellent handling. Tuning can be expensive thou.

 

Which VTi is the quick one? The newer shape one, i.e. same as Type R shape, or the older shape one - 1991 ish

Not sure which one I would need to look at.

Anyone know much about Fiat Coupe 16v Turbo's?

DW

 

DW Two of my mates work in a Fiat dealership, apparently they're doing coupe engines for fun at the mo!

Have you considered a 306TD? They're not slow, handle great and give good MPG.

Bob

 

Thats the Fiat gone then

Bob, what are the MY96 RS2000's like? They are going cheap at the mo and have 150bhp.

I am just on the Trader website now looking for GTi-R's I need to buy a car now as it is doing my head in having to look.

I am going mental - Wibble

 

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:<HR>Originally posted by GaryC:
<B>The only alternative I can think would be a 306 GTI-6, still great cars, and should be down to c#4500 now. [/quote]

I'm afraid not - just sold mine a month ago and its one of the earliest - Jan '97 P plate and the trade in was 6500, I haven't seen any for less than 7k advertised either.

Cracking motor though - great handling, especially on lowered springs and torsions!!! Just not fast enough, thats why it had to go for the scoob!!!!

 

Where the hell have you seen 306 GTi-6's for 4500?!! Let me know cos I will buy one now if its in good nik!
Tom

 

I think your suggestion of a RS2000 is a good one, looked into getting one to replace a previous car that had been nicked(RS1800 fiesta), fast enough, cheap to run and look pretty good. What's the insurance like on your above list as this can be the main factor in owning any of the above
with the exception of the 306td/civic. I've
seen good figures come from 306 TD with a little bit of ECU etc. fettlin'
Are you after a big'ish car as the RS1800 we've had (X2) is a capable car, it pushes out 130bhp and torquey as hell, we loved it and I'd buy one tommorow if i won the lottery
I guess I'm just biased
Good look, trying to find a car.....
CRAFT.

 

GTI-R GTI-R GTI-R....

Seriously, don't get the Rover - I had one and Dangerous Dave is spot on - Clutch cables and head gaskets Don't I know it!!!!!!! You don't wanna know how much I spent keeping mine on the road!!! Lovely car - shame it won't hold together for more than 5 minutes

Matt

[This message has been edited by mutant_matt (edited 09 April 2001).]

 

Civic VTI is a great suggestion. Such fun, so unassuming.

Any VTI is quick - they all had about the same power wether from 1.6 or 1.8. Right little screamers

Personally I would try and fine an early Aerodeck VTi as they look great, and offer even more q-value. And it a honda - reliable as a brick!

The turbo cars will be a bit quicker, but with power sapping AWD drivetrains, and far more weight - the difference will be negligable. And the fuel consumption will way more than make up for it. The VTi as a special fuel converse system at low revs (shuts two of the 4 valves per cylinder?) but when you rod it, it does fly

The only alternative I can think would be a 306 GTI-6, still great cars, and should be down to c#4500 now.

Have fun choosing

 

I seriously think you should try to get a test drive in a 200sx. I don't think you will be disappointed.