A while back, I was considering a fun car for $9K max to dd and track as well and I decided to hold off as I could not get what I was looking for in that price range

Things have changed since then as I got a much better paying job and I did the right stuff such as paying my mortgage down a little and having no credit line debt

now what would you get with a budget of $30K - 1 extremely fun-to-drive car to dd and occasional track days with back seats for a 7&5 year olds (such as an 02-04 996 C2) or any other choices

or a nice comfortable, fast, torquey 4-door sports sedan (don't know yet) plus something like an 04-05 S2000 (or other choices)

- Here are the criteria

- nothing brand new or close to new -ie max 2006
- all of the cars must be manual
- must not exceed $2000/year for maintenance (of course less is better)
- has to put a big smile on my face - guaranteed (life is too hectic and stressful - and cars are my only passion)
- The fun car must be light, feels light, very tossable, etc...

Please discuss with thougths and/or real life experiences

Thanks

 

When I bought my 2000 TL new, I bought an old 87 Celica for my beater. I enjoyed having a second car with a totally different personality. I sunk so much money into it for absolutely nothing: new springs/shocks/tires/alternator/stereo and other misc crap. I think I liked it more than my TL. But since I had the Celica, and I wasn't driving the TL much, the "new car" feeling lasted much longer.

I can't suggest specific cars, that's too much of a personal preference.

 

996 no doubt but can they be had for 30k?

 

HOw about a 04-06 STI?? PLus some other car?? Or you can get a Sti with a lot lower miles and use that as both the dd and track as it does have 5 seats?

 

I would do the 2 cars, if you're financially comfortable with 2 insurance payments. I would love to have a weekend car like an S2000.

 

Every single day of the week.

It took me years to finally figure out that daily driving your hotrod is a colossal pain in the ass.....the constant changes, trips to the shop for upgrades, expense, typically worse gas mileage PLUS more attractive as a ripoff magnet....therefore high insurance etc. etc.

Solid, fuel efficient daily drivers are underrated big time. If you're a good driver you're still kicking ass on 85% of the cars on the road, plus you can get yourself an uncompromising ninja sword of a second car which will provide ultimate thrills.....vs. "upgraded" ones.

2 cars is the only way to go. It's like 2 scoops of ice cream instead of one. It's like being able to menage 2 chicks at will. OK, well almost.

Just my

 

Two cars. You can work on the weekend warrior and you dont have to worry about not having a car for work Monday morning. Never, ever have a daily driver as a project car.

 

I rock two cars. Just dont forget to factor in the insurance costs when you look at the financials.

 

^ x2

 

I say you pick up something moderate at the moment that still puts a smile on your face and wait til you can afford to get what you really want. I think you'd be alot happier having a budget of 40-50k than 30 k which puts you at a whole new range of cars. thats just my two cents but congrats on your new job =).

 

I would get a cheap 1500 car like a 3G Prelude 4ws for a daily and spent the rest on the fun car.


996 engines are known to fail. Look at something else

 

It depends on how serious you're going to be. If you're going to have just some bolt-ons, and do 1-2 day projects then you can always carpool or borrow someone's car.

But if you're going to pick up something older, not as reliable, or will be difficult to drive daily and/or will need some more serious work done like an engine swap/paint (especially if you DIY) then you probably will need a second car. That said though, I've seen engine swaps done overnight and clutch jobs done in an hour. I certainly can't do that myself though and and you wouldn't catch me dead with a rotary or DSM as my sole transportation.

and why the limit on newness? Nothing newer than ~2006? cause I think everyone else knows what my recommendation is when it comes to one car for $30k

 

Well said Kracken.

 

due to the high depreciation of new cars - I never bought new and I don't think I will ever do - also this is the plan for now - most people get bored with cars eventually and I am like that - so in 2-3 years time, when I am ready to upgrade to 50K budget, the loss won't be much - I still want to get the NSX back one day

 

Yes definitely

 

you can get an NSX for under 30k.

 

Another issue is that the fun car will not be driven in the weekends as it should be - I will probably drive it to work 2-3 days per week and track days will be max 5-6 times per year so nothing serious or competitive

weekends are always busy with the kids and family/friends - I don't get time just for myself in the weekends - it never happens

so I am still not sure about the viability of having two cars based on the above

 

I had a 91 before for 3 years that I sold it when we got my second child - the NSX is expensive on repairs as it gets old - plus I don't want to buy a crappy dd with the leftover money just to enjoy the NSX 2-3 times per week - it's just not the right time for it now

 

Vette 350Z, S2000, Solstice GXP, SLK55 AMG, M3....

 

In a similar situation. I'd like a toy but I think I need a toy with a backseat so that I can take the kids and wife with me if I want to boot around on weekends. Time permitting.

So I think I'll be waiting for Mustang/Camaro prices to drop and pick up a used one in a couple of years.

But then there's something telling me to just go pick up a used S2K now. So I vote 2 cars as well. Good luck with your choice.

 

Isn't it a very tough decision to make? - for me it's a struggle between satisfying a passion vs logic - and for some reason logic has been winning with me at the end but I am trying to stop it from winning this time

 

As was mentioned, it sucks daily driving your "weekend" car. Get a nice cruiser for commuting, then a fun little weekend car for... well... fun! We just sold our "Home Depot" truck, so now we're down to one car each, plus my motorcycle. Once we figure out if we're selling or moving I'll likely pickup something like an Elise whatever for a weekend vehicle. Something to take to Cars & Coffee then to the mountains for an overnight.

 

i think i'd just have one car.

 

you can get a 99-02 for under 30k all with decent miles and well taken care of. A 05-06 boxster can be had for 30k or under also.

 

E46 M3? Decent daily driver and a fun weekend car in one machine.

 

944 with a ford engine in it

 

I owned that before for 6 months - it was an 01 and had it during the time I had the NSX - did not really like it much - suspension was stupid harsh for street application - actually my son was 2 years old at the time and as soon as I got him out of the car, he threw up due to the harsh ride - also the car felt heavy even though it was less than 3400lbs but felt like a heavy boat - shifter was garbage - I could not qualify it as a sports car (no comparison whatsoever to the NSX except the engine)

Bottom line is "man-machine" connection is very important to me and unfortunately, I got that with only a few cars (02 911 that I test drove was one them)

 

genesis coupe 3.8 track

You can get a new one for 30k so i'm sure you could find a slightly used one for less.

 

MX-5/Miata for a weekend car.

 

So is this 30K Canadian? Just noticed the OP is in T.O. 30K Canadian doesn't get you what 30K US does.

Then again with the $ at or near par cross border shopping may be an option.

 

USD of course - a clean 02 911 in Canada is about 35-40K

 

Well if you have no problem with the extra insurance cost, I'd go for two cars. A few years ago, when my business was "booming" I did a similar thing a few (although the newer car I picked up was on a lease) and to this day don't regret my decision.

I would do the same again, but I'm still enjoying no car payments and don't want another one right now. Otherwise I'd be at the dealer again looking for a weekend driver. I'm still considering getting a bike, but I guess it would help if I knew how to ride one.

 

Two cars for sure. Don't want to take the P-car to the beach LOL.

For insurance reasons, I said my Element was my DD and the 997 was my garage queen. I live in HI so mileage stays super low either way. Don't be surprised if your 996 ends up being your DD though, that's what happened with my C2S hehe. Make sure you run a PPI to check for overrevs on the P-car, don't want an engine belonging to some yahoo flogging around the racetrack and bouncing off the rev limitor I'm not real familiar with the 996 but the 1st year 997 in 2005 had potentially catastrophic RMS issues that for the most part were fixed under warranty I believe. Make sure that's kosher with the 996 you're spocking out.

 

i'd rather have 2

 

my recommendation for the sedan would be a nice 02-03 Nissan Maxima
as for the weekend car, the s2000 is nice, also the 350z

 

I was already leaning towards two cars then I saw an 02 C2 for a good price and a 2-year porsche warranty - so I couldn't resist the temptation

I don't know how to upload pics

it's an 02 w/70,000 kms grey on black

 

That was quick. Congrats. Upload the photos to a site like www.photobucket.com Once they're there you can simply paste the images URL into a thread using image tags.

[/IMG]URL of your Photo[/IMG] You can use the image symbol as well when typing out your post. Its a square yellow box with a mountain and sun in it.

 

hopefuly that worked!!

 

Pics no work. Atlas or seal or meteor grey?

 

Fixed your pic NSX7. In photobucket, beside the image there's a box labeled 'Share This Image' . Copy the URL from the Direct Link box.

She's a beauty. Love the color.