Enjoyable ride for $1,500 + $500 for improvements WWGRMD?

I vote a 16 valve 2wd Suzuki side kick, lowered and turbo'd.  

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7484/15807458979_20aea84f95_o.jpg

frenchyd said:

In reply to ebonyandivory : so much depends on who you are.  Are you the sort of person who likes to work and improve a car?  Would you prefer to wash/ polish and wax a car? Or drive the wheels off it?  Some of all of the above?  

What are your values?  Fuel mileage, reliability, comfort?  

For that money I’d buy a Jaguar from the 70’s 80’s, gut it and turn it into a race car.  

 

I’d love to buy a car with decent powertrain and a dent in every panel than a nice looking car needing a new head.

I absolutely HATE having a car that renders itself unmodifiable due to it being too solid.

im not a huge Hoonigan video fan as I can’t stand the production but the $300 E36 is up my alley. Yes I like E36’s but it’s the fun you can have with it that strikes me more

Even though I have an undisclosed preference for rwd, the Saab and Volvo ideas are intriguing.

https://lexington.craigslist.org/cto/d/1997-nissan-200sx-se/6381614314.html

Nissan with pedigree.

https://lexington.craigslist.org/cto/d/2007-scion-tc/6374018801.html

Scion with bad engine but decent body.  Cheap!

Just about any of the 80-90s mini trucks if you can find a clean one. Four door fox or G bodys can still be found cheap and the aftermarket is huge. 

I play this game sometimes. As previously stated, I just set c-list search to min 100 max 1500 and see what pops up. Lots of civics, integra, and foci. A handful of miatas, but they tend to be nearly returned to the earth. Turbo saabs and volvos, but generally autos (not sure if that makes much of a difference to you, especially at this price point). And lots and lots of '80s trucks.  Also don't discount a 6th gen accord. I had one for a while and it was pretty fun with the stick and summer tires.  

ser https://minneapolis.craigslist.org/wsh/cto/d/1993-nissan-sentra-ser/6362480040.html

Mini https://minneapolis.craigslist.org/ank/cto/d/2005-mini-cooper/6384999638.html

a4 rally x https://minneapolis.craigslist.org/hnp/cto/d/98-audi-quattro-a4-turbo/6385651590.html

https://minneapolis.craigslist.org/csw/cto/d/bmw-328i-5spd-manual/6386753148.html <-- 328?

9-5 aero https://minneapolis.craigslist.org/dak/cto/d/2002-saab-aero-9-5/6384405122.html

In reply to Fueled by Caffeine :

I like that Saab !

While considering your choices - don't forget the cost of consumables once acquired. Like you may not want to spend $800+ for a set or tires for a $1500 car. 17+ inch wheels may be cool but 15 inchers have less costly tire choices.

Also - sometimes fewer cylinders and a manual trans is cheaper to maintain - sometimes. Maybe sucks less fuel.

May also want to look at the do-dad content - do you really need power everything, a moon/sun roof or on the fly adjustable shocks. Just more stuff to fix/replace or be annoyed with.

And hopefully your local pull-n-pay will have a nice inventory of spares and replacements. Less likely for those brands/models that when new were slow sellers at the time.

I love those 90's Hondas, Acuras - well thought out drivetrains, easy to fix/maintain but watch out for the rust.

Regardless of your choice - enjoy it.

mad_machine said:

buzzboy said:

In reply to mtn :

As the owner of an e36/5 I both highly recommend and disrecommend anybody buy one.

the 318ti is a great little car, as long as you are aware of it's short comings compared to the other E36s. Not going into looks (where are subjective) but the rear suspension is almost the same as the E30 with all  it's handling quirks, the interior is "downmarket" from the standard Sedan/coupe/and wagon, and the small engine does not have a lot of grunt or urge to rev.

Finding a decent one for $1500 may be very hard as they are a cult car and their values have been on the rise. Even if you found one for $1500, I am certain you would lose the extra $500 just in cooling system maintenance.

That said, they are a very cool little car (especially in M trim) with enough scoot to keep up with traffic and E36s are indeed like legos, you can mix and match parts from the sedans all day long and the rear suspension from the Z3m

My friend's 11th grade son had to have an E36 for his first car, so I helped him choose.  After looking at several cars in his price range, he ended up with a '95 318ti, 5MT of course, black, with the M Tech body and interior.  Now it needs tires and we won't let him cheap out, so he's staggered by the cost of good 225/45-17's and wants to sell the car.  I'm pretty sure $1400 would buy it.  Canton MI 48187. 

My "good" M3Ti has 63$ per corner tires on it...

In reply to TasdevEngineer2of3 :

You mentioned do-dads and interiors. Just to give you an idea, my most fun vehicle I’ve ever had (not a period I can relive unfortunately) was my Suzuki Samurai(s) with no real interior, fiberglass racing seats, no top, no doors, no tailgate. I’d drive it that way (maybe a bikini top if it was raining) until I was scraping ice off my seats. Then I’d put the top and doors on. Ever heard a stock Samurai stereo? 

So fun to me doesn’t (need to) include much in the way of luxury. Although a slammed 90’s Town Car might be fun.

STM317 said:

Id just browse CL daily and see what catches your eye. Nothing sub $2k is actually going to be fast out of the box, so it's all about what you like. Just look around and see what strikes your fancy.

 

Or keep any eye on the classifieds here on Grassroots. I picked up a 13 second car that came with an extra engine, trans, and a bunch of extra engine and suspension parts for $2000. The deals are out there it just takes time to find them. It also helps if you aren't hunting after a specific vehicle which it doesnt sound like you are.

W123 with a stick shift.  Generally this means a 240D, though you may run across the occassional Euro-spec 300D with a manual.

I found my 240D listed for $750 with 4 new tires.  Drove it home.  Rust is not terminal.

Not only can you redline every shift, you pretty much HAVE to redline every shift.  Toss on some W126 15" wheels and decent rubber and they hold the road way better than you'd expect.  

And they still get 30 mpg, even if you flog them mercilessly.  

In reply to ebonyandivory :

Box Volvos (2xx, 7xx, and 9xx) are all RWD.  And the 2xx and 7xx ones can be had with a manual.

That's about what my original budget was when I found my 89 Civic. If there is any fun to be found in it I can't find it. But it's outside of my typical automotive proclivities. 

It's a completely rust free car and I'm debating on selling it. Maybe you could find some fun in it. 

BJ Protege LX or ES, add Eibachs and KYBs. Not quick, but the handling is sweet and they get 30mpg, give or take.

Any opinions on B5 Audi?

I think my Civic is only fun because it has the 1.8 dohc swapped from an Integra.  An Integra would be enjoyable, I think.

I liked my 318ti... but I did have to replace a driveshaft (non serviceable u-joints).  I actually preferred the simpler interior to the standard e36 (btdt too.)

I live in the $1-2k range and like to buy a car, drive it for a year or so, and then move on to something different.  If I were to repeat something I've already owned it would be a 96-97 Saturn SL2 plus some sportier springs and good tires.  Light weight and an eager twin cam 4 cylinder is a good combination.

ebonyandivory said:

Any opinions on B5 Audi?

Cheap, beat on, deferred maintenance, hard to repair, awkward packaging, Germanically overengineered.  When they are nice, they are very nice.  When ANYTHING goes wrong they are a repair nightmare.

In reply to KyAllroad (Jeremy) :

You could’ve lied to me ya know...

In reply to BlueInGreen44 :

I was unaware those were not just purchased for mpg and longevity. I didn’t  know they’d be called fun. Interesting.

In reply to ebonyandivory :

I guess it depends on your idea of fun, always a subjective thing.  I like a small fwd 4 cylinder car with a good engine.  The steering is quick, the dohc cars have closer gear ratios for more fun, and they sometimes can be found with rear disk brakes.  Tire Rack carries H&R sport springs for them.

The gas sipping sohc cars are close to soul suckingly boring though.

In reply to jj :

I’m leaning towards Miata and SN95. Incidentally there are TONS of convertible Mustangs too.

ebonyandivory said:

In reply to BlueInGreen44 :

I was unaware those were not just purchased for mpg and longevity. I didn’t  know they’d be called fun. Interesting.

 

FWIW, the guy who dominates H Street in my region uses a Saturn SC2. I'm sure it helps that he's an instructor.