Kill my inner child - sub $10k daily beater

[BluChris]

My wife has a base model manual 07 Yaris. Sure it's no Euro to drive but it just plain goes. Never any drama, nothing breaks, very economical, versatile and practical, servicing is every 6 months but not partiularly exxy, parts are no issue, because it never seems to need any. Easy to resell down the track when you're over it.

If you're getting a daily driver plus another for fun this is really the kind of set and forget thing you need. That way you spend your $ on the fun car not on propping up the ageing Euro you bought for 'hassle free' motoring.

[Water Boy]

Id get a VW Up as daily. But maybe bit expensive

[Buller_Scott]

Hi guys, thank you very much for your rapid responses - i'm loving the diversity in your advice, it's helping me cast my net even further! I just want to say that there are some interesting suggestions in here, and i thank you for them - Domel, you talk about ''bias'', but that is just what i'm looking for - experience! in this case, i respect the e30 too much to want to mindlessly rip the isht out of it upon startup. thanks though!

Clay: I'm thinking along your lines, that something from Mazda/ Honda might just be the ticket.

Greg: I'm not sure if you ever saw my pog in proper spec - the konis, mounts, advanced cam (on top of the aggressive cuk map), poly bushes (hard), gsl brake setup, FED 595 RSR's on the front - i've wowed peeps at another multi-make drivers club that had evo ~9, r33 gtr, e46 m3... i hung with gerard's stg2+ audi s3 over reefton, ahead of everyone else. i loved my polo, i say it's a pce of isht cordially, but i loved that car, i respect it, and i absolutely know what it's capable of.... i could never get into another one, and show it the kind of disrespect that i want to be able to view my next daily drive with... i'm too fond of the polo tdi. i need a car i can hack.

to the mk3 protagonists: i hear you for real, but i feel that a nicer daily interior (with lighter steering and slightly better features can be had from a japanese make, within my budget, but thank you - it absolutely makes sense to suggest a mk3 - totally viable.

bmw protags: i hear you, and i'm thinking of something a little less... "i care about you". legit suggestion though. thank you.

gldgti: thanks for your input... i'm leaning the way of the small japs, but i appreciate your experience. cheers!

james: i totally hear you - i reckon i could r7pe a VW dealership on the up, given the recent bad media vibes. i'll add that to my list.

Thanks gents! list so far: jazz, yaris, cube (because im thick headed), up (well, down... on price).

keep them good vibes coming!!!

[Buller_Scott]

oops, SHARKIE - i have huge respect for the pog GTI. at this point i'm not looking at something playful - i don't mean to insult anyone anywhere, but when the time is right, i wont be spurting $$$ into a polo - it'll either be a suzuki swift sport, rent4ring stg 4 spec (8:15 lap times around the 'Ring), or a clio 197/200 with, well, AST's, clutch.... maybe something else cheeky.

thanks though!

[kaanage]

Greg: I'm not sure if you ever saw my pog in proper spec - the konis, mounts, advanced cam (on top of the aggressive cuk map), poly bushes (hard), gsl brake setup, FED 595 RSR's on the front - i've wowed peeps at another multi-make drivers club that had evo ~9, r33 gtr, e46 m3... i hung with gerard's stg2+ audi s3 over reefton, ahead of everyone else. i loved my polo, i say it's a pce of isht cordially, but i loved that car, i respect it, and i absolutely know what it's capable of.... i could never get into another one, and show it the kind of disrespect that i want to be able to view my next daily drive with... i'm too fond of the polo tdi. i need a car i can hack.

Scotty, I remember your car well, right up until the 4WD wrote it off but what I'm saying is that you went so hard core on it that you found it an unpleasant place to spend time in when daily driving. Mine hasn't been taken so far and I reckon it is terrific as a daily drive as well as respectable in the tight stuff.

The PoD can hack anything you'll throw at it - your old one did.

It's all very well saying you'll have a fun toy and just use your the daily drive as an appliance to get around but think of how much time you'll spend in it.

[brad]

A few of other suggestions:

Accord Euro (the original before they bloated it). Fantastic car if the dampers are still good & the tyres are decent quality.

Renault Clio "fast thing" (a mate has one & it's suprisingly reliable)

SAAB. You'll get so much bang for your buck. Again, a mate has one & it's been more reliable than any of the VW group cars in my circle of friends. Do your research there's a magic year (2005?) and anything after that is pretty good.

[dylan8]

Polo 9n tdi?
Still have some coin for coils and tune

[PassatB6]

You can get a 2012 VW UP! for less than 10k with 2 yrs warranty left.

This one is a MY13.http://www.carsales.com.au/dealer/de...14000317/?Cr=1

[Lucas_R]

Pulsar SSS (N14 or N15 model - although the older N14 looks way better and would fall well under your 10K budget). Might be a bit of a challenge to find one that hasn't been owned by multiple P platers and had backyard mods done though.

Honda Civic VTI-R in either hatch or more rare coupe form. Or a Honda Integra VTI-R or Prelude VTI-R for than matter.

All fun cars with revvy and reliable engines which should give you plenty of trouble free motoring km's.

On a slightly lesser note, what about the Mazda 323 SP20 or Ford Laser SR2 (same car).

[mikinoz]

A friend bought a 05 1.6 5sp MKV for $6k 2 weeks ago. Keep your eyes peeled there are bargains all over the place.

[Buller_Scott]

hi gents, thanks heaps for the plentiful and varied suggestions - i'll be honest, i've started trawling through carsales for some of the earlier civics, e36 bmw's, sp20 mazda, a bunch of others - there's A LOT to be found at my price point, which is pretty gratifying!

Scotty, you went so hard core on it that you found it an unpleasant place to spend time in when daily driving.

The PoD can hack anything you'll throw at it - your old one did.

Polo 9n tdi?
Still have some coin for coils and tune

greg, good point, i can't deny that it's a beautiful car that has a place in my heart because of how unassuming it was, yet how much it could do. don't get your hopes up greg - i want to move in another direction, but yourself and dylan have convinced me to not scratch the pogtdi off my list just yet.

Accord Euro (the original before they bloated it). Fantastic car if the dampers are still good & the tyres are decent quality.

Renault Clio "fast thing" (a mate has one & it's suprisingly reliable)

SAAB.

accord euro is something i've been looking at - they seem like A LOT of car for the relatively little money they demand on carsales. clio is.... ugh. i really shouldnt, but they're so cheap that they're hard to completely ignore. SAAB has been VERY on my radar if i want to push my budget out, but then the only thing that I wonder is where would i get the thing serviced? i hope there's still a few saab enthusiast/ specialist garages around melbourne.

You can get a 2012 VW UP! for less than 10k with 2 yrs warranty left.

this is something i've been thinking about. going to a stealership and using their whole "urgency sales tactics 101" thing against them - "i want a povo spec one for $10,500. i've lined up 4 other dealerships. whoever can meet that price or come closest, gets the sale TODAY". dunno if that'd work - never bargained before (because i'm a b7tch).

Pulsar SSS (N14 or N15 model - although the older N14 looks way better and would fall well under your 10K budget). Might be a bit of a challenge to find one that hasn't been owned by multiple P platers and had backyard mods done though.

Honda Civic VTI-R, Mazda 323 SP20 or Ford Laser SR2 (same car).

legit. will start carsales window shopping.

A friend bought a 05 1.6 5sp MKV for $6k 2 weeks ago. Keep your eyes peeled there are bargains all over the place.

good point - i guess those 1.6's are just as tried-and-true an engine as some of the others in the VAG lineup. will start trawling.

thanks heaps, guys. this is opening my eyes in terms of just what is possible. any other weird and different suggestions, don't hold back!

[BluChris]

Alrighty, you want weird or left field, hen's teeth for a good one but Volvo 850R. Go hard in standard trim and despite the reputation go faster bits for Volvo are everywhere. Great sleeper.

[brad]

Alrighty, you want weird or left field, hen's teeth for a good one but Volvo 850R. Go hard in standard trim and despite the reputation go faster bits for Volvo are everywhere. Great sleeper.

My neighbour (Volvo specialist & parts importer) became a millionaire on Volvo 850. They weren't the most reliable thing in the world. Should be pretty cheap by now as they are getting pretty old.

[BluChris]

Hey, I did suggest a Yaris first, but the brief seems to be straying a long way from the OP's original question Any of the European cars suggested here at less than 10k are likely to be a gamble.

I still think the first idea of a cheap Japanese runabout plus a fun project car makes more sense than buying 2 cars that could both turn into projects. That said if you're going to make the daily a project as well, might as well make it something with an interesting starting base rather than a cooking model you have to put a lot of work into just to get it beyond boring

[Arnold]

I'd increase your budget to $20,000. $10k for a man of your calibre is kids' stuff.

The headline cost of owning a $20,000 car is not much different from a $10k car when one considers operating costs which do not vary or do not vary much with a $10k change in the value of the car, eg:

- Insurance $500/$800
- Rego $300
- CTP $500
- Fuel $2000
- Road tolls $250
- Maintenance $750

and, in fact, maintenance costs on a newer $20k car may be less and, indeed, a $20k car may have at least 12 months' warranty as it could be well under 3 years old vs closer to 8 years old.

The only costs that vary proportionately are depreciation and interest (or opportunity cost). And bear in mind, depreciation is a non-cash item that could provide tax benefits in certain circumstances.

Interest on a $20k car will be at, say 7%, $1400 vs $700 on a $10k car and depreciation on a decent second hand car would be around 10% pa (straight line, say), so around $1,000 difference between the two. $1,700 pa in total.

To the extent the MV is for business use, these could be pre-tax figures and be substantially less in after-tax dollars.

Against total annual costs of say $6000 for the $10k car and $8,000 for the $20k car, you're only talking about around 33% higher costs for a car that is worth 100% more and could be less costly to maintain.

Hondas have gone off the boil however Mazda is the Japanese brand that comes closest to offering the attributes that appeal to VW enthusiasts and a very good Mazda3 could be had for $20k including stamp duty.

At the end of the day, you are twice as likely to be wishing you are sitting in a near-new $20k car than wishing you'd spent less and bought a $10k jalopy.

In other words, a 33% chance of dissatisfaction if you buy a $20k car vs a 67% chance of being dissatisfied if you only spend $10k, and all for only 33% additional cost of ownership per annum!