[Hotwheels]

Pontiac Solstice.

For that money it'll have some miles, but miles do not matter.

[Screwston]

A Lexus ES or GS if you don't mind spending more on gas. Every single person I've known who's had a BMW will never get one again because something was always fucking up. Every single person I've known who's had a Lexus, including me, has nothing bad to say about them.

[billy]

10 k for a Honda accord , ? fuck me jap cars are expensive in the states.

[EasyMoney]

I would consider a 2005-2006 Ford Mustang. You could go V6 or GT.

They're not so great on gas mileage, but they have timeless style. In my opinion, one of the best car designs of the last 15 years. I drive an 05 in sort of a rare color and i have the bullit style wheels and aluminum dash. I keep it really clean, and I get compliments from all sorts of different people regularly. Mine has been reliable, and held up well the two times someone crashed into me.

It uses outdated suspension technology, but its sill way more fun to drive than any japanese econo box.

I have the V6 in mineral grey. If i could do it over, I'd get a black GT.

If that idea doesn't appeal to you, consider a used toyota 4runner. Rugged, reliable, cool looking, and 4 wheel drive is neat. Gas mileage isn't too horrible.

[lavidaloca]

(10-09-2012 04:00 AM)billy Wrote:  

10 k for a Honda accord , ? fuck me jap cars are expensive in the states.

I'm pretty sure US has the best car prices in the world. (Excluding super super cheap cars that are like sub 10k new)

[Sanblz33]

(10-08-2012 01:35 AM)Athlone McGinnis Wrote:  

The Beamers are affordable and their motors are reasonably reliable, but they've got too many other problems and are generally too pricy to maintain to fit the criteria this guy's looking for.

Here is a short list of cars I would consider if I were in your position.


1. Infiniti G35 (Sedan or Coupe): 03s can be had for under $11k. A little pricy, but arguably the best bang for the buck in its class.


2. Acura RSX: Easy to find an 02-05 in your range and well below it (sub $8k). Small, sporty coupe popular among young guys. Very reliable, good value.


3. Acura TSX: More mature alternative to the RSX. Small sedan based on the Japanese/European version of the Accord. You can find 04's for $10k or less, though if you can stretch a little ($11K) there are more options.


4. Acura TL: The older ones (01-03) are easy to find for south of $10k. For sportiness, shoot for a Type S. Very affordable, super reliable, luxurious (you'll get your leather, sunroof, etc) and cheap.
You can find some newer ones (04's) in this range, but prepare for higher mileage. They're reliable, though, so whether or not you want to deal with that is up to you.


5. Honda Civic Si: 02-06 models are available in this range. Small coupe/hatchback, good mileage, popular young guy car.


6. Lexus IS300: 01-03, small sporty sedan. Great value, extremely well put together. Not as sharp on the track as the E46 3-Series, but fewer expensive bugs in other areas. Highly recommended-I wanted one of these myself, but financially couldn't make it work.


7. Mitsubishi Eclipse: 02-07, these things depreciated like mad, which makes them easy to find for under $10k. Not terribly exciting, but they look sporty enough and will get you reliably from A to B.


8. Toyota Celica: Another sporty coupe like the Eclipse, though it is smaller and a little sportier. 01-04's are abundant for under $10k. I'd recommend the Celica ahead of the Eclipse, actually.

Those are very good choices however I would stay away from any 99-03 Acura TL. The automatic transmissions are terrible (2nd gear tends to nuke itself & take the tranny along with it). There was a recall on this & Honda never quite fixed the issue. If you can find one I would go for a 2003 Acura CL type-s with the 6 speed manual. Its modern, looks good, and with a few mods it can easily keep pace with a E46 M3.

[RougeNoir]

Hmmm, for $8-$10 thousand? None other than the 96 impala SS with the V8 engine.

[HiFlo]

OK, so which car would you recommend that is something I could put in maybe $4-5,000 over the next 2 years to mod it to make it extra tight, nimble and quick? Which of the above suggested cars are most easily worked on and are the most popular for aftermarket parts?

[presidentcarter]

CL Type-S easily keep pace with E46 M3? No...maybe E36 M3 or in just a straight line if you've modded it like crazy. You're looking at a 73+ hp gap before mods, not to mention one of the best driver's cars ever made vs. a run of the mill Acura. They're nice and all though.

Stay away from the Mitsubishi, they're crap.

[Sanblz33]

(10-10-2012 06:54 PM)presidentcarter Wrote:  

CL Type-S easily keep pace with E46 M3? No...maybe E36 M3 or in just a straight line if you've modded it like crazy. You're looking at a 73+ hp gap before mods, not to mention one of the best driver's cars ever made vs. a run of the mill Acura. They're nice and all though.

Stay away from the Mitsubishi, they're crap.

I have seen this (in a straight line). Headers alone add 30+ whp & they dont have the same drivetrain losses as most rwd cars. The motor is solid & it has an LSD.

[BIGINJAPAN]

How about an Audi ? Up in Canada these are the perfect cars for the weather we get. Plus they are fully loaded and not to mention great on gas. The quattro drive makes this an ideal car anywhere really. I have owned 2 different A6's and absolutely loved them. I am pretty handy and half my family are mechanics so we did any maintenance ourselves and with generic replacement parts it was quite cheap. You could easily find an A4 with low km's on it for under $10k.

[Sanblz33]

(10-10-2012 06:41 PM)HiFlo Wrote:  

OK, so which car would you recommend that is something I could put in maybe $4-5,000 over the next 2 years to mod it to make it extra tight, nimble and quick? Which of the above suggested cars are most easily worked on and are the most popular for aftermarket parts?

You can easily find a WRX or 6MT CL-S in great condition for @ 8K & have some $$$ left over for some mods. If you dont need the extra seats you could find a 03-04 350Z for less than 10k.

[Hotwheels]

(10-10-2012 07:25 PM)Sanblz33 Wrote:  

(10-10-2012 06:54 PM)presidentcarter Wrote:  

CL Type-S easily keep pace with E46 M3? No...maybe E36 M3 or in just a straight line if you've modded it like crazy. You're looking at a 73+ hp gap before mods, not to mention one of the best driver's cars ever made vs. a run of the mill Acura. They're nice and all though.

Stay away from the Mitsubishi, they're crap.

I have seen this (in a straight line). Headers alone add 30+ whp & they dont have the same drivetrain losses as most rwd cars. The motor is solid & it has an LSD.

30 wheel horsepower with just headers?

Yeah, ok. I'd like to see an independent dyno shot.

[phoenixhr]

What about the 2005 Series Chrysler 300?

[reaper23]

(10-09-2012 02:12 AM)houston Wrote:  

A Lexus ES or GS if you don't mind spending more on gas. Every single person I've known who's had a BMW will never get one again because something was always fucking up. Every single person I've known who's had a Lexus, including me, has nothing bad to say about them.

i've owned four BMW's and never had a problem.

[Merenguero]

(10-09-2012 12:32 PM)EasyMoney Wrote:  

I would consider a 2005-2006 Ford Mustang. You could go V6 or GT.

They're not so great on gas mileage, but they have timeless style. In my opinion, one of the best car designs of the last 15 years. I drive an 05 in sort of a rare color and i have the bullit style wheels and aluminum dash. I keep it really clean, and I get compliments from all sorts of different people regularly. Mine has been reliable, and held up well the two times someone crashed into me.

It uses outdated suspension technology, but its sill way more fun to drive than any japanese econo box.

I have the V6 in mineral grey. If i could do it over, I'd get a black GT.

Three years ago, I bought a 2007 Mustang V6 with 29,000 miles on it for $10,000. A GT would have been several thousand dollars more. I still have it and it has over 130,000 miles on it now. The car has run like a dream the entire time I have had it. The only issue the car has ever had was a problem with the cooling system last year. I attribute much of the problem with the cooling system to the constant stop and go traffic in the D.C. area. The Mustang has been by far the best car I have ever owned.

[HiFlo]

I really like the circa-2004 Nissan 350Zs. Right in my price range too. (I like the G35s a lot too but they're going for more the $12,000 range, which is a tad too much).

I remember when I was a little kid I was in love with the 300ZXs and always wanted one.

What do you car guys think about the 350Zs? I drive an 03 Sentra now and it's reliable and I like it much Want something a bit sportier with some more kick though.

Thumbs up or thumbs down for the 350Zs? Concerns? Similar substitutes?

It seems there are a ton of aftermarket parts for the 350Z which is always a bonus in a year or two if I want to tune the engine some...

[Sanblz33]

(10-11-2012 03:50 AM)Hotwheels Wrote:  

(10-10-2012 07:25 PM)Sanblz33 Wrote:  

(10-10-2012 06:54 PM)presidentcarter Wrote:  

CL Type-S easily keep pace with E46 M3? No...maybe E36 M3 or in just a straight line if you've modded it like crazy. You're looking at a 73+ hp gap before mods, not to mention one of the best driver's cars ever made vs. a run of the mill Acura. They're nice and all though.

Stay away from the Mitsubishi, they're crap.

I have seen this (in a straight line). Headers alone add 30+ whp & they dont have the same drivetrain losses as most rwd cars. The motor is solid & it has an LSD.

30 wheel horsepower with just headers?

Yeah, ok. I'd like to see an independent dyno shot.

Its well documented on acurazine. If you look at the collectors its easy to see why you have such a large gain.

[Sanblz33]

(10-11-2012 10:29 PM)HiFlo Wrote:  

I really like the circa-2004 Nissan 350Zs. Right in my price range too. (I like the G35s a lot too but they're going for more the $12,000 range, which is a tad too much).

I remember when I was a little kid I was in love with the 300ZXs and always wanted one.

What do you car guys think about the 350Zs? I drive an 03 Sentra now and it's reliable and I like it much Want something a bit sportier with some more kick though.

Thumbs up or thumbs down for the 350Zs? Concerns? Similar substitutes?

It seems there are a ton of aftermarket parts for the 350Z which is always a bonus in a year or two if I want to tune the engine some...

The drivetrains (especially if you go with the 5AT) are very reliable. On some cars 5th gear tends to grind (necessitating a tranny rebuild or replacement). The early cars have weird tire wear issues & the interior of the 03-04 cars is kinda meh. Also the power window motors wear out & sometimes have a mind of their own. If you want a stupid fast Z prepare to spend lots of $$$ as boltons dont do much for the platform. If you want something comparable you could get an S2000 but the interior is not as roomy.

I have an 07 Z & I love it. Its the most reliable car I ever owned.

[billy]

(10-09-2012 03:00 PM)lavidaloca Wrote:  

(10-09-2012 04:00 AM)billy Wrote:  

10 k for a Honda accord , ? fuck me jap cars are expensive in the states.

I'm pretty sure US has the best car prices in the world. (Excluding super super cheap cars that are like sub 10k new)

What does that even mean ? The 'best prices' try to make sense.

[Hotwheels]

(10-11-2012 10:29 PM)HiFlo Wrote:  

I drive an 03 Sentra now and it's reliable and I like it much

Yeah, reliable cars normally kick rods.

[Fujiwara]

For that much money I'd find a gray market JDM Subaru Impreza WRX.

[Excelsior]

(10-11-2012 10:29 PM)HiFlo Wrote:  

I really like the circa-2004 Nissan 350Zs. Right in my price range too. (I like the G35s a lot too but they're going for more the $12,000 range, which is a tad too much).

I remember when I was a little kid I was in love with the 300ZXs and always wanted one.

What do you car guys think about the 350Zs? I drive an 03 Sentra now and it's reliable and I like it much Want something a bit sportier with some more kick though.

Thumbs up or thumbs down for the 350Zs? Concerns? Similar substitutes?

It seems there are a ton of aftermarket parts for the 350Z which is always a bonus in a year or two if I want to tune the engine some...

I should probably have placed the 350Z on my list ahead of the G35-it is just as reliable (the two cars are related, same platform and all that), still plenty sporty and cheaper to buy. One of the better choices a guy can make in the used car market.

[Wreckingball]

Honda S2000 (if it still fits the budget)

If you get one of these, I reccomend you to take some real driving classes.

[Dr. Howard]

what part of the country do you live in? That would make a difference. For Canadian and Midwest residents I also second a used Audi. If you want to save even more money and play around with modifications buy a used Suzuki SX4 and start buying parts from road race motor sports. You get a really zippy and fun AWD car. It does not impart class though.