Topic: First Car (Read 222 times)

Rylinkus · « **Reply #15 on:** June 30, 2006, 06:44:00 AM »

QUOTE(xboxhackern00b @ Jun 30 2006, 03:20 AM)

let's see some bigger pics! and of the exterior

[/thread jack]

Or a new thread could be started

jesterrace777 · « **Reply #16 on:** June 30, 2006, 06:23:00 PM »

I'm surprised that no one has really brought this point up yet. The guys original description is "FIRST CAR" No way in hell would I recommend a muscle car or high performance import to someone looking for a first car at this point. The guy also mentioned that he is looking for something in the 100-200HP range so that pretty much rules out the muscle cars. First and foremost, the guy is probably 18 years or younger so insurance on the majority of muscle cars would be damn expensive (to say nothing of the rising gas prices). Maintenence is also a major factor. Out of all of those cars that were listed by twisted symphony, I would have to say that a late model 240sx would be the most practical. Decent gas mileage and relatively easy to maintain (provided that they are well cared for). Not too difficult to finds parts for and even though they aren't uncommon it's not like everyone and their dog owns one. @the original post I concur that a Celica (preferably the 6 speed GTS model) would be a good choice for a late model car. For the same reasons as the 240sx. That being said, where on earth are you coming up with a 15K budget. Are your parents really rich or are you just taking out a massive loan. If it is the latter, I think you need to bring yourself back to reality. Going into that kind of debt for your first car is just plain dumb IMHO as you aren't going to have the means to pay it off for quite a few years. Don't get me wrong. I really like the other cars that have been listed (ie Camaro, RX-7, ect.) but none of them are really practical for a first car at this point for the reasons I listed above. A well maintained mid-late 90s 240sx would still be top of my list for a practical car though. I think it will give you the most for your money and still leave you plenty left over to do a few things to it.

thewickedjester · « **Reply #17 on:** June 30, 2006, 09:57:00 PM »

QUOTE

First and foremost, the guy is probably 18 years or younger so insurance on the majority of muscle cars would be damn expensive (to say nothing of the rising gas prices).

(^ Shortened in the interest of space)

Just cause I own one, I'm gonna push it even harder. A Impala (or even a decomissioned cop car [the 9c1 Caprice]) has great horsepower (its got a Vette motor in it) and all the issues with the cars are usually fixed by their first owners (issues with the OptiSpark coil distributors, water pumps, etc etc) and you are left with a 4 door car (insurance loves 4 doors) with good horsepower and rather stylish in my opinion (I've heard quite a number of mixed impressions). As far as gas goes, a stock Impala is rated for 17/25 MPG city/highway (respectively), even if you were to lowball that to about 15/20 or so thats still pretty impressive for a large car with a semi-fast engine in it.

Oh, and with the exception of some asthetic parts and certain things on the engine (mainly with the OptiSpark distributor) and the suspension the Caprice and Impala share many parts, so they are still relatively easy to get ahold of.

twistedsymphony · « **Reply #18 on:** July 01, 2006, 08:00:00 AM »

@jesterrace777, while he did mention that it's his first car and that he wanted something in the 100-200hp range, he also mentioned that he wanted something REAR WHEEL DRIVE

I can completely respect that and I know where he's coming from. I personally can't stand FWD cars and I've never owned one... I'd own some junker pickup before buying a FWD car.

AWD is often a nice alternative to those adverse to FWD since they're much easier to find in new models and quite capable in poor weather driving conditions.

Hence the list I compiled was sporty RWD/AWD cars in his price range.

Rylinkus · « **Reply #19 on:** July 01, 2006, 08:37:00 AM »

A mid 90s Stang GT rolls in @ a bit over 200 hp. And I think I prefer the looks of those to all but the 60s Stangs.

lostboyz · « **Reply #20 on:** July 01, 2006, 01:00:00 PM »

QUOTE(Rylinkus @ Jul 1 2006, 08:44 AM)

A mid 90s Stang GT rolls in @ a bit over 200 hp. And I think I prefer the looks of those to all but the 60s Stangs.

obviously you have not seen the new roush, saleen, or GT500 of this years model, I get a boner just hearing them

Rylinkus · « **Reply #21 on:** July 01, 2006, 01:15:00 PM »

QUOTE(lostboyz @ Jul 1 2006, 08:07 PM)

obviously you have not seen the new roush, saleen, or GT500 of this years model, I get a boner just hearing them

I dont like em.

jesterrace777 · « **Reply #22 on:** July 01, 2006, 02:45:00 PM »

QUOTE(garver @ Jul 1 2006, 02:47 AM)

You can get a late model camaro with a v6 and still be close to the powerrange once i get my camaro all shiny again ill make a new thread for ya=]

Sorry to say this man, but V6 Camaros are a waste of money. The gas mileage difference between them and the Z28 (provided you get the 6 speed manual) is virtually nonexistant. However, there is a HUGE difference in the power and performance between the two. Both are pretty comparable for maintenence as well. Once again IMHO if you are looking at a V6 Camaro, you might as well buy another car as there are better options for the money. @twisted symphony I did notice that he was looking for RWD. However he seemed more than content to go with the Toyota Celica. Given his price range, HP ratings, ect. it just goes to show that the guy doesn't really have a clue to what he wants. I'm simply trying to steer him into something that would be more practical for a first car. Once again alot of cars here are excellent cars but they are NOT daily drivers, nor would they be good choices for someone looking to buy their first car. Once again, the vehicles that are the most practical for a first vehicle AND meet most of his criteria are the Nissan 240sx and the Toyota Celica. So I completely agree with your choice of the 240sx.

Rylinkus · « **Reply #23 on:** July 01, 2006, 03:12:00 PM »

QUOTE(jesterrace777 @ Jul 1 2006, 09:52 PM)

Sorry to say this man, but V6 Camaros are a waste of money. The gas mileage difference between them and the Z28 (provided you get the 6 speed manual) is virtually nonexistant.

The 6th gear isnt useful in any manner until you're well into highway speeds. So unless all his driving is on the highway @ 65+ then the V6 WILL get better gas mileage. And since you were the one getting on people's cases about too powerful cars a minute ago, how can you not like a V6 Camaro??

The 3.8L V6 is rated @ 200 HP and 225 ft/lbs. So THAT meets his specs.

jesterrace777 · « **Reply #24 on:** July 01, 2006, 04:11:00 PM »

True, but the point is that neither of them are really practical as a first car/daily driver. I was merely pointing out that if you were going to get a Camaro, you might as well go ahead and get the Z28 (hell, he's certainly got the budget for it). The 240sx also meets his specs but will be easier on maintenence provided he gets one that is well taken care of. I just checked fuel economy.gov and the difference between a manual tranny V-6 and a manual tranny Z28 (at least on the '95) is a whopping 2MPG. 19 in the city and 28 on the highway for the V-6 and 17MPG city/26MPG on the highway for the manual Z28. So yeah, the V-6 does get better gas mileage but not significantly so. Once again, I just don't think that anything that gets less than 20MPG around town is really practical as a daily driver/first car.

Rylinkus · « **Reply #25 on:** July 01, 2006, 05:00:00 PM »

QUOTE(jesterrace777 @ Jul 1 2006, 11:18 PM)

True, but the point is that neither of them are really practical as a first car/daily driver. I was merely pointing out that if you were going to get a Camaro, you might as well go ahead and get the Z28 (hell, he's certainly got the budget for it). The 240sx also meets his specs but will be easier on maintenence provided he gets one that is well taken care of. I just checked fuel economy.gov and the difference between a manual tranny V-6 and a manual tranny Z28 (at least on the '95) is a whopping 2MPG. 19 in the city and 28 on the highway for the V-6 and 17MPG city/26MPG on the highway for the manual Z28. So yeah, the V-6 does get better gas mileage but not significantly so. Once again, I just don't think that anything that gets less than 20MPG around town is really practical as a daily driver/first car.

Ive yet to see a Z28 in my year range come near either of those numbers. Even the bone stock M6s get 13-14 around town. Mine gets 8. If a 240SX is a good choice then so is a V6 Camaro. Name one catergory that the 240 reigns supreme outside of F&F fanboy cred. I dont think either is a bad DD. My point is merely thatif a 240SX is on the list than a V6 Camaro should be. WITH T Tops. Anyone who buys a camaro without T Tops is an uncultured wretch

jesterrace777 · « **Reply #26 on:** July 01, 2006, 05:22:00 PM »

QUOTE(garver @ Jul 2 2006, 12:25 AM)

I was thinking instead he could get a new v6 truck
here in oklahoma they are selling 06 chevys with a stick and v6 for around 11,000-13,000
new car with warrentry and cheap insurance. They are nice cars as well.
(excuse my spelling I had to work the graveyard shift so im very tired)

I don't think that a truck would quite fill his needs/wants. Not to mention, I don't know if I would buy a Chevy that has been made within the last year or so (due to GM pissing off it's workers).

Rylinkus · « **Reply #27 on:** July 01, 2006, 05:55:00 PM »

QUOTE(jesterrace777 @ Jul 2 2006, 12:29 AM)

No arguments on the T-Tops, I might have to get one just to spite you though.

As for the 240sx, I was simply thinking of overall reliability, gas mileage, insurance, ect. I think it will fair a bit better than the V6 Camaro in each of those categories.
I don't think that a truck would quite fill his needs/wants. Not to mention, I don't know if I would buy a Chevy that has been made within the last year or so (due to GM pissing off it's workers).

I dont have a lot to base reliability on. I do know several people with 240s and they dont come off as overly reliable. Nor did my Nissan. I dont know about the v6, but my V8 Maro has been as reliable as anything Ive owned yet. And Id be willing to bet that it costs more to insure a 240 then a v6 Camaro. I'll bet its a much more commonly stolen car and that the accident rate is higher because theres a higher percentage of younger kids driving them instead of V6 Camaros. I may be wrong though.

jesterrace777 · « **Reply #28 on:** July 01, 2006, 07:28:00 PM »

QUOTE(garver @ Jul 2 2006, 01:57 AM)

The Gm plant an hour away from my house just laid off 1500 workers i think and they are now planning to close. (All they make are the ugly small SUVs)
But my friend just got a truck like the one I sais and its nice and is high quality. Just trying to offer something else to help him get ideas.=]

Not saying it was a bad idea. I was just pointing out why no one else had mentioned it yet. Kinda hard to go from a sporty car to a truck. Although an econo car is probably the most practical thing for him to get at this point.

QUOTE(Rylinkus @ Jul 2 2006, 01:02 AM)

I dont have a lot to base reliability on. I do know several people with 240s and they dont come off as overly reliable. Nor did my Nissan. I dont know about the v6, but my V8 Maro has been as reliable as anything Ive owned yet. And Id be willing to bet that it costs more to insure a 240 then a v6 Camaro. I'll bet its a much more commonly stolen car and that the accident rate is higher because theres a higher percentage of younger kids driving them instead of V6 Camaros. I may be wrong though.

No arguments on the V8 in those things. Provided they are well maintained they are very dependable cars. One of my mechanics has owned a '96 Z-28 since it was new and he said it was one of the most dependable cars he has owned. I thought I remembered reading something about reliability issues with certain GM 6 cylinder engines, but like you, I could be mistaken.

Rylinkus · « **Reply #29 on:** July 02, 2006, 06:07:00 AM »

QUOTE(jesterrace777 @ Jul 2 2006, 02:35 AM)

Not saying it was a bad idea. I was just pointing out why no one else had mentioned it yet. Kinda hard to go from a sporty car to a truck. Although an econo car is probably the most practical thing for him to get at this point.

No arguments on the V8 in those things. Provided they are well maintained they are very dependable cars. One of my mechanics has owned a '96 Z-28 since it was new and he said it was one of the most dependable cars he has owned. I thought I remembered reading something about reliability issues with certain GM 6 cylinder engines, but like you, I could be mistaken.

I know the GM 3.8l is supposed to be a stout little engine. As a matter of fact THE mod that all the Nissan pickup guys do is swap their 3.0 V6 for that 3.8L and matching tranny. There was a hell of a writeup on it on Nissanminis.com before the site went down. Lost hosting or whatever.

Author Topic: First Car (Read 222 times)