hi guys just registered,ill be hopefully looking to buy a coupe in a months time,mot tax etc finishes on my current car(toyota mr2)and tbh i think it will cost to much to sort the mr2 out :(but Q is can you buy coupes for £1000,that are in good condition

Nope.

Okay, unfair

First of all, welcome to the forum

Second thing is, have a really good read of the buyer's guide in this section. Then read it again!

£1000 may buy you a coupé but it's unlikely it'll have had the major jobs done on it, such as, wishbones, timing belt, clutch, turbo, oil cooler etc etc etc. So very quickly you'll be looking at a bill in excess of the initial purchase price.

Then there's the insurance.....

These cars are tumbling in purchase price but the running costs are what can cripple the unsuspecting.

Buy on condition, not mileage, go in with your eyes open and you won't regret the deal.

Or buy the non-turbo version for *slightly* lower running costs

hi stan thanks for the warm welcome lol,im not really after a tubbie id prefer a 20v n/a but realistically a 16v n/a is the one im looking for,always liked the coupe same as the mr2.insuance isnt a problem im in my mid life crisis still lol

Ah, now you might be lucky with the 16v na. Makes a surprising change to get someone on here who isn't looking for a turbo, and a 20v turbo at that!

There's been one or two recently that might just have fitted the bill so although it may take a bit of searching and a bit of travelling you may just get lucky.........

id love a tubbie but mr sensible is happy with a n/a,owned a mr2 2.0l n/a for 2 years loved it to bits but all of a sudden everything and i mean everything is getting tired on the car so time to get shut and replace,looked at alfa gtv,but i think a coupe is slightly sexier

I got my Coupe for £950, with a stack of bills as thick as my arm!

Granted, my arm's quite thin, but that aint the point..
It was also a cat-d write-off, but no trouble with insurance, runs perfectly, looks great and is fairly sound.

On bills, we shall see next month when I get the belts done. Suspension, radiator and other bits n bobs have all been sorted already though. Along with a complete engine rebuild 40,000 miles ago..

Need to get the bonnet sprayed mind you. Any of you lot have an idea of what it would cost? It's the following colour:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=13...87&id=710157022

Other than that, quite happy with it really, bargain!

IMO you really need to be looking at 3-4K for a good coupe. Buy one for a grand and unless you are extremely lucky it'll most likely cost you a few grand in replacing bits in the first year.

They really are not a buy and run hastle free car.

They can be a hassle free car, but they are unlikely to be an expense free car. You just have to keep spending whatever it needs as the need arises and you'll be fine. (but broke)

sure - but when bits need to be fixed you need to either get the car somewhere to fix it, or spend time doing it. Either of which can be a hastle.

You CAN get a 16v N/A for a grand, just do your homework and see a few so you get a feel for what's good and what's not. Don't be afraid of high mileage if there's history.

A guy in the next village was selling his 20vt for just over a k last summer and might now come below that - although I still see it outside his he may have decided not to sell. Good service history if I remember but it had done 180k miles.

Try doing a search through coups for sale for 'high miles' and 'speed red' and I think £1200 if you're interested.

I bought my First Coupe for £1200 2 years ago. It was a 16VT and was in good nick.

It had 18" rims and was tuned to around 280bhp.

I got a 20v n/a in broom yellow this yr for 900 quid with 130k & massive service file, all belts & clutch done. My mate has it now as the lack of power got to me & i had to buy another 20vt, he loves it and its not needed a penny spent on it & its just flew through mot! Please dont put this guy off!

thanks for the replies people,i wont be put off once im set on a car ill get it,tbh my once preference is not having a red/yellow one,leather interior if its there then bonus,got leather in the mr2 its cold in the winter,sticky in the summer lol

ps i know that fiat have renowed reliability problems(i did own 3 puntos(going through a silly phase)they never faultered at all.every car can faulter at any time.my brother and i went to barcelona in june for the moto gp his 55 plate saab had a few niggles

Im running a 20vna. and as a day to day commute its a 32 mpg reliable car and uses no oil and water. It is also a car that lets you know in advance what is about to fail, its just a case of whether you fix is quickly or not. Right now wishbones are high on my list as the handling is wayward. New Cambelt and clutch will double the value of the car. My car has never broken down in 4 years with one exception which was a dead battery.

With the exception of belts snapping, hoses bursting, dodgy electrical connections, bonnet flying up, fuel cap not closing, alarm going haywire, and sensors giving up, that is.

Most turbo related problems are foreseeable long in advance, but then you dont have one of those.

My car has let me know in advance whether things are about to fail. the throttle got sticky before the cable snapped, however I ignored the warnings and it and broke down.

My clutch slave cylinder is leaking slightly now, and I am not ignoring that one. It is being fixed tomorrow.

Ill concede the following.......Ive had the petrol cap issue but it was intermittent 2 weeks before it finally gave up. Ive got the sticky throttle or ICV not sure which yet. But as I cant find the cable end to lubricate yet Im not sure if I can sort it. Worst electrical connection is side lights which I sorted with emery cloth. Air bag light is on right now... so I need to visit Roger. Bonnet is only 4 years old on mine and hasn't flown up or off. My alarm is switched off but if it was on it would keep me awake. I don't use remote anymore because it wouldn't always trigger. Dont miss that much. My temp sensor is on its way out but thats easy and cheap to fix. Hoses on my NA very reliable and alot less trouble than turbos.

I know that as soon as I get rid of it I will regret it. That happened once before and it was an Audi coupe 2.2 GT. It must be 5 cylinder thing

Didn't know this was an issue I'm suddenly feeling incredibly lucky: managed to drive a good 50 miles down the autoroute in France this summer with the bonnet catch disengaged accidentally and the bonnet stayed put just fine.

I guess one constant whether you spend £1,000 or £5,000 is that the Coupe is an unpredictable beastie...

To be fair, the only bits that have ever failed on mine have been the ones with plenty of advance warning... turbo, clutch, wishbones, except one time when the fuel pump wiring came loose and it wouldnt start. That was an easy fix though fortunately.

If the bonnet flew up on you that would be a nightmare, but I've heard of it happening a few times on here...

for me, bottom line, IF you can afford to potentailly lose a grand, than buy a cheap 20vt....you certainly wont go faster for the cash..cheap, cheap fast cars......it MIGHT go pop...but then so MIGHT any cheap fast car you buy with no history/high miles etc..etc....

if you can afford to look at it as cheap, throwaway fun, go for it.....

and end of the day, if it does go pop...you can always break the car and recoup a fair whack of your investment....maybe this is a cynical way of looking at it, but id certainly consider a very cheap 20vt or 16vt as a throwaway pocket rocket......

It doesn't work like that tho. The turbo might be smokey, are you going to leave it like that, so that motorists behind you can't see squat in at the lights? no you aren't, you'd get it done. The coupe isn't one of those cars IMO.

Say you get one that looks nice for a grand. You have to replace the cam belt, discs, other bits, it ends up costing the same again over the next year. Sound about right?

At least that way, you'd be driving a Coupe over the next 12 months (with intermittant weekends where it's in the garage..).

I reckon I'd prefer to be driving a Coupe, fixing problems as and when, taking preventative measures where money permits, than to save up for another year and spend 3 or 4k then.

I guess you just have to accept it will cost money, whatever way you do it.

You do have a point there, but I'm a fussey git and know that I would want to put right any scuff or scratch, cluncky noise etc. I suppose it just depends on what you want...

You would prefer it during the 12 months because at least you have a Coupe, but 3 years down the line looking back you would either be glad or wished that you waiting and saved up and got a good'un, I certainly am!

Good things co... ahhh it's Friday, I'm off for a beer

all of my fiat coupes have been under 1k, my first 20v wasn't even shown a spanner

the 16vt turbo i had was odds and sods, but was great all in all, if luck is on ur side. then its possible

if your unlucky, or the seller is pulling a fast one, ur in a hole new world of pain

Iv payed 2500 for both my 20vt coupes and 1800 for my 16vt and one had a new engine and the 2 20vt's have all needed manifolds, turbo recons, brakes, rads and other bits and bobs, think u really do need to spend 3-4k for a good one!

But its soooo satisfying when you do have it running perfectly