$10,000 thread for the rest of us, Miata Vs Z3 Vs ?

[HardDrive]

If I had $10k to spend, and I wanted the most bang for my buck, I would buy the cleanest 4.6 Mustang GT I could find. 350Z second choice.

[Jim Bremner]

I drove an early S2000 around Streets of Willow Springs. I thought it would be the perfect car for the track.

I now think that my Silverado on camper tires would give it a run for the $$. The car was a 5spd car and if you ****ed it to 3rd it would drop the r's below the Vtech and it would suck. So it ended up being left in 2nd down the front straight wound out.

[porsche4life]

Originally Posted by slow&rusty

E36 m3

THIS^^^

10k will buy you either a nice stock car, or a slightly edgy one with some mods. You can get a convertible, coupe, or sedan, your choice. Comes in great colors, bone stock 240hp, gobs of torque. Balanced like a 944, cruises great, devours twistys, plus its not bad for a DD.


Hard to hate the M3...


Gawd I love that inline MPower 6....

[masraum]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

Also hard to find a Mazdaspeed Miata at that price.

Nah, shouldn't be too bad. I paid a bit more, but then I was in a hurry. Over on the Mazdaspeed board there are plenty of stories for $9500-10500.

968

Really, I thought these were still pretty pricey.

[porsche4life]

Good 968s can be found right around 10 all day...

[onewhippedpuppy]

There's some really nice 968s listed at ambitious prices, but the nice drivers seem to hover right about at $10k. Honestly they don't make sense for much more, once you get into the low teens you can find a pretty decent SC or Carrera.

[epbrown]

Originally Posted by porsche4life

Hard to hate the M3...

Gawd I love that inline MPower 6....

Perhaps you've heard - they made a Z3 with that engine - the M Roadster, easily found with the E36 M3 engine for $10k.

[porsche4life]

I knew of the M coupes, but they aren't in the range. I'd only heard of the roadsters, never seen one in the wild...

But that would be a little beast.

[epbrown]

Originally Posted by porsche4life

I knew of the M coupes, but they aren't in the range. I'd only heard of the roadsters, never seen one in the wild...

But that would be a little beast.

You probably have seen the M Roadster, as they're much more common than M Coupes. The problem with both generations of M Roadster is not many people see them as more than just another Z3 or Z4 roadster. It's part of why they're so much cheaper than the coupe variants.

[porsche4life]

Good point. I don't pay much attention to the roadsters. Dime-a-dozen...

[Noah930]

Personally, I'd put the $10K into my own 930. Towards that eventual engine rebuild. Or at least save up for the $8K in while-you're-in-there mods I've been considering.

But if I had to spend the money on another car, I'd lean towards waiting for a Boxster S. An E36 M3 would be a hoot, too. $10K should buy a pretty good example of one.

I didn't realize those M Coupes have become so inexpensive these days. Seriously? When I bought my 930 about 7 years ago I briefly looked at those M Coupes--particularly the last 2 years of their manufacture, as they came with the head that bumped up BHP to 331 or so. But those cars cost about $25K back then. And now they've dropped down to the $10K range? Wow.

A Miata wouldn't be a bad way to go, either, particularly if you're looking to track this extra vehicle.

[slow&rusty]

This looks like fun for $7,500 (and tastefully modified to 350+hp) and is for sale down the street for me:

[slow&rusty]

And this one is also for sale locally for $5,900:

[RedBaron]

Originally Posted by slow&rusty

And this one is also for sale locally for $5,900:

It must be a scam, have 200,000 miles or a salvage title. I've seen really nice ones go for 8k-10k and I've seen the riced ones with high miles listed for around 5k. That really seems like a bargain!

Originally Posted by epbrown

Perhaps you've heard - they made a Z3 with that engine - the M Roadster, easily found with the E36 M3 engine for $10k.

My first DD out of college is going to be an S54 Z3 M Coupe.

I've been looking on ebay for awhile. I thought the S52 M Roadsters were in the 12k-15k range? Maybe I'm looking more at the garage-queen cars and not the DD?

[onewhippedpuppy]

You can find decent to very nice E36 M3s for sale between $6-10k all day long. I hate the E36 interior, but they're a pretty good deal.

[epbrown]

Originally Posted by Noah930

I didn't realize those M Coupes have become so inexpensive these days. Seriously? When I bought my 930 about 7 years ago I briefly looked at those M Coupes--particularly the last 2 years of their manufacture, as they came with the head that bumped up BHP to 331 or so. But those cars cost about $25K back then. And now they've dropped down to the $10K range? Wow.

Nope, I was talking about the S52 roadsters. The S54 M Coupes you're talking about are still in the $20s, with nice models asking in the mid-$30s.

Originally Posted by RedBaron

I've been looking on ebay for awhile. I thought the S52 M Roadsters were in the 12k-15k range? Maybe I'm looking more at the garage-queen cars and not the DD?

Correct - daily driven cars are $10k or less, the garage queens are $12k and up, a real bargain compared to the coupes.

[dienstuhr]

Originally Posted by MikeSid

I'll take door number 3.
For $10K, I'll take a clean original 1972-73 Datsun 240 Z.

Buy all of those that you can for $10K. Then budget another $10K to fix the rust. Ask me how I know...

d.

[Cannonball996]

E36 M3s are nice but the interior wears out on them fast. does it really need to be an "M"? you can get a really nice E46 under 10K as well, or even a 540i with a 6 speed.
I have always liked the way the Z3s drive, and for the money you cant go wrong, but its not as comfortable as the boxster.

[deathpunk dan]

Yeah but E36s are sporty sedans, not nimble roadsters.

My dad looked at Z3 convertibles in both 1.9l 4 cyl and 2.8l six form...he found them kinda 'meh' and ended up with a 2001 Miata 6 spd. It's a great car. 150 or so hp, ltd slip diff. Super fun to drive.

One of my closest friends has a 4 dr E36 M3, and I drove a modded E36 325is for 6 yrs...nice cars and both probably have higher performance ceilings than Dad's stock Miata..but they aren't nearly as fun to drive.

[scottmandue]

I like the 350Z... but when looking around here they seem to be pushing over $10K

Now the E36 M3... oh my... you guys are evil!

I must reevaluate my priorities!