Yet another "what car" thread.

So my faithful daily driver of 13 years is on its last legs due to rust. Whether I fail inspection because of it, or have to take it off the road for considerable time to repair or part out, I'm probably going to need something other than the RX-7 in the interim. My criteria:

Price range: around $10k, although I'd consider something in the $15k range for something newer/lower miles/better.

Since I'm keeping the FD, 2-seaters are out. Sorry, Miata. RWD is fine though. Extra points if it's easy to fit snow tires.

Parts availability, ease of maintenance, not needing specialized tools/computer devices to work on a plus.

No boring people movers. It's gotta have personality, be somewhat unique and fun to drive. My commute is relatively short so MPG isn't a huge factor. It does snow/ice here in the winter sometimes so I've got to be able to get to work in all conditions.

So some options I've been thinking about:

• E36 M3 - Bottom of the depreciation curve
• E39 540i M-Sport - cheap, v8 power, coworker has one for sale with extra set of snow tires
• GTO - Big power, smallish pricetag, fugly interior

On the higher end of the range, maybe too much:

• TL Type-S - Honda reliability, decent looks and power
• E46 M3 - '02s with higher mileage are almost in range
• Evo - The obvious choice but so many abused/modified examples

Thoughts on these choices? What else should I consider?

Thanks!

I'd always consider a mustang of some sort. There's things not to like about them, but the things to like might just outweigh those.

P71, Cobra wheels, snows on steelies for winter.

ebonyandivory wrote: P71, Cobra wheels, snows on steelies for winter.

+1, but I would choose a Marauder.

How practical are the mustangs in terms of rear seat usability, cargo capacity, etc? I kind of excluded them because I assumed that they're closer to the RX-7 in utility than a sedan.

Hrm, P71. They're certainly plentiful around here and well below the budget. Will have to take a look at some.

Personally I would chose any of those other cars over a P71. The GTO would probably be my choice. I don't think they are going to get any cheaper.

"Parts availability, ease of maintenance, not needing specialized tools/computer devices to work on a plus."

This is what prompted the P71 suggestion. Just going by what the op asked for.

And plenty can be done to avoid the boring-ness. J-mod, easy suspension upgrades, exhaust etc.

This Lexus IS-250 is sharp looking and has a manual trans.

This Accent also looks pretty nice, and has only 14K miles.

The e46 330i ZHP and mazdaspeed6s are found well within your price range.

The Accent that Jstein posted looks really good. The Lexus has a crazy price for that amount of miles.

Armitage wrote: How practical are the mustangs in terms of rear seat usability, cargo capacity, etc? I kind of excluded them because I assumed that they're closer to the RX-7 in utility than a sedan. Hrm, P71. They're certainly plentiful around here and well below the budget. Will have to take a look at some.

Rear seat for an adult is an across town only type thing. Decent space in truck width/length wise, not much height wise.

Armitage wrote: How practical are the mustangs in terms of rear seat usability, cargo capacity, etc? I kind of excluded them because I assumed that they're closer to the RX-7 in utility than a sedan.

The 05+ mustang should be about on par with the GTO in terms of room in the back, perhaps slightly worse, but thats probably a pissing match of centimeters.

Thanks for the input so far guys! Can anyone comment on the E39 option? It's a sharp looking car with a bit dated interior electronics and most of the problems that came up in a PPI at the dealership a year ago have been fixed already. He's asking 8k and that comes with newish summer tires + a set of winter wheels. Seems like a lot of car for a low price of admission but I'm concerned about the long-term maintenance.

Dude, the GTO is the best of those, but why do you knock the interior? It was VERY nice as far as I was concerned.

"Parts availability, ease of maintenance, not needing specialized tools/computer devices to work on a plus." This is what prompted the P71 suggestion.

Hey, if yall want to diagnose an endless stream of ignition misfires without pulling obd2 data, be my guest. But can i watch?

Armitage wrote: How practical are the mustangs in terms of rear seat usability, cargo capacity, etc? I kind of excluded them because I assumed that they're closer to the RX-7 in utility than a sedan.

They're about the same as an E36 BMW. Carrying fully grown adults in the back seat of either requires sliding the front seats forward a bit (note - I'm pretty tall, so I prefer having the driver's seat all the way back on either one).

Vigo wrote:

"Parts availability, ease of maintenance, not needing specialized tools/computer devices to work on a plus." This is what prompted the P71 suggestion.

Hey, if yall want to diagnose an endless stream of ignition misfires without pulling obd2 data, be my guest. But can i watch?

I didn't know $30 towards the cheapest of cheap OBD2 scan tools or using the junk at AdPepZone was really a specialized tool/computer device anymore? Besides, it is a 4.6, they burn plug boots off like a fat man after a piece of birthday cake. If you can't fix that in an afternoon, you have problems. Only other code to worry about is the EGR ones. Even then, just put some new rubber hoses on the DPFE to channel all that hot exhaust gas to the sensor and go down the road.

Now, if you want to talk about the airbag light that is on in the wife's ride.... I need a TECH2.

I didn't know $30 towards the cheapest of cheap OBD2 scan tools or using the junk at AdPepZone was really a specialized tool/computer device anymore?

Well, there's code readers and then there's stuff that can actually watch the misfire counters in datastream. Depending on how far you want to get into it is whether you need a 'specialized' over-$30 device, i guess.

having commuted in a p71 for the past 4 years, I'd xnay it. Not very rewarding to drive, although extremely capable.

I would suggest an e46 330, and save a few grand for cooling system and suspension overhaul...

Another odd choice; i've heard jeep yj's make for fun city cars on a short commute. lousy on the highway, excellent in town and offroad.

CTS V!!! Would be my first choice.

M3 E36 is great as well.