Young Aspiring Driver.

Zebzabi

Full member
Points
16
Location
England Slough
Car
UNKNOWN
Hey guys ,

I just turned 19 and I've finished all my educational part in life, now I'm working and saving up money for what I've always wanted to do. Buy a car and Tune it to perfection.

I need advice, A LOT of it. I want a RWD car that's relatively cheap and I want to be able to tune it, and i also want to ask what order should i do everything in ? Obviously performance first but which parts? and WHAT parts :p.

I want to be able to drive it daily so no 1500BHP projects please. HAHA. I'm sorry if I make no sense, I'm not very experienced with parts etc, but I am a hell of a driver if i say so myself :D.

So all the help is appreciated and hopefully my confusion will end!!!

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Welcome to Torque Cars. Slough used to be my old stamping ground, though I'm well out of that area now.

If you're determined to go for RWD then you're looking at BMW, Mercedes and Lexus really. Other options are the last of the Ford Granadas (Scorpios) or back in to the very early 1990's for a Sierra. Vauxhall's Omega is not a bad option, either.

BMW has been making decent common rail diesels for well over a decade so a late 1990's 3 or 5 series would suit well. These are easily tuned with an ECU remap alone. An early 330d will still go to over 240bhp with about 350lbft of torque to wrench it around.

On the driving front, please, please don't let your confidence outgrow your ability - let both build in equal measure. I'm sure this isn't the case here; and that you're attentive and courteous yet there are so many sad (and sadly often also tragic) situations where drivers get ahead of themselves, so to speak.

It's not always young drivers either where this can happen so I'm not taking a swipe at you in any way at all. If anything your enthusiasm sends me the right signals.

Getting from A to B quickly doesn't necessarily involve actually driving fast. Obviously, loafing about at 45mph for no reason at all on a de-restricted road is going to wind up everyone behind you so that's not the way to go either.

In short, let us know what your plans are - there's a shedload of advice and information available here all available for free.

Kind regards,

Paul.
 
Thank you HD , very welcoming comment. My plans are to have a nice car that i can tune and customise to suit my needs, i want it to be fast and to look good! I was thinking along the lines of honda s2k or something like that. around 350 bhp is what im aiming for.

Any ideas? can someone explain what the best way to customise your car? do you buy the parts then contact a mechanic who will fit it for you or is there someone in england near SLOUGH that does this ?

Thank a lot.
I'm really sorry if im a bit of a 'noob' at all this but i only just started and it is really my dream to be abe to build a car from scratch one day.

Thanks so much
Regards
Zebzabi!!
 
Hey guys ,

I just turned 19 and I've finished all my educational part in life, now I'm working and saving up money for what I've always wanted to do. Buy a car and Tune it to perfection.

I need advice, A LOT of it. I want a RWD car that's relatively cheap and I want to be able to tune it, and i also want to ask what order should i do everything in ? Obviously performance first but which parts? and WHAT parts :p.

I want to be able to drive it daily so no 1500BHP projects please. HAHA. I'm sorry if I make no sense, I'm not very experienced with parts etc, but I am a hell of a driver if i say so myself :D.

So all the help is appreciated and hopefully my confusion will end!!!

clip_image001.gif


Greetings and Welcome! ;)
 
I would've said a a bmw of some sort. 330ds are going quite cheap at the moment. If you want more from the remap you can fit a larger turbo, intercooler or even see if the twin turbo set up on the 335d is availale. I just hope you have very large pockets. Even with the maximum 2 years no claims bonus insurance companies will see you just as our government does and take every penny from you at this age. But if that's not a problem for you then go for it i say.
 
Hey guys ,

I just turned 19 and I've finished all my educational part in life, now I'm working and saving up money for what I've always wanted to do. Buy a car and Tune it to perfection.

I need advice, A LOT of it. I want a RWD car that's relatively cheap and I want to be able to tune it, and i also want to ask what order should i do everything in ? Obviously performance first but which parts? and WHAT parts :p.

I want to be able to drive it daily so no 1500BHP projects please. HAHA. I'm sorry if I make no sense, I'm not very experienced with parts etc, but I am a hell of a driver if i say so myself :D.

So all the help is appreciated and hopefully my confusion will end!!!

clip_image001.gif

Now im not meaning to put a downer on things here or doubt you, but I used to think the same when i was 19, but the reality is you've been driving legally for a max of what, a year?
Dont be in such a rush to tune up a big bhp car, believe me it will bite you in the ass if your not careful (and probably if you think you are careful!). At 19 i took out a massive bank loan and had a 230bhp supercharged mk2 golf built for me,
It took me a week to write it off. Only reason im still here is the full roll cage that was fitted to the car. me being me, i didnt want it, as far as i was concerned i didnt need it, no one could drive like me! but the garage refused to let me take it until it was fitted, and the truth is, their stubbornness saved my life where my cockiness and arrogance nearly cost me it.

My advice to you would be to buy something old and moderately powered, Nova SR or GTE are great cars if you can look past the instant "chav" branding of owning one, Corsa Sport, citroen AX GT, Fiesta XR2, Escort Xr31, Mk2 Golf GTI, the list is endless! all of these cars are nippy enough for a young inexperienced driver, and will allow you to build up experience both in driving and working on cars. Just handing over your cash to other people to build your dream car is in no way as satisfying as being able to say "i did that".

Just my 2p worth ;)
 
Very wise words there PM ;)

Don't be in such a hurry for the big wild horses Zebzabi!
I would concentrate on the car handling and braking first. Make sure that you become familiar with the cars behavior under various driving scenarios; when you start to feel (objectively off course!) that you are more comfortable behind the wheel, then you can start to look at the power side of things! ;)

Whatever you decide to do young one, please! think safe drive safe! :)
 
Have you even thought about insurance and running costs?

Speaking from personal experience. I have a BMW E36 318is. It produces 140bhp as standard. I am 22 and my insurance is just under £1000. I think this is a good base to start with. If you really want crazy power later in life (when it's affordable to you) then do an engine conversion.

I don't mean to ruin your party either, but you won't get insurance on an S2000. I think you should get something to learn with first, something affordable.
 
Hey there guys!

Thanks for all the welcome and i appreciate everything you are saying. Just to put this out there I have been driving for a year now, I'm not trying to big myself up I'm just a kid who's trying to prove himself, thank you so much for the suggestions.

I have read all of your comments and I fully understand and agree with you, and you are a lucky man PM :). Wonder how you got the bank loan at such a young age though!! haha. So what cars do you suggest given all the statistics ?

what about ford focus 00-04 range ? Ztec of course. Anyway thanks so far everyone keep them coming I need as much advice as i can get!!
 
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I thought you wanted RWD.

The Focus 98-04 is a good car, well sorted from the start, unlike many other maker's models.

As an aside: it would be better not to boast about illegal driving exploits, here or anywhere else in the public domain. Most of us have done one or two silly things in our youth and perhaps wish we hadn't. It's best not to broadcast these things.

If you've not already been prosecuted then it's possible you'll be found out and charged. The internet is not quite as anonymous as you perhaps believe it to be.
 
Ah sorry HD , and as for the Ford i didnt realise it was FWD. Any other ideas?

FWD is pretty universal now. I think I covered most of the RWD options in my first post.

But FWD has come on a bundle as well. If Ford can manage 300bhp in a FWD Focus RS then I think you'll find a more modest one pretty manageable.

RWD can be a right handful on snow and ice.
 
Being a miltary copper helped when approaching banks for loans..... lol

you've been driving for a whole year eh.... wow... Im not even going to bother!
 
lol I thought I'd come here for some nice advice, thanks a bunch mate.

It's still available, advice, that is. We can all be an old fuddy duddy bunch on here, at times. Or is that just me?

I make no apologies for anything I've posted in this thread.

What's the goal? I'm guessing that you want to continue driving legally and want to source a car which will suit your needs and desirable wants.
 
And ill make no apologies for anything i have posted.

Your 19years old, you've had a driving licence for a year, and you came straight in here bigging yourself up telling us all how wonderful a driver you are, then boasting about things you may or may not have done illegally. not painting a wonderful picture for yourself chap.

My post was aimed at giving you advice ( which you clearly need) and you come back with yeah well i've been driving a year. big whoop fella, a year is sod all, your experience is sod all.

YOUR ARROGANCE COULD KILL YOU. or worse, it could kill somebody completely innocent.

I was VERY lucky a) to survive my crash, and b) that i crashed somewhere where nobody else got hurt. All im trying to do here is give you a bit of guidance so you dont have to find out how lucky you are....
 
HD I didn't say you did something wrong? Why are you crying ?
PM thanks for the advice I appreciate it and yes I do really need it.
Just tone it down a little and dont bash on me just because im new at this, its a bit unfair. I came here for advice on cars not advice on bigging myself up and staying alive. This is going off topic , so if you have any suggestions on cars I could get at my age and experience then post.

Otherwise, go bash on someone else.
 
HD I didn't say you did something wrong? Why are you crying ?
PM thanks for the advice I appreciate it and yes I do really need it.
Just tone it down a little and dont bash on me just because im new at this, its a bit unfair. I came here for advice on cars not advice on bigging myself up and staying alive. This is going off topic , so if you have any suggestions on cars I could get at my age and experience then post.

Otherwise, go bash on someone else.

You're not going the right way about this IMO. Nobody is here to 'bash on you'. You have been given advice and from what you have put you need it.

PM's advice is very good as it should hopefully give you something to think about. Talking about driving illegally does not impress anyone, it just makes yourself look like a t***.

At 19 you DO NOT have enough experience to handle the kind of power you spoke about. Therefore I cannot recommend a project for you like that. I personally think you should forget big power and RWD for now.

I would suggest something like a Honda Civic. I had one at 19 and it was good to learn on/with. It's not major power, but it's AFFORDABLE. Other suggestions would be a Golf, 106 GTi or a Toyota Glanza.

We've all been where you are now and we've all learnt a great deal. Just try and think realistic. Best of luck with your decision and do please feel free to ask further questions.
 
HD I didn't say you did something wrong? Why are you crying ?
PM thanks for the advice I appreciate it and yes I do really need it.
Just tone it down a little and dont bash on me just because im new at this, its a bit unfair. I came here for advice on cars not advice on bigging myself up and staying alive. This is going off topic , so if you have any suggestions on cars I could get at my age and experience then post.

Otherwise, go bash on someone else.

I know you didn't say that I did something wrong and as such I'm a little bit thrown by this comment. I'm certainly not crying.

I don't think anyone is bashing you to be honest. I think we're all anxious to remain alive and we are all allowed some artistic license within a forum in order to create a more invigorating literary experience.

There have been plenty of suggestions on cars but you are going to invite some comment, perhaps constructive criticism even, when you openly boast of driving illegally. Perhaps that, too, was artistic license on your part. So, again, I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt.

If anything I think I've been particularly gentle and parochial in this thread, I do not want to see new members flamed - it's not Torque Cars' policy to permit such behaviour.

What I don't want to see is a young life trashed (any life trashed) by some over zealous driving simply due to overly exuberant behaviour.

Enthusiasm is different. You have that in spades so why not join this enthusiastic community for the betterment of all?

You say you're inexperienced - that's fair and honest. But that DOES NOT MEAN that you have nothing worthwhile to add. I'm certainly no demi-god.

So big yourself up in that way perhaps, let's see the real ZB - you don't have to big it up in here to be accepted. There's gonna be something you can offer that is of benefit to other members. Don't do yourself down by bigging-up things such as driving illegally.

Kind regards,

Paul Anderson.
 
Well Prince's & HDi's post has just saved me from posting a very long reply to you ZB! ;)

Please take all of the extremely good advice laid before you onboard, and take it in the very helpful and constructive spirit in which it has been given! Prince's suggestion of first time cars is a very good one! Any one of these cars will reward you with a most enjoyable driving experience!
Anytime you need any further help, please don't hesitate to ask us, that's why we are here! You are currently with the best and most knowledgable car forum around! :)
 
I'll repeat my first post, If you want a tunable rear wheel drive car, that the insurance won't kill you. think about an MX5.
 
Im not bashing at ya fella, just trying to give you some guidance.

First cars that are a lot of fun, yet semi affordable to insure and fun to drive:

Nova SR
Corsa sport
VW Golf mk2 GTI 8v
Honda Civic
Toyota starlet
Old school Mini
Mazda MX5
Fiat punto/cinciquento sporting
Fiesta XR2
Honda CRX
VW polo

the list goes on. its not all about big bhp, handling is by far the biggest factor in a fun car to drive, bhp is for bragging to your mates, but theres nothing more satisfying than outhandling their supposedly "performnce" cars!
 
I think we might have scared him off.
i dont blame him tbh!!!
read this thread from a new members point of view and its like vultures round a wounded bison:sad2:
condescending and ageist comments, we really need to make new members welcome not unwelcome!!!!

and Zebzabi i sincerely apologise for the vultures!! i honestly dont know what happened to the members on here?? cause usually they are very welcoming!!
 
i dont blame him tbh!!!
read this thread from a new members point of view and its like vultures round a wounded bison:sad2:
condescending and ageist comments, we really need to make new members welcome not unwelcome!!!!

and Zebzabi i sincerely apologise for the vultures!! i honestly dont know what happened to the members on here?? cause usually they are very welcoming!!

In fairness, and in my defence, I did stand his corner a couple of times.

I don't think, however, that picking up a new member for boasting about driving illegally is totally unjust.
 
Could someone please point me in the direction of this said "illegal activity post"...
I've not seen anyone post anything about any illegal activity in this thread..
Although please bare in mind that this sort of chat is not allowed on this site.
And may I remind everyone that TorqueCars will not tolerate any thread/chat that relates any illegal activity and we also do not condone such behaviour either.
 
In fairness, and in my defence, I did stand his corner a couple of times.

I don't think, however, that picking up a new member for boasting about driving illegally is totally unjust.

This wasn't specifically aimed at you paul I know you are a respectful man! But just all the comments together don't make this a welcoming thread!
 
This wasn't specifically aimed at you paul I know you are a respectful man! But just all the comments together don't make this a welcoming thread!

I know - and thanks for clarifying that. I did suggest that other members lay off a bit quite a lot earlier in this thread.

The post about illegal driving was submitted at 1.51pm on 29th. I responded at 3.24pm and ZB altered the post at 3.30pm, I'm assuming on the strength of my suggestion. Which is fair enough.
 
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At the end of the day, my comments were completely valid, they were not condescending, nor ageist, i was simply using his age and replies to further validate my point.

If it offended anyone, tough. i much rather offend you all than give an arrogant, cocky, inexperienced driver the green light to go out and seriously harm himself or someone else.
 
At the end of the day, my comments were completely valid, they were not condescending, nor ageist, i was simply using his age and replies to further validate my point.

If it offended anyone, tough. i much rather offend you all than give an arrogant, cocky, inexperienced driver the green light to go out and seriously harm himself or someone else.

you've been driving for a whole year eh.... wow... Im not even going to bother!
would you not consider this condescending???
no body knows the driving back ground or abilitys of Zebzabi on here! so lets not judge him by just his age!!!

i remember a little while back when you had to justify your comments cause of your age by revealing your advanced driving in the forces;)
 
No I'm still here, I just haven't sat down on the good old laptop in a while that's all.
I understand that you just giving me advice and such, so in that respect, thank you :).
It's just a bit unfair on me because I have stated that I need as much advice as I can get in my first post, then get all these essays about staying alive and such, I have parents for that :D. I'm 19, I'm naturally going to be overly confident and arrogant. I haven't done anything wrong to no-one and I'm just standing up for myself, and to be honest guys, I don't feel welcomed at all.
I didn't ask for any apologies, I just wanted advice.
Thanks for everyone who has given me advice about cars. Really appreciate and I really hope you don't greet all the new grease monkeys like this!!!!!!!!
Thanks claymore I'm really liking the mx5 , just looking at insurance now, and thanks PM, appreciate it .
Nice to meet you all and continue the "Advice" coming, as I said before and I will say it again, I need as much advice as I can get, ON CARS .
Driving illegally? I just checked and it's not illegal to drive your dads E class if he is with you , so it's all good and no its not illegal.
 
Fair enough - that's that one out of the way then. Good, so let's carry on where we left off.

MX5s were lauded with praise (1990ish I think, possibly earlier) upon launch for their simplicity and driveability. It's like a latter day Triumph Stag with all the flaws designed and engineered out.

They're also reliable little things and give good entertainment on the road.

Mazda has not made many bad cars, and the MX5 is certainly not bad at all.

No I'm still here, I just haven't sat down on the good old laptop in a while that's all.
I understand that you just giving me advice and such, so in that respect, thank you :).
It's just a bit unfair on me because I have stated that I need as much advice as I can get in my first post, then get all these essays about staying alive and such, I have parents for that :D. I'm 19, I'm naturally going to be overly confident and arrogant. I haven't done anything wrong to no-one and I'm just standing up for myself, and to be honest guys, I don't feel welcomed at all.
I didn't ask for any apologies, I just wanted advice.
Thanks for everyone who has given me advice about cars. Really appreciate and I really hope you don't greet all the new grease monkeys like this!!!!!!!!
Thanks claymore I'm really liking the mx5 , just looking at insurance now, and thanks PM, appreciate it .
Nice to meet you all and continue the "Advice" coming, as I said before and I will say it again, I need as much advice as I can get, ON CARS .
Driving illegally? I just checked and it's not illegal to drive your dads E class if he is with you , so it's all good and no its not illegal.
 

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