Nicebiscuit

Reliability is one thing, but it is inevitably going to eat through consumables faster.
 
I have another foot in the Saab camp which for much of its recent history basically ran the same engine, boosted or not boosted in various states of tune. The highest strung variants run up the same epic mileages as their n/a brethren but tend to wear through clutches etc as you'd expect and you get more gearbox issues. Interestingly 270bhp seems to be the sensible limit for reliable daily driving on those too.
 
How you drive it is the biggest factor though. Some people just drive unsympathetically. Dumping all the torque through the transmission in lower gears as a matter of course and unleashing 270bhp through a cold engine is going to screw anything up.
 
My last Saab was a 15 year old £1500 tweaked 9-5 with 120k miles, 270bhp and a string of fastidious owners. Gave me a year of 100% reliable commuting then sold it for what I paid for it. Purred like a kitten.
 
FI holds no fear for me - just treat it nicely :-)
 
 
 
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Honestly Joe, just happy to have a way of sorting it.

I wouldn't - you'll only get people staring at her on the motorway and then putting creepy remarks on forums
 
To the OP - seems decent value for someone who wants to keep and mod. GLWTS.
 
 
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I wouldn't - you'll only get people staring at her on the motorway and then putting creepy remarks on forums
 
To the OP - seems decent value for someone who wants to keep and mod. GLWTS.
 
 
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I was waiting outside school for my son and two kids approached, took pictures on their phone and said ‘your car is sick, mate’
 
That’ll do for me

Did you get it fixed? 😂

It's only a car. There are more important things. And there will be other cars. This is coming from a guy who had kids and had to drive a Skoda Fabia Estate for three years Good luck with whatever comes next.
 
 
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I wouldn't - you'll only get people staring at her on the motorway and then putting creepy remarks on forums
 
To the OP - seems decent value for someone who wants to keep and mod. GLWTS.
 
 
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Just sell your kidneys and do both like I did. If it helps - I scrimped on the wheels. Leave those stock for time being and do the rest. Coilovers make a big difference too
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nah, it was just their imaginations... 

Nice - I've got some like that - looks much better.
 
 
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Here's what you do - get TD manifold, k&n filter and tune, and an exhaust for the noise if you fancy...
 
On my car that only gained somewhere in region of 15-20bhp, but you'd never know it to drive it. The extra mid range torque makes it much pokier. I still have the stock second cat too.
 
Everyone else's manifold and tune achieves similar - it seems to be losing the cat wot does it.
 
The beauty of the TD set up, is its part way to the turbo kit if you go for that later. And realistically FI is what you need eventually if you want unstressed 250bhp+
 
 
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Nice car. I loved my old 1 series coupe. They're underrated cars. Very civilised but lovely to drive. Not as raw as the Toyota but I do miss the M-Sport seats, that's for sure...
 
 
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Oh dear :-(.
 
To make you feel better - many years ago I reversed my 4 day old Ford Puma into a Cornish cottage on our first road trip... so you are not alone...
 
Also - my 86 got clouted on that corner (not my fault this time) and they fixed it all fine...
 
Glad it didn't spoil the holiday though... Looks fantastic. Must go back to Potes - we loved camping there...
 
 
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The Picos are superb. Apart from the driving, the cable car up to one of the peaks and then the walk down is well worthwhile...
 
But I love it there, it's like the greatest hits of the Pyrenees, Alps and Dolomites in what is a relatively small area. Coast there is nice too. Like a much warmer Cornwall
 
 
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At the end of the day it's only a car... best wishes for your health.
 
And if you have to have 4 doors go the whole hog and get yourself a full on luxobarge! You might as well waft in comfort...
 
 
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Devon? It's mainly green with lots of blue round the edges. It's lovely. You should go...
 
 
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Devon? It's mainly green with lots of blue round the edges. It's lovely. You should go...
 
 
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I'd sacrifice significant body parts for the Initial D tribute - but they've not finished with that one (unless Lauren snaffled it already to match her AE86 ;-D)
 
 
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Is there anyone on this site who HASN'T binned their car on a trackday? (And no Lauren - you don't count because 'race driver')
 
 
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Yep. I have a different manifold and air filter only and a remap has made a significant difference. Perhaps only 15bhp at the top end, but significant gains in midrange torque. I felt it a good return on investment.
 
Another vote for TD from me (they did mine). All the other reputable specialists are a lot further from you, apart from anything else...
 
 
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I think you're right that it is a limited market - but I'd be in it. I wanted better shocks, not lower suspension.
 
And you can do that... Nothing wrong with stock springs - fit a set of Bilstein B6s to go with them.
 
The only catch is that's barely any cheaper than a set of decent coilovers... Hence I did what I did. I mainly went for the Bilsteins as they don't lower much - less than the Teins.
 
I'm with Church... I know pretty much everyone who mods their car lowers it - but all you're doing is reducing suspension travel and for fast road use you want as much suspension travel as you can get...
 
That said - no regrets in going for a modest drop. There's no doubt it looks better...
 
 
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Pfft. Slam it. 

Try a BMW. It's all personal at the end of the day. The 86 is fun but might feel a bit crude and unrefined if you like your Skoda from a daily commuting perspective. The BMW is a halfway house.
 
I still wouldn't swap, but the 86 is what it is and I can see why many would prefer a baby BMW. The sales figures bear that out.
 
Will tell you one thing though - a ten year old wandered over the other day and said 'cool car, mate'. That never happened with the 1 series.
 
And you know what? He's right...
 
 
 
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I wouldn't shoot you down... I've run the KU39s on a number of cars, including a 280bhp FWD Saab which needed all the help it could get... and I think they're great. Like the Yokohamas, they punch above their weight.
I'd have probably fitted a set to the 86 if it weren't for the ready supply in Macc of very reasonably priced Yokohamas...

 

 

 
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