Keeping up with the Jones', but having way more fun

I prefer driving old weird stuff. For my sub $5K this year, I bought a 56 bus. Last year was a 85 635, The year before, a 88 Samurai. The year before, 94 F350. You get the picture.

For $5K a year, I'd rather have 3-5 cars and buy something different every year or so. Usually after 3-4 years, I'm ready ready to move it on and try something different.

I tend to buy nicer cars that need a little help, in the $3000 price range. Then I spend a few hundred or a grand or two fixing them, drive them for a while, and resell them for around what I paid for them. It works well, assuming I buy right. And the cars are usually nice enough that the "Joneses" are impressed. Ie, my current GS430 was bought for $3000 with bent valves. I probably spent a grand rebuilding the top end of the motor and other bits and pieces I fixed. I probably wouldn't have any trouble selling it for $3k now and it's been a great daily drive for three or four years.

In fact, I think it might be time to move on ... we'll see.

I think you could do the same at almost any price point. Given the skill set translates to higher dollar cars, you're just playing with a higher initial buy-in. Look at t25torx's wheeler dealer posts! His E55 AMG is a great example. Very impressive car, bought right, and fixed right. That would fit in anywhere the neighbors care about status.

$33k shopping list:

$11k gets you a very nice used Miata

$11k gets you a very serviceable pickup truck

$11k gets you a 4-door nice commuter/family car

That was easy

We're not so much keeping up with the Joneses as keeping ahead of them--our Acura is probably slightly above average for the cars that are around; whereas our old Corolla was slightly below. But our Acura at $9k after TTL was definitely among the cheaper of the vehicles.

2010 LS3 equipped Camaros are now around $20K. I recently picked up one with 11,000 miles and guard rail damage down the right side. It has a cam, stainless headers and 3" stainless exhaust as well. Shopping for body panels now. Should be into it at most $15K registered and on the road. I just might keep it a couple of years at a net cost of zero dollars. Looks real good sitting next to the $1K Range Rover I bought back at the beginning of winter.

When I get to the point of blowing $5k a year on cars, this will be my business model. Right now I'll settle for driving nicer-than-average $3k cars while blowing the $8k/year on daycare and horses. I could find much cheaper ways to turn hay into poop but then I would probably be divorced.

My E36 BMW convertible sort of looks the part (at least to my neighbors who generally don't own BMWs), but it's come in way below $5000 a year. The "older German car" approach certainly has merit here. And I've also tried the C4 Corvette approach; it came to a bit less than $5000 a year too.

Now that I need a car with a bit more space in it, I've contemplated a 5 series BMW. Pressing something '60s or '70s era into service as a daily driver - for some reason I've been thinking Buick Riviera or a Cadillac coupe lately - would probably also have a similarly low maintenance budget.

RedGT wrote: I could find much cheaper ways to turn hay into poop but then I would probably be divorced.

lol