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[Jamerz]

Hey guys,

Now I'm a bit older and will soon have 3NCB I will finally be able to afford to insure a hot hatch! I've been reading through the forum and I'm keen to get a brabus.

I see a fair few listed every now and then but they all seem to be 100K+ what should be my main concern with that? whats the lifespan of a turbo etc..? How much would a Cbelt & Wpump cost at S2's roughley?

I would be daily driving it about 35 miles everyday, what MPG can I roughly expect from mixed driving on A&B roads? The colt manages about 47-53 

Many thanks in advance!

[Coverman]

If I keep the engine off boost I can get 36-7 mpg on a run. Use the boost and you won't even get 30 mpg. This us not an economy car by any stretch of the imigination.My car has done 103K miles incidentally. It is not so much the mileage, more the care of ownership that should concern a buyer.

[Brabs]

Agreed ^^^. Service history is good to have. Cam belt should ideally be every 60,000 miles or six years. Water pump isn’t driven by cam belt. Budget about £300. Check MOT history on DVLA website using reg’ number. Mechanically these cars seem pretty robust. Just normal wear and tear as you would expect on any car of the same age. For a car with a 1.5 turbo, giving a factory 175 bhp you can’t realistically expect it to be an economy car. Round town mine will be 30 - 35 mpg... on a run add 10 more. Good fun though for very little money. 😉

[mr singh]

if your doing 35 miles a day, which works out at about 700 miles a month, the brabus could be an option IF you don't mine spending the money on fuel.

during my 9 years of forfour ownership, iv found that mileage is nothing to worry about as they all use Japanese (petrol) engines.

[CrazyG]

........The colt manages about 47-53 

You can't mean the comparable CZT/Ralliart CZT as they according to
Autotrader manage 32.8mpg urban, 49.6mpg extra urban (motorway),
and 41.5mpg  combined....
The Brabus figures are 31.7mpg, 50.4mpg, and 41.5mpg
Figures are figures, and in 'the real world' I doubt many  would
actually acheive those unless really trying. I've never got over
48mpg from mine I have to say....and I was trying very hard.

The CZT is 147bhp and the Brab is 177bhp as standard...
the Brab is the quicker and faster of the 2....and getting to be
as rare as 'rocking horse pooh'.

There is what appears to be a nice Brab on Autotrader at the mo...
2005, silver, 84k miles, 2 keys, 12months MoT, £2795....

[Problemchild]

Rear shocks
Cracked blowing manifold
Hesitation off the line (throttle valve)
Crooked wheels

That’s about it

Aim for the best exterior you can - the mechanicals are easily rectified but the exterior not so much.

Mpg - I get 25mpg but I’m only doing town driving a traffic light GPs
On a run I’ve had mid-late 40s

JJ

[Jamerz]

........The colt manages about 47-53 

You can't mean the comparable CZT/Ralliart CZT as they according to
Autotrader manage 32.8mpg urban, 49.6mpg extra urban (motorway),
and 41.5mpg  combined....
The Brabus figures are 31.7mpg, 50.4mpg, and 41.5mpg
Figures are figures, and in 'the real world' I doubt many  would
actually acheive those unless really trying. I've never got over
48mpg from mine I have to say....and I was trying very hard.

The CZT is 147bhp and the Brab is 177bhp as standard...
the Brab is the quicker and faster of the 2....and getting to be
as rare as 'rocking horse pooh'.

There is what appears to be a nice Brab on Autotrader at the mo...
2005, silver, 84k miles, 2 keys, 12months MoT, £2795....

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201908121051422?radius=1500&advertising-location=at_cars&postcode=gl53ep&onesearchad=Used&onesearchad=Nearly%20New&onesearchad=New&aggregatedTrim=BRABUS&make=SMART&model=FORFOUR&sort=relevance&page=1

That one there, I've been keeping my eye on it and its now cheaper,

its had 6 owners though and the mot history looks a bit suspect with random tests halfway through and mot?

A wild one but do you think anyone would have any info on KR05 OBV

[Brabs]

It’s a heck of a lot of car for the money. Remember, these were nudging £18000 when new, back in 2005 that was quite a bit.
Seems tidy enough in the photos, looks to be standard and doesn’t seem to have been messed about with at all. If you are close enough would be worth giving it a test drive. If it drives ok with no odd noises could be worth a punt. Make sure that the clutch has plenty of bite, check the wheels and tyres and as it appears to have the original manifold lift the bonnet and listen for any blowing from a cold start. 

[cecil]

The original wheels are known as 'cheese' for a reason. One advantage of the forfour over the colt is that the body panels dont rust..........They are plastic! This means the car is lighter and so gives better dynamic performance.
Check the rear dampers- they often leak but are easy to replace.
Bottom line-The Brab  also has more power with a number of members on this site having tuned theirs -for when you can afford the insurance. Good luck

[Coverman]

Six owners in 14 years is not abnormal for a performance car.Mid-term MOTs probably reflect change of ownership timings.