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confuZion3
confuZion3 UltraDork
4/15/14 1:50 p.m.

I drove an Evora a few years ago. It was probably for 20 minutes. I was leading parade laps at a race track. It was probably the best sports car I've ever driven. If you've never seen one in-person, go find one and play with it. Photos do not do them justice.

Rusnak_322
Rusnak_322 Dork
4/15/14 2:01 p.m.

Can you get a Evora for $30k? I have never seen them for under mid 40s, but I have not been in the market.

At $30k - $35k - maybe.

Mazda787b
Mazda787b Reader
4/24/14 10:10 p.m.

Sent off to my insurance agent for quotes on the following:

C5 Z06, C6 Z06, New ZL1, New Boss, Z4M. E46M, NSX,Cayman S, Elise, Exige, Viper, S2K, and Evo IX.

Figured that covered all bases and then some. It encompasses any vehicle I would consider owning. I've already pulled quotes on the twins and a Focus ST last time around.

When I return from my vacation 5 May I'm going to check out a Boss locally and track down as many examples of these as I can. I am focused on C5, Boss, Elise, or Cayman. Cabin fever is definitely setting in... That nearly 80* last week killed me.

Mr_Clutch42
Mr_Clutch42 Reader
4/25/14 7:08 a.m.

The NSX is the forgotten sports car...

clutchsmoke
clutchsmoke Dork
4/25/14 10:55 a.m.

Since you're getting a quote on it I vote NSX! So I can live vicariously through you

Mazda787b
Mazda787b Reader
4/25/14 4:19 p.m.

I doubt the NSX would happen. I figured if I was going to send my agent 10 cars to get quotes for, it might as well be 14..

A clean NSX still commands a premium. I'm just a bit concerned about being disappointed with the power.

I also threw around picking up a slightly used FRS and throwing a turbo on for E36 M3s and giggles. That might be a short trip down the road of depreciation, however.

Mershon's in Ohio has a clean 71 LT-1 Corvette for $35k. Way outside my scope, but it's everything I wish my C3 was. Not sure how much fun road tripping in that thing would be.

Mazda787b
Mazda787b Reader
4/30/14 11:22 p.m.

Got insurance quotes back. Boss and a newer ZL1 are ridiculous in comparison to other cars, so is the Evo IX all things considered.

Either generation Z06 are about the same, a Viper is actually the LEAST expensive..

There's a 98 GTS w/35k on eBay right now for $35k. It'd be a bit more than I'd like to shell out per month, but definitely not outside the realm of affordability. Not sure how the bank would go with that old of a vehicle. There's also one locally, a 95 RT/10 for like $25k. Might check it out and see how I fit.

Also checking out a FRS/BRZ on Monday. Saw they were offering 0% financing. Figured I could put a small amount down and dump some money into suspension, turbo?, etc. Really worried about being disappointed by the power, but I wanted to leave a practical option on the table.

confuZion3
confuZion3 UltraDork
5/1/14 1:23 a.m.

If you decide to go the Viper route (or any old car) I suggest finding a forum or group that specializes in that type of car (Corvette, Viper, etc.) and asking around there. Often, those people don't want to hassle with selling cars on e-Bay. The most substantial benefit is that you can indicate what you want, and somebody will say "Yeah, I've got that. I was thinking about selling it anyway," and then you've got a seller who can get you what you want. At the very least, you will find people who will know somebody with just the car for you.

An added benefit to buying from forum members is that you can click on their username and do a little background check on them right there. You can refute the ol' "Yeah, it's never been driven hard, always babied, only driven on Sundays" banter by looking up old posts by them complaining about how they keep breaking clutches at the drag strip, how upset they were when they money-shifted it going onto the main straight of Pocono North (gets me EVERY TIME), or how excited they were to finally change the color of the paint.

That's not to say that e-Bay isn't a good place to find stuff. There's probably just more out there that will never see the auction.

Mazda787b
Mazda787b Reader
5/1/14 1:50 a.m.

I use eBay to gauge national prices, as well as Autotrader. Trying to find something locally.

I've bought quite a few cars from forums (as well as sold) and prefer that 100x to buying from some random off of Craigslist if at all possible.

The Viper problems stems from the fact that both Viperalley and VCA have the WORST classifieds section in the world. I found a few others, so I'll keep digging.

I'd honestly rather buy from a forum member who even tracked the car, kept up on maintenance and gave full disclosure vs. some 5000 mile creampuff still rolling on the original tires and had 2 oil changes in it's life.

yupididit
yupididit New Reader
5/1/14 8:51 a.m.

Didn't see it and don't know if you care for them but....Evo X? 2011-2013 Do-luck trunk to take away the boy racer look. If not then c6 z51, NSX, and Viper in that order. The NSX may cost a lot but they retain their value better then anything mentioned.

1966stang
1966stang Reader
5/1/14 9:22 a.m.
confuZion3 wrote: I drove an Evora a few years ago. It was probably for 20 minutes. I was leading parade laps at a race track. It was probably the best sports car I've ever driven. If you've never seen one in-person, go find one and play with it. Photos do not do them justice.

I dig the Evora as well.

1966stang
1966stang Reader
5/1/14 9:23 a.m.
Mazda787b wrote: I doubt the NSX would happen. I figured if I was going to send my agent 10 cars to get quotes for, it might as well be 14.. A clean NSX still commands a premium. I'm just a bit concerned about being disappointed with the power. I also threw around picking up a slightly used FRS and throwing a turbo on for E36 M3s and giggles. That might be a short trip down the road of depreciation, however. Mershon's in Ohio has a clean 71 LT-1 Corvette for $35k. Way outside my scope, but it's everything I wish my C3 was. Not sure how much fun road tripping in that thing would be.

Mershons is great to deal with bought a chevelle from them oncem, no regrets.

singleslammer
singleslammer SuperDork
5/1/14 10:19 a.m.

I am a little surprised/pleased that the evora is dropping in price. I like the Elise a LOT but it is too tight to be anything other than an occasional weekend car for someone of my size (6'2" 220) The Evora seems to offer a similar experience without quite as much pain.

Mazda787b
Mazda787b Reader
5/1/14 12:19 p.m.

My buddy has an Evo X. Nice car. I'd honestly prefer a VIII/IX based upon looks lone. I guess part of this is that I'm extremely picky and it would most likely have to be an RS in white.

A C5 Z06 came for sale locally @ a great price. Only bad thing is that it's silver. Nowhere near as nice as blue or white, IMO.

Mazda787b
Mazda787b Reader
6/4/14 8:05 a.m.

Sorry for the iPhone picture...

It's great. Skip shift is horrible. Went with one with a little higher mileage (50k). Was 1-owner, clean carfax, always serviced at the local Chevy dealer who specializes in Corvettes and high-performance cars (also runs the Ferrari dealer in town). There's a few verrry small issues to take care of, cosmetic only. Newish R888s. Need to check the date codes on them, might still pick up Rivals.

Going to a wedding in Raleigh at the end of July, decided to drive with my best friend. Possibly hitting the Dragon (or most likely, roads in the area).

Not sure if I want/need to do a build thread. It'll most likely stay this way for quite awhile. Need to remove the super old man billet tail light louvers today. Finishing the garage cleanout and hoping to borrow a trailer to get the 79 Corvette out of the garage so this can take it's spot.

dj06482
dj06482 Dork
6/4/14 8:51 a.m.

Just hold onto first gear a little longer to defeat the skip-shift, at least until you can get the plug-in harness to defeat it.

Cotton
Cotton UltraDork
6/4/14 9:14 a.m.

Nice! I love that color.

dculberson
dculberson UltraDork
6/4/14 9:29 a.m.

Sweet! I would love to hear your experience with driving it daily-ish.

Mazda787b
Mazda787b Reader
6/4/14 9:37 a.m.
dj06482 wrote: Just hold onto first gear a little longer to defeat the skip-shift, at least until you can get the plug-in harness to defeat it.

Good to know. It looks like an eliminator can be commonly had for about $20. Probably going to be one of the first things I do. When I get it up in the air, I'm thinking about doing new trans/diff fluid.

Cotton wrote: Nice! I love that color.

Thanks! I really wanted Speedway White, but when I saw this thing in person, the blue definitely had me sold.

dculberson wrote: Sweet! I would love to hear your experience with driving it daily-ish.

It might be worth doing a build thread then, just to post observations, great idea. Drove it to work today, no issues. Also drove it down surface streets for the 1hr 30min drive home. I feel as though it's pretty docile around town, with the power and brakes when you need it. Parking in the structure today was a bitch, however. It actually fares quite a bit better over the wonderful Detroit roads than my ACR did.

clutchsmoke
clutchsmoke Dork
6/4/14 9:46 a.m.
dj06482 wrote: Just hold onto first gear a little longer to defeat the skip-shift, at least until you can get the plug-in harness to defeat it.

This. The plug in harness is totally worth it. Mine was $30? But that was...crap 11 years ago?!? So they're probably cheaper now. Look into a short shifter and if you don't like the stock knob (I hate that square POS) look into the delrin knobs. Feels like aluminum, but doesn't transfer heat like aluminum.

clutchsmoke
clutchsmoke Dork
6/4/14 9:48 a.m.
dculberson wrote: Sweet! I would love to hear your experience with driving it daily-ish.

Daily driving a Z06 is a breeze as long as you don't mind scraping the plastic splitter on EVERYTHING.

Mazda787b
Mazda787b Reader
6/4/14 11:01 a.m.

The shifter and knob are garbage. Might just go a cueball knob or similar for now. I REALLY want to so the MGW shifter and box. Need to replace all fluids and possibly chuck the R888s for Rivals as well.

As far as being low, the aluminium air dam on the ACR was lower, and had the bonus of making absolutely horrible scraping noises. I'm just extremely careful at any driveway approaches, railroad crossings, or similar.

Carro Atrezzi
Carro Atrezzi HalfDork
6/4/14 5:08 p.m.

I have a C5Z. I don't dislike it but if I were in your shoes I would look at a Porsche 928. They are cool and you don't often see them. Also, I have a hunch they are going to rocket out of site in value in the coming years. Kind of like the 911 is doing now.

Petrolburner
Petrolburner Reader
6/4/14 6:25 p.m.

Before I got my skip shift skipper harness installed I'd got to 3rd instead of 4th when it blocked me from going to 2nd. I found it wasn't much of a problem driving on the streets, but in a parking lot I would like to shift to 2nd and definitely not 4th. Instead I ran around in 1st like a high schooler.

Mazda787b
Mazda787b Reader
6/5/14 7:32 a.m.
Carro Atrezzi wrote: I have a C5Z. I don't dislike it but if I were in your shoes I would look at a Porsche 928. They are cool and you don't often see them. Also, I have a hunch they are going to rocket out of site in value in the coming years. Kind of like the 911 is doing now.

Ha, actually I saw a beautiful 928 on the way back from picking up the Z06. Love the lines, but I actually want a car I can drive. I'm pretty sick of turning wrenches.

Petrolburner wrote: Before I got my skip shift skipper harness installed I'd got to 3rd instead of 4th when it blocked me from going to 2nd. I found it wasn't much of a problem driving on the streets, but in a parking lot I would like to shift to 2nd and definitely not 4th. Instead I ran around in 1st like a high schooler.

I never thought of that, thanks for the tip!

FWIW, I got stuck in the rain yesterday. Even with R888s I had no issues. This might've been the one instance where skip shift wasn't a complete headache. I'm still blown away by how smooth this thing is over our completely garbage roads. The car is compliant and VERY smooth.

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