davyboy

If you are keen I may be able to come to an agreement on my Caymen letter of intent. When they asked for a deposit, I decided against it as I did not have 50k to buy the car I would not bother, 40k was my limit.

However - I still think if I paid a deposit I would be VERY high up the queue. My letter of intent was written around 18 months ago.

Edcase

thanks for the offer. let me speak with Porsche over the weekend to find out launch dates etc.

FletchCSL

456GT is lovely idea, one of the best looking cars ever IMO, but although it may be 50k to buy it will still have 170k running costs and would fall to pieces on a track - not to mention the bills for tyres pads etc afterwards. An early 550 may be in your price range too

I'm based in Preston and Warrington, seems a big trek from bristol but you are welcome to come have a gander! Why not pop over to BM3W.co.uk they are a great bunch. Either pop along to a meet or arrange to meet someone closer to you

Edcase

I may be in warrington either end of this week or begining of next, will drop you a pm later

bluenosewrx

iTrader: (2)

what about the new RS4, better than the M3 IMHO.
keep us posted mate.
Mac

Edcase

Not an Audi fan at all. Also isnt it 4wd?? Apparently although its **** fast, its very uninvolving to drive. Similar prob I had with the scoob, it was just too.....easy. I've never even really come close to having a big one, and as anyone who knows me or has been out with me will tell you, it's not for lack of trying. (And I'm not suggesting I'm Ayrton Senna here btw, I'm just saying that for anyone with a modicum of driving talent and theory know-how, its not going to push their limits in the mid to long term.)

The CSL would keep me more than honest I expect!!

bluenosewrx

iTrader: (2)

Fair one mate,
all the best,wish i had the same dillema lol.
Mac.

C

Mk1 GT3 Clubsport

Edcase

Absolutely valid suggestion, my worry is servicing and running costs. Appreciate the M3 CSL is going to be steep, but the insurance, parts and servicing for a gt3 will likely break me.

mynickers

Better than the CSL? Cough, how'd you work that out? On the scale of it's got more doors?

GT3 Clubsport, I didnt even think of that, I didn't realise it was in that price bracket.

I think you've already talked yourself into a beemer by the sounds of it, and tbh, I don't think there is much else that would more suit your current needs / criteria. Apart from possibly the Caymen, but I doubt you'll get hold of one before next summer or beyond! I tested a Boxters S with a bird when the final revision was made before the new shape, and they were talking about a years waiting list for that F00K that!

Blow Dog

OK my opinion.

There's no such thing as a cheap Ferrari. I paid over the odds for my 550 because I bought it from main dealer. If I had to do it again, I'd go direct for the main dealer car again. The warranty claims I've had so far have far outweighed any money I could save from buying privately. So if you want to buy a used Ferrari, make sure it's from a known and respected dealer - especially at the 50k mark because chances are, it's going to be over 5 years old and that's when things go wrong.

456 is a great looking car and the 550 engine is a derivative of the same V12, but it's no sharp car. It's a heavy GT cruiser suited for families. And it comes with Ferrari V12 running costs which aren't cheap. Expect a clutch replacement to cost over £1500 and an expensive service over £2000.

Noble M12 is a rapid car with great handling and even better street Kudos. But I think it's far from an accomplished car. I've heard some horror stories about it first hand with regards to build quality and especially customer service. A friend of mine was recently challenging them in court for a full refund. There are obviously lemons in every car and I'm sure if you land a good one, the thrills will be rewarding. Also consider the new shape soon.

Cayman looks set to be a corker of a car. Placed between the Boxster S and a 911 Carrera, it is supposedly aimed at trackday drivers and I'm almost confident it will offer a razor edged experience and with all the Porsche tickboxes checked.

Turbo is another genre definer. I was looking at a x50 before I settled for a GT2, but for all weather performance in the real world, there isn't a car that can touch a 996 TT - it simply is the greatest performing road car. But in its compromises, it offers a less sharp ride than its GT siblings and it's cosetting will pamper rather than reward. Still, point to point, all weather all road, it's hurculean.

Which leaves us with the GT3. Not sure if you've ever driven one, but the moment I drove it, I placed an order there and then, I was that gobsmacked. I've never done that before. The feedback from that wheel and the sharpness of the drive is quite unlike anything I've ever experiences. They do say that an Exige is basically a jnr GT3 so if you've experienced an Exige, then multiply it. I went for the GT3RS in the end and then moved it on when I had a problem with it. I regret not staying with Porsches as there isn't another car on the planet that can do what a Porsche can. Drive it across a continent, rag it to within an inch of its life on the racetrack, drive it back home and dump it on your driveway - it won't miss a beat.

Running costs are also very reasonable with brakes, servicing and other consumables relatively cheap (just avoid PCCB if you stretch to a Mk2 - which I prefer).

So if it were 50k for me, I'd settle for the GT3 Club Sport in Speed Yellow.

Cem

davyboy

.....and provided they are maintained correctly they continue to do this 15 years on, and probably more.

Edcase

Cem, invaluable feedback, I couldn't stretch to a mark 2 I don't think.

At the moment its between the cayman (if I can get a decent enough place on the waiting list) or the CSL.

Any thoughts on the CSL???

bluenosewrx

iTrader: (2)

Did the words CSL appear on the post. No you clown, i said M3 read the post before you start baiting.

Mac.

Edcase

come on guys we have managed to go three days and 44 constructive posts without petty arguments.

Mac, to be fair, we have only been discussing the CSL variant of the M3 throughout this thread, so when you say 'better than the M3' it is likely to get misconstrued.

thanks

Ed

Power Junkie

iTrader: (1)

TVR Try it....

David_Wallis

Audi RS4 / RS6 and some change?

Edcase

I said focused

bluenosewrx

iTrader: (2)

Ok Ed, apologys to all,don't normaly bite that quick.

mac.

Edcase

It's cool, and Nick sometimes has a way of bringing that out in people

Blow Dog

Have to say I've only first hand experience with a vanilla M3 which was a superb car. Wonderful build quality, great ride and superb estate agent mod-cons. I can only testify to the track prowess of a CSL and they're remarkably close to a GT3 in terms of track times, but not quite

CSL offers better value, cheaper purchase price and 2 additional seats. It also sounds incredible. But an SMG M3CSL v a manual GT3? It's the Porsche for me.

Cem

Edcase

fair play. thanks.

David_Wallis

what do you class as focused though?

You'd need to be pretty focused when pressing on in a RS4/RS6 with a little tweaking

Also you said...

That rules out nearly everything in the list IMHO...

Also Im sure you said you had a kid??

RS4 and making money on the interest, or having a holiday would be much better than wasting a lot of money a 'CAR'

Trust me!!

David

Edcase

I want something I can grow into on a track, something with precise, talkative steering, the ability to minutely changed the attitude of the car mid-corner with the throttle, something with instant throttle response.

I think I could probably live with the CSL 'day to day', also the cayman.

TVR regardless of how much better to build quality may be, I just wouldn't trust it to drive to spa or the ring, spend two days on a track, and still get me home.

turned out my old evo with the group test between the M3 CSL, the gt3 and the spec c. it seems they were initially overwhelmed by the CSL, but eventually they found it slightly flawed, largely it seems because of the super sticky tyres which allowed you to find superhuman levels of grip but then potentially causing problems at and just over the limit. it would be interesting to know how the car behaves on less specialist rubber, although that is compromising the very essence of the car, bringing it back closer still to standard M3. having said that, at 40k for a mint 2nd hand example, it is only the cost of a new standard M3 anyway.....

Oh, and absolutely no children

David_Wallis

Id be tempted to go for just a Manual M3, CSL is a little too raw and overpriced imho.

Ive driven the M3 SMG and I wouldnt really call it focused, steering is a bit, erm well I dont like powersteering, and as for the 'flappy padles' as JC calls them...

David

Daz34

According to evo mag, you can now order a new M3 with the CSL pack which IIRC includes the suspension, brakes, steering wheel and alloys. Would be nice on a manual gearbox M3

davyboy

CSL is the car for you. In time this car will be worth a premium over a standard M3. To say it's over priced is stupid, you can get them for 40k now, same as a normal M3.

NOZZER

Ed,

The smg is the **** on track. People who say its crap have not tried it on track. Town driving can be a bit jerky but you get used to it. You would anyway as your driving was always jerky anyway

If it was me, i would go CSL or gt3 if you can afford.If you were still in bristol you could have driven mine.

NOZZER

The main advantage with the csl is the weight advantage and induction.

Edcase

I'm still in bristol. dont leave til the end of may