What car if NOT a Porsche?
 

So I am here wondering....

Another year without a functioning Porsche, and I may be much nearer the point of giving up on P-car ownership. I think it takes $40-50K to make a $30K car good. lol

I find myself looking at alternatives.... so I wonder, what would be your alternative to a Porsche if it couldn't be a Porsche?

Fun, fast, unique, cost effective, somewhat reliable,

I have a list in my head, but I want to see what you folks come up with lets say under $50K US.

I love my Lotus and honestly I'm more likely to drive it if given the choice.

What do you have? What does it need?

Sometimes it’s worth it to find a good Indy mechanic to sort out what it needs in a week so you can just go enjoy it.

it's an 82SC.

I just put in a new MC and had the pedal box rebuilt/refurb'd.

Engine has 3 broken headstuds I'll dig into next year
PMO carbs could use a rebuild I think
Typical Porsche oil leaks
I do not have the budget for a Porsche mechanic of any kind. Spent a fortune on a new 915 last year. I will fit it, or burn it if I can't at this point. hehehehe

I am trying my hardest to love this car, but it isn't making it easy.

Ooooh, yea Lotus Elise, love those, best of both worlds.

"Unique" is the hard part of your list.

There is all kinds of cheap, speedy fun out there - Miatas, 'Vettes, BRZ's, Z4's...

I sold more than two dozen cars and the only one I kept was my 2003 Audi S8. Fast, comfortable and has been quite reliable.

Those head studs aren’t that big of a deal. If you were closer I would help out with them.

Seriously this is not an expensive repair as long as you avoid the ‘while you are in there’s’ and the tendency to upgrade.

E36 M3. I've enjoyed mine as much as any of my Porsches.

A car of the same vintage with a starting point similar to what you have is going to have very similar costs of getting on the road. So if a 911 is what you like, stick with it. Everything else will be a disappointment.

Other wise you may need to go newer that doesn't have forty years under it's belt.

I have my bias but early Zs are popping and a $50K budget goes a decent ways in a 240 or a 280. FRS/BRZ, S2000, I6 Healey, TR250.

Audi R8, early V8 is where I'd put my money, great all round sports car for all weather driving

I was thinking about non-cis pistons and much better cams since I already have PMO's on the car. Anything to help the gas pedal be more than just a noise maker.. lol

Yea, unique always bites me in the butt.

Funny enough my wife was just lamenting how I have never been happy with any of my cars with the exception of my Jeep JK, Mini R53 JCW, and my 500 Abarth.

I do think that a C7 GS M7 might be a heck of a good car, new enough not to break, cheap when it does, 8-9/10ths P-car build quality, in GS form not quite a belly button. Not nearly as "cool" as an air-cooled but much less stress inducing. lol.

I thought about gen 1 Viper, but I think those might be only good to look at.

I would jump at an NSX or Supra, but they have rocketed past any budget I would have, an R32 GTR would be amazing, but it might hurt as much as the 911 and hard to find clean ones.

Lotus would be cool, and Toyota drivetrain!

I even thought about a 1st gen Miata with a K24 Honda swap.. 2100lbs 240hp....

My Porsche is unique, it is beautiful, there is much to like about it. But the cost of driving it has been absolutely brutal.

At the end of the day I had considered many on this list when I bought the Porsche, it is the car I have longed for it has always been the one. I may just not have the means to afford the ownership. Thousands a year is not sustainable.

Find a recent 6 speed VW R for fun and reliability.
The originals R32’s are sweeter, and not expensive to restore and make better....just no turbo mod cars

That or an E46 M3, M Coupe (Z3 or Z4).

For 50k I’d get a 993. Even a 997.2. Or a Macan S.

Ok not a Porsche.

E39 M5 under $20k.

2008 RS4 under $30k.

There might be an E63 wagon under $50k but I haven’t checked lately. That’s relatively rare. I’ve seen well-kept C63 sedans under $30k.

I may have seen an RS3 under $50k once.

The fun and fast checkboxes are checked. Not unique. You could get a custom paint job. I suppose you could find a 4C at that price. Or a Lotus. Neither are as common as the others on this list. I would say all modern cars are somewhat reliable if well maintained.

Not all that unique but after concluding 911/964/993s pricing had become unrealistic, I bought a C6 Z06. It's an 12K mile, 3100 lb, LPE 630 car that totally hauls the mail with the A/C pouring out cold air and for less $$ than a 100k mile air cooled 911 with no chance of keeping up. Some here disapprove but the $: performance:grins is undeniable as has been the reliability.

You could go American with a ZO6, Grand Sport or Grand National.

You can buy my S2000. Almost as fast but better handling then the SC ( Stock, 240 hp, jsut tip 3000 lbs). I have 7x,xxx miles. Its been sitting in my storage for the past couple years. I force myself to drive it monthly. I have too many cars, and need to thin the heard some, running outta room.

What other car, you asked? A 2009 Cayman S ( I daily one unless I am driving my dumb trucks). DFI motor from that year on. Flat 6 with plenty of power and handling that will run circles around the SC. Reliable too.

I don't know...I took my '89 Targa out today to the grocery store. The first time it had been out in months. Top down and perfect weather on two lane country road with little traffic. The only bad part was that people got right on my bumper both ways (even though I was going slightly over the posted speed limit). The first passed me on the left in an intersection as I moved over into the turn lane (where I was signaling to turn left). Not only did they almost hit me, but their speeding up to way over the limit almost caused them to hit a car already crossing the intersection and one coming from the other direction head on. If I hadn't seen it come and pulled back to the right quickly, someone would have likely died. I drive the roads all the time in my less flashy, but faster cars and this never happens. Every time I drive my 911, someone tries to kill us. I drove my first 911 a lot and this happened constantly until one day, I had nowhere to didge and it was totaled. I wonder sometimes if maybe I need to stick to more nondescript vehicles.

MR2? I think the second gen is a pretty capable car, Toyota reliability and cheap parts