Can I get a mk2 16V GTI for less than a grand?

[Darkslider]

I've got at most £1000 to buy a new car, want a 3 door hot hatch which is reasonably quick, think 8 second 0-60 or better. Been looking at MK3 golf gtis, 306 gti, saxo vts, Almera GTI etc. Watching a couple of early Mk2 Ibiza 16vs on ebay and wondering could I pick up an R plate one in average condition for about £800? This is what the early ones seem to be finishing at so wondering if anyone has any thoughts.
If there's any suggestions for other cars I haven't thought of they'd be much appreciated.
Thanks.

 

[Dolly_Gti]

you can buy a good example of a 2L 16v Ibiza mk2 for a grand. id rather have it any day over the french mentioned cars ( having wrote a saxo off ) in my opinion its a better looking car than the mk3 Golf with the same engine and im lead to believe quicker.

the thing is newer cars might be a bit quicker like 20vt ect but they are out your price range, old cars like a mk2 Golf 16v is probably 1500-2 grand for a half decent one. and a knackerd one will probably cost you 1500-2 grand putting right. the way i see it the ibiza is old enough to be cheap, but new enough to be reliable and parts are available. and they still go like stink

 

[truCido]

Don't know about the above, I found it quite a struggle to get a decent mk2 16V for £1k a lot of people wanted £1500 for them, but I managed to find one for £1k in the end but I had to travel for it!

 

[silverline1]

you'll not get a decent one for £1000.

it will be rusty, faded, moon miles and probably have a low mot/tax left on it.

a decent mk2 16v doesnt start til you have an extra £500

 

[16vGtiCupra]

I have one that I would class as decent in the for sale section, like you I wanted a quick car that wasnt knackered (but this was 12 months ago and I was looking at under £2000). I looked at mk3 golf 16v's - way to expensive with mental miles (which i suppose shows a good example when thinking of how far a low milage ibiza will go). Gti6's are french, they are great fun but they WILL break...lots. VTS's are again french, WILL break, and ultimately are not a patch on a gti6. This lead me to the Ibiza.

There are a few around for sale, but you will be looking at a horridly high milage for under £1000.

Mine is in the for sale section here, priced at £1400ono if you are interested. The ibiza's are performance bargains when stacked up against competitors

 

[ReggieB]

I was hunting for a GTI 2.0 16V for about 2 months, before i found mine. got the owner down from £1500 to £900, but now i need to spend £250 on it to get it perfect again.

it is a struggle to find nice ones for low prices.

 

[Dolly_Gti]

bah £1200 for an R plated valver on 26k ... your just not looking hard enough, admitadly mileage will be heading toward 100k now. im always seeing cupras for 800-1200 to be honest never look too closely though.

depends if u want "mint" or aint so fussy.

 

[Gm8]

most i was offered for my white8v was 500 lol , but sold my black8v the other week for 1150 ( a good few mods tho )

 

[Cupra Kid]

its possible, but if you want a good 16v for a grand forget golfs and ibiza's, get a cordoba.

Same engine, more space and like less well than the others hence cheaper, better specced too.

Better handling due to a little extra weight and will still smash 60 in under 8!

 

[Darkslider]

Thought I'd mention I'm a qualified mechanic so have no qualms about sorting minor mechanical issues, as long as it's not going to cost too much! Ideally I'd like a clean and tidy 16v in black, mileage up to 100k doesn't bother me too much either. I guess I'll just keep an eye on the bay and autotrader and see what comes up. With any luck there'll be a mint condition MOT failure that needs some simple work for peanuts. I can only hope

Having looked on Parkers and the like the Ibiza does seem like the best out of all my choices. It's got straight line performance of the VTS, with more luxuries, better build quality and more space and reliability. I've always had a soft spot for the Ibizas as well so I don't think I'll be able to find a better car for my money

 

[m0rk]

surely a qualified mechanic would know that a car doesn't fall to bits at 100k?

 

[edc]

Might put mine up for sale soon ish. Prob look around the £1k mark. Not used the sight much in recent months but it's fair to say ibiza needs a little minor cosmetic attention, 115k miles, mods include arbs, coilovers, green panel filter, Ibiza Cupra R exhaust. Could throw in a few spares, airbox, haynes manual. Look out in the for sale section hopefully in the near future ...

 

[Boi Ninja]

...man you can find a decent one for around a grand, they are always popping up.

 

[Tom B]

I paid £900 for my 98 GTI 16v with 69k on it back in 2006. It needed a centre box and a PAS belt when I bought it, so it finally owed me £950.

The interior was mint, the arch rust was still on the insides so I fixed that with Hammerite and the rest of the exterior was perfect.

Oh and it was no VTS, my mates would edge away on the straights and be gone on the bends. I had more repairs on my Ibiza in a year than he's had in 3 years. I think his is the only well built Citroen out there!

 

[AlpineWhite]

surely a qualified mechanic would know that a car doesn't fall to bits at 100k?

I once had a fiesta that was doing exactly that

 

[projectgingawar]

I've got at most £1000 to buy a new car, want a 3 door hot hatch which is reasonably quick, think 8 second 0-60 or better. Been looking at MK3 golf gtis, 306 gti, saxo vts, Almera GTI etc. Watching a couple of early Mk2 Ibiza 16vs on ebay and wondering could I pick up an R plate one in average condition for about £800? This is what the early ones seem to be finishing at so wondering if anyone has any thoughts.
If there's any suggestions for other cars I haven't thought of they'd be much appreciated.
Thanks.

both ibiza gti's will beat any of those cars above! not sure on the prices of 16v but my 8v was for sale for 900 quid for ages and nobody was interested.

 

[projectgingawar]

[
Oh and it was no VTS, my mates would edge away on the straights and be gone on the bends. I had more repairs on my Ibiza in a year than he's had in 3 years. I think his is the only well built Citroen out there![/QUOTE]

i think there was something wrong with your's then mate!! i easily beat a vtr and a vts both on the same sprint track! and i can just about keep straight line speed with work collueges 106 gti.( my ibiza is quicker off the line, then the 106 gets it back a bit)

 

[16vGtiCupra]

yeah I have a standard and well looked after 16v, it destroys any saxo, they might can a lenght off the line, but any loss is soon clawed back in. Yeah people might talk about power to weight etc, but in all reality, they ibiza doesnt weigh much more that the saxo at all, and 150bhp pulls alot more that a little 1.6 saxo, especially after 30mph. I would say any ibiza struggling against a saxo is experiancing some problems somewhere.

Corners however is a different story, yes, ibizas are fairley chuckable, but saxo's, 306's, 106's, 205's and the like are planted on rails! (until of course you reach the limits of mechanical grip, when you are sure to experiance death in a poorly made, metal french coffin!!!)

 

[Tom B]

My Ibiza was slammed and had aircon on all the time, so a Cupra Sport might have a chance on the straights, oh and his VTS has about 140bhp. Power to weight, the Saxo beats the Ibiza, and Mk2s handle like jelly. Cordoba SX's are marginally better, but they've got more weight.

 

[projectgingawar]

a vts with 140bhp! no wonder it was fast! although i really can't see why your ibiza handled like jelly cos mine's on rails! haven't been out-cornered by anything yet! and as for power to weight, every body seems to have forgotten the most vital weapon in the ibiza's favour...torque! my 8v made almost 150lb/ft. a goood 30 more than any saxo can ever hope to make without the aid of forced induction!