Finally ready to start searching out the next car

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mustangGT90210

mustangGT90210

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I can afford either of these.
Hey guys. I've finally hit the point of wanting a vehicle from sometime near this century, but am in no rush so waiting is no issue. I currently drive a '91 F150 with 187,000 miles on it, and ride a '93 Suzuki street bike with god only knows style mileage. I'm looking to pick up something newer that will be dead on reliable, and really nice inside and out.

Price range sits around $5k and I'm open to hearing about really anything that will fit that. Looking for sporty cars mainly. Must be manual transmission. Fuel mileage is a non factor :) So throw some ideas at me guys.

Currently the list comprises itself of these:

'99-'04 Mustang GT - 4.6L V8, 5 speed
'98-'02 Trans Am - 5.7L V8, 6 speed

But I'm stuck in a rut there, I'm so muscle and American focused I don't even know anything beyond them, which is really what brings me here
 
240s are too old, I may have missed it in the first post, but I'm hoping to keep the car as close to 2000 and up as possible.
 
If you didn't care about getting your hands dirty you could do a V8 Miata swap.
The handling of a Miata but with 300+hp.
 
4.6L's are reliable motors, I'll grab the Mustang but then again I'm biased :sly:
 
You might be able to find a MkIV Golf GTI for that price, but in all honesty...

Bopop4
If you didn't care about getting your hands dirty you could do a V8 Miata swap.
The handling of a Miata but with 300+hp.
Click to expand...

This.
 
TheBook
You might be able to find a MkIV Golf GTI for that price, but in all honesty...



This.
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My girl drives a MkIV Jetta, her dad has a MkIV Jetta TDI, and her mom a MkV Jetta TDI, as well as buddy who has had a MkV Rabbit 2.5 and now is in a MkVI GTI...

To say the least, I don't wanna touch those electrics! They're about as reliable as a dead horse trying to pull a carrage in my experience.

But they handle like they're on rails, that's for sure. Do Audi's suffer the same problems? Because there are quite a few really clean, 100k mile A4 Quattros with the 1.8T around me in the 4,000 dollar range
Bopop4
If you didn't care about getting your hands dirty you could do a V8 Miata swap.
The handling of a Miata but with 300+hp.
Click to expand...

I'm trying to be somewhat practical for once :lol:

I'd kill for a LS1 Miata, but I'm trying to find something to keep stock except for wheels and maybe lowering an inch or so.

Keep the ideas coming guys, I'm liking the interest so far! Any other sporty coupes you can think of? Sporty sedans? I hate being so ethnocentrically centered on the US auto industry sometimes, gotta broaden horizons
 
Do you have any idea what you would like as far as MPG? I'm assuming by what you own and your ideas that around 15-20 is what you are shooting for. Which isn't exactly hard to fulfill lol
 
If you can stretch your budget a bit more you could probably get an SRT-4, which would be fast, have reasonable room and be halfway decent on gas when not in hoon-mode.

Something a little different would be a Grand Prix GTP, it's roomy and has a supercharger. It'll get up and move pretty good too.

Finally, you could always get a smaller truck too, something like an S-10 or Ranger. I miss both of my S-Trucks and still wish I had one of them to haul stuff around it. The Focus is nice and all but it won't pull a trailer.
 
I've had a few friends that have owned S-10s and they liked them but wouldn't buy another one. That said they both agreed that they are very reliable. I would get an S-10 or a Ranger like Joey suggested.
 
You can pop a LS1 into miata's easy and cheap.. Look up Flyin' Miata's.com, it adds about 200lbs to the miata and is pretty much (bolt-in), they make the kit...

Sounds like you are pretty set on a stang' though. I would just focus on finding a nice one inside your budget.👍
 
Gas mileage is really a non concern, I ride my motorcycle on a daily basis. Ideally I'd love to see 20+ out of a car if I buy one, but that goes out the window with a muscle car. I'm looking for a newer, dead reliable, nice car. Nice features, preferably leather interior, decent straight line performance and good handling, and can eat up miles like they are nothing.

playnthru
You can pop a LS1 into miata's easy and cheap.. Look up Flyin' Miata's.com, it adds about 200lbs to the miata and is pretty much (bolt-in), they make the kit...

Sounds like you are pretty set on a stang' though. I would just focus on finding a nice one inside your budget.👍
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I'm not set on a stang or trans am really. They're just all I know. I've got nothing against imports but I don't even know what to look for once we leave american cars. I'm trying to stay away from american cars unless they are muscle cars, because american cars were piles of garbage until just recently, which doesn't fit the price range.

Not looking for another truck either. I have one already, no need to have 2 to fulfill the same purpose really. I'm looking at keeping the 2 vehicles I already have and add onto the stable with something decently practical 💡
 
Hmm...Well personally I have always liked Mazda's. I have owed three, a B2200 truck, 323 and 2003 protoege. They all were great vehicles and I would recommend any of those to anyone. I never had any issues with my Mazda's. I gave mine to my son after 100k.👍

Currently wifey has a Toyota Corolla S 2004.....I can't say anything good about this car..(IMO) it's reliable enough sure, but just plain quirky.

Of course I love Merican cars, but ya I hear what you're saying.
 
playnthru
Hmm...Well personally I have always liked Mazda's. I have owed three, a B2200 truck, 323 and 2003 protoege. They all were great vehicles and I would recommend any of those to anyone. I never had any issues with my Mazda's. I gave mine to my son after 100k.👍

Currently wifey has a Toyota Corolla S 2004.....I can't say anything good about this car..(IMO) it's reliable enough sure, but just plain quirky.

Of course I love Merican cars, but ya I hear what you're saying.
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I've never looked too far into Mazdas, always seemed like economy cars to me until just recently with the introduction of the 3 and the 6, excluding the Miata and RX7/8. Those sport proteges are nice little things from everything I've heard, it's just a pain trying to find the sedan because they seem to be so rare. And I'm really against the station wagon

I'm with you on those Crapolas as well. Aside from the cheap feel and ride of a Ford Ranger, I don't fit in them comfortably... and I'm only 5'7" :lol:
 
5k range? close to 2000 models? hm.. E36 M3, E34 M5.. and if reliability and practicality should be had with dose of performance, there's always turbocharged Volvo wagons with AWD..
 
mustangGT90210
But they handle like they're on rails, that's for sure. Do Audi's suffer the same problems? Because there are quite a few really clean, 100k mile A4 Quattros with the 1.8T around me in the 4,000 dollar range.
Click to expand...

Those wouldn't be bad, but I hear you have to watch for oil sludging in those engines. Just an FYI.

Maybe a bit out of budget, but a left-field suggestion: SVT Focus?

Leonidae@MFT
5k range? close to 2000 models? hm.. E36 M3, E34 M5.. and if reliability and practicality should be had with dose of performance, there's always turbocharged Volvo wagons with AWD..
Click to expand...

Except you'd probably be looking at $7-8k for one of those with anything resembling a decent number of miles (at least around here; I'm not 100% sure what prices are down in FL).
 
TheBook
Those wouldn't be bad, but I hear you have to watch for oil sludging in those engines. Just an FYI.

Maybe a bit out of budget, but a left-field suggestion: SVT Focus?

Hello new search criteria 👍

Except you'd probably be looking at $7-8k for one of those with anything resembling a decent number of miles (at least around here; I'm not 100% sure what prices are down in FL).
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Around me it's right about 5k for a 325i automatic E46... Pass. Still got time to look though, I'd rock a E46 330 coupe in a heartbeat, that's a damn sexy car!
 
You really cant go wrong with a 98-02 Ram Air Trans Am. Amazing cars for the money. They ride nice, look amazing, handle very well, average about 30+ MPG with the 6 speed, and are very comfortable. Top it off with T-tops and leather and oh dang such a sweet ride. :) If you get one I will be so jealous.

Closest I had years ago was a 96 Firebird Formula. 350 LT1, 6 speed, leather, T-tops, and loaded. I loved that car so much. But its not good in the winter so I sold it a long time ago. Truly miss that car. If I was in a warmer state I would own a 98-02 Ram Air Trans am for sure. I loved that car so much that it inspired me to put the entire interior including the 6 speed transmission in my 69 Camaro.
 
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The hard part is just finding them, and then finding them with a 6 speed! It's like a needle in a haystack, I'm assuming because no one wants to sell them
 
Leonidae@MFT
5k range? close to 2000 models? hm.. E36 M3, E34 M5.. and if reliability and practicality should be had with dose of performance, there's always turbocharged Volvo wagons with AWD..
Click to expand...

TheBook
Except you'd probably be looking at $7-8k for one of those with anything resembling a decent number of miles (at least around here; I'm not 100% sure what prices are down in FL).
Click to expand...

E34 M5s are $12k-$13k cars. You either spend $7k on one and then $7k in repairs, or you spend $12k on the car and have very minimal repairs to do.
 
mustangGT90210
The hard part is just finding them, and then finding them with a 6 speed! It's like a needle in a haystack, I'm assuming because no one wants to sell them
Click to expand...
Thats the EXACT same problem I went through when I was trying to find a 98-02 ram air Trans Am. The 6 speed Trans Ams are VERY hard to find for a decent price. Especially if you also want T tops and leather. Good luck and please let me know if you eventually pick one up.
 
You're in the same boat I'm in. Diesel is over $4 a gallon now so I think it's time to stop daily driving my '91 dually Cummins and look for a more fuel efficient, smaller daily driver.

I think I have my mind set on an '02 Subaru WRX wagon. While they may be hard to find in good shape and not abused, I have found quite a few in the 100-120K mile range for 5-6k and they are certainly fun little cars while still being great for daily use. If you can find one, I think a WRX is the best bang for your buck for a fun daily driver and being a wagon insurance isn't bad at all either. For me it's only about $20 more a month than my truck.
 
CAMAROBOY69
Thats the EXACT same problem I went through when I was trying to find a 98-02 ram air Trans Am. The 6 speed Trans Ams are VERY hard to find for a decent price. Especially if you also want T tops and leather. Good luck and please let me know if you eventually pick one up.
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Ya, that was the issue I ran into. I wanted an LS1 Camaro or Trans Am with the 6 speed as t tops. Except they were no where to be found. I found the next best thing I guess, an LT1 Camaro with the 6spd and t tops.
 

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