Losing the enthusiasm for owning fast cars...

[lewisdmz]

I'm thinking of moving on from the '6 with a budget of about £5k. There's a lot of fun cars to be had in this price range but I'm considering just getting something uber boring like a GT TDi Golf.

Don't get me wrong I love a good blast when conditions/roads allow but I could probably count the times since Christmas I've been over 6k on my hands and it just doesn't seem worth owning a 25mpg car (in the city) + insurance.

I live 4 miles away from work and very rarely have a reason to get out on the country roads except for planned drives, which between work/social life/other hobbies I just don't find time to do any more which is a real shame.

Has anyone else made a similar decision recently?

[Grant]

I made a similar decision to you about 2 years ago. Sold up the 306, sold all the parts I had, and bought a Saab in an attempt to be 'more sensible'.

I got bored very quickly with having nothing to tinker on, or nothing to plan as the next thing to do.. etc.


I am now back in a 306

[C.A.R.]

It depends if deep down you're a 'car person', by that I mean will you get bored not having something to fiddle with?

I have lost a lot of my free time to play cars, my daughter and other commitments have done for that! But I still need to be able to modify/mess with the car on the odd occasion! I really want a newer car and have looked at various things, all boring with a view to leaving them well alone.

I bought a sensible focus tdci a couple of years ago and was fed up with it after 6 months and got rid. It's an expensive hobby swapping cars!

[Eeyore]

Get a stage 2 hdi? Youre hardly doing any mileage and youve got a 6. At least you have got the opportunity to put your foot down whenever you want.

[Niall]

Dude my 6 does about 3k a year so sod all. Thing is with it, its great fun and puts a massive smile on my face when i do drive it. Trust me, you will get bored without something to play with or for that occasional hoon

[THE_Liam]

I kind of lost interest in fast cars, but still wanted something interesting and different which is why I bought the 190, I don't get the chance to get out on country roads much but there's a lot to be said for wafting around in an 80's luxury car feeling like a business guy

Merc 190 or W124, BMW E34, Jag XJ6, Audi 100, Volvo 700 series, or even something Japanese like a Honda Legend or Lexus LS400, all available for under a grand and tend to be looked after. f*ck MPG!

[Ari]

Don't do it... Make more time for the car and put the 5k towards SC! /thread

I will always regret the day I let insurance write my '6 off I'm fed up of old cars but I could kill (another badger) for another '6!

---

... or Lexus LS400,

My mate's Dad has one, they are awesome especially if it is like his and has the 'sports' suspension.

[Pete]

Yeah not that arsed about quick cars myself these days, spend more time looking at the fuel gauge than the rpm's. The vans 100 rampaging horses of slowness but I dont care TBH. Besides its more fun thrashing a slow car than a quick one...the quicker the car the more risk's involved in having a proper play!

Get my speed kicks with the MTB these days

[THE_Liam]

You need a barge Pete, treat yourself. I could see you in a Nissan Maxima

[Pete]

Keep window shopping at big old BMW's and Jags

[lewisdmz]

I'm still definitely a car person, just not that bothered about modifying any more. I've never been great with a spanner myself and now the place I live doesn't have a drive/is on a hill so can't get the jack out safely which has just put the nail in the coffin really.

I'd rather have a nice standard tidy example of something and spend my money else where.

Don't get me wrong it's great for a hoon when I get the opportunity, they're just so few and far in between it's hard to justify it for the other 95% of driving. Niall you have another car as a daily though don't you?

[THE_Liam]

Try a classic, 5 grand would get you something brilliant. Something 80's will be as if not more reliable than a modern car, and it'll be far more interesting. I'd be looking at minty mk2 Golf GTIs or maybe an E24...

[procta]

why don't you build a good little pocket rocket?
I still love mine, even though it does bot all miles, but sadly I think its time is up.

[lewisdmz]

Try a classic, 5 grand would get you something brilliant. Something 80's will be as if not more reliable than a modern car, and it'll be far more interesting. I'd be looking at minty mk2 Golf GTIs or maybe an E24...

I'd love to Liam, great fan of E30's as well but whilst I don't doubt the simple reliability these cars benefit from, after 25 years there's a normally lot of rust about and I fear general deterioration of other parts of the car which will need continual maintenance to keep on top of.

[THE_Liam]

Try a classic, 5 grand would get you something brilliant. Something 80's will be as if not more reliable than a modern car, and it'll be far more interesting. I'd be looking at minty mk2 Golf GTIs or maybe an E24...

I'd love to Liam, great fan of E30's as well but whilst I don't doubt the simple reliability these cars benefit from, after 25 years there's a normally lot of rust about and I fear general deterioration of other parts of the car which will need continual maintenance to keep on top of.

To be fair though, you could pay for it looking after and still save money when you consider that it wouldn't depreciate....

[jammapic]

Jaguar XJR, reduction pulley, nuff said... oh and you'll have over 3k left in your pocket, and 400hp under your right foot :-)

[Danny2009]

Id sooner have loads of power more the better, may not use it all the time but it's there when needed

Just because you have a quick car Dosent mean you have to tear about everywhere

[THE_Liam]

Jaguar XJR, reduction pulley, nuff said... oh and you'll have over 3k left in your pocket, and 400hp under your right foot :-)

I keep getting really tempted by 3.2 Sports for a grand, supposed to be far more reliable than the old Jags and pretty decent on fuel.

[jammapic]

To be honest mate, they are crap. I've now driven 3.2's of both straight 6 and v8 variants, a v8 n/a and a supercharged... supercharged everytime.

You can pick up a v8, supercharged for £1500, they are very quick and super luxury... I honestly wish I hadn't sold mine.

[THE_Liam]

To be honest mate, they are crap. I've now driven 3.2's of both straight 6 and v8 variants, a v8 n/a and a supercharged... supercharged everytime.

You can pick up a v8, supercharged for £1500, they are very quick and super luxury... I honestly wish I hadn't sold mine.

The 3.2 isn't crap at all, its just not a sports car. Yes you can pick one up for £1500 but it's not likely to be a mint one, not by a long shot, and these aren't cars you want to be sorting out problems on. The supercharged car has the unreliable ZF 5 speed auto as well.

Plus, I can't see the XJR doing 30mpg+ on a run.

[C.A.R.]

MX5.

If you can live with the practicalities, they're massively cheap to maintain (just a normal car really), easy to work on and a good one can be had for £1,000 - 1,500!

Do you have a house / mortgage? I'm trying desperately to save for a deposit but it seems almost impossible. I would sooner put money into property than another car given the opportunity, but it depends where you are in life.

The advantage of a cheap cheap car is that it can't depreciate!

[jammapic]

Wrong, all XJ v8's have the ZF box, except the XJR which has a Mercedes geartronic AMG unit, which are bulletproof.

XJR will do 30mpg on a run, nd 20mpg round town... I know, I've had 3 now!!

You will pick up a 100-120k mile, supercharged one for £1500, it'll be ok, but not a minter, hey are a piece of piss to maintain and they tend not to go wrong. Rust, however, is the biggy... check the sills.

IMHO you'd be daft to buy any XJ other than an XJR, as they are slow, thirsty and have a crap gearbox which always goes wrong. The XJR is just the better car... that said, insurance could be an issue for anyone under 25 - as they are 370hp and 380lb/ft out of the box....

Alternatively, you can pick up a 750iL, 530i, LS400 etc etc for the same money.

Having owned a few "big barges" for free motoring now, I have to say, Liam has the right idea... it's ever so much fun!

JP

[silverzx]

"Real" car people have more than one car on the road at a time.. (Toy+daily)

[THE_Liam]

Wrong, all XJ v8's have the ZF box, except the XJR which has a Mercedes geartronic AMG unit, which are bulletproof.



XJR will do 30mpg on a run, nd 20mpg round town... I know, I've had 3 now!!



You will pick up a 100-120k mile, supercharged one for £1500, it'll be ok, but not a minter, hey are a piece of piss to maintain and they tend not to go wrong. Rust, however, is the biggy... check the sills.



IMHO you'd be daft to buy any XJ other than an XJR, as they are slow, thirsty and have a crap gearbox which always goes wrong. The XJR is just the better car... that said, insurance could be an issue for anyone under 25 - as they are 370hp and 380lb/ft out of the box....

JP

Correct, all XJ V8s have the 5-speed ZF box, but I'm on about the 6-pot. For fuel economy I'll have to take your word for that, but every internet forum I've read says that real life you're lucky to get 25mpg. There doesn't seem to be many Rs at that price, and I'd be highly suspicious of one that goes for the same price as a mint 3.2.

You're entitled to your opinion but I disagree. All Jags are thirsty but particularly supercharged ones, the later V8 ones have the gearbox issues (sealed for life apparently) not the early ones, and they are not in any way slow, sub 10 seconds to 60 and nearly 140mph flat out isn't slow. It isn't fast, but it's not slow. Maybe it is if your used to 400bhp but to a mere mortal such as myself the 3.2 is quick enough.

[jammapic]

Like I say, all v8 XJ's EXCEPT the XJR run a ZF box. The 6 pot XJR's run a GM gearbox, same as various American pickups, again, bulletproof.. not a ZF box.

I bought a 6 pot XJR for £1000, it needed some work, but no rust, I bought a v8 XJR for £1750 which was immaculate, and then chopped it in against another with modified suspension, remapped etc which cost me another £250 (so £2000). You can pick up a pretty nice one for £1750, and I have seen them sell for £1250 if they need a little tlc (normally rust bubbles on the back arches or sills).

The sealed for life thing is just marketing bollocks. I changed the oil and filters on my Geartronic unit easily, you just need a dipstick (which I got off ebay for about a tenner) and the oil / filter direct from merc (£75) there are loads of threads online...

When I had my 6 pot XJR, my friend had a 6 pot 3.2 sovereign. The XJR was marginally better on fuel on a run, and only slightly worse round town.

I guess it's horses for courses, but really the only killer is insurance (and maybe tax, I can't remember) but for a uber cheap luxo barge they are mega. I used mine for work a bit, and the power and refinement made motorway crunching a pleasure! I wouldn't bother with a 6 pot one again, the v8's are just better in every way.... EXCEPT if you get a none supercharged one where the Nikasil liner problems, and weak gearboxes could make the owning experience a bit salty!

JP

[THE_Liam]

Like I say, all v8 XJ's EXCEPT the XJR run a ZF box. The 6 pot XJR's run a GM gearbox, same as various American pickups, again, bulletproof.. not a ZF box.

I bought a 6 pot XJR for £1000, it needed some work, but no rust, I bought a v8 XJR for £1750 which was immaculate, and then chopped it in against another with modified suspension, remapped etc which cost me another £250 (so £2000). You can pick up a pretty nice one for £1750, and I have seen them sell for £1250 if they need a little tlc (normally rust bubbles on the back arches or sills).

The sealed for life thing is just marketing bollocks. I changed the oil and filters on my Geartronic unit easily, you just need a dipstick (which I got off ebay for about a tenner) and the oil / filter direct from merc (£75) there are loads of threads online...

When I had my 6 pot XJR, my friend had a 6 pot 3.2 sovereign. The XJR was marginally better on fuel on a run, and only slightly worse round town.

I guess it's horses for courses, but really the only killer is insurance (and maybe tax, I can't remember) but for a uber cheap luxo barge they are mega. I used mine for work a bit, and the power and refinement made motorway crunching a pleasure! I wouldn't bother with a 6 pot one again, the v8's are just better in every way.... EXCEPT if you get a none supercharged one where the Nikasil liner problems, and weak gearboxes could make the owning experience a bit salty!

JP

That's my point, there are a lot of advantages to the 6-pot cars. Plus, I don't think a Jag should have a V8, it's just not very... Jaguary...

I see the point you're making, but there's nothing wrong with the 3.2 Sport, it's an excellent car. Of course the XJR is faster but that doesn't necessarily make it better. I just wouldn't fancy the extra complication of a blower on an already complicated car.

[jammapic]

Yeah I suppose if you aren't after power, then an aj6 3.2 would suffice. They are epic cruisers! Get some funny looks as well, young lad in a grandads car.

JP

[THE_Liam]

Yeah I suppose if you aren't after power, then an aj6 3.2 would suffice. They are epic cruisers! Get some funny looks as well, young lad in a grandads car.

JP

That's part of the fun, getting out of a VIP luxury car in ripped jeans and Converse

[Dum-Dum]

Have you considered a BMW 850i or the merc CL/SL 500

You do bugger all mileage so dont have to worry about fuel and they are fast out the box.

[Poodle]

Sort of, i realised fairly early on that i didn't have the money for a fun car and a daily and i do a lot of mileage, so i bought a diesel. Sounds like you don't do much mileage though, which wouldn't do a diesel any favours - short journeys and bimbling around town is much worse for diesel engines than most people realise.

Here's an alternative: it's only four miles to work so start cycling in. What you save during the week can be spent at the weekend and being generally fitter will mean you feel less lazy at the weekend, therefore magically creating more hours in the day to go for those drives.