Myk's Garage Challenge: £7,500

[CarMadMike]

:hiya:

 

I thought it'd be a good time to bring back the Garage Challenge threads, it's been gone for a year (:huh: Time goes quickly).

 

 

This time you've been given:

£7,500 GBP / $10,800 USD / $15,000 AUD / €9,500 EUR

The Scenario (2-3 Vehicles):

• Average suburban housewivfe needs something with 4WD for those awful dangerous journeys to the school gates to drop off little Clancy for a day of playing Yu-Gi-Oh.
  

 

• Average salesman husband called Dave needs something comfortable-ish to cover the miles, but something which makes him feel like he hasn't sold his soul and lives a semi-exciting life.
  

 

• Bonus car: Surprise me, you don't have to have a 3rd choice but if you manage to get a 3rd exciting vehicle in the garage then you're going to help yourself to victory.
  

 

The Rules:

• You MUST spend almost all the money, this is to stop 'someone' (Calster) from replying 'I'll have 4 Austin Metros and pocket the change to spend on awful tasting alcohol'. Obvs don't care if you have 5 pound change, but do NOT go over.
  

 

• Must be a REAL car, no toy ferrari FF's (or kit cars).
  

 

• Unlike previous challenges, due to the small budget and how different second hand car markets can be, you can choose cars listed in the US, the EU or AUS :nods:
  

 

• You have until 8pm GMT+1 on Tuesday 17th May to get your choices in before we close it to decide who the winner is.
  

[TIMELESS]

Mrs Dave's family bus for moving the child units around: Mercedes-Benz M Class 2.7 ML270 CDI 5dr

 

 

 

Automatic, cruise control, electric everything, memory seats - Mrs Dave feels like she's living a life of luxury, even though she worries about making the mortgage payments every month.

 

Price: £4995

 

 

Dave's comfortable but quick car for when he needs a getaway and some time to have a mental breakdown because he hasn't sold enough cleaning products this month and his boss is considering a pay-cut: Lexus IS 200 Charcoal Grey | Dundonald, Belfast | Gumtree

 

 

 

Just the very sight of those dials makes Dave feel a little better every morning.

Price: £1995

 

The Project Car: Mitsubishi Galant 2.5 V6 | eBay

 

 

Needs a bit of TLC, but with a mere 72,000 miles on the clock - Dave isn't worried. He'll get it going again.

 

Price: £500

 

 

Total cost: £7490

 

With that spare tenner, Dave can afford to take the wife and kids out to McDonald's.

[CarMadMike]

Okay so I had a lot of trouble deciding on what cars to choose for this one, I found a lot of examples I liked but these are my favourites for the moment, I might change them before tuesday's deadline:

 

For the mum, did someone say WRX?:

 

 

Why I chose this car:

- Engine has just been rebuilt at 123,000 miles, only 1000 on the new one

- Prodrive wheels :D

- 4WD + Estate = School gate material eh?

- God awful exhaust, but replace it with: this exhaust for something that will be more socially acceptable outside the school gates but still allows for more flow, for £418.

 

Cost: £4415 Scooby

 

For Dave:

 

 

Why I chose this car:

- 2.7L V6 bruh

- I like dual exhausts, I hate it when cars have twin exhausts on one side (most).

- The S-Class is nowhere near as ugly as what people used to say it was.

- Blacked out jag? Dave is going through a midlife crisis, it's ok.

 

Cost: £2250 Jaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaguar

 

Bonus Car: Zee Anserrrrrrr is always Miata

 

Why I chose this car:

- Manual, open-top, cheap? Perfect weekend car.

- The green colour isn't too bad and the interior seems to be in good condition.

- It might have a fair amount of miles, but at this price, does it still not totally seem worth it?!

 

Cost: £695 Mazda MX5

Total Spent: £7360

[The Compensator]

Your family will be broke by 2017.

 

Do I have to search the vehicles in my country or across the world (EU, US, Oz as mentioned in the OP)?

 

Who is going to pick the winners? A poll?

[CarMadMike]

Your family will be broke until 2017.

 

Do I have to search the vehicles in my country or across the world (EU, US, Oz as mentioned in the OP)?

 

Who is going to pick the winners? A poll?

 

Aren't you located in the EU? :hmmm: If not, I've definitely misunderstood where you are from for a very very long time :p

 

But yeah go ahead, anywhere is fine.

[CLR-GTR]

Disclaimer: this post has been approved for Mercophobics.

 

Mumz car: Opel Frontera 3.2 V6

For sale at €3.900

 

Most likely she'll say no to anything in this price range, so this one's for you Clancy! Considering you'll be too young to know about cars, you'll be able to live with this choice. :D

 

Actually I just wanted something else than a Merc ML, the only X5 was for sale and Holland's most notorious garage and the rest of the list was nothing but worn out American junk. This is by far the tidiest vehicle I came across by the way.

 

 

 

Davez car: Jaguar Sovereign 4.0 V8

For sale at €3.950

Dave would prefer a Jaguar Sovereign 4.0 V8 or a W140 or W220 S500. That's what I first said before explaining why he'd go for an MG ZS with Union Jack on the roof. Instead, he did choose the Jaaaaaaaag, Hooray for Dave :D

 

 

 

Specialz car: Volvo C70 T5

For sale at €1.590

 

So that leaves us with 1.601 euros... Say goodbye to 1590 of them, Dave wants a good looking machine that isn't a Merc and can GO when it needs to (or at least could when it was new).

 

[CarMadMike]

:lol: That union jack roof is fantastic. I was looking at the Jags too, there are some crackers for sale in the UK in the price range. I thought against it as I thought the old rangey and old jag would just be a bit tooooooo much masochistic :p

 

I'd also looked at C70 cabrios for Dave's car. :hmmm: Our minds went to similar places.

[CLR-GTR]

Well I saw quite some Jags S-Type, X-Type and even that Sovereign and a Daimler in the Dutch offer below 4K. I was a bit surprised on that. On first photo-sight they seemed in good condition too, but I thought this would be average people wanting cars, they won't have the space to park a Jaaaaaaaaag or they won't be taken seriously anymore by their colleagues (who you think you are, the CEO?!) :lol:

 

Didn't find any Brera's though, just those old GTV's and a couple of GT's. That Range Rover looks like a lot of car for the money.

[The Compensator]

Woah, looking at the cars above, I guess I am the one most sensible here. :p

 

The best vehicles for their budget are:

2005 Audi A6 Avant 3.2 FSI quattro -

£4,995

 

 

 

• 
  [*=1]zee C6 A6 has proven to be pretty reliable
  [*=1]zee naturally aspirated 3.2 V6 is headache-free, too
  [*=1]big boot, quattro®, roof rails for dat thule ski box = Alps, the home of quattro®
  [*=1]the exterior has aged very well
  [*=1]panoramic sunroof = :sunny:
  

2002 BMW 325Ci -

£

2,390

 

 

 

• 
  [*=1]RWD + N/A I6 + MT = Ultimate Bro Driving Machine
  [*=1]best looking 3 Series ever
  [*=1]still looks good inside
  [*=1]not as fast by today's standards, but manual 330i's are rare
  [*=1]will survive another decade of spirited driving if looked after
  

Total amount spent: £7,385. Tell me I'm wrong.

[CarMadMike]

A grey estate Audi and a silver 3 series? In some parts of this country you'd genuinely have to start checking for the registration of your car in a car park as 99% of the cars are pretty much that.

 

That being said, both cars have aged very well and both look 'money' even today :p

 

So far if it were my money i'd be buying your two, but I'd still prefer my own *shrug*

[TDUFREAK500]

Since the budget is 7,500 quid, that gives me $15,908 NZD to spend.

 

Lets start with the wife

 

Toyota Landcruiser - $5,500

Toyota Land Cruiser Prado 1999 | Trade Me

 

 

It's a Toyota so it's bullet proof, they are comfortable and spacious so plenty of room for the kids in the back, and are still competent off road if ever required.

 

For Dave

 

Nissan Stagea 25 RS-Four - $6,995

Nissan Stagea 25RS-Four S Turbo 5-speed 4WD 2001 | Trade Me

 

 

Essentially a Skyline wagon, comes with an RB25DET so has plenty of power, it's comfortable and spacious for those long trips, but still exciting to drive, and as an added bonus it's a factory AWD model.

 

And now for the bonus car

 

Nissan Skyline R33 Drift Car - $2,500

Nissan Skyline R33 DRIFT CAR 1995 | Trade Me

 

 

Weekend toy for Dave to go and have a trash in and let out the frustrations from dealing with idiotic customers all week, and he can tow it behind the Stagea!

 

Total spend of $14,995 NZD, which leaves Dave with $913 for tyres for the R33.

[CarMadMike]

:eek: I didn't even know the Stagea existed, it's not the most subtle of cars is it :p

 

And you might be able to knock some money off of that R33's listing mate, did you notice the front bumper was missing?!?!?

[The Compensator]

but it has a bar instead of the bumper, that's all you need.

[TDUFREAK500]

In a more subtle colour they tend to blend in more, they are nice cars, hard to find a factory turbo manual car, I did come across an Autech 260RS (RB26 powered with a manual and AWD) but I would have blown the entire budget on the one car. And for the R33, it's a skid car, a bumper only inhibits air flow to the radiator haha, but it's not too badly priced for a track car actually, it looks like it even has a full cage which is probably worth at least $1,500 to $2,000 alone.

[CarMadMike]

My comment on the bumper was a joke btw, I've watched drift racing thingy before, I understand it's not needed :p

 

I've changed both of my cars btw, feedback?

[TDUFREAK500]

As was my reply haha, it may not be needed, but certainly looks better with one. Also nice pick with the subie, the MX5 is nice too, although I'm more of a fan of the NA over the NB.

[The Compensator]

Argh! Getting sick of Miata meme. Ehmagerd no power, more fun is always the answer, ehmagerd it's so happy, just look it; ehmagerd autocross 24/7

 

Now, seriously.

 

Mom's kid hauler 1000x faster than the weekend car? Nah. Bet they would not be much happy.

[CarMadMike]

Argh! Getting sick of Miata meme. Ehmagerd no power, more fun is always the answer, ehmagerd it's so happy, just look it; ehmagerd autocross 24/7

 

Now, seriously.

 

Mom's kid hauler 1000x faster than the weekend car? Nah. Bet they would not be much happy.

 

I usually dislike the Miata and how it always seems to be the answer too :nods: But for the weekend car, for £695? I can overlook my hatred of the meme and how underpowered it is, I genuinely think it's a lot of 'fun in a car' not necessarily a lot of car, for the money.

[calster17]

If the first choice never had to have AWD, I could just post up my Civic, LS & Cappuccino & still have change for a holiday stateside for 2 weeks. :lol:

I spend enough time in this category of cars, so this is right up my street. Which means it's going to be bloody hard for me to pick which car's I want.... (And also not want to buy said cars myself)

 

Anyways...

 

For The wife...Fiat Panda 4x4

It get's her to A-B in somewhat comfort, Perfect to do the basic things like getting to work, nip to the shops, pick up the kids, meeting Sandra for a gossip, etc. Reliable enough so Dave won't have to worry about too many weekends doing work to it. And unlike alot of "4x4s", these things can hold there ground when off road.

 

Price: £2850 for this honest & cared for example.

 

For Dave...Jaguar XJR

Dave could have been dull and gotten a run of the mill modern saloon on finance like the other guys at the office. But Dave's not a run of the mill person, and likes to be different. Dave decided to get something with class, style and a V8. The XJR is just that, it's 4.0 Supercharged V8 pumps out 380Hp and gives all the comofrt of a traditional English manner house.

 

This nice, honest example set him back just £3750 (He told the wife it was cheaper, and that it's a lesser model...but she knows him better than that)

 

And the wild card? With only £965 to spend...

 

Toyota MR2 (SW20)...

Dave hunkered after one of these in his Youth, but sadly could't afford one back then. But 20-odd years later he now can, and with the Kitchen & bathroom having been finally re-decorated he decided to treat himself, despete what the other half said. (She's warmed to it though)

Another honest car, a very early example at that, for just £850.

 

Thats left me with £115 change...

 

-

 

Edit: Oh cock...I was working on a £7,000 budget. :fp:

Will keep my choice as it is though. The extra money went into getting a new sofa, so's to stop the misses moaning about having bought the MR2. :lol:

[CarMadMike]

£615 change means that you spent over 90% of the budget so I'll allow it :evil:

 

I was looking at MR2s, that's a good example you've got there.

 

I also had that very exact XJR bookmarked as I was going to put an XJ as Dave's car too :p Great minds and that.

[TIMELESS]

I have submitted my entry, post #2 :cheeese:

[CarMadMike]

Those MLs are holding their prices rather well for something that looks.... like that :p

 

That IS is aging rather well, really good choice.

 

Stating that your 3rd car is a project car and having spent all your budget doesn't make us any lenient on you :p Should I edit mine and state my MX-5 is a complete project car and that it's going to be turned into a track beast? :cheeky:

 

Always loved those Galants though, they were my fav car to drive in GTA IV haha

[TIMELESS]

Well.. I mean.. it drives, okay?! It's just a little rusty. I'm quite proud of my choices though, especially the Lexus. Absolutely something I'd buy, and not because fanboy but because they're actually superb cars for the money.

[CarMadMike]

not because fanboy .

 

:ytwh:

 

And yup, the 3 i've picked I'd love to own (if they worked :p). This is why I was trying to get CLR to change his MG as I was rather cynical as to whether he'd actually buy one given the money :lol:

[CLR-GTR]

Changed my entry, Dave dropped the Jack and went for a Jag instead.