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What car should I buy?

A

ai42

Diamond Member
Ok so I just took my crappy 97 Altima in this morning to the insurance guys to fix the hail damage (if your in Dallas you know what I mean). Apparently the cost to fix the hail damage is very very high and will likely exceed the value of the car so they are likely going to total it. And I couldn't be happier, I've been wanting to get rid of it for a while now.

So I should get around 4,000 from the insurance company + I got about 3,000 on hand + I could borrow about 4-5,000 from my parents. So 12,000 is my spending max. I'm looking at used cars obviously (new cars that cheap just sucks).

Must have:
4-cylinder engine (V6s just cost too much in gas)
Turbocharger is a definite plus!
Made 1999 to present
Anti-lock brakes (damn Altima didn't have it and screwed up the tires)
Fairly sporty I want it to go for 12g I should be able to get a decent car.
Not too many miles 60k max.
Manuel transmission also a plus
No Honda cars (the only Honda I would own is a S2000 and I can't afford that, and fyi that ebay auction from that crazy dude about the ricer cars that was posted a week ago; I love that guy)
I would like to have many options to make it go fast 🙂 Like turbocharger add-ons, exhaust/intake etc and I don't mean make is "look" fast with 1/2 a million racer decals.
MUST BE A CAR!!! NO SUVs/Trucks

Stuff I'm looking at/considering
Volkswagen Golf/Jetta 1.8T (heh I know a bit high out of my price range)
Volkswagen Golf/Jetta GTI
Nissan Sentra SE-R Spec V
Subaru Imprezza

FYI I'm not looking into specific ebay auctions or anything, as I prefer to get this locally (Dallas/FW is huge I mean there must be 100s of car dealerships). I'm just looking for makes/model cars that are within my specs.
 
my previous car was a V6 and got slightly better mileage than my current car, which has an I4.

no way you'll get a recent spec-v for that, its only been out 1.5 years
 
"Anti-lock brakes (damn Altima didn't have it and screwed up the tires)"


You do not know how to drive, yet that is the cars fault
rolleye.gif



Get a bike, there are enough bad drivers on the road.
 
Not having ABS does not screw up tires. Have no idea what you're talking about there....

If you want infinite amounts of aftermarket support, Honda is the way to go.
 
Originally posted by: ai42
Must have:
4-cylinder engine (V6s just cost too much in gas)
Turbocharger is a definite plus!
I would like to have many options to make it go fast 🙂 Like turbocharger add-ons, exhaust/intake etc
Click to expand...
😕Uh.... you want fast but you don't want anything but a tiny engine? Okay....CraigRT is right, the only car that I see that fits your criteria is an SRT-4 which is out of your price range.
 
"Anti-lock brakes (damn Altima didn't have it and screwed up the tires)"
You do not know how to drive, yet that is the cars fault
Get a bike, there are enough bad drivers on the road.
Click to expand...
You know what get out of my thread. I had to stop very quickly once in downtown dallas becasue some moron decided to change lanes in front of me doing 20mph on the highway. It screwed up my tires and I have flat spots on my tires because of it.
 
The first thing I can think of is a ~1996 BMW 318 series. 318ti = hatch, 318is = coupe, 318i = 4-door. These cars are rock solid, look awesome, and reliable. Yeah, the insurance and repair bills may be up there, but you get what you pay for. By the way...VW has fairly costly repair bills - or so I am told. I will look some more and see if I can come up with any other suggestions for your criteria.
 
Originally posted by: fonzinator
The first thing I can think of is a ~1996 BMW 318 series. 318ti = hatch, 318is = coupe, 318i = 4-door. These cars are rock solid, look awesome, and reliable. Yeah, the insurance and repair bills may be up there, but you get what you pay for. By the way...VW has fairly costly repair bills - or so I am told. I will look some more and see if I can come up with any other suggestions for your criteria.
Click to expand...
Okay...I've thought some more. How about '97 or '98 Integra GS-R, or Acura CL (for a midsize car). Or what about '98 Mitsu Eclipse? All are sporty, right in your price range, fit all your requirements, all avaliable in 5-speed and in 4 cyl. Lots of aftermarket parts for the Integras and Eclipses.
 
Originally posted by: fonzinator
Originally posted by: fonzinator
The first thing I can think of is a ~1996 BMW 318 series. 318ti = hatch, 318is = coupe, 318i = 4-door. These cars are rock solid, look awesome, and reliable. Yeah, the insurance and repair bills may be up there, but you get what you pay for. By the way...VW has fairly costly repair bills - or so I am told. I will look some more and see if I can come up with any other suggestions for your criteria.
Click to expand...
Okay...I've thought some more. How about '97 or '98 Integra GS-R, or Acura CL (for a midsize car). Or what about '98 Mitsu Eclipse? All are sporty, right in your price range, fit all your requirements, all avaliable in 5-speed and in 4 cyl. Lots of aftermarket parts for the Integras and Eclipses.
Click to expand...

He said he didn't want hondas.
 
Don't sweat the fuel efficiency difference between a 4 and 6 cylinder. I think it's like a 1 mile per gallon difference. The real difference is the purchase price of a 4 vs. 6 cylinder initially. I think $2-3k in difference.

At least this was true in the recent minivan shopping I did for my dad.
 
Originally posted by: rh71
Don't sweat the fuel efficiency difference between a 4 and 6 cylinder. I think it's like a 1 mile per gallon difference. The real difference is the purchase price of a 4 vs. 6 cylinder initially. I think $2-3k in difference.

At least this was true in the recent minivan shopping I did for my dad.
Click to expand...

Especially when you have a 4 cylinder "sporty" car with a turbo or a high redline, it guzzles the gas nicely too. My car is an inline 6 turbo and I still get a good 25 MPG. I've seen 4 banger cars get less than that.
 
Here's an idea -- disconnect from the computer and make your own decissions. It's one thing to ask people for their opinion and another to ask them to decide something for you. You gotta have your own brains.
 
Originally posted by: Argo
Here's an idea -- disconnect from the computer and make your own decissions. It's one thing to ask people for their opinion and another to ask them to decide something for you. You gotta have your own brains.
Click to expand...

roger that!
 
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