Ekona

No-one shoud drive just one car forever, if you've got the itch then scratch it.

The GT-R being twice as expensive to run as the Zed? Yup, I can believe that. Nice work

It's not about being faster. If it was, I'd go and buy a £1K MR2 turbo and whack the boost up. It's about how the different cars feel to drive. Also, can you please avoid using txt spk. Thanks.

Shocking stuff. Have you tried calling Racing Hart and asking them?

If I was tracking it I wouldn't, if it was only on the road then I would.

I didn't notice that it had fallen over until after I'd taken the pics, really irritated me as that was a brand new pad and I've had to throw the bloody thing away now I do normally stand it up on the handle, honest!

The Porsche sports exhaust (PSE) will sort the noise, don't worry about that.

Bah, no-one comments if you don't give them pics apparently After a marathon session on Sunday detailing a mate's new E46 M3, the front of another 911 and the side of an MR2, I got carried away today and did my own 911, the Impreza and... The MX-5! For the first ever clean since my ownership! Before: After: Somewhat better, no? Far from perfect, as the paintwork is beyond saving at points (you can see where the wing was given a quick coat of spray can black paint by the previous owner in the clean wheel pic, that'll never come up shiny) but the bonnet came up pretty good despite the dull finish, and I'm quite happy with the wheels too. Shots of the new seat, gearknob and steering wheel:

I blame the dodgy photography

Not just me going mad then

Is that not a debadged R? Can't see the inside to tell for sure, but it's got the Spyder wheels and the spoiler, and the black wing mirrors...

I'd like to see someone buy a TVR or Noble with a full warranty.

Keevil is a decent airfield, bit abrasive but then they all are really. I like it there

Right, gotcha. Cayman with a warranty is a very safe thing indeed, but bear mind you cannot mod a single thing on it. No non-N rated tyres, no different wheels, no aftermarket exhausts. I'm not sure how restrictive the BMW warranty is, probably less, but probably less comprehensive. Not sure if any of that matters to you or not. If you need the space, then go for the M3. If you don't, get the Cayman.

And the Cayman or M3 will be much better?

Jay, that link goes to a 911 GTS4 for me.

If you want to do the Porsche thing, then I'd be looking at a 996 turbo for that money. It really isn't going to depreciate much further, whereas you've got a new Cayman on the way early next year and the M3 won't be far behind, so either of those still have a way to fall. That way, you can get the Porsche itch done and if you don't like them then you can swap to something else without losing too much cash.

Gotcha. Didn't realise we were talking budget over spec. It'd be a gen1 Cayman for that money. Very, very different cars. For me it would probably be the M3 I think as I prefer the V8 to the earlier M97 in the Porker, but Chris has got it spot-on when we're talking weekend vs all round car. You take the Cayman if you want something fun to throw around, you take the M3 if you need to get the kids in. Both fantastic cars, and I'd have both over a GT86.

Which of which? Cayman S: gen 1 or 2? M3: E46, 90 or 92?

Well, you learn something new every day. Thanks chaps.

I've driven a HR 350 on the 050As, they were the same on that. Could possibly be your alignment or tyre pressures, or something else suspension-wise that coud be broken.

Yes they do fit. Are you sure? Okay, I've never tried it myself, but everything I've read on here over the years said that they don't fit. Happy to be proved wrong though, would really open the market up if that were the case.

I've run them for 12K miles on the 911, and they're very good. They're not quite as grippy or communicative in the wet or dry as the Michelins, but they're a pretty close second. They do wear better though, I'll give them that. 18 months?! Blimey, the wheels could be anywhere! Without getting too bogged down in detail, if you had the front wheels toeing out (i.e. pointing outwards from the car) then when you turn into a corner, the wheel is already pointing in that direction so it will turn in much quicker. You'll lose straight line stability at speed (meaning it can be a bit twitchy at motorway speeds), but then any alignment is always a compromise of something. If you had toe in, you'd get the opposite. Apologies if I'm teaching you to suck eggs here. With camber, if you stand the tyre straight upright then when you turn into a corner you will lose a significant amount of contact patch, and so that tyre will suffer from lack of grip. If you add camber then you'll get the opposite, so more grip into a corner but increased inner tyre wear over long distances. Combining the two into a combination that works for you is a true art form, and I'm not sure where you're based but Dixon at DMS in Erith did wonders for me on my car. Abbey should be able to do the same, or a multitude of places around the country. I have my cars set up with a little toe out and maximum camber at the front, and then the rears almost upright on the 911 but cambered over a touch more on the MX-5, which is probably more like the setup you'd want on the Zed.

Nope.

This.