New Car Choice

Mad Roadie

I have been cycling for so long now and barely driven in the last 12 months that I feel its time for a new car to rebalance my diminishing carbon footprint - I drive for pleasure not work so its a nice to have more than essential

So I seem to be settling on this - cant make up my mind if i love it because it is beautiful or so ugly





white?

TwistedSpirit

That car is Be-A-Utiful!

I love the muscle style!
The white paint job looks awesome too...

IMO

Radioactiveman

The only thing that can get away with a car like that is a transformer...........

In 3 yrs time there are going to be lots of upset people trying to trade in white cars for top dollar when they are told that white is no longer popular and hence entitled to a gash trade in.

Anonymous

If you drive for pleasure then I would get a car that's nice to drive rather than just for it's looks.

Mad Roadie

NapoleonD wrote:

If you drive for pleasure then I would get a car that's nice to drive rather than just for it's looks.

Ah! like my old TVR - always looked for tunnels just to listen to the sound as you drove through - alas they are not made anymore and we will be waiting forever until Smolensky decides he is going to do something with the name he bought

rick_chasey

They're very wide - sometimes driving them can be a little tense on narrow roads.

Apparantly.

keef66

I think that is one ugly vehicle. And most people, myself included, have a white car just the once.

If you drive simply for pleasure, get a Lotus Elise.

Rouge Penguin

M Power's where its at.

E30 M3 Evo, or 190e Evo Benz for a retro vibe.

Buckled_Rims

Rick Chasey wrote:

They're very wide - sometimes driving them can be a little tense on narrow roads.

Apparantly.

Exactly, not designed for British roads. A local guy has a Mustang and he can't go to the Lake District as it's too wide and has poor visibility for the narrow roads there (he actually hired a car instead :? ). His wife wont drive it because she has trouble parking it in the supermarket. They have no problem on motorways!

Great sounding car, love the V8 growl.

rick_chasey

Rouge Penguin wrote:

M Power's where its at.

E30 M3 Evo, or 190e Evo Benz for a retro vibe.

If you don't mind looking like a drug dealer and never being let out of busy junctions.

rdt

Mad Roadie wrote:

NapoleonD wrote:

If you drive for pleasure then I would get a car that's nice to drive rather than just for it's looks.

Ah! like my old TVR - always looked for tunnels just to listen to the sound as you drove through - alas they are not made anymore and we will be waiting forever until Smolensky decides he is going to do something with the name he bought

Ha! Donkey's years ago I had a Griff 500. Double-declutching to listen to the fabulous engine sound: a joy. Wasting 911s on the straights: tremendous. Getting around corners in the wet: the less said the better.... :shock:

invincible

Mad Roadie wrote:

NapoleonD wrote:

If you drive for pleasure then I would get a car that's nice to drive rather than just for it's looks.

Ah! like my old TVR - always looked for tunnels just to listen to the sound as you drove through - alas they are not made anymore and we will be waiting forever until Smolensky decides he is going to do something with the name he bought

agree with NapoleonD & if you liked your tvr get another or an older supercar if you dont need it to get to work, get something really special like the car you wanted as a child

keef66 wrote:

And most people, myself included, have a white car just the once

i have a white car with white wheels & a white bike which i'm gonna be fitting white bar tape too...

father_jack

Rather have this over the yank tank anyday



600bhp :shock:

ilm_zero7

Father Jack wrote:

Rather have this over the yank tank anyday



600bhp :shock:

until it rains! and this is the UK we are talking about?

rake

f.

Rouge Penguin

I'd rather the crossbow.

garrynolan

Rain!!?? You're a cyclist....

rake

garrynolan wrote:

Rain!!?? You're a cyclist....

i

rake

[q

nwallace

If your only driving for pleasure then why buy something new at all.
Pre-74 and VED is free
Pre-2000 and VED is ~208 p/a for anything over 1500cc

Pick up a bargain classic, it can cost you much less than a new car will.

Example: Have had a SAAB 99 for the last 6 years now. Costs around £500 in repairs every year, fuel economy* is similar to modern 2 litre engines under load although being carburetted the idling is horribly wasteful. VED 200 a year, Insurance now £160. Cost of Vehicle £100.

Bargain.... * 21mpg commuting 30mpg motorway cruising :-S

rake

look how

fast as fupp

its aterrible thing to say but 'sports' cars are for male menopausal knobhounds.

Mad Roadie

fast as fupp
doesnt that make them essential MAMIL purchases then?

dmch2

See my avatar for what I have so you can (correctly) assume that I'm biased as to what you should get I just spend most of the week playing in Scotland with it and 30 similar mates!

For pure fun I don't think anything can beat it. There are things that'll be (slightly) quicker in a straight line (the quickest motorbikes or supercars) and even a very slightly quicker round a lap (a radical) but none are more fun (that outdated design means it'll slide around whenever you ask it) or better value for money.

If you're really interested I can introduce you to a very friendly forum where some of us are even cyclists. Both hobbies rely on lightweight rather than outright power and both like carbon fibre

andy162

OP, I was in a similar situation as yourself. I ride the bike plenty but also enjoy driving. I tend to end up with something slightly impractical lurking in the garage. Latest purchase is a Lotus Elise Supercharged. I've done about 1500 miles in it so far & it does tick every box when it come to driving pleasure. It's bonkers(truly bonkers) fast, quicker in most respects to a motorbike. The steering & brakes are perfect. The grip & feedback from the chassis is like nothing else I've driven. It's even comfy. I drove it from Edinburgh to Doncaster when I picked it up, not a twinge or ache to be had.

It's a lower tax band than my previous car (Honda S2000) & according to Glass's guide it went up in value by £500 a month or so ago.

I quite fancied an Exige S but those things are proper track refugee's wearing cut slicks & a suspension set up that'll shake your fillings out. Look awesome tho.

Happy hunting!

andy162

Rick Chasey wrote:

Rouge Penguin wrote:

M Power's where its at.

E30 M3 Evo, or 190e Evo Benz for a retro vibe.

If you don't mind looking like a drug dealer and never being let out of busy junctions.

...and you want to stop at said junction. The M3 I had a few years back,had cack brakes...nowhere near good enough for a car with getting on for 350 horses. Springy gearshift was rubbish too. Engine though was a masterpiece. Ended up being written off when a 17yr old lad destroyed it with his Mum's Polo.

fast as fupp

Mad Roadie wrote:

fast as fupp
doesnt that make them essential MAMIL purchases then?

i think youre meant to wear jeans with a tweed jacket or corduroy like those top gear saddos when out driving

not lycra

verylonglegs

fast as fupp wrote:

its aterrible thing to say but 'sports' cars are for male menopausal knobhounds.

It's not terrible to say just stupid ill-considered nonsense tbh. To some driving gives them as much pleasure as we may derive from cycling. My mate bought an Elise because he has always really been into his motorsport and wanted something to go on trackdays. Cars are no different to bikes in that they can be a mundane form of transport or something to be raced and used to test your limits.

Stewie Griffin

You drive that and children will point and laugh, even worse, no woman would want to be seen in it and if they do then they arent the sort of Woman that I would want to be with.

fast as fupp

verylonglegs wrote:

fast as fupp wrote:

its aterrible thing to say but 'sports' cars are for male menopausal knobhounds.

It's not terrible to say just stupid ill-considered nonsense tbh. To some driving gives them as much pleasure as we may derive from cycling. My mate bought an Elise because he has always really been into his motorsport and wanted something to go on trackdays. Cars are no different to bikes in that they can be a mundane form of transport or something to be raced and used to test your limits.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...........................................

MattC59

Steer clear of the American rubbish, unless you're going to go for a classic ('68 fastback Mustang, anyone ?). Technologically, they're still in thee stone age, and I'm not talking electronics, I'm talking basics such as suspension.

If you want American muscle, go for something like the GD 427, or the GD T70 previously mentioned. A word of warning though, these high power, light weight cars can be a NIGHTMARE in the wet !!!! The rear wheels tend to wand to become the front wheels.

Have you thought about a Nissan GTR ? A colleague has one and says it's fantastic !!

Failing that, get one of these, 265bhp V8, 0-60mph: 4 seconds



edit: Hoorah............ managed to ge the pic sorted