Buying a car: Personality required

THERE ARE CARS out there which are brilliant; they're fast, reliable, comfortable, practical and economical...but I wouldn't touch them with a barge pole!

The new McLaren MP4-12C (above) is a case in point, on paper it is considerably faster than its rivals, it is also more comfortable, has more technology, is more economical and is greener. Brilliant, you might say, it is the best car in every area, why would you want to buy anything else?

The trouble is we don't buy cars (especially ones that costs in excess of £160k) with our heads, we buy them with our hearts. That's why just about every magazine and TV show put the Ferrari 458 (right) ahead of the Macca; because it is too clinical, too cold and doesn't excite the driver like its Italian arch rival.


Choosing the underdog

There are many cars out there which are technically speaking, quite poor, but I would have one over its rivals because it looks better or sounds better or simply has more soul. For example, the new MG6 (left) has recently been launched and received less than glowing reviews from the motoring press.

However, if I was looking for a car in that segment I would walk right past the Ford Focus, the VW Golf and the Vauxhall Astra and I would hand my nearest MG dealer a cheque for £19k. It may not be as well equipped, as comfortable, as spacious or as cheap to run as the others but it drives well, it handles better than a car of its type has any right to and despite the fact that MG are now under Chinese control, there's still something about that octagonal badge on the nose that resonates with petrolheads in a way that other mainstream marques simply do not.


Faithful old friend
 
Let me talk about my own car for a moment. Back in 2008 I bought a Ford Fiesta Zetec-S (right) for £2395. It is great fun to drive, although you need to work the little 1.6-litre engine hard to keep pace, it handles sweetly, the gearbox is a joy to use and the relative lack of weight teamed with a willing chassis means you can chuck it into corners and have a right old laugh doing it.

Unfortunately, after just a couple of weeks there were some issues. Firstly; there was a fairly major oil leak, secondly; the gearbox needed to be sent back to Ford to be reconditioned due to a problem with 1st, 3rd and 5th gears caused by the previous owner, and I quote: "ragging it over speed bumps". Since then there has also been another oil leak, a failure of the ABS sensors a leak in the boot, some electrical gremlins and a not inconsiderable amount of rust. It can be vulgar to talk about money but let's just say that in the time I've had it I've spent more than I originally paid for the car putting things right.

Most other owners would have cut their losses and sent it to the scrapyard long ago but I have developed a relationship with it, it's like having a faithful old dog or a child or something. Just because it needs a bit of fixing now and again doesn't mean you simply give up and throw it away. I could have bought all manner of cars instead by now but to me the Fiesta has a personality, and that's something money cannot buy.


Function over form

This brings me onto the Bugatti Veyron (left). Much has been said about the Veyron, its million pound price tag, it's 1000bhp and its 250mph+ top speed. But do you know what, given all the money in the world I still wouldn't buy one. It simply doesn't excite me in any way. It is an ugly car, there's no other way of putting it, it really was function over form when VW's engineers were crafting its shape.

Yes it has a truly astonishing set of figures but when was the last time you felt excited while looking at some numbers? Then there's the way it can effortlessly cruise at 250mph, I don't want 250mph to feel effortless. I want the car to feel like it is trying to pull itself apart, like it is really trying its absolute hardest rather than sitting there twiddling its thumbs and yawning.

The Bugatti Veyron is a soulless and emotionless car, you don't drive it with a smile on your face, you drive it with a stern expression. I won't deny that it is a very impressive car, but I don't want to be impressed. Quite simply, I just want to have fun.