Hey guys, i'm looking to purchase a car come May '05. This will be my 5th car by now so I pretty much had my share of cars..heh

My price range is in the 40-45k range. I prefer something new or within 3 years with low mileage. I liked having my GSX.. it was pretty quick, but lacked some handling. I also had an RSX-S which handled well but just wasn't quick enough for me plus it had a lot of traction issues. I do miss both cars equally. Other cars I had was a Ford Taurus, Eagle Talon TSI AWD, and 92 Chevy S10.

I still have my S10 which I use to tow my '04 Honda F12-X :-) so I really don't want another pick up truck. I was looking into suv's, but i want something manual.

So it basically comes down to cars.. I like the new vettes, but its slightly above my price range with the Z51 package. I won't settle for less either. I looked at MR's but for the price you pay, you do get a lot of performance, but nothing beats the style and heritage of the vettes... I wish I could afford it..heh

I guess you can say i'm looking for something AWD or RWD in 5 or 6spd manual that is at least in the 14.0 1/4 mile time. I just can't really seem to find anything that floats my boat..heh

I get invoice or below at Honda, Acura, Subaru, Nissan, Toyota, Volvo, Audi, Lexus, BMW so I was trying to stay within that (i work at an auto group).

I'm not really asking you to pick a car for me, but maybe if you can give me some hands-on experience with cars you had. I'm not really into modding, especially motor swaps. I did enough of those swaps..heh

 

3 great cars come to mind.... Audi s4 , bmw m series, and the lexus sc430 all are sub 14 second cars. The lexus would be in your price range used. Im not sure if it comes in a stick tho i know the Audi and beamer both come in sticks... Hope this helps a little bit.

 

find a nice low mileage Z06 from '03 or '04. There's plenty of nice garage queen Z06's out there if you look around hard enough. As far as new cars you could look at M3's and S4's in that price range but also that AWD Volvo S60-S with 300hp is pretty cool. Me personally I'd be going with an MR or a 350Z Track Edition or an S2000. Beemers and Audi's are too much bling for my taste.

 

Check out the Volvo S60R...the car is gorgeous. Interior is so nice and the gauges look hot at night. It has 300 HP, stability control with adjustable suspension, AWD, a plethora of options like titanium wheels. Check it out in person b/c pics don't do it justice.

 

yep, that's the one I meant.....they even raced 2 of these in the SpeedGT Cup last year. They are bad a$$ with cosworth tuned engines and the whole nine!!!!!

 

Get an 2003 or 2004 Vette...they have the uprated LS1 engine and all the goodies...you can find them for under $40K if you shop around...I used to drive a 2000 Vette before I got the Evo...you can't go wrong with a C5...easy 12s right outta the box...

 

I definitely like the 350z in white, saw it last night coming home from work. I also like the G35coupe. But after test driving both a while back - It didn't have that nice pull that the turbo'd eclipse gave me when I had it. Its like a rush b/c of all that torque.

The Evo 8/STI would defintely give me that, but I'm not crazy about the STI as much and the EVO looks kind of boyish - I want something with more style.

I wish it was easier to choose. The all around cars I like are all up in the 80+ range..heh

 

40-45K?

Z06 quite easily. I looked at them for a while and if you hunt around you can find them barely sub-40. I'm talking a 2003 as well. There's also the Elise which is a HOOT to drive. I seriously considered one for every day. And well, Evolutions aren't too expensive. My MR was the cheapest car on my shopping list. Get over the looks -- I had to myself. Sure when I park it everyone thinks, "What a prat", but it still puts a ****-eating grin on my face.

Of course, all of these cars treat you like crap. If you want something civil, these aren't for you.