Advice for Newbie

G

Gerry151731

Full member
Points
21
Location
Scotland
Car
Peugeot 206 1.1
Hi all, I'm completely new to this site and also to the idea of tuning.I know names of cars and can guess their age and price etc, but have no clue about under the bonnet of a one!

I have a Peugeot 206 1.1 just now as this is my first car. However I am going to change my car this year and want to buy something I could work on as a project car that's cheap to insure as I am only 20.

I am thinking of a Corsa VXR or Honda Civic 1.4/1.6. i-VTEC SE/Sport. I would really love tips on what cars are good project cars for a novice and what steps to take in creating more power, thanks!
 
Hello and welcome!
Gerry151731 said:
However I am going to change my car this year and want to buy something I could work on as a project car that's cheap to insure as I am only 20.
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Projects are great fun and can be very rewarding, but I would offer a word of caution about being young and modifying your car - your insurer will not like it and will charge you a lot of money.
 
Thanks for the reply!

I know I guessed that, I will have 3 years no claims come August time so my insurance on some cars may not be too bad, but I know I will have to fork out a good bit on insurance with aftermarket parts.

I would like to have between 180-250 BHP roughly, I was looking for ideas on what car are solid for projects? Also any tips or links on where's best to start with adding mods. Anything around 1.4-1.8 litre engines, sorry for all the questions!
 
T9 man said:
Greetings and welcome to our TorqueCars forum :)
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Thanks man, any idea on cars I could look into that fit with my above post and could be good potential project cars for a novice.

I have the help of my Dad and quite a few friends who are great with cars it's just the hard task of picking a car now! :)
 
Welcome to the forum.
Do you have a short list of cars? or are the ones you have named above the only ones you would go for? Reason i ask is that it would be good practice for you to take a look around and see what tuning /aftermarket parts are available before you make your final choice of car.
Im sure the guys on here will give great advice tho |B
 
auds2 said:
Welcome to the forum.
Do you have a short list of cars? or are the ones you have named above the only ones you would go for? Reason i ask is that it would be good practice for you to take a look around and see what tuning /aftermarket parts are available before you make your final choice of car.
Im sure the guys on here will give great advice tho |B
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Thanks for the reply man, ehh well so far I've looked at the Corsa vxr 08 model really in-depth and two of my close Friends have them so they could provide help.

I also looked at 2.0 Civic Type R's but the insurance on them due to my age is crazy so I looked at 1.6 i-vtec's.

Today ave been looking up on the 1.8 Toyota Celica GT's.

If you know any other cars I could look into that would be greatly appreciated, I just want to broaden my knowledge first and have been looking at parts etc as well thanks!
 
You might find one of the Astra 1.4 or 2.0 turbos cheaper to insure as they are not classed as a performance car, but the same tuning bits for the vxr range would probably bolt straight on.
 
I think that you are looking at car choice back to front.

Choose a car that you like, regardless of what tuning parts are available. There will be basic tuning parts available for all cars and that is where you will start. If you happen to like a car that has a lot of parts available then fine, but I think that you will regret buying a car based on tuning parts available rather than one you actually like.

Car buying is a personal thing so get what you like rather than what someone else likes.

But than I am a one car man so my opinion is rather biased :)
 
old-git said:
I think that you are looking at car choice back to front.

Choose a car that you like, regardless of what tuning parts are available. There will be basic tuning parts available for all cars and that is where you will start. If you happen to like a car that has a lot of parts available then fine, but I think that you will regret buying a car based on tuning parts available rather than one you actually like.

Car buying is a personal thing so get what you like rather than what someone else likes.

But than I am a one car man so my opinion is rather biased :)
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Thanks man, that's solid advice and appreciated! I am going to get a corsa VXR, it's the main car ave wanted and have been looking at for months on end, I'm just trying to be patient and choose the right one.
 
Yugguy said:
You might find one of the Astra 1.4 or 2.0 turbos cheaper to insure as they are not classed as a performance car, but the same tuning bits for the vxr range would probably bolt straight on.
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Thanks mate I'll have a look at them too, thinking a corsa VXR is looking likely, thanks again!
 
Lunchmoney said:
This is important - don't impulse buy one you might regret. Be absolutely certain, after test driving, you only buy one you will be happy with.
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Very good advice mate, thanks for the reply! I'm trying not to be impulsive and too eager, I've been phoning the sellers to find out more and am going to bide my time until I find the right one. Thanks man!
 
Hello and a very warm, if a little late, welcome to TorqueCars from me the admin! Really nice to have you along.

Keep reading the articles on our site and this forum... you'll pick up loads of good common sense tips and don't be afraid to post questions, were all here to share our knowledge and experience.

We run a really fun and interesting car community and many have said we're the friendliest around, always ready to help out where we can.

Enjoy your time with us, post loads and feel free to ask any questions or begin new threads and discussions. We're always interested to hear your comments and views on our existing topics and in the hot polls.
 
Gerry151731 said:
Today ave been looking up on the 1.8 Toyota Celica GT's.
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The Celica is a great car for tuning it's one of the reason I went Toyota as my first car, the vvti is Toyota's way of saying Vtec. Back to the Celica my best mate is 23 and owns a over tuned celica 1.8 with a turbo and gets 327 bhp on the dyno. He spent about £2800 overall on tuning and parts and bought the car for something silly. Can't remember but this car goes about 162mph I don't know the 0 to 60 but it's much fuster than the stock gt... I mean it's ALOT faster! and he's spent no more than £4500. He's 5 years no claims and pays £1200 on insurance annually in London so I promise you it's nothing like that where you are. Well unless you live in the biggest *#*#*#*#*#*# up town around aka Lundaaan!
 
AudioTrap96 said:
The Celica is a great car for tuning it's one of the reason I went Toyota as my first car, the vvti is Toyota's way of saying Vtec. Back to the Celica my best mate is 23 and owns a over tuned celica 1.8 with a turbo and gets 327 bhp on the dyno. He spent about £2800 overall on tuning and parts and bought the car for something silly. Can't remember but this car goes about 162mph I don't know the 0 to 60 but it's much fuster than the stock gt... I mean it's ALOT faster! and he's spent no more than £4500. He's 5 years no claims and pays £1200 on insurance annually in London so I promise you it's nothing like that where you are. Well unless you live in the biggest *#*#*#*#*#*# up town around aka Lundaaan![/QUOTED
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Sounds like he's definitely struck gold there man! sounds like it would be a nice car to drive maybe not in the middle of London though with they insurance premiums haha!

Still not managed to get a car yet other stuff came up. I've finally decided on an Astra, a cant get a vxr cause of insurance prices for them just now but thinking about a 1.6 sxi or 1.4/2.0 turbo! Thanks for the advice much appreciated.
 
obi_waynne said:
Hello and a very warm, if a little late, welcome to TorqueCars from me the admin! Really nice to have you along.

Keep reading the articles on our site and this forum... you'll pick up loads of good common sense tips and don't be afraid to post questions, were all here to share our knowledge and experience.

We run a really fun and interesting car community and many have said we're the friendliest around, always ready to help out where we can.

Enjoy your time with us, post loads and feel free to ask any questions or begin new threads and discussions. We're always interested to hear your comments and views on our existing topics and in the hot polls.
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Thanks a lot man I've found this website very very helpful and for an absolute beginner, so much can be learned from the information and advice provided.

Can't thank anyone enough for their advice as I said a few things came up a had to deal with so finally getting a new car within the next few weeks and a think am going to get an Astra, 1.6 sxi probably. Not much tuning can be done
I've been told to these, but allows another bit of time for my insurance to drop down haha! Thanks again!
 
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