I can live with that, I found out with my SRT-4 being faster than the other guy wasn't all it's cracked up to be and I wanted more out of a car, like RWD or AWD and just something more than fast... I know I have a big dick, I don't need 500whp to show it

 

y not just drop a built longblock in the evo most do that anyways lol problem solved on engine wear you will still want to check brakes clutch etc but thats a option my friend has s2000 and he loves it i just used to own a convertible top and its fun at first till it starts leaking etc the cost of repair can get stupid expensive.

 

Sounds like you need to find an EVO with a sun roof and you'll be set.

 

I hate them, and their stupid *** know nothing salesman and employees!

"We just discounted the cah, I doubt we're gonna discount the cah any more"

Umm, they're only about $25,000 new...

"Evolution?! Nah they ain't no $25,000 tounsand new"

Umm, it's an RS... yeah, theyre about $25,000 new...

"Oh... ugh well we just discounted it from $17 tousand I doubt it will go lowah"

ok welll... **** you then you can take your 80,000 mile RS for $17,000 and shove it... *I wanted to say*

Oh I also love it when a salesman tells me you can't find EVO's...

 

I worked for dealerships for the past 8 years and the only cars i bought from the dealer were off the wholesale lot. Their mark up is insane, but all they say is, "well we had to refurbish the car to resell it so we have a lot of money in it", yeah right. I have seen what goes in to most of those used cars to be resold, and anything that wasn't safety related carmax shot down. Even if it was border line saftety they would shoot down my request to replace something on a used car to be resold. F-em all!

 

Saw that you saying winter beater isn't yours. So if I were you, cut more on s2k and save for winter beater. I wouldn't buy high milieage evo, unless I have an extra $ for build or cover if anything goes wrong. Or forget about all bs crap high milies used cars and get a cheap brand new and live with that untill you have a money.

 

...best advice so far.

 

This kid I met before has 143K on his 03 BBY. beats the **** out of the car, but does frequent oil changes and maintenance when he can/it is needed.

Almost 400WHP ( 380's?)

Stock block Never had a problem. He replaced the headgasket at 100k for his own safety.. thats it.

 

If you can budget to have an extra $200 a month after all of your bills including gas for the EVO go a head and buy it. Other wise you probably wont be able to afford it when something comes up. Tires are expensive, brakes are very expensive, clutch isn't cheap and the labor is expensive, synthetic oil changes and gear oils aren't cheap. I just bought a jug of EVO MR 6speed gear oil for my dsm and it was $84 for the jug after my discount. That's over $100 for trans oil plus labor if you had to pay someone.
With the S2000 you only have RWD and a convertable that may be useless most of the time, but the initial cost is cheaper, insurance from what these guys said will be cheaper, better on gas, might be more reliable and with maintenance you really only have Tires, brakes, engine oil, trans oil, clutch and the other stuff which can probably be put off for ever 5 years or more if you had to: Rear diff oil, brake fluid, clutch fluid, coolant, etc.
The EVO is the superior car, but will demand more attention and maintenance which a lot of the costs will not be obvious at first. Either way, if something goes wrong due to high mileage, the parts may be expensive. They are both imports and both sports cars. Any surprises may be expensive.

 

Yep yep. A bone stock evo can do the 1/4 in the low 12's range, and you can get a high quality turbo manifold for less and it will yield higher hp/tq gains.

 

If your budget is 12k, with 4k in the bank to spare for "oopsies", you may need more "oopsie" money to spare for repairs.

When buying a used car, I've learned that if my budget is 12k, I better have at least half of my budget "oopsie" money left in the bank for near future repairs.

It's always a risk buying pre-owned cars, especially Evos. S2K's are reliable nonetheless, but people beat on those cars just as much.

I was in the market for an S2K with low miles a few months ago. And by low miles, I meant >15k miles and it was almost impossible. You can't be too picky when buying pre-owned vehicles.

It seems like you answered you own question. Why don't you buy the car you love and always wanted so much? Don't buy the evo just because it's faster. Insurance rates for me were almost identical as far as getting quotes.

 

If your in central to southern maine i'd snag a S2K, would be a great car in the summers. Plus, you have fewer dirt roads down there.

And tail appreciates convertibles more than turbos.

 

just by reading your thread you like the s2000 but want the evo. just re-read your thread and pay attention towards the end at what you typed.

 

It sounds like both will make you happy - you are more concerned with the financial aspect of this deal (cost of acquisition as well as cost of hidden gremlins). If I was you I would look for the best smoking deal you can find for either car and then just purchase whatever best deal you find. In the end you will be happy you saved money and either way you get a great/fun car.

 

I would search around for better deals on both of the vehicles that you are prospecting to buy. With the economy in ruins and car sales where they are currently, I dont see why you can't find somthing better if you wait/seek it out (there are deals to be had everywhere). Plus, if its all season vs summer car you're looking for (and you stated that you already have a winter car), then you have a number of months to mull it over. Why buy a summer specific ride and then have to park it for the next 4 months-6months? (I'm dropped pretty low, so I dont drive my evo in the snow at all...plus, with tarmac black coat, I aint trying to have a primer spotted hood from ice/salt chunks and sand clump peppering). I instead roll my daily driver/winter/bad weather car - 05 honda civic @ 35ish MPG

Aside from pricing a vehicle, you should of course focus on maintanence records, car fax reports (they only accuratly reflect a vehicles true history ~50% of the time,) and all the opinions about which may last longer,...but when its all said and done, parts do go bad, tires wear, gas burns...all of this equals money out of your pocket. I know guys (and girls) with evo's/s2000's that treated them great and they had nothing but problems....I also know guys (and girls) that had evo's/s2000's that treated them like crap and they seemed to run forever.

I would have a qualified mechanic inspect the vehicles that you are looking to make an offer on (dont spend a penny on a used/out of warranty vehicle without checking/verifying the commpression IMO).

Since you have 12k, why dont you get a new car loan, put down 6-7k, finance the rest - maybe at 0%, budget your payments and then you can enjoy the new car smell, factory warranty, clear vehicle history and a clean slate.

Just some ideas, you asked, I told....peace