Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

I like the mini's mostly BMW build quality with less of the BMW price tag!

The only other thing i would have considered is the Seat Ibiza. VW build quality with a much smaller price. My mum has just ordered a new one and through Broadspeed, she's managed to get a fully loaded (leather, nav, heated seats etc etc) for £13.5k

Yeah, I feel I missed them... couldn't actually find a dealer. Then after I'd ordered the Mini I cycled by a Seat dealer right at the end of my road towards Brentford.

There's probably others I could've tried, but oh well... I love the Mini we ordered, so I'm good.

Here, take another look at this beauty from another angle.

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You've chosen now so all this discussion is moot anyway. Enjoy the anticipation and drive it like you stole it when it arrives :-D

Interesting choice really. I've not driven a current model mini but I agree with the Golf is "meh" sentiment. Drive the zipcars all the time and the Up, Polo and Golf are always plasticky and uninspiring. Nice enough, but I'd never feel like owning one.

The Fiat 500 though - love those! I drove one around italy - was only a 1.4 or something and never felt unsafe on the autostrada and we were def doing more than 80mph. Great fun around the corners too.

SEAT Ibiza could have been good, but I'm sure the Mini will be great. Just wish they'd drop the "MINI" branding.

Also, no Citroen DS3?

I used to have a Citroen. I guess one learns from experience. I avoided the whole PSA Peugeot Citroën group. I also avoided Ford as I worked on some projects for them many moons ago, and when you see the internal practises, sometimes it makes you a fan, other times you steer clear.

Ah, si, si. Apart from the very old, and the most recent ones PSA cars were a bit of an "experience" Except for the 306 - excellent car, although probably falls into the very old category.

Small Fords are good too, but again, never something you want to own - dodgy corporate practices aside.

Anyway, I probably would have bought one of these and used the spare cash for fuel :)

I do like these, in a guilty sort of way - but all that cosmetic work and only 260bhp?

Doing it wrong.

It's, err, not exactly subtle, is it?

It's not nearly as attractive as the Ovlov.

I was at Uni when Gran Turismo came out, the Skyline was the daddy in that and I've wanted one ever since I tried to control an 800bhp digital version.

The converted Stagea with the R34 front end always seemed a nice way of getting an estate-Skyline.

I would very much prefer one without the skirts/spoilers/scoops etc - an OEM+ version as it were, with 500 horsepower.

Just had my car insurance renewal quote - £338 fully comp.

I'm tempted to just let that auto-renew as it's a decent reduction on last year.

However- have insurance premiums been going down across the board?

Should I bother phoning around?

I've done this in previous years and no one has ever come close to my current insurers.

We've punted the R32, bought a new GTI and he insurance has gone through the fucking roof. I've not paid more than £300 for any insurance for about a decade - this has come out at over a monkey...

#mortified

wtf? r32 to gti and it goes up! how?

R32 is seven years old, whereas the GTI is two. Cars are insured slightly differently over here.

You insure the car not the driver, but the insurance premium is based on the age/value of the car as well as the age/experience (and sadly ethnicity) of the registered keeper.

R32 is seven years old, whereas the GTI is two. Cars are insured slightly differently over here.
You insure the car not the driver, but the insurance premium is based on the age/value of the car as well as the age/experience (and sadly ethnicity) of the registered keeper.

That sounds the same as here, what's different (aside from the racism)? This is my first attempt at quoting - pls excus any fckups

Just had my car insurance renewal quote - £338 fully comp.
I'm tempted to just let that auto-renew as it's a decent reduction on last year.
However- have insurance premiums been going down across the board?
Should I bother phoning around?
I've done this in previous years and no one has ever come close to my current insurers.

Give the comparison sites a go. This year every single renewal has beaten the comparison sites by some margin though. In previous years it was the other way round.

So I've got an itch for a camper van kinda car. Doesn't really matter if it's an unconverted van or an actual camper as long as it can fit me and my 6 yo son and it has to be older than June '98. Anything obvious besides a VW T4 I should look at? I'd like decent mileage and offroad capabilities doesn't matter. And does anyone know any good, camper van specific fora?

Commer. Better looking and bigger than a VW, no scene tax so good ones are affordable. Slow as hell, but the engines are in the right place and water cooled so swaps are easier.
Commervanfan is the forum for them.

I guess they're all RHD and I don't think there's many, if any, of them in Denmark.

There aren't many of them anywhere :-)
But they did sell a load of LHD versions. It was a very popular van.
If LHD's a requirement then all those quirky Italian and French things are a possibility, and there was definitely a 60s Merc minibus thing too.

dieselpumpuk#2

This makes me angry
http://www.gizmag.com/range-rover-sport-svr-specs-revealed/33307/

Yeah, but the first comment is a classic.

This belongs to a friend of mine i cant even begin to list the work and upgrades, i will try get more info.
what i do know is, it has a 1.6 16v engine which has been bored and tuned and a turbo and its current output is 300bhp.
THIS THING IS RAPID!

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