Who would have thought, which car with a twist...

I know, I know it seems like every few days there is a "which car" thread posted on here.

I am in the process of refinancing my house to a 15 year loan and selling my 1999 M3 along with its $250.00 a month payment will mostly cover the payment difference. Not only will I get rid of the car payment, but I should have enough money left over from equity in the M3 to purchase a different vehicle and put a few grand in the bank. The question as usual is which car do I replace it with.

The reason this thread is a little different is because I already have most of the cars in question. As some of you already know I flip cars on the side for extra money and I have several cars in my possesion that would work already.

I have a car through work that I drive most of the time (free gas). My wife has a 2001 Sequioa that we are keeping, and drive if we ever have to go anywhere because it holds the kids. I also have a 1994 Sentra SE-R that has a roll cage and is used for track days and autocross, so fun is covered.

I am looking for something to drive on the weekend, run to the store in on occasion or take out of town (work car has to stay in county).

The M3 that will be for sale shortly...

B13 SE-R which I am keeping...

Now onto the contenders...

2001 Chevrolet Suburban 2500 LT 170K miles

Pros: Drives perfectly, well maintained, kids would fit easy as would stuff from home depot etc... would pull my trailer with the SE-R on it without issue so I would not have to steal wife's ride on track / autocross day.

Cons: Craptastic gas mileage, I already have one land barge, not really exciting to drive, needs tires...

1990 300ZX 5-Speed 140k

Pros: I have always wanted a 300ZX, Its in good shape and drives well, T-Tops...

Cons: Thinking about working under the hood makes my brain hurt, needs tires, isn't really as fast as I would like it to be...

1993 Corvette 6-Speed 100K Miles

Pros: 6-Speed c4, Torque, all the records back to day one, great shape, this one actually has new tires

Cons: I will make a pretty good lick on it when I sell it so keeping it prevents me from the profit right now, impractical, weird GM/ C4 Vette ergonomics

And the wild card I don't have at the moment but my friend offered me for a good price...

1996 318ti 5-Speed

Pro: Cheaper then the other options, great on gas, I have always liked 318ti's, The race tires from my M3 will fit

Con: Needs some cosmetics, not fast, can't pull a trailer, my wife would probably be less then pleased to drive it when I have her Sequioa.

So what do yall think... I initially was leaning towards the suburban because it is in good shape and is versatile but the 318ti is an intriguing option as well. The 300ZX is as nice as I would ever hope to find and is realativly cheap but working on it is kind of a pain. The corvette is last on my list because the footwell is cramped and I think I would rather have the profit from it more then the car itself.

I'd say sell the vette, because you said you were going to make the profit. You have race tires for the 318, so that's a plus. All said and told, I'd go for the 300z. You have a track car, a hauler, etc. Sounds like you can get an appliance whenever you want it. think the late 300z's are going to come into their own soon.... and that one looks nice.

I like the Z32!

Keeping any of the cars listed would prevent me from making the profit right now, but the Vette has the most profit potential of the bunch by far.

I have but one question does your wife need to haul the kids on the days you hyjack her car for tow duty? If so your choices drop to Suburban and the Ti if the kids are small enough but not too small (ie child seats)

If she also has a second car than you are golden and I would be tempted to keep the Ti it's a commuter, hwy car, it will never be an M3 but it would check all the boxes and still have a back seat in a pinch.

Sell off what you've got since you're not enamored with them all and buy something else, until you get bored and flip it for profit

I say sell the Burban, 300, and the C4 and keep pay off the M3. Plus it will still give you money to put in the bank since that is what you said you wanted to do in the original post.

The 300 and C4 look pretty clean, so they should sell easy.

Raze wrote: Sell off what you've got since you're not enamored with them all and buy something else, until you get bored and flip it for profit

^^^^ This. I routinely buy cars and sell them when i get bored with them.

Err, haven't you been reading the XK8 thread

Ugh, the C4 looks like my old one, I miss that car, so I'd vote C4 just on what I'd like to have around as a weekend toy. But conversely it seems the 300 is a car you want to have around so keep that and enjoy it for awhile and sell off the rest.

Sell ALL the sports cars - keep the Suburban. It sounds like you have a work car for daily driving - and you have a fun track car - The Suburban is the tool you need for Home Depot, race car, those flip cars you purchase, future cool projects.........

Datsun310Guy wrote: Sell ALL the sports cars - keep the Suburban. It sounds like you have a work car for daily driving - and you have a fun track car - The Suburban is the tool you need for Home Depot, race car, those flip cars you purchase, future cool projects.........

That's my choice too. If you've got a track car, you need a truck.

i'm confused by the premise of this discussion. please clarify:

1st. you already own ALL of the cars above and are trying to figure out what to sell (not my initial impression but seems to be what some people are thinking);

or

2nd. you're selling only the M3 and are looking to buy one of the "contenders"

The Z32, only if it's a turbo.

C4. I'd say the 300ZX if it was the TT model, but it's not.

I want to love 300zx turbo's, but they scare me almost as much as Audi S4's when it comes to having to work on them.

Drive the C4 and 300zx - I found my C4 to be a rattletrap. A fun, great handling and pretty quick rattletrap. Your tolerance to interior build quality may dictate what direction you go. Owning a C4 after the E36 M3 made me appreciate what a great overall car the M3 was...

That said, buy the C4, enjoy it, sell it, profit. Then buy something else, rinse, repeat.

AngryCorvair wrote: i'm confused by the premise of this discussion. please clarify: 1st. you already own ALL of the cars above and are trying to figure out what to sell (not my initial impression but seems to be what some people are thinking); or 2nd. you're selling only the M3 and are looking to buy one of the "contenders"

I bought the suburban, 300zx and the c4 Vette to resell, I already have all three in my possesion, although they are in the dealerships name not mine. The M3 is registered to me and is in my name.

I initially thought about paying off the M3 and keeping it but, I really don't need a 13k car at the moment. By selling it and paying off the loan balance of 5k I should pocket almost 8k. I can put 4k in the bank and then spend approximatly 4k or less on one of the above mentioned cars.

I'd be interested in the M3 depending on details when you finally decide.

I am still kind of leaning towards the burban just from the utility factor and the fact that I won't need to anger the wife on track days or autocrosses. It should be pretty stable value wise as long as gas doesn't skyrocket.

If I keep the 300ZX I will want to do a timing belt and water pump, and then it will need some tires. Both those items would seriously eat into the slim profit margin on a car in its price range.

<perk>

What sort of money are you talking for the ZX?

I am asking 3900.00 for the 300zx

Dave you have mail...

3900 + timing belt, water pump, tires... 5k+ for most people.

If it's super clean, it probably is worth what you are asking for it as long as the next owner knows what they are getting into.

Personally, i think the answer that makes sense is suburban. I think the answer that has a visceral payoff higher than 0 and still makes a little sense, is the 300zx. You should sell the vette because they suck to drive and it'll make you the most money.

The 318ti would be cool, if you dumped a bunch of money into it. When you're driving as most people normally drive on the streets, a 318ti is not a whole heck of a lot better than a 318 anything else, and a 318 anything else is COMPLETELY absent from any discussion on this forum.. It needs mods to be enticing to someone who already thinks a 300zx is borderline too slow (low-mid 15 car?). Also, it's basically a direct downgrade from what you're driving, which may feel like a letdown every time you drive it until you forget what an m3 is like.

I knew a guy who did intake and exhaust on a na z32 and did 14.9. That should be livable for most people. It should be relatively comfortable and the interior looks to be in great shape. It should be a decent place to spend time. That's my pick.

Well I whittled down the canidates a little....

I sold the C4 to a buddy who wouldn't stop bugging me after I mentioned it in passing.

I sold the Suburban to another buddy who was looking for something to tow his horse trailer with.

I went and looked at the 318ti and it is a bit rough for what I am looking for. It is pretty inexpensive but I am not really excited about it...

I am leaning towards the 300ZX, I think I am going to send a letter to the address on the title for the previous owner. I mean the car is mint, and has obviously been maintained. I am hoping that the previous owner will get back to me and say "yeah I did the timing belt last year etc...". I drove it this weekend and it isn't as slow as I thought it was. I could definetly deal with it and I am pretty sure as long as I keep it nice I should be able to sell it for more then I have in it.