If you had a £1000 to buy a car...

[Southie]

... what would you get?

Reason I ask is that I'm car sharing at the minute and funds are very tight so in the next couple of months I'll be looking at buying something cheap lol

[mk1nova_rich]

Not a Nova lol ring me anyway lol

[Gaz1300SR]

Depends, if you want cheap speed go for something like a saab 900 turbo. I loved mine.

[Edd]

Get another nova ? Decent minters can be found for a G, just look what Rich/Novasport found

I know you miss not having one lol cheap to maintain as well :)

[mk1nova_rich]

How about a Corsa B? Im on the lookout for a cheap one too ;)

[Edd]

They the ones that come with a lifetime supply of paper bags with eye holes cut in them ?

[Hobbit]

Turboslut has a mx5 for sale for a grand, thats where I'd be looking :)

[mk1nova_rich]

They the ones that come with a lifetime supply of paper bags with eye holes cut in them ?

Possibly lol but it wont be a road car so it doesnt matter to me. Southie, I'm sure Matt Vaughan is selling his Corsa Sport - he put sumat on face**** the other day

[Southie]

A Nova is a no no now tbh as I need something that I can use daily without wondering if it will break lol

Possibly a focus maybe but not a Corsa either unless it's a good one as they rot more than Novas do at the grand mark.

Rich it won't be for a couple of months though so Matt is bound to have sold his by then.

This wedding is crippling me lol

[Mike]

Vectra SRi150 £650 Xreg.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2001-VAUXHALL-VECTRA-SRI-150-SILVER-/160625151527?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item2566014e27

Gold V6 4 Motion (about to end in 60 seconds) £900 (No T&T tho)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2000-VOLKSWAGEN-GOLF-V6-4-MOTION-BLACK-PERSONAL-PLATE-/190556841377?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item2c5e12a5a1

Cav GSi (needs TLC) £550

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1991-CAVALIER-GSI-/300579376040?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item45fbed4ba8

Wouldnt even bother with a Nova lol lol

[John]

Nova?...................oh.............wait....... ....... lol

any varaint of golf should suffice! what do you want sports? hatch? estate?

[Southie]

Not bad Mike, tbh a Vectra would feel like a coach to me though, I need something mid sized.

I'm tempted by Astras or even a Zafira though lol

[Mike]

Cav GSi £550 then. Worser then a Vec, but cooler.

[Southie]

Tbh John I ain't a bloody clue lol Whatever I get will only be a put me on to get around but don't want a petrol guzzler.

[Southie]

Cav GSi £550 then. Worser then a Vec, but cooler.

Has Spudly hacked your account Mike lol

[Lee H]

Clio 172.

[Mike]

Has Spudly hacked your account Mike lol

Perfect shout for £550 tho, tidy it up, run it for a year then sell it for £1200. Bargain if it aint a proper ****ter.

Proper good shout by Lee tho!

[John]

Tbh John I ain't a bloody clue lol Whatever I get will only be a put me on to get around but don't want a petrol guzzler.

Dont get a zafira then! Astra G sri, plenty in your budget, good engines and chassis.

[Southie]

Tempting actually Lee, just paranoid about the expense of Renault parts being too expensive.

[Mike]

Clio 172.

Couple of years time the C2 RS will be nice & cheap too, strong contender for 172/182s they are! Built for the same reason as Clio Cup's, homologation purposes.

[Southie]

Dont get a zafira then! Astra G sri, plenty in your budget, good engines and chassis.

Surprising that as a my mother has a Zafira (French one) and seems pretty good.

[Mike]

Id just opt for a Golf Mk4 1.6 or something along them lines. Not to special, just nice & simple.

[Southie]

I know it sounds sad lol but I'm thinking Skoda fabia td's for some reason will be adiquate if I can get one for a grand.

Golfs around a grand will have high mileage I suppose but if it's been well maintained it's another good shout.

It's hard though when your wanting a little bit of performance but have naff all brass, depressing really when your nearly 35 and cannot afford even a Nova lol

[Andy]

Peugeot 205 gti.Galvanised chassis ftw+good looks and performance out of the box.

[Lee H]

It's hard though when your wanting a little bit of performance but have naff all brass, depressing really when your nearly 35 and cannot afford even a Nova lol

A lot of people won't be able to afford Nova's soon the way prices appear to be going.

[Lee H]

Peugeot 205 gti.Galvanised chassis ftw+good looks and performance out of the box.

Can't remember the last time I've seen one of them about. Surely they are more than a grand now as they are regarded the best hot hatch of that era by far. I might be wrong though.

[Andy]

A lot of people won't be able to afford Nova's soon the way prices appear to be going.
I can understand the "performance" ones ie gte/gsi/sri/sr's being worth alot,but a 1200 merit etc is fukkin ridiculous at £700+ imo.You can buy so much more car for your money in an Xr2 or similar,yeah it will need work but its ALWAYS going to be worth more than a sh1tty merit

[Mike]

It's hard though when your wanting a little bit of performance but have naff all brass, depressing really when your nearly 35 and cannot afford even a Nova lol

So were actually doing the £1000 performance car challenge then......... lol lol plenty fast cars for £1k to be had.

300ZX Turbo :thumb:
Civic VTi
Pug 205 1.9 (as already said)
Celica GT4 ST185
BMW E36 325
Fiat Coupe 20v Turbo
Golf VR6

[Andy]

Can't remember the last time I've seen one of them about. Surely they are more than a grand now as they are regarded the best hot hatch of that era by far. I might be wrong though.

Yeah,very very good examples are,ones needing a little work are very reasonable,im getting one next week that needs an engine for less than half that .....

[Southie]

I've been looking at 205 1.9's but I'm running away fast, saw a nice L reg in white on eBay though.

[Mike]

I've been looking at 205 1.9's but I'm running away fast, saw a nice L reg in white on eBay though.

They are massivly going up in value the last 2 years! Concours ones are fetching between £5~8k now :S they were only about £8900 or something when they were new :S

[Andy]

They are massivly going up in value the last 2 years! Concours ones are fetching between £5~8k now :S they were only about £8900 or something when they were new :S
The one im buying is a 1600,but very very good condition,except for conrod number 1 which has decided to meet the world lol
Guy is out of his league so its cheap!

[Southie]

Out of my price range but liked the look of this.
http://item.mobileweb.ebay.co.uk/viewitem?itemId=170669405907&index=0&nav=SEARCH&nid=89885477017

[Mike]

The one im buying is a 1600,but very very good condition,except for conrod number 1 which has decided to meet the world lol
Guy is out of his league so its cheap!

There well worth buying Andy as there a hoot to drive! The 1.6 is about 7hp less then a 1.9 but 3 or 4 insurance groups lower lol slap some 1.9 wheels on it (the 1.6 wheels are shiote) an your away!

[Southie]

Are you lot trying to turn me to the French side you evil swines lol

[Andy]

There well worth buying Andy as there a hoot to drive! The 1.6 is about 7hp less then a 1.9 but 3 or 4 insurance groups lower lol slap some 1.9 wheels on it (the 1.6 wheels are shiote) an your away!

Oh i know,i drove a friends 1600 years ago and couldnt believe how well they handle.
Aye i want some 1900wheels as you say,i thought about putting a 1900 engine in it? but for the time being i think i'll just find a replacement bottom end.All the seats and carpet etc are in fantastic condition also.

[MK999]

There well worth buying Andy as there a hoot to drive! The 1.6 is about 7hp less then a 1.9 but 3 or 4 insurance groups lower lol slap some 1.9 wheels on it (the 1.6 wheels are shiote) an your away!

Absolute fcuks to work on though as I found out earlier in the week, autodata quotes 8 hours for a head removal and refit lol

[Southie]

Mark you've gladly put me off, thanks lol

[Mike]

Absolute fcuks to work on though as I found out earlier in the week, autodata quotes 8 hours for a head removal and refit lol

This is true, cant really deny lol lol

[Andy]

Oh well,i love hard work lol

[MK999]

We did do it with the engine in though because we're pro's like that :cool: ...After phoning Mike to ask wtf to do with the ****ing thing because we've taken out every damn thing we can see and the ******* still wouldn't come out lol

[Mike]

We did do it with the engine in though because we're pro's like that :cool: ...After phoning Mike to ask wtf to do with the ****ing thing because we've taken out every damn thing we can see and the ******* still wouldn't come out lol

Bahahhaaa funny shÃ*t lol lol

[Southie]

I'd have a fiat coupe infact but for 1k it will be knackered. Good old lancia engine though that will pop after 80k though lol

[Andy]

Oh great,perhaps Mike would like to pm me his number then lol lol lol

[Andy]

I'd have a fiat coupe infact but for 1k it will be knackered. Good old lancia engine though that will pop after 80k though lol

Cunto turbos are very cheap now aswell actually

[Mike]

Cunto turbos are very cheap now aswell actually

I blew one of these up after only 5 days of ownership :(

[Southie]

Well this is getting messy so it looks like I'll be trying to save more money and get the sport KA lol

[Mieran]

I would go for a 1.8 MK4 astra

[Andy]

Cunto gt's-They look quick though,i saw a local gutter snake cane one through the town centre not so long ago,went pretty well to be fair

[Southie]

I would go for a 1.8 MK4 astra

Why?

[Mieran]

my mate just bought a punto gt, goes well for a 1.4 tbf, its running 168bhp

has spax rsx, team dynamic alloys, wilwood 4 pots, fmic and all sorts of other goodies and in its very clean, all that for 1500, bargain I think

[Mieran]

Why?

I just think they handle mint, better than any other vauxhall I've had :)

All I did was put cheapest ebay coilovers and toyo proxes

Not too bad on fuel if you take it easy and nippy for a big car too

[Andy]

I had an 1800sri astra mk4,good cars,quick,comfy,very good handling.Tax is extortianate though.

[Southie]

I just think they handle mint, better than any other vauxhall I've had :)

All I did was put cheapest ebay coilovers and toyo proxes

Not too bad on fuel if you take it easy and nippy for a big car too

How much was yours? Have they not got head gasket problems though or am I thinking of the Sri?

[Mike]

get the sport KA lol

Awesome to drive I though!! A bird I know has a modded one, had a rip around in it & it went & handled really well.

[Andy]

Cant say ive heard of the head gasket problems???
I did 2 years/28 thousand in ours and it only needed brake lines and reg plates for the MOT

[Mieran]

Well I've had 2 1.8s, one was a coupe that I picked up for 1350 and a hatch that I got for 750

The coupe was 100% standard but very clean and the hatch was a modified but a bit of a dog

Since the hatch was a bit rough I drove it like I stole it every where lol

[Mike]

Bread Van is for sale soon if you want to buy that lol its just ran in at 145k lol

[MK999]

Bread Van is for sale soon if you want to buy that lol its just ran in at 145k lol

But it was fcuked at 100k lol

Also Andy, he wasn't much use to be fair, his response was "oi alwhays dropped fcuker out wi forklif to be honnest maaayte" lol

[Mike]

Pah, it ran pukka when I first had it! Its going in soon for a overhaul, new bonnet & windscreen then I gotta sell it as got no room for any more cars :(

[paul james]

Well the last time I had to answer this question myself was coming up to 2 years ago when my runaround Omega decided to properly kill its engine to go along with a whole bunch of other things that needed fixing so was got sent to car heaven. Well I plumped for a gen6 Celica GT (2.0 non-turbo). I think its a good choice if you want something reliable, cheap to buy in the first place, looks nice and with decent peformance. They aren't that quick being non-turbo (definitly avoid the 1.8 ST I would say), but can still be fun, particularly when you blast it right from a stand still. Anyway as a everyday runaround car thats not too boring, I recommend it.

[dannyb]

When my Audi broke, I went for a 1.3 Starlet as I never get to drive properly living in the city, it's cheap to run, reliable and does 50mpg on my motorway commute. When I do get it on a country road, it reminds me of my Nova as it's small and light but not rusting away and a bit more powerful (well, you say 'powerful'....75bhp, 820kg).

[Alex J]

... what would you get?

Reason I ask is that I'm car sharing at the minute and funds are very tight so in the next couple of months I'll be looking at buying something cheap lol
got to be an mg metro!!! there is a few mint ones about aswell!!

[Andy]

got to be an mg metro!!! there is a few mint ones about aswell!!
A vvc kenny (kensington) its where its at!!

[Alex J]

a vvc kenny (kensington) its where its at!!

with steel wheels and hub caps!!!

[Paul]

Laguna dci.

[ryansnova]

if it was me i would go for that cav sri back at page 2 buy it for £550 do some work on it and make it yours but its totaly up to you really ;)

[draper]

nothing wrong with a vectra southie, you'll get a good example at a grand if you shop around and there barge like at all imo

[Alex J]

Laguna dci.****ing **** car, aint you gone ibiza yet???

[Alex J]

ATT SOUTHIE!!!!!!!! THIS IS YOUR NEW RIDE........ http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/metro-convertible-PINK-/260821358756?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item3cba2a18a4#ht_894wt_1139

[draper]

up to date pictures then, camera phone shots of a pc picture lol

[Alex J]

id love to drive that round the city of london,(brixton etc) rag top down late at night, and see if anyone would jack itlol

[Adam]

Fiat Coupe Turbo and Clio 172 will both be very tired for a grand or less.
£1400+ can get you a decent ph1 172 though.

My mate had a Fiat Turbo, proper nice motor, suprisingly quick. But he did pay around 2grand for it.

[Bubba]

buy a V8...no-one wants them lol

i want that gsi though...so so much :(

[brainsnova]

Honda civic hatch.

[Stuart]

S1 172 job done.

[Bubba]

for a grand ive seen an audi 100 2.5 TDI (the bombproof 5pot derv) on 18" RS wheels...for a grand :)

[Andy]

for a grand ive seen an audi 100 2.5 TDI (the bombproof 5pot derv) on 18" RS wheels...for a grand :)
So have i,in flames

[Bubba]

was it green lol

[Jack]

Cav TD lol

[Stuart]

Cav TD lol

thought they went for elevently billion quid since they are the new eco wagon lol

[Riggy]

stay away from the 1.6 mk4 golfs unless you like paying about 500 for gearbox's all the time , also the 1.4 and 1.6 golfs suffer with very bad emissions probs come mot time , hence why mine had to go

i loved my mk4 astra though, but was the 2.2 sri so pretty **** on fuel and as andy said tax was a bitch, would have another though but id prob go for the 1.8 or 2.0

have just bought a 98 vectra myslef for dirt cheap with 11 month mot , so ill be pimping that soon lol

[craig green]

I'm into my Hondas right now, but I've seen a nice V reg Accord executive FS locally, leather & all the toys, £995 with tax & MOT.

Something a bit more extravagant, an Accord coupe (look it up) for £995 - was £1695 when I last drove past.

[turbojolt]

A mk1 Mazda mx5

[Adam]

If you fancy a mk4 astra dont get a 2.0

[Spudly]

If youre after a mk4, get a 1.6 SXi for £200 and have £800 change lol

[Stuart]

tbh it sounds like spudderss 1.6 MK4 is the most fuel efficient and still fun engine choice out there :o

I had a 1.8 sri and it was so thirsty it wasnt even funny, could run an M5 for less I reckon lol

[Southie]

Are the Astra 2.2 sri's prone for headgaskets as I've seen one with 80k for £700 but paranoid tbh.

[Adam]

Wouldnt really say HG no.
Early chain problems yeah.

And after changing a few things on my mk4 ive hit the 35mpg mark lol

[Hobbit]

Donna has a 2.2, bought it on 77k 2 years ago, now has over 110k and has had no major issues. Stu and I worked out the1.8's and 2.2's were about the same on fuel.

the chains are only a problem if they havn't been looked after. Oil feed blocks.

[Southie]

Cheers Adam, a mate of mine had one though after a headgasket change and it dropped a cylinder then ate the head, it was a expensive swop due to the heads being a swine to get hold of, he eventually got hold of one after spending the best part of £300 for the head alone.

[Adam]

1.8SRi would be my choice.

[Hobbit]

2.2 would be mine, bit more grunt so you dont have to thrash it everywhere.

[Southie]

So what's the tax bracket for a 1.8 and the 2.2? The same??

[Hobbit]

something like 230 quid for a year on a 53 plate 2.2

same as my pre banding v6 omega :) and your old nova?

[Stuart]

we had a pre banding sri and it was the usual 'big' engine rate, but it would have been cheaper in the emissions banded rate lol


On a good run we got 34mpg from the 1.8 sri lol

I've only seen ONE case of genuine 2.2 head gasket failure and that was a terribly looked after one

[Pistol Pete]

Peugeot 205 gti.Galvanised chassis ftw+good looks and performance out of the box.

lol i saw the thread title and instantly thought the same!!

Or anything with some tax and test if its for a run around. Any marque will do TBH. IMO.

[Murray]

Proton Satria GTi maybe?

Seen one or two at the grand mark.

Depends if you want a bit of cheap fun or four wheels with a heater to move you about. A good MK3 Astra would be a good means of cheap transport. It's also semi easy to maintain for not alot of dollar.

[mowgli]

focus td. argument over.

a mate of mine works for a huge leasing comp. and the one car that they never ever got trouble with was the old focus.

[turbojolt]

Me and my mate went and brought him a mk3 golf couple of months ago never missed a beat not the fastest car ever but good on petrol and reliable

[steviegsi]

Volvo 850 / v70 t5. Engines go on forever, park it anywhere and no one will look twice, they go like fook, comfortable , cheap as chips and really are a laugh to annoy the local chavs with.

Omega for some sideways hooning in the wet.

Any 6 pot BMW before year 2000.

Or buy a mint pov spec nova, as you obviously want another and grin at the fact it really shouldn't loose you any money over a year.

[steviegsi]

I phone fail.

[Connor]

e30... just because i love em :)

[Alex J]

lada, or yugo 55:cool:lol

[draper]

And after changing a few things on my mk4 ive hit the 35mpg mark lol

bloody hell, i get 36mpg on my 153k vectra and im not exactly an economical driver lol