What other fun cars should I be considering?

z31maniac wrote: Something in the $15-18k range, fun to drive, sporty and that won't have the maintenance requirements of the current GT Mustang (PRICEY 255/40/19s, expensive oil changes, and with the 3.73s instead of the 3.31s the car gets really terrible mileage)

I know... I know, I'm a broken record....... for your price range... a well built, full interior AE86 could be right in your ally....

$3k-$6k for the car... spend $5k on drivetrain* and brakes. no special oils/fluids... well maybe a little LSD additive.. Top of the line tires... $550, moderate... $300.

Just as an example, my Corolla (white AE71) has about $17k in her... is VERY fun, and still delivers 31+mpg

Just a thought.....

Expensive oil changes? You don't do them yourself?

Also, get some cheap 18s from American Muscle or something. Much cheaper tires, and there are plenty of 18s that can clear Brembo brakes.

What about a non-M e46? I love mine and it's the second e46 chassis I've owned. Here are both:

Sky_Render wrote: Expensive oil changes? You don't do them yourself? Also, get some cheap 18s from American Muscle or something. Much cheaper tires, and there are plenty of 18s that can clear Brembo brakes.

Track Pack car, 5w-50. Keep up.

That's an idea, but these cars look stupid with 18s.

oldeskewltoy wrote:

z31maniac wrote: Something in the $15-18k range, fun to drive, sporty and that won't have the maintenance requirements of the current GT Mustang (PRICEY 255/40/19s, expensive oil changes, and with the 3.73s instead of the 3.31s the car gets really terrible mileage)

I know... I know, I'm a broken record....... for your price range... a well built, full interior AE86 could be right in your ally.... $3k-$6k for the car... spend $5k on drivetrain* and brakes. no special oils/fluids... well maybe a little LSD additive.. Top of the line tires... $550, moderate... $300. Just as an example, my Corolla (white AE71) has about $17k in her... is VERY fun, and still delivers 31+mpg Just a thought.....

Hahaha, no. Even if I did like the old Corolla's, I don't need to two project cars with one of them being a DD.

If that was the case I'd just buy another E30, but I would really like something made in the last 7-9 years or so.

2ZZ swapped MR2 Spyders get well in to the 30mpg range while having the same power to weight as an NSX. It's basically a poor man's Elise. You could do that for WELL under $15-18k, hell for that much you could do the swap and add a supercharger for even more power and still be well under budget.

That or an S2000 would be my choice.

z31maniac wrote: Track Pack car, 5w-50. Keep up. That's an idea, but these cars look like donks with 19s.

FTFY.

Sky_Render wrote:

z31maniac wrote: Track Pack car, 5w-50. Keep up. That's an idea, but these cars look like donks with 19s.

FTFY.

I disagree, the wheel wells are so huge and tire gap so dramatic, these car really need 20s.

18s means even shorter tires exaggerating the 4x4 truck stance.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2002-MASERATI-SPYDER-FRESH-SERVICE-LOW-MILES-/400448909193?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item5d3c9d6f89

z31maniac wrote: I disagree, the wheel wells are so huge and tire gap so dramatic, these car really need 20s. 18s means even shorter tires exaggerating the 4x4 truck stance.

You're doing it wrong. These are 18s:

What 4x4 stance?

Tires have been covered and as for gas mileage try short shifting in town. You’re going to take much more of a bath on selling a relatively new car vs. the savings from reduced (mythical??) running costs.

If this thread was centered around 'I'm bored and want a new car' then fine, but the financial argument is a nonstarter.

Adrian_Thompson wrote: Tires have been covered and as for gas mileage try short shifting in town. ...

...or just putting the old gears back on.

And you can still run 5w20 or 5w30. The thicker weight oil simply assumes you're running flat-out on a road course. And don't use overpriced Motorcraft oil. I spend less than half what you do on oil changes.

The car came with those gears as well, again Track Pack car. I frequently do 1-3-5 in town. I'm not interested in dropping money on suspension/wheels on a car that is my DD. I already have a track car for that stuff. I keep my DD's completely stock.

Adrian, not sure how you say it's a non-starter the two different lots I've spoken with have offered me $1k less for trade than what I owe. Payment/gas/insurance would make that up in 2-3 months depending on purchase price of the "new" vehicle........then it becomes gravy after that.

Hot hatch? Focus ST? Wait on and check out the new Fiesta ST?

There is a guy locally who runs a 328 wagon at autocross and does awesome, I think its one of the newer ones (body style after e46?) but its surprisingly quick

That's not a bad idea either. I really enjoyed my Speed 3 when I had it, awesome little car. But at the time the wife said, "If you want a project car, get a truck for the house."

So I did, then it turned out we never used the truck and I didn't particularly like driving it.

So here we are again.

Sky_Render wrote: What 4x4 stance?

well, compared to this:

He keeps comparing his modified vehicle to my stock one.

Man...I've heard a lot of complaints about Mustangs before. But "geared too low" and "expensive to maintain" are not things I associate with stock (or nearly stock) Mustangs. My advice is to be careful... it could be much worse.

If you just flat-out don't like the car, I can empathize with that. Subjectively, the newest generation of Mustangs has never quite won me over like the '99-'04 cars did.

I'm liking the S2000 suggestion best.