help Scott find a whip

[ScottyB]

by 'crappier' i mean used aveos, echos, and festivas :lol:

i did kinda like that suzuki reno rental car.... hock:

[ScottyB]

crap, found a really nice little yellow 2 door focus PZEV right near me. low miles, manual....aaaa i hope i can find another near me when i'm in the market later this year.

i keep coming back to foci. outside the SVT they seem like fun little beaters....would be perfect for big commuting and auto-x thrashing

[Ryan T]

bah, get rwd.

[ScottyB]

bah, get rwd.

i wish. easier said than done man!

[Jewels]

i keep coming back to foci. outside the SVT they seem like fun little beaters....would be perfect for big commuting and auto-x thrashing

We are getting ready to put an SVT suspension on my focus and add 17 inch Kosei K-1's to it. We will be doing this entire swap for under $500. Now of course we got a great deal on the wheels ($100 on CL) and the suspension was cheap too ($200 on CL) so with the tires and little odds and ends we need to get to get the sway bar to mount up it'll be under $500, and guaranteed to add a lot of excitement to the little econbox.

[CaptainHenreh]

i keep coming back to foci. outside the SVT they seem like fun little beaters....would be perfect for big commuting and auto-x thrashing

We are getting ready to put an SVT suspension on my focus and add 17 inch Kosei K-1's to it. We will be doing this entire swap for under $500.

Yeah, if you don't need the horsepower, but want the handling, that's easy.

[HAULN-SS]

you find a car yet?

[ScottyB]

you find a car yet?

this won't happen next week, or next month. probably before '08.

i guess technically it is before '08...

i know what i want, which is an '05-'06 focus. totally caught me off gaurd honestly...i was looking at SVT's, found out i could get into one of these for cheap. its cheap, simple, stout, probably alot of fun -- perfect. i love the newer duratec engines they have put in them as well. i wrote them off early because i drove a rental focus which was admittedly a poor example of the model lineup. i remember i loved the dynamics of the car, i just hated the engine and interior which the new foci take care of.

if i find a 318Ti with less than 400,000 miles on it or a 325i/s that seems like a smoking deal, i'll think about it....but i know they won't be much cheaper to own than the audi. WRX's are still too pricey and have a high chance of a harsh previous ownership. EP civics still scare me with theft rates and i really can't get into the car, it doesn't excite me at all.

[Mike]

ep civics don't have a high theft rate.

[Andy]

ep civics don't have a high theft rate.

That's because they suck.

[ScottyB]

ep civics don't have a high theft rate.

i don't know for sure but it's a honda and unless i have a garage, i'll be paranoid.

there are some other reported issues with the car that are surprisingly un-honda-like and a big turnoff for me.

[Mike]

huh? i've driven 'em and i think they're great cars for what they are.

[ScottyB]

huh? i've driven 'em and i think they're great cars for what they are.

i'm sure they are to many people. if i can get past the ugly outside i'd probably have a blast with one.

however, my point about "issues" is this kind of thing -- if you want, search around for stuff regarding: camshaft scoring (possible metallurgy/oil spec problem) and transmission issues (grinding synchros, tranny locking up entirely). what bothers me is that this is not specific to old cars. on some this is happening in under 10k miles, and it's some fairly major stuff to think about, warranty intact or not.

[Mike]

there are horror stories with every car. within "the honda scene," the ep bus is not known to be exceptionally unreliable or anything. if you don't like how it looks then no worries

[ScottyB]

there are horror stories with every car.

i hear that. just trying to weigh my options and find out what is "common" and what's not.

and frankly, most cars i've owned have not been the prettiest things :lol: no shame in ridin the short bus!

[Goodspeed]

What about

[ScottyB]

What about

i'd love to as a toy but it's too old and not safe enough

[ScottyB]

it's late thursday, motivation to work is lacking, why not blow some time:

it's a long story, but basically the audi is going to be replaced within the month, probably sooner. my priorities have changed quite a bit, in that i have more to spend now that finding a house is no longer a viable option for Jen and i.

17 to 18k preferrable, 19k max.

- no AWD. i don't need it, don't want it. RWD preffered.
- no turbos. i'm interested in something simpler and something more linear.
- needs to be able to fit 4 people in a pinch. sorry, S2000.
- manual tranny only. no DSG or manumatic whatevers.
- no hectic maintainance schedules (looking at you, Germany), no time bombs (looking at you, rotaries)
- lets try for decent highway mileage
- looking at ~60K miles or less.
- needs to be remotely exciting to drive. if i'm wasting 1.5 hours a day at minimum going up and down the interstate i want to be at least half interested.

to give you some background, i have basically cross-shopped the weirdest variety of cars you've ever seen over the last 3 or 4 months. nothing was counted out. everything from M3's to Focus's to RX8's to Viggens. here are my top choices:

- 2002-2004 Lex IS300
- 2004 Acura TSX
- 2004 Pontiac GTO

kind of a motley crew but they are all pretty bulletproof, sporty-ish cars with varying talents. the Acura is the most sensible and efficient, the Goat is the Hacksaw Jim Duggan of coupes and the Lex is somewhere in between.

I'm going to test drive an IS on saturday and hopefully a GTO and TSX if i have time. currently the IS seems most feasible.

Thoughts, recommendations, warnings?

[.RJ]

You could probably find a lower mileage CPO (read: warranty) E46 in that budget.

[Maengelito]

TSX is fwd which i know is not preferred. i think your criteria point straight to a E46 BMW. its all of those you want and can be found in your price range. however, it is another german car, so i can also understand if you dont want that