Time to start thinking about a new car, gas is starting to eat me

  • Thread starter Thread starter mustangGT90210
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JCE
It's not a 4cyl...

It's not that good on mileage--but better than your truck...

It's the awesome classic you've always wanted...

And it has porno red interior!
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Gotta love that interior.

I'm always amazed though how Datsun subtly turned such a pretty car in the 240Z into such a minger with the 280.
 
R1600Turbo
I hear those are a nightmare to work on.
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Not to mention out of his budget most likely for one in decent enough shape.


homeforsummer
Gotta love that interior.

I'm always amazed though how Datsun subtly turned such a pretty car in the 240Z into such a minger with the 280.
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I don't agree with all the negatives towards the 260 and 280. They are still fantastic looking cars that are a blast to drive! :D
 
R1600Turbo
I hear those are a nightmare to work on.
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Toronado
And then a drop of rain hits the windshield as you are driving down the highway and the entire car instantly rusts in half.
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Remember it's been suggested to someone driving a truck with 8-9 rust holes in the bed of his truck, 1 in the floorboard, one on a cab corner and one on a front fender. And this is florida, things don't rust!
 
Toronado
And then a drop of rain hits the windshield as you are driving down the highway and the entire car instantly rusts in half.
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Rust? On an old Nissan? Inconceivable!

ser2_center.jpg


(seriously, though... even with all that rust... I'd hit it...)
 
JCE
I agree with the question mark. They are fairly reliable mechanically.
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Talk to a mechanic before making that comment. With a ZX2 and a Contour Sport both in the family, I wouldn't suggest either. Both lady driven, and both fallen to crap before 100,000 km. At 98,000 km the ZX2 had to have its whole front end redone, broke its timing belt leading to huge repairs and also suffers from the "shakes" which plague the vehicles (the mechanic guessed the car before she even told him what kind of car had the problem, its that well known). The Contour had its engine rebuilt when it was 4 years old, then it went again 2 years later and was replaced. The manual transmission went, and you almost needed to use your leg strength to get it into 5th or reverse, which never caught right from the start, don't know the actual problem, but the cost to fix it was high. Then theres the poorly made interior with its "pop out" cup holders, which eventually stop working and become nice little inserts in your dash. Theres more, but I think I've said enough.
 
Okay, a couple housekeeping issues to get out of the way first. And yes, I'm about to be a "wet blanket" for a minute.

1. A $2500 car that meets all your desires? Might have to push that out to $4000 for reliabilty, or be prepared for your "cheap car" to nickel and dime you till you've got $4 or 5,000 in it so that you trust it.

2. With that in mind, $2500 is about 700 gallons of gas (at $3.50/gal), or 9,000 miles in the truck. If you purchase a car, you'll have to pay for it, add it to your insurance, and pay for that, and fuel. Granted at 25 MPG, that's 360 gallons of gas vs. the 700 gallons mentioned above. But the 700 gallons comes with no extra outlay of cash. Something to think about.

My recommendation, is a first generation Mazda Miata. The 1.6 is only 100 HP, but it's in a light car. If you can find one that has been cared for you wonl't be in a money pit.
Is it a "chick car"? Kinda. But remember that on any given weekend, More Miatas are being raced in the US, than ANY other car. And a well-driven one will get you 30 MPG easy if you do your part.
ALso, I saw a 2000 model (a 1.8 I think) around here (KS), recently with about 100K on it for $5,000. Surely a first gen would be cheaper. And in FL there ought to be scads of them to choose from.

(FWIW. If you're near a military base, figure out when guys transfer out. A lot of them sell their cars if they are going overseas, and they are under some pressure to unload them quickly. And if there are a lot of them that are transferring out at the same time of year...there are more cars to choose from. That often means a great price for the buyer with cash in hand.)
 
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SRV2LOW4ME
Talk to a mechanic before making that comment. With a ZX2 and a Contour Sport both in the family, I wouldn't suggest either. Both lady driven, and both fallen to crap before 100,000 km. At 98,000 km the ZX2 had to have its whole front end redone, broke its timing belt leading to huge repairs and also suffers from the "shakes" which plague the vehicles (the mechanic guessed the car before she even told him what kind of car had the problem, its that well known). The Contour had its engine rebuilt when it was 4 years old, then it went again 2 years later and was replaced. The manual transmission went, and you almost needed to use your leg strength to get it into 5th or reverse, which never caught right from the start, don't know the actual problem, but the cost to fix it was high. Then theres the poorly made interior with its "pop out" cup holders, which eventually stop working and become nice little inserts in your dash. Theres more, but I think I've said enough.
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You're not supposed to wait 98,000 kms before changing a timing belt, are you?
 
SRV2LOW4ME
Talk to a mechanic before making that comment. With a ZX2 and a Contour Sport both in the family, I wouldn't suggest either. Both lady driven, and both fallen to crap before 100,000 km. At 98,000 km the ZX2 had to have its whole front end redone, broke its timing belt leading to huge repairs and also suffers from the "shakes" which plague the vehicles (the mechanic guessed the car before she even told him what kind of car had the problem, its that well known). The Contour had its engine rebuilt when it was 4 years old, then it went again 2 years later and was replaced. The manual transmission went, and you almost needed to use your leg strength to get it into 5th or reverse, which never caught right from the start, don't know the actual problem, but the cost to fix it was high. Then theres the poorly made interior with its "pop out" cup holders, which eventually stop working and become nice little inserts in your dash. Theres more, but I think I've said enough.
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Out of all that, I've had... the engine's "shakes", in more than two years since I've had the car. Mine's got 155,000 km and still no problems. Also, whatever mechanic did the "huge repairs" after the timing belt broke had an incorrect service manual; the 2.0 Zetec is non-interference.
 
niky
You're not supposed to wait 98,000 kms before changing a timing belt, are you?
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I believe the manual calls for it to be done at 150,000 km. Almost every car that I've owned with a timing belt has called for it to be replaced around 140-160,000 km. The mechanic was shocked when he learned how little km was on the car.

TheBook - I never said the engine suffered internal damage, I said huge repairs. Timing belt, water pump, etc all had to be replaced aswell as a few other things that I can't remember. The belt went while she was on the highway, over an hour away from home, so it was a huge inconvience to say the least.

And the shakes are bad. I've witnessed them first hand and thought the car was going to fall apart, and don't understand how its just something people put up with. If my car was at idle and the steering wheel started moving like it was possessed and the car started shaking like it was going over a bumpy road, I would probably bless it in holy water and throw it in a lake.
 
Gil
Okay, a couple housekeeping issues to get out of the way first. And yes, I'm about to be a "wet blanket" for a minute.

1. A $2500 car that meets all your desires? Might have to push that out to $4000 for reliabilty, or be prepared for your "cheap car" to nickel and dime you till you've got $4 or 5,000 in it so that you trust it.

2. With that in mind, $2500 is about 700 gallons of gas (at $3.50/gal), or 9,000 miles in the truck. If you purchase a car, you'll have to pay for it, add it to your insurance, and pay for that, and fuel. Granted at 25 MPG, that's 360 gallons of gas vs. the 700 gallons mentioned above. But the 700 gallons comes with no extra outlay of cash. Something to think about.

My recommendation, is a first generation Mazda Miata. The 1.6 is only 100 HP, but it's in a light car. If you can find one that has been cared for you wonl't be in a money pit.
Is it a "chick car"? Kinda. But remember that on any given weekend, More Miatas are being raced in the US, than ANY other car. And a well-driven one will get you 30 MPG easy if you do your part.
ALso, I saw a 2000 model (a 1.8 I think) around here (KS), recently with about 100K on it for $5,000. Surely a first gen would be cheaper. And in FL there ought to be scads of them to choose from.

(FWIW. If you're near a military base, figure out when guys transfer out. A lot of them sell their cars if they are going overseas, and they are under some pressure to unload them quickly. And if there are a lot of them that are transferring out at the same time of year...there are more cars to choose from. That often means a great price for the buyer with cash in hand.)
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Thanks for putting the math out there for me, that makes it a lot easier to see where it's all going. Regardless I will be getting a newer/smaller vehicle sometime within the next year. Just depends on when the full amount of money comes through. I'd rather not take out a loan so there's some saving to be done for that as well as tuition....

I'm with you on the miata though, those are interesting to me, and I know they're fun as **** having already driven them
 
'91 S10 5 speed (21/23/25 mpg)
http://sarasota.craigslist.org/cto/2511855546.html

'97 S10 5 speed (20/24/27 mpg)
http://sarasota.craigslist.org/cto/2498943142.html

Just had a thought about S10s, they're cheap as dirt and get good mileage. I know with a manual I can kick ass on the MPG side of things and pull 24-25mpg in the '97. The '91 might be 23-24. Used to my moms old Escape 5 speed with a 2.3, rated for 21/24/27 city/combo/hwy, routinely got 26 with lots of city driving. I can afford these much quicker, and have the added bonus of the fact they still have a bed, and I can use them at work. Only downside... it's a chebby
 
I know im a VTEC TypevR dude but if you want to fly below the radar.. Get a Corolla :D Worlds best selling car
 
I didn't see where the listings said the S-10's where the I4 or the V6. An S-10 would be good though, there are a ton of parts out there too so you wouldn't have a problem fixing anything that breaks with just a trip to the junkyard. They are also stupidly reliable too, my Blazer had a lot of little things wrong with it but nothing major went wrong that wasn't my fault.

Oh and you can totally lower and S-10 too :lol:
 
AzNTypeR
I know im a VTEC TypevR dude but if you want to fly below the radar.. Get a Corolla :D Worlds best selling car
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Please excuse me if this sounds aimed at your or disrepectful.


Hell. :censored:ing. No. I will not drive a corolla, I have driven multiple and they all suck. They are not engaging at all, they ride like a little truck, the seating positions are terrible, pedals too light, interior is atrocious, have more beige styling than a Camry, and have 1 single redeeming feature: gas mileage.


Rant over :lol: I'd love to have a VTEC but they cost more than I'm willing to put out for them
 
mustangGT90210
'91 S10 5 speed (21/23/25 mpg)
http://sarasota.craigslist.org/cto/2511855546.html

'97 S10 5 speed (20/24/27 mpg)
http://sarasota.craigslist.org/cto/2498943142.html

Just had a thought about S10s, they're cheap as dirt and get good mileage. I know with a manual I can kick ass on the MPG side of things and pull 24-25mpg in the '97. The '91 might be 23-24. Used to my moms old Escape 5 speed with a 2.3, rated for 21/24/27 city/combo/hwy, routinely got 26 with lots of city driving. I can afford these much quicker, and have the added bonus of the fact they still have a bed, and I can use them at work. Only downside... it's a chebby
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How dare you consider the much inferior Chevy over the Ford Ranger. Plus. The newer Isuzu S-10's aren't all that good. If you want an S-10 grab a late 80's one. :lol:
 
Joey D
I didn't see where the listings said the S-10's where the I4 or the V6. An S-10 would be good though, there are a ton of parts out there too so you wouldn't have a problem fixing anything that breaks with just a trip to the junkyard. They are also stupidly reliable too, my Blazer had a lot of little things wrong with it but nothing major went wrong that wasn't my fault.

Oh and you can totally lower and S-10 too :lol:
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:lol: I'd so lower it. My girlfriend has a '98 Blazer that only has minor stuff wrong with it, and that's all because her dad tried to redneck it together leading to EVERYTHING he touched needing to be fixed

Both those S10s are 4cyl/5spd. There were multiple ads on both, I just linked the most recent of them
JCE
How dare you consider the much inferior Chevy over the Ford Ranger. Plus. The newer Isuzu S-10's aren't all that good. If you want an S-10 grab a late 80's one. :lol:
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Looking for the newerish ones because of airbags 'cause it's cheaper on insurance mainly, and because newer have less miles which can lead to less problems to start with.

I don't want a ranger. I'm not a fan of twin-i beam, and I really don't like Rangers...
 
The 4.3 is a gas hog, only gets about 2 mpg better than my truck. Not worth buying for that little gain. I was leaning to the 4cyl because of the mileage
 
saidaouita
Greatest answer ever. That Volvo engine is great. Believe I even heard on Top Gear, Lotus had something to do with the suspension on the Focus?
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The Focus didn't use a Volvo engine outside the 2nd generation RS model that the US didn't get. The Duratec and Zetec engines were developed by Ford NA and Ford Europe. There were also Cosworth and Yamaha versions.

The Control Blade suspension was developed by Ford and lead by a guy named Richard Parry-Jones, who apparently is some world class engineer.

===

And yes the 4.3L is quite the gas hog, my Blazer would at best give me 18mpg.
 
Joey D
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And yes the 4.3L is quite the gas hog, my Blazer would at best give me 18mpg.
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My girl has a '98 Blazer 4x4 with the 4.3. Thing pulls down a consistent 16-17. My truck pulls in 16 under normal driving, 17 if I'm nice. 18 on small tires. 19 babied on small tires.

The silverado 4.3s get better mileage than the S10s and Blazers with them, my buddy has one and the damn thing gets 19-20 with hoonage included
 
'98+ Ranger. Done.

In the '98 redesign, they may just have redone the front suspension a bit. Just sayin'.
 
I own a 96 Ranger Splash. Great little truck, lousy gas mileage.
The best it has EVER done for me is 23 mpg. Worst about 17. Average about 19-20.
It is a good looking little guy, but since it's lowered, it rides rough. So much so that when I drive it more than 30 miles, I feel like I've taken a minor beating.

I don't imagine the S10 would be too different.
Also, with a GM vehicle, especially a low to mid range vehicle. Check the HVAC before you buy. Have a couple of Chevies on the driveway that have iffy a/c.
Also, some jerk at GM decided to make a lot of little stuff hard to do on your own.
My Venture mini van, needs front signal lights. But I don't have time to take it to the dealer, cause they will have it for 2 days, as they have to TAKE THE ENTIRE BUMPER AND FRONT FASCIA off the vehicle to be able to access the effing lights.
Caveat emptor.
 
saidaouita
Greatest answer ever. That Volvo engine is great. Believe I even heard on Top Gear, Lotus had something to do with the suspension on the Focus?
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US didn't get a Focus which had anything to do with that.

The 2.5 ST was a Europe-only affair I believe (sold as the XR5 Turbo here), as was the RS. And as for the Lotus suspension? Considering that even Proton claims that their cars have "Lotus ride and handling," and they're rubbish in both respects...
 
1997 Civic, I picked mine up for $1800 and it gets 37 mpg with bad spark plugs. And lots of them have 5-speed manuals.
1997_honda_civic_sedan.jpg


1999 Mercury Cougar, quite cheap and there are a few out there with manuals.
99-00_Mercury_Cougar.jpg
 
Joey D
The Control Blade suspension was developed by Ford and lead by a guy named Richard Parry-Jones, who apparently is some world class engineer.
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He was the guy responsible for virtually every European Ford from the mid nineties onwards giving the best ride/handling compromise in each class of any car. Ka, Fiesta, Puma, Focus, Mondeo - all his work.
 

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