Favourite *reasonably priced* car?

[Pony Princess]

Say you have up to £30k to spend on a car (you have to spend it on a car) what you get and why? This is like a 'car within your reasonable-est dreams' choice.

 

I know it is a lot of money but dream car threads usually just end up with ferrari's, lotus, bentleys etc. What would you get that was practical for your life and would make you happy? There are some amazing cars out there for that kind of money - what would you fancy? What do you drive now and what are its pros and cons?

 

I have a Toyota Celica which I love, but high running costs are a problem and if I was commuting a long way to work everyday it would not be a great choice.

 

If I had 30k to spend I'd be torn between:

 

Mazda RX8

 

 

Great build quality, amazing looking, nice interior, rotary engine. Desirable and likely to retain a low depreciation. I believe they have stopped making them now due to the high carbon output of the rotary engine - so should be able to snap up some nice ones a few years old as opposed to buying new.

 

Honda Accord

 

 

Again, great build quality, top of the range models have a lot of cool features and it looks great. A real mile-eater.

 

Would be a tough call between the two. My penis would want the RX8 but my head would want the Accord. I know there are flashier cars like some of the BMW's and Audi's but I think I'd be after those two. I love the Audi A6 as an alternative to the Accord but I'm not sure about the availability of parts and the steep price tag. Essentially, I'd want a car that is nice but I can park it on the road without worrying about people keying it out of jealously, supermarket dints etc and not ridiculous running costs (although I think the car tax due to the carbon output on the RX8 is bad).

 

So, GF, what practical car would you get if you had a decent chunk of money to buy it with?

[RJ Fan club]

I'd probably run a good 2nd hand Honda S2000 and pocket 20k. But that's not really in the spirit of the question really.

 

So if I had to spend it all. A decent 2nd hand S6 or M5.

[Guest The Big Green Bastard]

30k? i'd get a 1970's ferrari.

 

Hope this helps.

[bigbak]

New or second hand?

 

Car chooser: find out which car to buy - BBC Top Gear - BBC Top Gear

 

I like the Audi A5, but saw an Alfa 159 TBi the other day when my GT's brakes were being replaced which was going for £24K. If I hadn't just had my mid life crisis I'd have bought it.

[Trumo]

Pretty much any Alpina saloon under that price range. Alpinas are absolutely stunning to drive.

[Tossed and blown]

RX8s look great but the engines have a habit of flooding on startup and the rotary seals go at about 70k (engine rebuild).

 

Merc SL55 is an awesome car and a low miles well looked after one can be had for under 30.

[Strontium]

I don't drive, but if I did, ChickenLicken, I think I would be following your example and opting for one of those sporty Japanese efforts. That said, I have always had a soft spot for Lotus too.

 

Funnily enough, the missus's father was just shopping in this kind of price range and he went for a BMW 320D M Sport Convertible.

[Jairzinho]

 

Fuck being sensible.

[Guest San Don]

Last model BMW 6 Series convertible. Nice!

[Guest ShoePiss]

RX8s look great but the engines have a habit of flooding on startup and the rotary seals go at about 70k (engine rebuild).

 

Merc SL55 is an awesome car and a low miles well looked after one can be had for under 30.

 

Owning an RX8 is a little different to most cars because of the rotary. I've never had a flooded engine once, you're supposed to let the car idle for a while and warm up and certainly don't shut it off cold like pulling it out onto the drive to wash it.

 

Paid $35k and sold it for $12k 4 years later, the mpg can be a problem for some and that's the main reason the arse drops out of them on resale. Very reliable car although I didn't get anywhere near 70k buying it new ;)

 

It's a motorbike on 4 wheels, wonderful power delivery and sound. Great build quality and a lot of fun.

[Lee909]

I'd rather by a bike.

[Acid]

Weren't the Ariel Atoms £27,000 when they were new?

 

[MokTheAfflicted]

 

Fuck being sensible.

 

I almost bought one of these a few years ago but unfortunately common sense kicked in :(

[Duncan Clench]

 

Mercedes C220cdi sport. Just got one last year and it's brought nothing but joy! Mercedes really know how to make a car, and the extras are immense. Who could ever get tired of your sat-nav screen rotating out of the dashboard? Nobody, that's who. Under 20k 2nd hand with low mileage.

[Chairman Meow]

Ford Puma S1600 Ex Works. Rallycars.info

 

[Tom R]

I was looking at a BMW M5 estate yesterday. It was black, only done 16,000 miles and was one of only 1,000 they ever made.

It was up for £31k. Bear in mind some poor cunt had spent well over 80 grand on it only 2.5 years ago!

I reckon they'd have taken £30k for it, so I'd have that.

 

Now that's a car that does and has absolutely everything you could ever possibly want a car to do.

 

It's an estate, so you can terrify your dogs and four friends at over 200mph after you've taken off the speed limiter.

 

Ridiculous car.

 

Downside? RED leather seats. No thanks!

[Duncan Clench]

Downside? RED leather seats. No thanks!

 

And it was looking so promising too!

 

As you say, you can pick up and M3 or M5 Touring for under 30k. Absolutely brilliant cars.

[dennis tooth]

Reasonably priced?

Fucking hell, I am assuming the amounts being bandied about we have, for some bizzare reason taken to Ugandan dollar currency in this thread? If thats the case then Ill keep the thirty grand if its all the same to ewe. Surely itd be better to use it to fuel a fire, get some toast on an that?

[Guest Slim(fast)Shady]

Clio Sport....

 

And pocket the rest...from the days of my all time fave Hot Hatch Renault GT Turbo...have loved the fast Renaults

[Guest ShoePiss]

Reasonably priced?

Fucking hell, I am assuming the amounts being bandied about we have, for some bizzare reason taken to Ugandan dollar currency in this thread? If thats the case then Ill keep the thirty grand if its all the same to ewe. Surely itd be better to use it to fuel a fire, get some toast on an that?

 

To be fair I don't think the op is saying 30k is reasonably priced, he's basically saying dream car within reason of say 30k. It does initially read like 30k is reasonable for a car but I think he didn't want loads of pictures of Ferrari California Spyders, here's one though and the last one at auction went for over $10m at Pebble Beach.

 

[Bjornebye]

I've always been a fan of BMW and Jaguars The xj in silver is amazing however i'd have to stick with the Batmobile for the purpose of this thread.

[mattyq]

Nice Jag...either a sporty xk or one of the xf saloons

[Code]

Fuck me, when it comes to cars I really wish I did not live in Norway.

 

£30K is less than I paid for my Audi A3 2,0 TDI S-line 2008 model, two years ago when it already had done 30.000 km.

[Spy Bee]

The RX8 was a good shout, as was the Honda S2000. It depends on what you're looking for really.

[Pony Princess]

Reasonably priced?

Fucking hell, I am assuming the amounts being bandied about we have, for some bizzare reason taken to Ugandan dollar currency in this thread? If thats the case then Ill keep the thirty grand if its all the same to ewe. Surely itd be better to use it to fuel a fire, get some toast on an that?

 

30k is a lot of money, but it is not 'a lot' for a nice car.

 

And you can't keep the money, you have to spend it on a car! I made that clear in the first post! So - what car would you buy Mr Tooth you lovable lefty commie fruit-bowl <3?

 

Some interesting choices for the rest of you though, I'm liking it.

 

Lee - I too would have a field day if I had 30k to spend on a motorbike. But I think I would be happy with one of these bad boys.

 

BMW R1200 Adventure