Decision time...

Aug 30, 2005 72 Replies

Ok, I'm just waiting for the lease company to come back to me with a quote, but I think I've narrowed my next choice of car down to one of these two:



Vauxhall Astra 5 door SRi 2.0 turbo (197bhp version) with exterior pack or MINI Cooper S (with aircon, stripes and chequered roof lol)



The Astra will be more comfortable on motorway cruises, more practical with it's 5 doors for loading my son in and out of. Decent performance figures, but heavier than the MINI on tax. Better boot for pushchair etc, and a decent load space with the seats folded if I need to carry work-related boxes of stuff to jobs.



The MINI is perhaps cooler than the Astra, similar 0-60 times (on paper), probably handles better but suffers from lower top speed than the Astra (when will I use it?) and lots of d******ds have them.



The MINI won't be as helpful for getting the lad in and out of, and I'm not sure on boot space for the stuff that goes with him. I've driven the car a couple of years ago but only on a race track, and didn't really look in the boot... I'm gonna have a 'proper' look tomorrow to see whether it suits my needs (and in my cargo shorts, to see whether scruffyish bloke with leg tattoos puts off the sales people...)



So what do you reckon? I'm also waiting on a quote for a Skoda Octavia vRS, but they're not as quick and my other half isn't quite as keen on them.


mini or astra hmm i'd say new astra myself as i REALLY hate the dash in the mini it's just to....... round

#re-configure the solar matrix in parallel for endothermic propulsion

Astra: 3.94ppm service, 12.9 fuel, 34.7 depreciation. Mini cooper S: 3.14 / 12.19 / 24.86 - so should cost less to lease

Not got the skoda listed. But you could get its big brother

VW Phaeton W12 LWB 4 seat 173ppm depreciation, 6.3 ppm servicing, 22.09ppm fuel... every mile is costing you over two quid...

Yeah, but every mile would be great.

Or you could wait another 6-7 years, then every mile would cost a *lot* less, plus you'd have the knowledge of whether or not they go wrong much, and would be worth shelling out on.

They are really that good, from the inside easily as nice as an S class or a Lexus, nicer than a 7 series. Mate had one on loan while his audi was farked - very very civilised.

Gonna be worth 10 grand after 3-5 years I reckon... good news for the rest of us - VW providing us with two cracking oddball cars with stunning value loss - the Passat W8 and the Phaeton W12.

Mini, boot, pushchair. Hang on while I pick my self up off the floor. The boot of the mini struggles to take £50 worth of shopping. It is a lot of fun though but you need to turn off the intrusive traction control. Don't get the 17" wheels if you can avoid it now, the 15" without run are a more pleasant drive.

Lol, my wife and I have had six original Mini's between us so that's what I was thinking, but they come with all sorts of child-friendly stuff e.g. ISOFIX as standard, MINI child seats as accessories etc., so you'd hope they made enough room for the pushchair. It's one of those folding jobbies, not a huge travel system or anything. I'll give it a test tomorrow and see what happens.

Looking at the MINI website, they come with 16" X-lite wheels now, which look like TSW Venoms. I won't be going with 17's. Heh, the Astra comes with

18's...

and get the supercharger not that wimpy NA s*it :)

you can get the new vectra with 19's and i have to say with 19's in black it does look pretty pimped :)

Yea but the 15's look s**te in comparison.

The mini is gonna be a lot more fun, and probly feel quicker. But, the boot is lame.

*cough* unsprung weight.

*shock* Dervy considering Superleggeras 'cos they're light... even though they're 15"...

No idea why unsprung weight makes a difference to the looks :)

Have you considered the Suzuki Swift instead of the Mini? Looks similar but doesn't have the d******ds driving them. I'm not sure if they have one as fast as the cooper s yet though? I'd probably go for the Astra if I were you though.

John

Depends on the wheels Racing Hart CP-F Tune R in 15" look nice with a little lowering:

formatting link

Why stop with a supercharger?

formatting link
That said I have a Hartge modified charger and spare cylinder head lying round at the moment, bit of playing round should up the power nicely and I could use the stock Eaton charger on the G40 (currently one in the UK and a kit in development).
formatting link

Depends really, some 15s look amazing! BBS RS for instance:

formatting link
Ronal Racing:

formatting link
ATS Classic (i'm desperately searching for some of these 2nd hand for my golf):

formatting link
Porsche Cookie Cutters:

formatting link
Keskin KT1:

formatting link

Astra.... but wouldn't something bigger suit you better?

Join the Discussion

Have something to add? Share your thoughts — no account required.

Didn't find your answer?

Ask the community — no account required