# Cheap Fast/Fun Car



## Starbuck88 (Nov 12, 2013)

Hi all,

Well...things are changing in my life and our nice modern financed car has to go. We want to really make a dent in a house deposit so monthly car payments at the moment have to stop.

We have a cheap 206 HDi Eco for swmbo to do the work run in and I work from home so no need to commute for me.

We want a backup car in case the 206 fails and I've decided it needs to be something we can enjoy also.

I would prefer something fast and fun.

Been thinking about EP3 Honda Civic Type R. I know it's considered a bit 'Chav' and I'm turning 27 this year so could look a bit 'Quarter life crisis' but I'm not bothered. I just want a fun car.

I've been looking and wondering if I have missed any golden choices or forgot about a particular model of car. 

When we sell our car, I don't mind buying something in need of work, I'm very good on the spanners.

What other things could you recommend, £1,500 - £2,000

:thumb::thumb:


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

Sticking with Honda, a decent 2.2 vtec 4G Prelude or an Accord Type R would be my prefered choice over an EP3. :thumb:


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## Kimo (Jun 7, 2013)

Ep3s aren't actually that fast tbh, even my car can have one and that's not that fast lol

And any around that price will be ****ed 

I'd prefer something like an e36 and have fun with rwd


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

Type R's aren't particularly "quick" in a straight line, but that isn't what they are about in all honesty.


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## Kimo (Jun 7, 2013)

In that case if you want one to throw round corners the clio 172s are pretty fun


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## shane_ctr (Dec 17, 2006)

Clio 182 all day long, be an ex Impreza owner I have many mates who have got clios for a fun cheap car some say there handle better than the Impreza.


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## Starbuck88 (Nov 12, 2013)

Yeah I'm not after out and out speed. 

I want something that handles well, I can have some fun in, it have a bit of poke and is just generally an all round 'Fun' car.

I have to say, I do like the FN2 Civics but too much money for my purposes.

I know you're all going to say it's crap but I had a 207 GTi and I really liked it, it was my first proper 'Hot'-ish car and had a good mix of characteristics.

I would get another actually but the THP Engine puts me off, I had the timing gear changed on it 5 times. Even the new 208s are having the same problems. BMW binned the engine apparently.

Ref Clios, there are 172 and 182s? Is it just the dephaser pulley I need to be aware of on those?


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## Kimo (Jun 7, 2013)

Pretty much, as long as that's been done they're pretty good cars, I looked at one before and was pleasantly surprised to say its French lol


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## Starbuck88 (Nov 12, 2013)

The Mrs's Sister has a 172, the aesthetic condition of it is appauling since it's been in her care but before she bought it a year or so ago, the chap who owned it before obviously took care of it and paid for timing, pulley etc to all be done.

It's in the nice blue colour too.

Apart from the 10bhp...what differences between the 2?


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## Kimo (Jun 7, 2013)

Few cosmetic bits like wheels and twin zaust I think


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## Starbuck88 (Nov 12, 2013)

How about Z3 2.8? Bit of summer fun too? Rear Wheel Drive?

Always liked them.

Driven a 2.8 and 2.2 and the 2.2 well...it didn't move hardly.


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## Bazza85 (Mar 14, 2015)

M-sport 330ci? Best car I've ever owned, mine drank oil a bit but otherwise was bombproof and quicker than the clios. A decent pilot will still make it corner plenty well too. 
Also is practical enough when needed. 
Just gotta watch for rotten arches etc in that price range. 

RX8? Rather poor on fuel but but if weekend miles is your thing does it matter?
My bros had had his 6yrs with zero issues so is a good buy IF you get a good'un


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## Starbuck88 (Nov 12, 2013)

RX8 is a good shout, most are needing engine rebuilds though aren't they? I'm not bothered about MPG but for something that will only return about 20mpg normal driving, is a bit pants isn't it, haha


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## andy665 (Nov 1, 2005)

If you are looking for a cheap fun car thats both cheap to buy and cheap to run then I can absolutely recommend a Clio 172 / 182

Plentiful parts (that are cheap) - can be tinkered with, mine always puts a smile on my face when I drive it - will do an easy 35mpg as well

Its definitely a car that is more than the sum of its parts - just a really good fun package


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## Tonie (May 26, 2014)

If you don't mind to weld a few bits, a Puma is massively underrated in my very humble opinion. If you are bothered by hairdressers jokes (although it is in Ian Callum's not unimpressive portfolio), maybe something else from this list?


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## Andyg_TSi (Sep 6, 2013)

Toni, you beat me to it.

The Ford Puma 1.7VVT is an awesome, great handling, fun to drive little car.
I had one a few years back & I was gutted when it got written off (drunk driver smashed into it while it was parked up outside my house)

You can pick up a decent 2001/2002 car for next to nothing these days. Hunt about and you'll get a decent well looked after one.

I'd be looking for either a 'thunder' or 'millenium' (2000) special edition.

Just check the rear arches for signs of rust as they're prone to go on the arches. Taking out the horrible carpet like arch liners stops them rusting.

Seriously one of the best handling small cars out there and awesome on a B road blast


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## Clancy (Jul 21, 2013)

Clio 172 all day long, one of the most fun cars you can get for very little money, especially now the prices have dropped even more 

I wish I never sold mine, was fantastic car after a few mods and would keep up with things you really wouldn't expect it too


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## SteveTDCi (Feb 8, 2006)

You want to save money so want to buy another fun car incase the 206 breaks, the 206 will never die  you could always hire something should the need arise, thrifty have some nice hire cars should you want/need something like an m4. 

However, it's your money, your choice, so here's mine. Ford focus st170. Good spec, leather recaros (if you can find one with them) and they look great in blue.


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## Starbuck88 (Nov 12, 2013)

SteveTDCi said:


> You want to save money so want to buy another fun car incase the 206 breaks, the 206 will never die  you could always hire something should the need arise, thrifty have some nice hire cars should you want/need something like an m4.
> 
> However, it's your money, your choice, so here's mine. Ford focus st170. Good spec, leather recaros (if you can find one with them) and they look great in blue.


I know what you mean but it's not the running costs of 2 cars or anything like that, it's just the finance monthly payment we want rid of.

I love my cars so I want something that I can just buy outright, have a bit of fun driving it around when I want to and doesn't really owe us anything.

The payment I'd usually be making on our current 'nice' car as it weere, can just go straight into savings instead 

Thanks for all the suggestions so far :thumb:


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## Pittsy (Jun 14, 2014)

I don't know if its any help but Mrs P has just got a Mini cooper s, it handles really well and is plenty quick enough for sure.
Not sure if it would come in on budget but might be worth a shout.:thumb:


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## SBM (Jul 4, 2013)

Clio 172 or 182

been looking at these myself some very tidy 2005 plates for under £2K


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## MDC250 (Jan 4, 2014)

SBM said:


> Clio 172 or 182
> 
> been looking at these myself some very tidy 2005 plates for under £2K


Really? I'm on the hunt now...


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## Kimo (Jun 7, 2013)

MDC250 said:


> Really? I'm on the hunt now...


On clio sport forum they used to to dirty cheap


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## Spinonit (Nov 10, 2013)

How about a Smart Roadster?

I have a Brabus, which will be out of your price range, but they're a small, nippy, hugely fun car that's a convertible too, plus 50mpg & relatively cheap road tax. Fantastic seating position, goes round bends as fast as almost anything (only 780kg dry), gets tons of looks - mostly good. I get lots of people asking about the car.

My only word of caution here is that they are designed to be a compact little car and the designers forgot a few basic principles, which ultimately led to them ceasing to be made. The gearbox is one such issue, with some commentators stating it is ghastly, whereas I find it better than the 'box on my Toyota. It's not a Ferrari box and there's some lag between gears, but I've found this is common on pre-double clutch cars with this type opf robotised manual. If you are lucky, you could pick up one with steering wheel gear paddles, so you can pretend to be a F1 driver. leaks can be another issue, but many have had these all fixed by now, otherwise they'd have been ruined years ago & scrapped.

As an owner, you have to be prepared for the odd problem - that said, mine has been mostly very reliable with no major faults, but many makes/models of cars have issues, so the Roadster's not alone in that dept..

I can almost guarantee that you will not get more smiles per mile in any other car.


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## Cookies (Dec 10, 2008)

Hi bud. Something from slightly left field here but a great handling car nonetheless.










Or perhaps this?










Or if you can extend your budget slightly, or employ some negotiating tactics for a straight sale, the R version of the Leon.










Cooks


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## Nick-ST (Mar 4, 2013)

Silly question that Golf VR6... Is that the same engine from the Corrado??

Nick


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## smifeune (Mar 2, 2014)

Clio 182 all day long, so much car for not very much money.

Or a e36 328 coupe and have some sideways fun


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## Cookies (Dec 10, 2008)

Nick-ST said:


> Silly question that Golf VR6... Is that the same engine from the Corrado??
> 
> Nick


As far as I can remember it is Nick. A 2.8 6 cylinder. The corrado also came as a 1.8 with a 60mm supercharger and was badged the G60.


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## andy665 (Nov 1, 2005)

Nick-ST said:


> Silly question that Golf VR6... Is that the same engine from the Corrado??
> 
> Nick


Not quite, Corrado is 2.9 litres and 190bhp, Golf is 2,8 litre and 174bhp


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## Cookies (Dec 10, 2008)

andy665 said:


> Not quite, Corrado is 2.9 litres and 190bhp, Golf is 2,8 litre and 174bhp


Cheers Andy. Every day is a school day lol.


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## Arsnist (Mar 23, 2013)

Don't listen to any of them I've got a type r they don't now what there on about


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## Cookies (Dec 10, 2008)

Arsnist said:


> Don't listen to any of them I've got a type r they don't now what there on about


Mate - Are you disagreeing with the folk who have said the type r is good, or those who said the type r is bad?

Just checking.

Cooks


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## Arsnist (Mar 23, 2013)

I got an ep3 best thing I ever bought mate 02 three grand love it


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## rory1992 (Jul 22, 2012)

I'd go with a clio 182, type r is chavy as you say and they not very quick unless it's turbo or supercharged. You'll have great fun on b roads in the clio


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## Arsnist (Mar 23, 2013)

Yeh disagreeing with the ones that said there there not that good or not that fast. There fast fun and reliable u can get in and drive it like it's just bin robbed


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## Arsnist (Mar 23, 2013)

Clio is a girls car mate French rubbish


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## Kimo (Jun 7, 2013)

Arsnist said:


> Yeh disagreeing with the ones that said there there not that good or not that fast. There fast fun and reliable u can get in and drive it like it's just bin robbed


Exactly why to avoid them

Abused from cold by 99% of owners

And as I said, really not that quick

My cars not fast by any means but it makes mince meat out of ep3s


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## Arsnist (Mar 23, 2013)

Chavy I don't think so I'm 36 and got one


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## Kimo (Jun 7, 2013)

Arsnist said:


> Clio is a girls car mate French rubbish


Have you driven one?

I hate French cars but they're nippy and fun


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## Arsnist (Mar 23, 2013)

What car u got then


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## SteveTDCi (Feb 8, 2006)

Arsnist said:


> Clio is a girls car mate French rubbish


And honda make law mowers so what :thumb:


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## Starbuck88 (Nov 12, 2013)

I'm just thanking every post, for ideas and for making me laugh.

If I wanted a performance car and could spend what I want, I'd honestly go out tomorrow and buy an E39 M5.

If I wanted a 2 seater sports car, I'd try a Honda S2000.

For 2k...that's why I wanted suggestions 

Anyway, I'm gonna sit here with the popcorn a minute and let Kimo and Arsnist have a 'Friendly Convo'.


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## smifeune (Mar 2, 2014)

Anyone who says that type r's are fast simply haven't been in a fast car.

No torque what so ever.

Id take a 182 over a type r any day


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## Kimo (Jun 7, 2013)

Starbuck88 said:


> I'm just thanking every post, for ideas and for making me laugh.
> 
> If I wanted a performance car and could spend what I want, I'd honestly go out tomorrow and buy an E39 M5.
> 
> ...


Don't need to have a friendly convo

His grammar and wording is proving why they're chavvy 

Get a 172 and be done with it


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## Steve_6R (Jun 9, 2014)

Honda's are alright, but they have to be really thrashed to get them going anywhere, and even then they're not that fast.

For OP's budget I'd suggest a 182 as well.


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## Arsnist (Mar 23, 2013)

Bin in loads of fast cars mate they most cars in there range then u got the big boys I'm guessing ur a big boy then with ur turbo


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## Arsnist (Mar 23, 2013)

I mist beat out sorry


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## Arsnist (Mar 23, 2013)

Here we go with the insults cause they now I'm right is that good enough


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## RPC (May 11, 2014)

+1 on the clio

Other ones that come to mind that are probs in or close to budget

Ibiza cupra 1.8 20vt
Golf gti 1.8 20vt
206 gti 180
Mazda rx8
Renault megane sport 2.0T 225
Astra sri turbo (similar to gsi)
astra gsi
Toyota celica tsport vvti 190
Ford focus st 170
Subaru impreza?
Pug 106 GTI
Pug 306 GTI 

Bit of a wild card but MG made some sporty cars that are like 190bhp and pick em up bout for peanuts lol

I have to agree on the type r though - chavvy and not particularly quick


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## smifeune (Mar 2, 2014)

I didn't understand a word of what you just said Arsnist.

Astra GSI/SRI/Coupe turbo are picked up cheap now but be prepared to replace the turbos on a regular basis.

the 1.8t engine used in the golf/leon etc can be tuned to a high standard.

How about an old s3?


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## SteveTDCi (Feb 8, 2006)

Not sure you will get one of these in budget but proof if ever needed that they will cover big miles.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2010-Suzu...706?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item25a28c54da


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## Arsnist (Mar 23, 2013)

Never mind apparently my grammar isn't that good and why you's all say type r's are chavy I don't now good night every one


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## Kirkyworld (Jan 12, 2014)

Early mini cooper?

P.S I'm not 37 or a chav but I did stay on at school long enough to learn how to spell ;-)


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## smifeune (Mar 2, 2014)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Audi-S3-1...232?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item4d3063afd0


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## Benjay (Mar 17, 2013)

Another vote for a clio 172 or 182 ! I don't think you'll find something that's better bang for your buck in that kind of price range 

I'm not against the civic ep3, they are not slow cars and are quite capable in the twisty B roads with a good pilot that knows how to get the best out of them ( yes that means revving the life out of them ) it's where they were designed to be at home but for a 2k budget you'd be looking at the bottom end for market which would probably end up costing you more to rectify it's issues than it would to have bought a more expensive well maintained example in the first place.


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## justinio (Jun 24, 2013)

Another vote for a Clio 182. I just got rid of mine but it was great fun to drive. If you do get one just make sure it's had the belts done fairly recently as its a specialist job and a bit pricey (£650).


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## smifeune (Mar 2, 2014)

I feel like buying a 182 for myself now haha


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## Kimo (Jun 7, 2013)

smifeune said:


> I didn't understand a word of what you just said Arsnist.
> 
> Astra GSI/SRI/Coupe turbo are picked up cheap now but be prepared to replace the turbos on a regular basis.
> 
> ...


Turbo isn't that common to go tbf

Especially if looked after

Yeah the vag 1.8t engines are easy to tune, what I have


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## Cookies (Dec 10, 2008)

Jamie,

Here are a few more from somewhere between centre and left field. I'll let you decide where to place them lol.

Btw they're the kind of cars I'm drawn to when surfing the trader with an imaginary budget.


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## matt-rudd (Jan 4, 2015)

Arsnist said:


> Chavy I don't think so I'm 36 and got one


You can be a chav at 36..? There isn't an age cut off point


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## Cookies (Dec 10, 2008)

Here's a 172 within budget too. 
Saw this car on Auto Trader's Android App. Thought you might be interested. http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201502191072773


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

I feel have to stick up for my chavvy Type-R as it is feeling upset...

It's not quick, but I guess sub 7 seconds to 60 ain't too slow either.

It will probably reach near on 150mph if it were not for speed limits.

It's apparently got no torque, but 215+Nm ain't bad I suppose, 15 more than a 182 

It was born with, amongst other things, Recaros, Momo steering wheel, twin pots, no sound deadening and a 40% stiffer chassis than the standard Accord.

It has a big chavvy ironing board on the back, designed for stability, not downforce.

But none of that matters, I love my chav mobile, it makes me smile, but best of all, point it somewhere with the wheel and it does as it is told, it doesn't fight or argue, it just goes where I point it


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## Arsnist (Mar 23, 2013)

Thank u


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## Kimo (Jun 7, 2013)

Who said all type r are chavvy?

The accords aren't too bad, it's ep3s that are 

Believe me, if you lived in my area you'd agree, everyone has one with a huge can on the back and boot it everywhere

Vtec yo


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## Starbuck88 (Nov 12, 2013)

Wow lots of ideas...thanks guys!

N (Cooks), I see some good finds there, I like the idea of another 5 Series but this time with a real engine, (I've had a 2.0 Auto before).

Seems there is a lot of love for the Clio!


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## eddie bullit (Nov 23, 2007)

I can vouch for the Puma. Brilliant car. Great engine, gearbox n handling.


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## Andyg_TSi (Sep 6, 2013)

Another left field choice from the Ford Puma era is the Ford Cougar 2.5 V6.

Saw this car on Auto Trader's Android App. Thought you might be interested. http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201504072389894


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## rottenapple (Jun 12, 2014)

I say build your own  micra shell , coilovers and 2.0det engine and more fun than you can handle, simples  and my two pence cant stand clios feel all floppy and poor build quality but lots seem to like.


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## Clancy (Jul 21, 2013)

rottenapple said:


> I say build your own  micra shell , coilovers and 2.0det engine and more fun than you can handle, simples  and my two pence cant stand clios feel all floppy and poor build quality but lots seem to like.


Never heard that before lol


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## rottenapple (Jun 12, 2014)

Clancy said:


> Never heard that before lol


Work in a garage one customer has two and a 3.0 v6 and not a fan of them, always seem to be in with something, just dont do it for me, each to own.


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## Andyg_TSi (Sep 6, 2013)

Bargain here for £1600

Saw this car on Auto Trader's Android App. Thought you might be interested. http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201502231168943


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## shaun1982 (Feb 21, 2015)

How about an fto? 2.0 v6 mivec, 200 horses & can be found for under a grand now. I enjoyed the two I had. Sound great too


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## rottenapple (Jun 12, 2014)

One close to home and the kind of fun i mean http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/251908543129


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## Willows-dad (Jul 12, 2012)

Another vote for the accord type r. Not over keen on the ep3 civics either though. Classic impreza certainly ticks the fast box, but a lot of rotten rear arches about for that money. How about a corsa b with an engine swap? Loads out there to choose from.


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## dillinja999 (Aug 26, 2013)

clio 182s aint chavvy? haha


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## Christian6984 (Dec 20, 2007)

Clio 172/182 :thumb: I wanted one so badly 8-9 years ago but couldnt afford it. If the new Fiesta ST hadnt come along id probably tried to find a good low mileage one.


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