S2000 replacement - fun car for under 20K, ideas?
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From: Baltimore
i don't want to drive my s2k forever - that is, on a daily commute basis. so, i'm going to lease something fun, but cheap (we'd have 3 cars in the family, something i'll need to convince my wife about - one step at a time) enough so that it won't break my savings for that dream house and (eventually) that ferrari.
my choices are, surprisingly, quite abundant. there's always the civic, the integra (low end), the korean stuff, the sentra, the corolla, and maybe even a low low end maxima (i've seen maximas go for 16,999)
what are your suggestions? it's gotta be either brand new or pretty new (it's gonna be a lease). i figure a lease on a car under $20K would be around $200 a month, roughly speaking, which is not that bad.
my choices are, surprisingly, quite abundant. there's always the civic, the integra (low end), the korean stuff, the sentra, the corolla, and maybe even a low low end maxima (i've seen maximas go for 16,999)
what are your suggestions? it's gotta be either brand new or pretty new (it's gonna be a lease). i figure a lease on a car under $20K would be around $200 a month, roughly speaking, which is not that bad.
Joined: Oct 2000
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From: WA
You need to do a little better job of stating your requirements or this thread will be nothing more than random suggestions.. other than price range what are you after?
Gas mileage? Number of passengers? Size, luggage capacity? AWD or off road? Speed, comfort?
Gas mileage? Number of passengers? Size, luggage capacity? AWD or off road? Speed, comfort?
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<<Golf 1.8 Turbo Fun?????? LOL.>>
I've measured a (heavier) chipped Passat 1.8T at 6.8 seconds 0-60 mph. C&D achieved 6.6 seconds on a more broken-in example. You can haze the front tires by simply flooring it in first gear while already rolling. A couple hundred bucks or so on a Golf 1.8T chip would make a big difference IMO. The motors pull well from around 2000 RPM. It's tough to beat the improvement per dollar when chipping these cars. Yet it seems to be very, very safe for the motor. You can spend many thousands modding other cars and not achieve a fraction of the real world very noticeable improvement available from modding the 1.8T. They left a lot on the table so to speak.
Stan
I've measured a (heavier) chipped Passat 1.8T at 6.8 seconds 0-60 mph. C&D achieved 6.6 seconds on a more broken-in example. You can haze the front tires by simply flooring it in first gear while already rolling. A couple hundred bucks or so on a Golf 1.8T chip would make a big difference IMO. The motors pull well from around 2000 RPM. It's tough to beat the improvement per dollar when chipping these cars. Yet it seems to be very, very safe for the motor. You can spend many thousands modding other cars and not achieve a fraction of the real world very noticeable improvement available from modding the 1.8T. They left a lot on the table so to speak.
Stan
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Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 3,548
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From: Newcastle Upon Tyne
Turbo
My opinion has already been entered.
Fun is very subjective but as this is a S2000 forum I assume people appreciate a car and its abilities more than racing from Red lights, in all road tests of the 1.8T Golf it basically wallows around being bloated as it is,chipping is possible but the chassis certainly can't handle it as it is, tyres will be lost very quickly. The next gigantic hurdle are its brakes which suffer badly from fade in a non-chipped model so trying to drag down a 'faster' one would be very worrying. No doubting they are nice to be cosseted in, but Fun? I've tried one and it is slow, wallowy and certainly not sporting or fun, but if its chipped I'm sure you could quickly scare yourself.
IMHO.
RE Passat 1.8T and 6.6 Secs, blimey respect but how long will that engine last? or clutch
However, the Germans have kept to themselves some turbo diesels which are more fun than the petrol blowers, Golf TDi PD 150-180 Bhp but 280ish lb/ft of torque at 2000+ revs, makes pulling alongside any car great fun as you can waft along on huge gobs of torque without any effort! Good daily commuter but my original choice stands:
10,000rpm gotta love it.
Paul
My opinion has already been entered.
Fun is very subjective but as this is a S2000 forum I assume people appreciate a car and its abilities more than racing from Red lights, in all road tests of the 1.8T Golf it basically wallows around being bloated as it is,chipping is possible but the chassis certainly can't handle it as it is, tyres will be lost very quickly. The next gigantic hurdle are its brakes which suffer badly from fade in a non-chipped model so trying to drag down a 'faster' one would be very worrying. No doubting they are nice to be cosseted in, but Fun? I've tried one and it is slow, wallowy and certainly not sporting or fun, but if its chipped I'm sure you could quickly scare yourself.
IMHO.RE Passat 1.8T and 6.6 Secs, blimey respect but how long will that engine last? or clutch
However, the Germans have kept to themselves some turbo diesels which are more fun than the petrol blowers, Golf TDi PD 150-180 Bhp but 280ish lb/ft of torque at 2000+ revs, makes pulling alongside any car great fun as you can waft along on huge gobs of torque without any effort! Good daily commuter but my original choice stands:
10,000rpm gotta love it.
Paul