Looking for Opinions on what car to look for.

OK, so after I get a few things fixed, I’m probably going to sell the Bricklin. (Yes I gotta schedule with the shop.) Which means I’ll be in the market for another car sometime soon. I wanna spend around $10k, probably less, and I KNOW I want something over 300hp STOCK. (I may want some performance upgrades afterwards, but I want to start with 300hp from the factory.)

I am interested in facts AND opinions, but please back your opinion up with SOMETHING. “Mitsubishi Sucks.”, as a comment alone doesn’t say much, and I’ll just disregard the comment. Tell me why. I am looking to learn here. Even if it’s just styling you don’t like, say what you don’t like about it. I’m interested.

(I know since I wrote that, someone is gonna think it’s funny and creative to leave exactly the comment I mentioned above. You might think it’s funny, but I guarantee it’s not creative.)

I could consider other cars too, so if you have a suggestion, let me know.

Requirements:
Around $10k (the less the better).
300+hp STOCK


Pros:

• You just don’t see too many of these, and they look hot.
  
• Nice NA 5.0 V12.
  
• I’ve never had a V12.
  

Cons:

• Because I grew up in the 80’s, I have a tendency to look at BMW’s as a Yuppie Car.
  
• I may have a hard time finding one.
  

Pros:

• I had a NA 2+2 version, and I loved it. The rigid suspension and HICAS system are AMAZING for quick turning at speed, which is the best part of driving a sports car for me.
  
• Styling seems to never get old. The car looks pretty and new even at nearly 20 years old.
  
• Very Reliable.
  

Cons:

• Turbo’s are always a maintenance issue.
  
• I have had one before. I know I posted this as a Pro, but it’s a con too since I always like having something different.
  

Meh…. Nevermind. Don’t really want another one of these. It’s a thought; so if someone has a good opinion, let me know.



Pros:

• Naturally Aspirated
  
• I’ve never had a Porsche
  
• I’m German, so it would be nice to have a German sports car for once
  

Cons:

• Reliability (especially considering I’d be getting a car around 20 years old).
  

Pros:

• Nice styling
  
• 6 Speed Manual
  
• All Wheel Drive
  
• All Wheel Steering
  
• If I can find a Dodge Stealth VR-4, it’ll likely come at a bargain to its Mitsu Twin.
  

Cons:

• Turbo charger maintenance.
  

(If someone mentions crankwalk here I’m gonna scream. Know what you’re talking about before you
post ‘facts’. Crankwalk was never a problem with any V6 Mitsubishi ever produced.)



Nah. Isn’t this kind of a douche bag image kind of car? It was when I was in high school, but that was the older body style. Seems if I was going to consider a Corvette, it would be a no-brainer to dump the idea of a Camaro.



Pros:

• German Ultimate
  
• V12
  
• Near 400hp stock
  
• Big body – I could use this car as my commuter without sacrificing too much
  comfort compared to the Lincoln Towncar I have now.
  

Cons:

• Monumental servicing costs should I have a problem
  
• Styling – looks like a drug dealer car.
  (But then again, I DO have a Lincoln Towncar now, so is this really a con?)
  
• Might be pretty hard to find.
  
• Automatic
  

Well the bimmer and the Z you wont be able to find for under $10,000 or if you do, they'll be full of problems

BMW you're probably right. The Z? All over the place man.

Muah hahahaah!!!

http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=21&pageNumber=0&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-|E-|M-_5_|D-_44_|N-N|R-10000|I-1%2c7|P-PRICE+descending|Q-descending|Z-95203&aff=national&paId=136616919&recnum=28&leadExists=true

Giggity:

http://www.vehix.com/inventory/VehicleDetails.aspx?inventoryid=770000013EDE3B&N=127

Yeah.... So they are out there.

Do you care about how many miles you get per gallon?

by the options that you have listed. I assume no?

How much the Bricklin going for sale then?

Heres my OPINION on the cars you have listed:

BMW 850i

-Rare
-it's a BMW..So you will have more luxury things that other cars may not have.
-KBB price for the 91 is around 11k..so if u find one for less or around 10,it's probably a steal?
-HP is just under 300, not over.the mid 90s 850Ci/CSO produced a little over 300HP. Though, the torque is around 330.
-Coz it's a v12, since you listed it as a PRO..i assume you DONT care about miles per gallon. but it averages 16miles a gallon.
-being a v12, it should produce more than a mere 300 HP. The Aston Martin DB7 produces a little over 400hp on it's V12. The Lambo Diablo made almost 500HP. You can purchase a v8 that sports 300HP.
-probly purchased just for looks and you have "BMW"...babe magnet ( if u care about that stuff)

Nissan 300ZX TT
-Great fun car to drive. It is a sports car just like you said. My cousin owned one and modifying it was great. The simplest mods would give it a great HP boost. Turbo, or any other component, maintenance is only gonna be an issue if you treat it bad. If you maintain it properly, issues will hardly come up. Parts are a little on the expensive side, but then again what isn't expensive if it isn't a honda right?


Mit 3kgt vr4
-13.9 in the quarter mile.
-It looks like a SPORTS CAR.
-Just saying the name sounds awesome. I mean think about it " I have a mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4."
-This car was built to compete with the 300zx, skylines, and other similar cars in the catagory. so you know it probablyhas some sports car tune to it.
-Just like the 300zx, it's a common car. so u dont have to do soem special order stuff for parts.
-Lots of support via forums and stuff.

Benz
-Polical leaders never rode in anything less than a 600.
-it is a drug dealer car:)
It might be hard to find for the price you want.


How about these cars?
Ford Mustang Cobra SVT
Acura NSX
Toyota Supra
Subaru WRX STi




side note:
I noticed you put turbocharger maintenence as cons in some of these. What do you mean? is there something specific maintenance thing that you would have to do to a turbo car? I have a turbo car and i take care of it just like anything else ona NA car. the only real difference is I let it cool down after driving it then shut it off.

Panda AE86 wrote:How much the Bricklin going for sale then?

Somewhere around $7,000. Unless I get it painted as well (which I might, but not if a forum person wanted to buy it. I figure they can pick the color). Painted well, $8,000 or $9,000

L Rock wrote:Heres my OPINION on the cars you have listed:

BMW 850i

-Coz it's a v12, since you listed it as a PRO..i assume you DONT care about miles per gallon. but it averages 16miles a gallon.

Correct, I don't care about miles per gallon.

L Rock wrote:
-being a v12, it should produce more than a mere 300 HP. The Aston Martin DB7 produces a little over 400hp on it's V12. The Lambo Diablo made almost 500HP.

Not really a fair comparison. Those are 5.7 and 6.0 liter engines. The BMW is only 5.0. I can purchase a 5.0 liter V8 too. I'm also looking at cars I can afford, which would exclude the DB7 and the Diablo.

L Rock wrote:
-probly purchased just for looks and you have "BMW"...babe magnet ( if u care about that stuff)

Why wouldn't I?

L Rock wrote:
Benz
-Polical leaders never rode in anything less than a 600.
-it is a drug dealer car:)
It might be hard to find for the price you want.

It might be hard to find them at all, much less that price. I'm taking it off the list.

L Rock wrote:
How about these cars?
Ford Mustang Cobra SVT
Acura NSX
Toyota Supra
Subaru WRX STi

Mustangs are girls cars. Aside from that, I put them in the same category as Camaro's. Maybe I'll look a closer at the Cobra.

Acura NSX? It was my assumption that I'd NEVER get one of these for ANYWHERE near $10k. Am I wrong?

Supra: Thanks... I didn't realize these came down in price enough to afford them. Consider it added to the list of potentials.

Subaru: Helluva car I know, but god is it ever ugly. I have an image to protect here, okay?

L Rock wrote:
side note:
I noticed you put turbocharger maintenence as cons in some of these. What do you mean? is there something specific maintenance thing that you would have to do to a turbo car? I have a turbo car and i take care of it just like anything else ona NA car. the only real difference is I let it cool down after driving it then shut it off.

It is quite possible I have opinions that are less than fully informed on the subject. Thanks, I'll do some more research.

i vote for 300zx tt.

thats the car i was talking about like a month ago, i said something about "im going to buy a new car, but no one else around here has one so i dont wanna say what car." lol
that plan fell through, so ill allow you to own one.

is this going to be your only car? or a commute car, weekend car?
why do they gotta be over 300 stock? those luxury cars arent going to be very fast considering they probably weigh a lot. i'd go for a vr4 or 300zxTT. but then again with 10k you could have yourself a fast car that you bought for under 3k.

or why not just put 10k down on a new car or slightly new car? 370z gots over 300hp, how about the 350z? they are getting cheaper also.

find a q45 or ls400 and dump it on bags with nice rims

you could get a 300zx tt in really good condition with low miles for around 8k.
if this was 6 months ago, i wouldve said go with the 3kgt.
but seeing how mitsubishi is going under, there isnt going to be much support in the future.

but i personally think that having a very luxurious car is the equivalent of having a fast one.. maybe he just needs a bigger engine because hes compensating for something..

1995 chevrolet impala ss

nicknamed the 4door vette. and there's this guy at the autocross that blitzes the course with passengers. it's really cool to see. i wouldn't mind owning one. only problem is they never came in manual. auto trans only, but that doesn't seem to bother you.

the good thing is, 350ci v8s are a dime a dozen. you can always pump more power should you feel the need.... THE NEED FOR SPEED!

k20S13 wrote:is this going to be your only car? or a commute car, weekend car?
why do they gotta be over 300 stock? those luxury cars arent going to be very fast considering they probably weigh a lot. i'd go for a vr4 or 300zxTT. but then again with 10k you could have yourself a fast car that you bought for under 3k.

or why not just put 10k down on a new car or slightly new car? 370z gots over 300hp, how about the 350z? they are getting cheaper also.

I'll call it a 'toy car'. No, it won't be my only car. I have a few cars, but always try to have less than 4, which is why I'm getting rid of the Bricklin.

Probably right about the luxury cars, I think I'm taking them off the list. I commute with a Lincoln Towncar. Thats enough luxury for me.

In my opinion, new cars (and even slightly new cars) are a waste of money. Cars depreciate too fast, and I won't be taking out a loan for a car.

Lets say I put $10k down on a $20k car, and finance the $10k on a 5 year loan at 8%. The loan will cost me $12,400 if I keep the car for 5 years, which is truly unlikely.

More probable, if I'll keep the car for 2-3 years. Lets say 2.5. In 2.5 years, I will still owe $7,700 on the car, and have paid almost $3,800 in interest. The car is now worth $17,000 at best. I sell it, and get my $10k back if I get REALLY lucky. The $3,800 is GONE. I get a car about 10 years old, it's already reached the peak of it's depreciation slide. In 2.5 years, it's worth $8,000. I don't have to get lucky to only loose $2k.

As far as buying a car for $3k and putting $7k into it? Who says I don't want to put more into it later on? $10k is my base, and I want 300hp to be my base. Is that unreasonable? I want to start with a car that is already a nice car.

I might look around for a 350z. I could probably find one for close to $10k if I looked hard enough.

ilovegraffiti wrote:find a q45 or ls400 and dump it on bags with nice rims

I traded in my ls400 for the Towncar I drive now. That was a great car. After about 250,000 miles though, it was time to trade it in.

Road&Ster wrote:1995 chevrolet impala ss

nicknamed the 4door vette. and there's this guy at the autocross that blitzes the course with passengers. it's really cool to see. i wouldn't mind owning one. only problem is they never came in manual. auto trans only, but that doesn't seem to bother you.

the good thing is, 350ci v8s are a dime a dozen. you can always pump more power should you feel the need.... THE NEED FOR SPEED!

Though I'm seeing myself in another automatic car, and I've decided it's a bad idea. All automatics are off the list. Agreed about the Chevy 350. They are all over the place and easy to tune. (and the kind of tuning I'm familiar with... imports are a little... um... 'foriegn' to me. ). Problem is finding a Chevy car that can handle like the imports.

mmmmmmmmmm here's a suggestion. fD wo0o0o h0o0o0o. i think they make a 4 seater for those also. or a 2 1/2 seater. anyways.. i figure you'll find a 95est rx7 twin turbo for just about that price you want... i think they make around 280hp but easily boost it to more in a heartbeat. they are super secksi cars. and i think you would really enjoy it.. great for drag racing. great for autox.. great for drifting. and great for high speed freeway runs.. man what dosn't this car do.

here's how she looks stock..

and here's how she can look with a little bit of expensive mod.

and can you imagine gullwing doors on it^^ ( i know you'll like that haha )
well just food for thought

Like I said you might be able to find the BMW and the Z for under $10,000 but not in good condition. They might look good, but the engine's gonna be a pig and problematic for you.

The Supra that they're talking about that you can get for $10K or less is an MKIII, but I wouldnt waste my money on an MKIII if you can get a 300Z TT in good condition for your price, and this coming from a guy with an MKIII

getting close to making a decision yet?

Nope... and it'll be a few months anyway, just taking thoughts. It may be between a few cars, and I'll buy the best deal I find.

I'll update with a narrowed list again.

Nobody said anything about the Porsche?

i've never had any experiences with porsches.


..oh wait, thsi one time, ages ago when i had a CRX with a B18C swap..

i saw one on the free way and i downshift on him....


yeah he did the same thing and left me.

just get a honda build it to be over 300

emkaytuness wrote:just get a honda build it to be over 300

No.