[25thAE thompson]

thinking about a new car and wanted opinions on these?

focus st170

clio 172/new 182

206 gti (180bhp)

mini cooper s

seat cupra/cupra pd

honda civic type r

 

[Russell]

Probably the Seat Cupra. Or the Cooper S, have you considered the modded ones that they had on Top Gear a few months ago.

 

[Thos]

My shortlist would be

Clio

Cooper

Cupra

But would prefer a second hand S3 instead ...

 

[NikB]

Got to be honest and say I wouldn't have any of those over an anni, but if your already set on getting rid then I'd choose the 182 cup sport.

 

[MOB]

focus st170 - probably not, bit dull to look at

clio 172/new 182 - if you're on a budget, very good cars

206 gti (180bhp) - definitely not, slow and french

mini cooper s - too expensive specced up

seat cupra/cupra pd - I would probably go for this (PD)

honda civic type r - if you want a manic fun machine

 

[25thAE thompson]

ye have looked into the cooper s works but i think it would be cheaper to get basic and go to AMD.

not sure if i can see myself in a cooper though, don't know what it would be like on motor way.

clio 182 is looking quite good, decent extras for money.

 

[smallboy]

i'd go for the seat cupra r followed by civic type-r.

 

[RayBanUK]

ST170 are more of a warm hatch, bit like an SRI or an XSI. Handles great though.

Personally I would go for the 2004 revised Civic Type R followed by the Seat Leon Cupra R. Like Minis but too expensive for what it is (sizewise) after all the toys, but character and fun comes at a cost. Like you said, I would go for a standard Cooper and then get it tuned. Wouldnt bother with 206 GTI. Clios I have a soft spot for but not sure I would buy one to see it depreciate really heavily.

 

[25thAE thompson]

oh ye forgot about depreciation, i think the honda and mini would be better option if i took that into concideration. chhers for input guys

 

[Tom R32]

Focus.....err, no. Nice enough but not quick, and its a Fungus.

Clio - Yes, yes and more yes - these are fast little buggers! Shoddy interior but ho hum.

206 GTI - leave it for the girlies.

Mini Cooper S - Yep - driven it and like it, very common though.

Seat - Yep, like these but given the competition the Clio is still the winner.

Type R - Very popular MPV looking Jap wagon, cant fault its drive but looks and the entire package dont do it for me at all.

Clio wins hands down for me, a nice new Sport in black - yes please. You could take a Clio on a track day if you so wished, and its a respected little car in the performance car world - cant say the same for most of the others!

 

[Vee]

I certainly wouldn't give up an anni for any of those

If I HAD to choose it would be the Mini - residuals are pretty strong

 

[Mikedav]

I don't understand how these cars can be compared?

£16,377 Focus ST170: Not fast, ugly, crap interior and a Ford

£13,200 Clio 172: Significantly cheaper than all of them, nice car but very small.

£15,202 206 GTI(180bhp): Powerful but small, £15k is a lot

£14,691 Mini Cooper S: Very nice but not my scene and will be £17k with options, easy.

£16,100 Seat Cupra PD: Nice car, probably the one Id go for on this list

£17,440 Honda Civic Type R: Amazing engine but nah

Assuming your budget is £16k, I don't think Id look at new - as it looks like you want a Hatchback I would be looking at 2 year old Audi A3 1.8Ts

 

[marriedblonde]

Quote: posted by 25thAE thompson on 25/02/2004 13:22:21

ye have looked into the cooper s works but i think it would be cheaper to get basic and go to AMD.

not sure if i can see myself in a cooper though, don't know what it would be like on motor way.

clio 182 is looking quite good, decent extras for money.

If want to know what it's like to run a mini cooper s then drop us a pm and I'll explain why I got shot of mine after 6 months.

J.

 

[matt747]

As some others have said, I wouldn't swap an Anniversary GTi for any of them. Does it have to be a new car? For £16K I would buy a BMW..should be able to find a 2001 330Ci. I would discount all those cars for these reasons(only my opinions of course)

1. Focus...It's a Ford, Focus will be replaced this year hence residuals will nosedive.

2. Clio..It's a hairdressers car(even with a good engine)

3. 206..as Clio, c**p build quality

4. Mini..too small, too expensive with extras

5. Leon Cupra/R..I like these but wouldn't spend over £10K on one; poor residuals. New model later this year?

6. Civic Type R..new model looks better but it's still looks like an advert for Halfords car accessories.

 

[mark_c]

civic type-R, great car, the new model has just improved on speed reducing 0-60 from 6.6 down to 6.1. the cars nothin fancy and trying to shift 1 second hand if hard as hell, ull find dealers packed with em, iv always loved em and would have had 1 apart from the insurance!

mini cooper s very nice but very small, like people have said u have to fork out for the extras, but the supercharded engine is a nice touch, kissing good bye the that T-lag.

Clio alot for your money with good packages, but iv never seen anyone looking good behind the wheel of 1 to date.

 

[CarlT]

Read my report of my 182, but then again I could be bias [][]

 

[25thAE thompson]

slowley coming to my sences and think i'll keep anni, but will still do my testdrive next week on coopers and clio

 

[Cossie boy]

seeings as I had an ST170 that couldnt pass me the other week...not that! lol although I like the look of them but inside too tacky

Cupra PD all the way! []

not that im bias or anything [][]

 

[Irish]

Driven an ST170, was looking to buy one, thank God I didn't or I wouldn't be getting such a good trade in price now. Golf GTI 150 feels as quick if not quicker cause of the turbo.

Cupra deffo.

 

[CHR15]

cooper s and get it tuned to about 250...serious Q car