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@Papag1234 - I am in a similar position. I am considering selling my S and daily driver for a slightly used 911 or new Shelby GT350 Mustang. My criteria is a car I can enjoy daily driving and that has some exclusivity.
I'm fascinated to know more details on the E30 you traded. I've had a handful of E30s myself.
I think 17 - 18k for your s2000 sounds fair.
The maintenance on the Mercedes, Audis and the m5 all scare me. Those ones will all be hard or impossible to get in a true 6spd as well. I like stis but feel like they are overpriced for what they are, at least around here.
some sedans that I've been thinking about are the g8 GT, cts-v or the second gen rx8. E90 m3 is up there too but they're still pretty expensive.
@alivinglegend I'd only buy something I know was taken care of unless it's extremely cheap. Then I'd be willing to dump some money and time into it. Funny you mentioned those cars because I just finished searching for the ctsv and found zilch. (hate the 04-06 body) and the next thing I thought was g8. Not 5sec later I got a mail notification on my phone about someone posting on this forum. I'm not a fan of the rx8, but there's 2 gens? I did consider a rx7 long ago, but no longer want one.
as for the e30:
my father and I built it. When I got the viper I decided it was time to let go just one short year later to get something practical for the winter months. Ended up with the s2k instead on a straight trade, which was a good deal on my end value wise, so I took it. Moved to Florida now with no winter months so kinda kicking myself in the ass now.
If I had to buy a daily it would be an 06-08 forester xt sports. They have the same motor as an sti and weigh the same and the older sti's. The only differences are the smaller turbo and the fact that it's an Suv which makes it exponentially more awesome and practical. One day I'll use my s2 as a weekend car and drive one like this:
No shortage of cool cars. Looks like you can get whatever strikes your fancy at any given moment. Lucky guy.
Definitely fortunate. Fortunate to have a good family and to be allowed to live at home until I turned 25. I was able to save all of the money I made rent free.
just as a disclaimer:
I've worked, hustled, and saved to buy my cars. I'm also an extremely smart and aware buyer with a lot of patience to find the right deal.
the e30 shown above I got for $2300 while worth $9000. Although I dropped a ton of money into it, I still came out ahead trading for the honda bc the inital cost was so low, especially after factoring in the cost of selling the motor and trans when we pulled them)
Anyone that has the opportunity to save money while living rent free should definitely take advantage of that and work their asses off and save. Money opens opportunities to make more money. I had 4 cars at one point. 3 fixing to sell and one daily. Started with a 99 Lincoln continental.
I had 4 part time jobs that I made work around my schedule. Cars (worked as a maintenance tech besides doing my own thing), detailing, construction, and serving. I'm not saying all of them at the same time, but usually 2-3 depending on the season. Detailing in the summers, served consistently for a year and a half plus a ton of other odd jobs. That's where I got the initial money to start buying cars.
I even taught myself some body work along the way. Pulled and filled dents. I completely painted my other e30 and it came out pretty damn good! Flipped a Rolex for a decent profit too. Selling watches is a lot like cars surprisingly. Went to college for IT and now I'm in the insurance business. I'm always looking for the next best thing. A Jack of all trades!
@sakigt I jumped for this comment but then the cheapest one I found was $29k so that's quite above the value of my s2. I did see one for $25k but it seemed shady
@nfr-s2k- the forester xt is cool. Almost bought one awhile back, but it doesn't grab me as much as the hatch sti. I also was under the impression they had wrx motors. Is that true for the earlier years or something?
To the OP...have you considered an '04-'07 Cadillac CTS-V? I have an '04, and it's a fantastic and versatile car. About five years ago my primary 'fun' car was an '03 Z06. My wife and I had our first baby and wanted to do a kitchen remodel. The Vette was collecting dust in the garage, so I sent it packing. I was then on the hunt for a great all-arounder that would still let me have some fun and quell my 'car guy' cravings. I kept thinking how much I miss that LS engine, and how I wished I had a four door vette. That's exactly what the Gen.1 CTS-V. I has the same engines as the vettes of that era ('04-'05 LS6, '07-'08 LS2), same tranny, same basic suspension, etc. People had some problems with the rear end on the '04-'05 cars, but if you're not going to be launching it, it's probably not a big concern. They have plenty of legroom to take friends to dinner, huge trunk for bags/gear, and they are a fantastic sleeper. I have headers on mine, and it laid down about 365 to the wheels with a tune. It's very quiet and civil when cruising, but rips when you lay into it. If you dig around you can find a nice one in the $15-$16k range (they stickered for $50k+). It's an immense amount of car for the money. The engines are fairly bulletproof, and 100,000 miles is nothing for them. There are guys out there tracking their C5Z's for huge miles ('02-'04 Corvette Z06 had the LS6 engine) without issues, so they do take a beating. Every time I've ever considered moving on to something else, anything I find with comparable performance and versatility costs double what I paid. Check 'em out.
To the OP...have you considered an '04-'07 Cadillac CTS-V? I have an '04, and it's a fantastic and versatile car. About five years ago my primary 'fun' car was an '03 Z06. My wife and I had our first baby and wanted to do a kitchen remodel. The Vette was collecting dust in the garage, so I sent it packing. I was then on the hunt for a great all-arounder that would still let me have some fun and quell my 'car guy' cravings. I kept thinking how much I miss that LS engine, and how I wished I had a four door vette. That's exactly what the Gen.1 CTS-V. I has the same engines as the vettes of that era ('04-'05 LS6, '07-'08 LS2), same tranny, same basic suspension, etc. People had some problems with the rear end on the '04-'05 cars, but if you're not going to be launching it, it's probably not a big concern. They have plenty of legroom to take friends to dinner, huge trunk for bags/gear, and they are a fantastic sleeper. I have headers on mine, and it laid down about 365 to the wheels with a tune. It's very quiet and civil when cruising, but rips when you lay into it. If you dig around you can find a nice one in the $15-$16k range (they stickered for $50k+). It's an immense amount of car for the money. The engines are fairly bulletproof, and 100,000 miles is nothing for them. There are guys out there tracking their C5Z's for huge miles ('02-'04 Corvette Z06 had the LS6 engine) without issues, so they do take a beating. Every time I've ever considered moving on to something else, anything I find with comparable performance and versatility costs double what I paid. Check 'em out.
First, thanks for the reply and input. I did think about them but it's not for me. I remember seeing the car for the first time while watching Bad Boys II as a kid and disliking the look of the car. Come to find out the build quality is not the best on them either. I helped my friend's dad sell his 05 cts v6 70k miles last year and it was riddled with issues. Interior buttons flaked, oil coolant and PS leaks, electrical problems, interior has a cheap feeling with hard plastics. The V addressed some of the issues but not all.
A four door vette I would consider is the G8 GT or GXP if I could find one with a standard transmission.
Originally Posted by ddong2lee
i'll buy your car if you ever bring it back up to jersey
Everything is possible but it would be quite the headache/expense if you changed your mind.
OP. I'm coming from the opposite end of you where I already have another toy to drive but my suggestion would be to keep the s2k. It's a hoot to drive and for what you pay, there is little, if nothing that can compete with it. Trust me. Don't sell it. you'll regret it.
01-26-2017, 06:29 PM
