Considering Lancer Ra or Colt Ra - Opinions Wanted

[T-All3NT]

I've been thinking about getting something a bit more fun to drive. Right now I don't have the finances to do anything at this stage its more or less planning what I'm going in the next year or two. I have looked for prices for 2nd hand and the colt is about 15k for one in good condition. While the lancer is around the 25-27k. From some quick research both cars get around 7secs fr 0-100km. I have next to nothing in money at the moment but I finish school this year and most probably taking a gap year to work. So I think I can get (let me know if I'm wrong) about 16-18k for my 2009 cvt es once I fix up the damaged bumpers (gonna cost me bout 2k painted). So how much does it cost to maintain either car and the insurance, petrol, ect. The only downside I see with the colt is its smaller size compared to the lancer(it is awd isn't it? can't find a definitive answer). Also people who own/owned either car, what did you like and what didn't you like? If you can think of an alternative car (like the wrx) around the same price range and power that would be great as well

I know its a lot to read also a lot to type anything you have to say is appreciated

[lancervr]

errr i think 16-18k for ure car is a lil too optimistic... u would probs be lookin at around 11-13k tbh....

[squala]

Of course, it will have to be the Lancer. It does way better than 7 seconds to 100. Whoever said it takes that long for it to reach that speed is a complete moron. It's much quicker than the Colt and with 4WD, works better in the bends as well.

The Colt RA has good speed, is cheaper to buy and run, and seems to be rarer as well, but its tall, narrow stance is likely to compromise handling. I think it also rides on torsion beam rear suspension, so if ever, that won't help either.

I wouldn't really consider changing from the Lancer to a Colt, to be honest. If you want something faster, there are lots of ways to make your ES more powerful, if you haven't done so yet. You may be looking at about $4-5K out of pocket to sell your car and get the Colt, so why not spend that for performance or handling upgrades instead? But if you have the budget and want something beyond the limits of the standard Lancer, then the RA will be great.

[Kyrus]

What kind of requirement do you meed? 4/2 doors? AWD RWD FWD? Going to carry stuff? narrow this down for us and we can give you suggestions. Theres a tonne of possibility with the 10 odds k you get from your car and from your work.

[AdamD]

From some quick research both cars get around 7secs fr 0-100km.(it is awd isnt it?

The Colt RA is FWD. And it ain't that quick.

[noo$h]

i got my 2009 CVT ES for $15,500 midway through last year. so i imagine it would have definitely have dropped a bit from there

[LZY_EYE]

A few words of wisdom (I use the term loosely )

There is no way in hell you will get $16-$18k for your ES. When an Activ is selling for about $23-$24k inc ORC for a CVT, this makes it very hard to extract a good trade in out of used cars.

Don't start looking too soon. You will drive yourself mad! Save save and save, and when you are about 3 months out from making a decision go and start looking.

Go and test drive plenty of cars. Even if you don't like a certain car, go and drive it. Will help in comparing the car you really want. You may find you end up buying a car you may not have liked beforehand.

Take peoples advice... BUT... Make sure that it is what YOU want. Everyone is different, so bear this in mind when asking what people recommend.

Out of the 2 choices you have, I would personally choose the RA Lancer. I find the Colt a little too small personally, but it a great car and being so small is like a go kart I would have went the RA if it had decent seats in it. It is a great car for the money, and is a good package out of the box with so much more you can do to it.

Just check insurance before you sign up. They can be hefty to insure.

[Dirtee]

The RA is so fun to drive
And IMO looks alot better and has alot more space then the cold. Plus the downside of having FWD again is the killer. But thats my 2 cents. See what you like!

[LZY_EYE]

I really need to show you how much fun you can have in a FWD don't I Timmy

[Momengah]

In my opinion if you want a fun car to drive go with the RA. Although I cannot say that the RColt isn't fun to drive though as I have never been behind the wheel of one.

Having ownec a VRX before and switching to the RA i can definitely say that there was a world of difference. On that first weekend when i picked up my RA, you could barely get me out of it. I drove nearly 300km smiling all the way. The power, the grip... everything was just so much different, so much fun. I can definitely recommend it.

On a down side, the RA is a lot more costlier to run then your NA lancers. As mentioned before by others, the insurance costs goes up. Then you need to start thinking about maintenance (service and oil change) which is more often because of it's turbo nature. The RA also uses 98RON fuel so fuel costs goes up, and it gets less distance for the same amount of fuel - so it goes up a lot more then you would think. Then you need to start thinking about future costs such as tyres or other replacement parts which might cost more then your current car.

So what I'm trying to say is... Budget! check your sums, double check them and if you think you can afford it.. THEN go for it. Because unfortunately these cars come with a lot of baggage (The RA I mean - but I would imagine the RColt being turbo charged would be similar too) even though they are so much fun!

[ninjured]

i think the ralliart lancer would sit more around the 6 second mark if not quicker.

however.... for me personally i found the drive incredibly boring in both sst versions RA and EVO. Sure its lightning on the gear changes but pulls all the fun out of the drive.I felt like i wasnt doing enough to call it driving,

my reccomendations would be

golf r32 thats an amazing car, great sound, great traction, straight on the power.

mazda 3 mps. owned a gen 2 for a year fun as hell ! if you dont mind a bit of torque steer. 6 mps is awd drive same engine as the mps3 but heavier car.

xr5 girlfriend has one of these great driving car lacks a bit of power though unmoded.

then there a whole range of Renault sports which you can pick up pretty cheap, although reliability would be an issue.

personally id hold out for a toyota 86 !!! haha

[whitenight]

pm nick from PMR hes owned and driven both

[justin]

+1 on the Toyota 86 if you can afford it

find what you like test drive a few cars,
RA Lancers are amazing but they have there down sides like all cars...
MPS3 is good but does suffer from a seemly large amount of tourqe steer...
does it have to be a 4 door? or can it be a 2 door coupe like a 200SX or an evo 6.7.8?
just a thought but Evo 8's would be so much more fun than a RA Lancer
only reason i took the RA over one is because of the age and warranty compared to a black import

[ijustatecurry]

RA will certainly be more well equipped and more powerful than the colt with more room for mods. Colt would be a fun little go kart to own and is most certainly cheaper to insure and maintain. No SST certainly makes it cheaper to maintain! Unsure of colt insurance but you're likely looking >1k for the lancer.

On top of the r32 that was mentioned earlier, a golf gti sounds like the perfect middleground for colt and lancer. Turbo fwd that would come with a few more luxuries than the colt and most probably more readily available mods + better resale

[Nick07]

XR5 - Sister has one and they are awesome cars.