GTAm

From my experience with Euro and Jap cars....... 1) No they are about the same price, provided you don't go to the agents who will rip you to pieces . The prices have to be the same if they are original. The Yen and Euro are both equally strong currencies compared to our rupee. The cost of labour in Japan is actually higher than in many parts of the EU. And the freight is about the same. 2) For some cars yes. Like Pug 406 and BMW and Mercs. But less of a choice than Jap for sure. 3) Yes. They are usually a bit more complex and require a stricter service and maintenence schedule. I would also say that a brand specific mechanic will be a good idea as the way everything is laid out and engineered is very different to Japanes cars. - I had a v bad experience giving my previous Alfa to an AC guy who did not know the brand. He damaged my dash board and broke some plastic pieces as he did not know the sequence of removal. 4) Mostly electrical issues I would say - can be quite annoying. Example - door locks failing, electric windows not working, air con etc. If you maintain a strict service schedule, your mechanical wear should be similar or sometimes exceed Japanese levels.

Just out of curiorsity.................What's the reason you want an SUV? Are you after the ground clearence?

Yes your point about finding a well maintained car of this age being tough is very true. But I would also think that you are more likely to find a two or three owner well maintained BMW with history than a AE91 Corolla that will most certainly have a million kilometers on the clock, crash repairs all around the body and 15 owners on the book.

How nice. It shows that there's good number on Autolanka members who have good taste and are less conservative than the rest .

Yes they're large. Well the agents are the sleepiest I've ever encountered. They have no spares and they don't seem to be interested in their brands anymore. Besides the Omega never got replaced (since no one wants big non premium) so even the name is being slowly forgotten. The fuel consumption was quite good too . Can't imagine a big car like that giving 8km/l but it did.

I can't remeber what the Langley looks like, although I remember the name. Was it a booted Cherry/Pulsar? Another car that I seriously like is the Opel Omega. Again I owned one in SL for a few months and really loved and respected especially when I compared it with the Pug 605 and E34 518i two of my pals owned. The Omega was better than the BMW and a lot better than the Pug. However I then went and drove an Alfa 164 2.0TS and that was the end of the Omega affair .

Congrats gurugee! But pls consider Peri's advice. The Cube is one of the more distinctive looking cars from Japan. It's got a unique style. I feel putting on a (usually) distasteful bodykit will only add weight and reduce it's attractiveness.

Are you a member of the Beetle club? If so check as they may have a special rate. As a member of the Classic Car Club I get a very reasonable rate of Rs. 250/- only for 3rd party Insurance.

Check NDB Auto financing. From my experience they are the lowest.

Interesting list Devinda... Some of these will be well below the budget won't they? But some of the cars here I would not consider at all, The Montego - Urrgh!!! 1275cc A-series dragging around that humungous body, with build quality that makes the 33 look like a Lexus! Deawoo Racer - Are there any running? Wouldn't take one even if offered free! Mazda MR90 - The underpinnings were outdated in the 1970s when it was launched. Recycled for the 90s. I actually owned a 74 wagon in Oz for 4 months. Scary on the freeway and anywhere above 90km/h despite the fat 5 slotter alloys and Bridgstone Potenzas ! Proton Saga - Urrgh!!! x 2 The build quality was terrible and it would be near impossible to find a well kept one. Again ancient under pinnings that hardly set any standard in its day. Ok some of the others are actually what I like and would consider, Alfa 146 and 155 - naturally . However you'll be going a bit over the budget for a good one. And if you do get lugged with a bad one, it's likely that you'll lose a lot of hair. Punto Mk1 - Super. My bro owned one and I regularly used it. 75bhp and ideal city car. Decent handling too. Ford Laser/Astina - Similar to the Interplay - I've never driven the equalent Laser though. Legacy Mk1 - Yes with a Turbo please !

Mot yet. Probably 1st quarter of 08. Front runner is TATA ! If Tata wins the bid Fiat Group will get involved as well. They want the LR US dealer network to launch Alfa Romeo in the States. They also want the Jaguar platforms to develop RWD Alfas and Lancias again.

My Choices, 1. Alfa 33 - Should be cheaper to buy compared with the rest and easily the most fun to drive by a huge margin. It's also not likely to cost you more than the others to run provided you get one in decent shape. There are loads of disadvantages though - Build quality is very bad especially the interior (a product of Alfa's dark era), It's not easy to find a good one, AC s are locally fitted etc. But I really don't see myself passing a 33 for anything else on the list. It's got a good power/weight ratio as well . 2. Really can't decide between the Interplay and the E30. I've owned both - the E30 replaced my Interplay. Funny enough I am more attached to the Mazda. It was a lot faster than my 316i (or maybe it felt faster) and while the handling wasn't great it wasn't shabby either. The short throw gear box that my car had was a joy to use. Some other Interplays I drove had longer throw boxes though. That said you can't ignore the refinement and well engineered feel of the BMW. It might accelerate slower but once you're into 3 figure speeds it feels planted on the road the way only a German car can. And there were the excellent seats too. For a long journey I'd always choose the BM over the frantic Maz. 3. No 3rd as 2 is tied 4. Grand Civic - We had a twin Carb 35X. Quite decent in a straight line and refined. The low ground clearence was a pain in the a**. The Interplay had more grip and a lot more steering feel. And the seats were hardly comfy or grippy. I have driven the other three but will refrain from typing on my views on them as I'm certain to offend a lot of ppl

They've forgotton another 'super' hero - Steven Segal?

Cool pics Velocity. I like the STi in black. I've read that they're thinking of a face lift already !

Not sure of the market values, but should undercut the Japanese rivals by a big margin. Engine parts should not be an issue as it's got a Mercedes engine. However I'm not sure about the Suspension/brake parts. Not to mention body parts. However why not check with Micro cars who are importing the newer ones. They should be able to import parts. There's also a pick up with a Musso face. Could be the same under pinnings.

Very cool styling. Especially the front end. Hope they don't change too much for production.

To be honest I like the STi more than the Evo X. Yeah the Sub is not really beautiful but the flared out wheel arches makes it look a real rally weapon. I'm not particularly fond of the Evo X's very fat face. It could've been sleeker.

Damn that's a lot. I guess this is the after the budget. Anyway it's so over-specced - Cruise control anyone? Yes the Punto is while the Panda is class lower. The 8v is under powered, but the car is so desirable. Btw OT, but I saw a Swift Sport the other day. Any idea how much an unreg one would be?

1.1m/1.05m sounds an ok deal especially it it's based on the March and it's trading at such a discount.

Yes I bet. It'll be great to see it up against the facelifted 911 Turbo. Btw the Jan Top Gear mag is pitting the R35 against the 430 Scuderia.

No. Two of my pals bought for 3.5m. Maybe the 16v is 3.8?

Nice one mate. Yeah the 2.0 Turbo Subaru hung on, not to mention the 1.8 NA Exige!

Not worried but good that you've cooled down I hear you, but again to establish a comparison between UK and SL buyers we need the ratios I mentioned. It is quite obvious that many factors like availability play a big part. For example Ford and Vauxhall have the most number of dealers in the UK compared with every other manufacturer. It is no surprise then that they are the best selling brands. However despite these being universal factors I am inclined to believe that the average UK buyer is a lot more sophisticated than his Sri Lankan counterpart. It simply has to be considering the disparity in development levels of the two markets. How many car mags are there in the UK compared to SL? Yes Sri Lankans don't have much of a choice and yes this is part of what makes them conservative. And so they are conservative. UK buyers are more informed and have a lot more choice and a lot more money. I'm glad you agree. However Sri Lankans are generally very very conservative IMHO. We are coming out of it but there's a long way to go. Just look at our music industry and Movie industry. It is very very rarely that we get anything revolutionary. Look at the way we dress. Except for a few of the wealthy population in Colombo most of the population will stick to tradition. Fashion changes very very slow in SL. People are afraid of change. Maybe because they'll be laughed at. But hey you have to be daring if you want to make a change. It could be a cultural thing and I feel it will change the more we are exposed to the outside world. Like I said before, if you don't know the English language, that immediately makes you less competitive than the ppl who do know the language in SL. You can't read English books and magazines, you can't surf the net. You probably just have to reply on what your mechanic, or neighbour says about a car. It's safer to follow the crowd. I don't have UK sales figures but if you look at Nov 07 and Jan-Nov 07 sports car sales in Germany, the Nissan 350Z vs Ferrari F430 sales are as follows. Month of Nov 07 Year to date 350Z - 23 487 F430 - 24 477 Consider the price difference between the two. You could buy 4 350Zs for one F40. And the 350Z is a highly praised car. Both have their respective German rivals who outsell them by a huge margin. For example the Porsche 911 (which is a rival to the Ferrari) sold 530 in Nov and 8149 year todate. While the 350Z rivalling Boxter Cayman sold 222 and 4098. That last figure also tell us that the costlier 911 outsells the entry level car which is the Boxter/Cayman. Source - www.kba.de

Not worried but good that you've cooled down I hear you, but again to establish a comparison between UK and SL buyers we need the ratios I mentioned. It is quite obvious that many factors like availability play a big part. For example Ford and Vauxhall have the most number of dealers in the UK compared with every other manufacturer. It is no surprise then that they are the best selling brands. However despite these being universal factors I am inclined to believe that the average UK buyer is a lot more sophisticated than his Sri Lankan counterpart. It simply has to be considering the disparity in development levels of the two markets. How many car mags are there in the UK compared to SL? Yes Sri Lankans don't have much of a choice and yes this is part of what makes them conservative. And so they are conservative. UK buyers are more informed and have a lot more choice and a lot more money. I'm glad you agree. However Sri Lankans are generally very very conservative IMHO. We are coming out of it but there's a long way to go. Just look at our music industry and Movie industry. It is very very rarely that we get anything revolutionary. Look at the way we dress. Except for a few of the wealthy population in Colombo most of the population will stick to tradition. Fashion changes very very slow in SL. People are afraid of change. Maybe because they'll be laughed at. But hey you have to be daring if you want to make a change. It could be a cultural thing and I feel it will change the more we are exposed to the outside world. Like I said before, if you don't know the English language, that immediately makes you less competitive than the ppl who do know the language in SL. You can't read English books and magazines, you can't surf the net. You probably just have to reply on what your mechanic, or neighbour says about a car. It's safer to follow the crowd. I don't have UK sales figures but if you look at Nov 07 and Jan-Nov 07 sports car sales in Germany, the Nissan 350Z vs Ferrari F430 sales are as follows. Month of Nov 07 Year to date 350Z - 23 487 F430 - 24 477 Consider the price difference between the two. You could buy 4 350Zs for one F40. And the 350Z is a highly praised car. Both have their respective German rivals who outsell them by a huge margin. For example the Porsche 911 (which is a rival to the Ferrari) sold 530 in Nov and 8149 year todate. While the 350Z rivalling Boxter Cayman sold 222 and 4098. That last figure also tell us that the costlier 911 outsells the entry level car which is the Boxter/Cayman. Source - www.kba.de

3.375m seems very pricey and in the Grande Punto teritory. I guess a recon one will fall into the right price range. The Panda is a smaller car than the Swift and so at 2.9m seems very steep IMHO.