Ekona

She was seeing 23mpg out of it, and that's on long motorway commutes. I managed to eke 27mpg out of it on the way back from Spa last year, but that was a struggle! IMS failure is possible on every Boxster in your price range. Any 986 and 987.1 car has this estimated 5% risk of IMS and engine failure. If you have a slush fund of about £7K then they're a bargain, but if not it's a big risk.

If you're worried about reliability and possible costs don't look at Boxsters or M3s, as IMS and Vanos costs respectively will make your eyes water.

I totally agree the looks are down to the individual, each to their own and all that. The 2.5L blocks are not particularly strong, which is why the JDM cars kept the 2.0L engine. For that reason (as well as cost, tbh) we ended up with an '05 late blobeye STi PPP. The 2.0L is a more frenetic engine to work with, which we liked, and the engine and 'box are rock solid. Interior is of course sheddy at best, but again like the hatch the seats and driving position are immense. The later blobeye cars had the wider track and improved suspension of the 2.5L hawkeyes, which makes a hell of a lot of difference. I'd buy another one in a heartbeat, the only reason we got rid of ours was simply the running costs were excessive in fuel & insurance for what was essentially just a runabout for the missus.

We test drove a 330 when they first came out as a possible car for the other half. Horrid styling, horrid interior, but by god was the drive thrilling. Loads of power, excellent grip, and the adjustable power/throttle response control worked far better than I thought it would. Seats were dead comfy, and all in I'd say it was definitely a car that I'd be happy to own from a driving POV.

Okay, definitely Romanians then!

Probably Romanians.

Confidence, as in a complete lack of it. They went in as favourites, but look at Cook's eyes in the interviews before the 1st test: They're dead. There's no belief there at all, and you could see that as soon as the wickets started falling.

Quite right, it should do. I think I just wrote them as they came into my head, I would definitely put a Zed in a sportier league than an M5. Not sure I'm right to do so, mind, but that's how my brain is wired. Also, no FWD ever goes in the category of sports. I love hot hatches, but I'd rather a slower sports car than a fast scrabble-wagon.

R8 is a 911 rival, def nowhere near the supercars of the world. RS4 is the same level as the M3, so should be with that really. I'm no t sure where you'd put uber-barges like the RS6/M5/PannyTT though. For straightline pace they're up there with the GTR and 911TT, but no good through the corners. My own attempt at this: Hypercars: Huayra, 918, FLF, P1 Supercars: 911TT (only because of pace!), 12C, any Lambo or Ferrari High end sports: R8, 911, 8C, SLS (not sure on this one), GT-R, F-Type, 'Vette Sports saloon: M3/5/6, RS4/5/6 Sports: Boxster, 350/370, Impreza/Evo, anything else quick but no FWD Hot hatch: Clio/Megane RS, Corsa/Astra VXR, Fiesta/Focus ST/RS Everything else that doesn't appeal to me as a keen driver!

I'd agree with that, but why is the RS4 in there twice? No way I'd call an RS4 or 5 a high end sports, I'd plump the R8 in there for that along with the F-Type V8S.

But hey, what would I know? I only spent 12 months researching 911s before purchasing mine, and then another 3.5 years running one.

D911 are very competitive, for most parts. Compare them with Porscheparts if you like. I've bought from both, as well as direct from OPCs and local indies. I don't believe I ever said they were the cheapest, it was more to use as a guide. If you would like to be helpful enough to share a source that's as comprehensive and easy to browse as the D911 website, then that would be great: I'm sure a chump with too much money like myself would find it a valuable resource. Maybe I was overstating that there are no carry over parts from the earlier cars to the 996, but any parts there are are inconsequential and I've yet to come across any. However, if you'd like to produce a concise list of the interchangeable parts then feel free to share them. Bearing in mind that the 993 was essentially the same car as the original produced 50 years ago, the 996 is the same as the 997, and the 991 is only the third true 'new' 911 ever made. Look that up if you like. Also, try reading my posts correctly next time: RMS is a couple of hundred quid, as that's the Rear Main Seal between block and 'box. The IMS is the InterMediate Shaft, which connects the two halves of the engine together and it's the bearing on this that fails. That's what costs mega bucks if it does. You can change it to the later ones if you wish, but there's still no guarantee it will not fail due to the design. This is why Porsche engineered it out of the 9A1 engines, and why a gen2 is a safe bet long term.

Some parts are relatively cheap, some are just ridiculously expensive. Depends on what bits (brakes especially seem to be a tad pricey, comparatively). The 996 did not have any carry over parts from super old 911s. Have a look here for an idea of costs for various bits. If I was buying a 996 (or 997.1, for that matter), then I'd go for a good condition one with high miles. Much less chance of IMS explosions that way, as if it hasn't happened already then it probably won't. If the IMS goes, then you're looking at around £7k to £10K to fix. RMS is a just a seal that might leak a bit, you can get this sorted when the clutch gets changed for a couple of hundred quid. There are still D-chunk risks on the early M96 engines, but that's pot luck and nothing you can do about it. A full inspection including checks for bore scoring would be a must, for me. Have a read of this website and see about IMS/D-chunk issues for yourself (covers 996 + 997 engines). As a drive, the 997.1 is a better car than the 996, but as you say will also suffer depreciation. I'd be tempted to go for the 996 and just enjoy it for what it is, which is a very capable sports coupe.

Cameron has committed to no such referendum. It might well be in the Tory manifesto, but don't kid yourself that they wouldn't drop it if it suited them politically. If Scotland leave the UK, then they become independent. The UK will still exist. The UK is a member of the EU: England, Wales and NI are not. The UK will remain part of the EU. Scotland may or may not have to apply for membership. The Act of Union 1800 is not affected by the withdrawal of Scotland from the 1707 one, just like when the ROI act was repealed in 1962.

It looks an utter mess. Until you see it in the flesh. I've only seen the one, at a PHSS two years ago, but I've still got the hard-on from that. Incredibly imposing cars, very unique in design.

Exactly. Guesswork and probablies are not a good reason to vote for such a massive change.

Funny, I completed it too over the Xmas break after going back to it, and I really enjoyed it too. It's not the deepest game in the world, but it's very entertaining and extremely pretty. Although it is QTE-heavy by nature, I never found it to be dull or repetitive, and some of the bad guys are right sods to kill unless you get your counters spot-on in timing. Combat flowed better than AC3 and just as well as the Batman games, I think. I doubt we'll ever see a sequel, but I'd give it a shot if there was.

That website is truly horrendous, and full of the worst kind of subversive text. I'll pick on just one 'fact' that caught my eye: 250,000 tonnes of low radioactive London Olympic waste was dumped in Falkirk! Well, no actually. Their own quoted source is the Daily Mail from 2008(!) that says that a report states that there may be some contaminated land around the site of the 2012 village. Nowhere do they actually say that the land was definitely dumped in Falkirk, or even if it was dumped at all. It's a cheap headline that they cannot prove either way, and that's disturbing. The whole site is sham figures and guesswork ripped from old sources. I'm not saying that the No campaign website is any better (I've not looked truth be told), but that's truly awful.

You're assuming that the general adult populace is making an informed decision, and not just going on soundbites. I'd put more faith in kids to do a bit of research than I would adults who generally just seem to vote for the person they like best on the telly. Applies as much to politics everywhere in the world as to this particular debate.

The UK will let Scotland keep the pound, I've no doubt, but it will be in return for a massive amount of your oil. The cost to change currencies for Scotland would be massive, much larger than any deal that will be struck for oil, so I suspect that any Scottish independent government will have little choice but to give in on that.

360 and PS3 versions were cancelled in Nov last year.

Your call, of course, but I wouldn't be risking a £1000+ bill because of what some spotty oik in Halfords was guessing at when he's about as clued up as I am on what the oil level is. It's not his car, he's not going to make any money from it if it goes bang or if it's okay, why should he give a damn? You could've had a single litre of oil in there. You've now got 1.75L of oil in there, which is still massively below the recommended level. Why chance it? In the hours since you've been posting this, you could've easily drained and replaced the oil and know exactly where you stand. I really hope it all works out for you, and I'm sorry if my posts are coming across the wrong way, but sticking your head in the sand and hoping for the best does not seem to be conducive to a good result here. Good luck with your car, fingers crossed you have no damage.

Bosch for me, too. Or whatever Halfords have in stock that fits, if you need it desperately. You're after one that is the same physical size and with as many CCA as possible.

Why 0.75L? You have no idea what is in it, by your own admission, so you could now be 1L under or 0.75L over, you just don't know. Stop driving the car, drain the oil, and refill.

At this point, the only answer is to do a full oil change. That way you can find out exactly how much was in there, as well as ensuring you have the right amount in.