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I keep trying to think of other "fun" cars in budget...
Doesn't fit all your requirements (namely light, I would imagine), but a Ferrari 360 could probably be had (just) at the top end of your budget, which has an open top and a prestige badge..
I'm definitely not bothered by a prestige badge, and certainly not for the sake of having the badge, just care about genuinely good quality. I think even the cheapest 360s are right at the top of my budget, and it's a pretty big car, I think? And I suspect hideously expensive to run! But I'll have a look, just in case...
I'm definitely not bothered by a prestige badge, and certainly not for the sake of having the badge, just care about genuinely good quality. I think even the cheapest 360s are right at the top of my budget, and it's a pretty big car, I think? And I suspect hideously expensive to run! But I'll have a look, just in case...
Oh I'm sure they would be expensive to run, but running costs don't concern me while I imagine what your hard earned savings could buy lol!
Yeah the cheapest one currently on auto trader is £45k, but I'm sure deals could be found or made :-)
Sytner had a 360 in when my old car was there for a service. They had this unit where they put customer cars and this went in and mine went in too. The BM sounded a lot better than the Ferrari. Now it might have been broke and not looked after but it was a generation of car not built well imo
The 458 different gravy but of course different budget also
I would have that in a heartbeat as one of the last great NA engines
I've recently been in exactly the same position as you, had my S for 18 years (daily driven) but figured it needed a rest plus there's a few bits and bobs coming up that need doing. So, with heavy heart I started looking for a change, similar budget to you, probably similar list of 'wants' as you as well. I looked at Lotus, F types, AMV's, Type R, Mustang V8, various Cayman's and Boxsters. Really like the F type, came very close to one but they're very option specific and its nigh on impossible to find 'your' perfect spec so compromise is key.
Now the bit you probably don't want to hear: after hours and hours of my life looking through Pistonheads and AT, plus visiting more showrooms than I care to remember, I felt there was very little that would offer me the same buzz the S gives me. I still love driving it, every journey is an event, and I knew I'd regret seeing it go so I made a decision - lower my budget and keep my S. I realise this may not be an option, I'm lucky to have (just about) enough space to enable this, but after looking at so many options I ordered this (no sniggering, please ):
So far I'm 2 weeks in and loving it. Under 25k, and its a lot of car for the money plus I have the S hiding behind the garage door on a trickle ready for the summer. The best part is I show it to my mates (who are not car guys) and their response is "what's that?", which is obviously the right answer .
Good luck in your hunt, but this is just to say there are other options if nothing tickles you in the same way (plus my i20 has a heated steering wheel and who doesn't want one of those ).
I'll look forward to seeing what you get .
Rob.
Last edited by you reds; Mar 18, 2023 at 04:34 PM.
I am definitely open minded about keeping the S if I test drive a bunch of stuff and don't quite find what I'm after. Although rather than something new and sensible like the i20, I'd could go old and/or not sensible and get something bonkers/track focused like a Caterham or Elise, or something really cheap to fettle, like a Mk1 Focus RS, or even a Mk4(?) Fiesta ST. I genuinely don't know. But first of all, I need to get some test drives in the diary.
The styling is busy, questionable spoiler design and I dunno, it could look a bit more aggressive than busy, but I like the colour though. Hot cars I think should stand out a mile. But it's a very good effort from Heeyundy, sweet chassis and fizzy engine I hear, they've put alot of thought into it - no doubt it'll be snapping at the heels of a Fezza ST. Maybe a bit more GR Yaris fat arches ?
we look forward to your tests drives, don't delay as yes, we do love spending others money !!
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