Short intro: have found my enthusiasm for my S2000 to be put on the backburner due to school/life and the stress of it all. Can't really appreciate her the way I have previously, nor do I have the time nor the desire to keep modding her when I don't the time to really push her on the track as she was meant to be. It's sad, but I've really been considering selling her for something more comfortable and practical. I'd like to buy another S2000 in a few years once I've graduated college, to turn into a track car/pleasure car if I did sell this one.

My question for Car Talk is simple: is there really a decent alternative that fits my criteria? Here's what I'd optimally like in another car: reliable, affordable powerful, practical, acceptable gas mileage, fun handling/driving finesse. From my own research, a car meeting all of these criteria is hard to find. I'd like to spend no more than $15-20k, and I can make payments. Enterprise offered to buy my S2000 for $14.5k (bought it last year for $13.8k), so that's a good amount of cash to play with. If I sell all of my S2000 mods at reasonable prices, I'd make about $8.5k.

Here's the list of cars I have come up with that somewhat meet the criteria:

04-07 3rd gen Acura TL 6-speeed (comfortable, practical, good gas mileage, reliable, good power and torque... but FWD. ugh)
03-06 Evo 8/9 (comfortable, practical, shitty gas mileage, reliable-ish, great power and torque, AWD is OK, would only need to spend a little bit tuning it to get more power, great handling)
04-07 STi or 04-07 WRX (same as Evo, less reliable?)

Any further suggestions would be great. It may turn out that buying a different car is too much of a hassle and that my options aren't really that great. In that case, I'd keep driving my S2000 and maybe supercharge it for fun.

Appreciate any insight offered in advance, thanks guys.

 

LS2 CTS-V.

Comfortable, RWD, good handling, and reliable. Also can put down 400 whp with just intake, header, exhaust and a tune.

 

I have been very happy with my vert mustang 2011 5.0 and the v6 mustang is a great vaule as well. Take it for a ride it's a real nice car, fast, fun looks good.

 

 

I know, butt, did they offer you that much knowing you removed the softtop? I'd just like to know because I dont have one either

 

Of your choices go with the evo.

 

I would consider a 2010 gti, right in your price range (can get a lightly used one with a warranty for 20k or less), stock it has 200tq 200hp, the great thing about the torque is that it comes at 1.5-2k rpm, I drove my friends 2010 dsg gti and that thing is very easy to drive fast and that transmission shifts lightning fast, stage 2 upgrade ~500-600$ and you will be pushing 250tq 240hp.
As far as ride quality, VW got a perfect balance of performance (very little body roll) yet it's comfortable just cruising around town, the interior feels on par with a 370z, they used quality materials on the steering wheel and the things you touch most. The the gas mileage isn't that bad either, it's around 32 combined.
It also weights around 2900lbs so not much heavier than the s2k, the only thing I absolutely hate about is the FWD, I can't speak for reliability but my friends has 25k miles and nothing major as far as repairs.

 

I have a 04 tl with 6 speed and nav. that year they made 40 autos for every stick so they are hard to find. in the years I have owned this car I have done little more than normal maintenance (about 6 years, used in 1/06). I find two glaring faults....torque steer and a floaty suspension.

the suspension can be fixed easily enough, it will midigate the torque steer a bit as will wider tires and wheels.

on the plus side is good value, good looks, room for 4-5, a real trunk, EVERY FEATURE known to man and then some newer cars will not offer or they charge bags of cash more to add) reliability, mileage is 23 to 25 everyday...and 29-32 on trips,nice quiet car that still keeps up with the newer ones well.

not a roadster, not a convertible...just a great near luxury sedan with sporting pretentions, limited slip diff, and brembo front brakes.

 

If you'd consider the TL, I'd rather pick an RSX-S.

 

Forgot all about the CTS V. They're hard to find in my area. For an 05 with 77k miles, a guy wants $18k. I really do like the CTS V, it's so sleeper and is basically a cheaper, more reliable M5.

I really like the new 5.0's, but the V6 does nothing for me unfortunately. I'd have to have the 5.0. :\


They offered that to me with it returned back to stock. Pretty good deal for an '02 AP1 with 63k miles.


Yeah, that seems like the obvious choice but the Evo is tricky: it's hard to find a clean one, I'm not overly familiar with the cars and their quirks, and the gas mileage seems like a nightmare. Such a great car though.


I hate to shoot you down, but I don't really like the GTI. Yeah, it's a fun car to daily drive, but it has a lot of things that ruin it for me: the VW image, the bad reliability, the expensive parts, FWD, and several other things. Also, stage 2 doesn't cost $500-600, it costs $3k because you have to buy all the parts + stg 2 tune. And it's STILL only about on par with a stock S2000.


Yeah, that does sound awesome. Mileage sounds about the same as an S2000, but much easier to daily drive and live with. Plus all of the features sound rad, especially the LSD. And I love the 3G TL's exterior, it's one of the best looking sedans ever.


Ah, I had an RSX before I got my S2000. I hate the community (complete opposite of the S2000 crowd), it's slow when not modded, love the gas mileage but you gotta get an 05-06 to really get your money's worth. For about the same cost as an 05-06 I could get a 6 speed TL, and the TL is a much better car in my eyes.

Sounds crazy, but I was also thinking about finding a mint EP3 Si (yes, the Si everyone hates) and boosting the engine with a tune for economy. Over 300whp, 2800 lbs, awesome gas mileage, the engine is perfect for boost, and new engines only cost $500. Plus it's comfortable and roomy.

Thanks for the suggestions, guys. Would love to hear even more, I know there's cars out there that I'd like but can't quite remember.