Fun Beater Shootout

I got my B13 Sentra SE-R for just over a grand. It's ugly and rusty but it's a joy to drive. My other car is a Miata and I prefer RWD, but the SE-R's balance is among the best of any FWD car I've driven. With a dab of left foot braking, it can swing its tail around with the best of them:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ByTLgtWgnk4

aussiesmg wrote: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1995-BMW-540i-Sport-6-Speed-Manual-/250805646508?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item3a652e74ac

I gotta watch this one . . .

Four door Merkur = Scorpio

yeah, but not even remotely the same car as the XR4Ti

2.9 Cologne V6 vs 2.3 Lima Turbo

So you havent bought the $2700 SS yet? Because you should.

Look at it this way. Buy that, fix it, sell it, and all of a sudden you'll be talking about what fun cars you can buy for $6-10k instead.

Luke wrote: I'm allll about fun beaters for less than $2500 . Here's my latest. Saab 900 Aero (SPG). A former '80s yuppie-mobile, now accessible to cheapskate GRM-types. Not RWD, obviously, but for a street car I couldn't care less about that. Holds an enormous amount of stuff in the back, hauls four in comfort, and goes decently fast for an old car.

I recall someone saying they managed to move a fridge with one of those... stuffed it in the back... impressive considering the size of such a car.... always wanted an SPG...

Vigo wrote: So you havent bought the $2700 SS yet? Because you should. Look at it this way. Buy that, fix it, sell it, and all of a sudden you'll be talking about what fun cars you can buy for $6-10k instead.

I don't have the money... I just threw down on a Disney vacation for my family.

.....

Disney is fun too. For about a day. Whatever, your kids will love you for it.

You'd probably prefer this thread die, now that your budget is evaporated but for the sake of avoiding work, I'll throw in my +1 for the turbo brick or Legacy wagon. The 1st gen Lecacies were available turbo'd with a 5-speed (and I didn't see "attractive" anywhere in your list of requirements). I bought a 3rd gen and I'm contemplating boost.

Luke wrote: I'm allll about fun beaters for less than $2500 . Here's my latest. Saab 900 Aero (SPG). A former '80s yuppie-mobile, now accessible to cheapskate GRM-types. Not RWD, obviously, but for a street car I couldn't care less about that. Holds an enormous amount of stuff in the back, hauls four in comfort, and goes decently fast for an old car.

Plus a big one.

Infinity Q45 G50. Seriously, zero resale value, 290hp V8, rear wheel drive. No manual ever sold here, but it's not really that type of car.

There are nice ones still out there, but you will probably have to look at a dozen or more piles of crap for every decent one.

And thank you for putting some money into the Central Florida economy.

MCODave wrote: Infinity Q45 G50. Seriously, zero resale value, 290hp V8, rear wheel drive. No manual ever sold here, but it's not really that type of car. There are nice ones still out there, but you will probably have to look at a dozen or more piles of crap for every decent one. And thank you for putting some money into the Central Florida economy.

they're that cheap these days?

holy crap, they're that cheap these days...

racinginc215 wrote: /end of thread.

I truly miss my 91 SHO. I wish I had not been a stupid kid and sold it to buy an LT1 Z28.

Rusted_Busted_Spit wrote:

Luke wrote: I'm allll about fun beaters for less than $2500 . Here's my latest. Saab 900 Aero (SPG). A former '80s yuppie-mobile, now accessible to cheapskate GRM-types. Not RWD, obviously, but for a street car I couldn't care less about that. Holds an enormous amount of stuff in the back, hauls four in comfort, and goes decently fast for an old car.

Plus a big one.

Wow, a Saab with puddles under it; imagine that. (I know it's probably from rain, but I had to say it.)

MCODave wrote: Infinity Q45 G50. Seriously, zero resale value, 290hp V8, rear wheel drive. No manual ever sold here, but it's not really that type of car. There are nice ones still out there, but you will probably have to look at a dozen or more piles of crap for every decent one. And thank you for putting some money into the Central Florida economy.

Ok, I'll +1 this too. I actually looked at these. But you want either a 1992 or 93 (no grill) model. A mid-gen redesign in 94 made everything squishy to satisfy the North American market. It looks like something from the set of Robocop but it's a lot of car for stoopid cheap.

squishy how? I know they depowered them in 96 by yanking the VVT

'91 Saab 9000 Turbo with much more power than it can hope to put down and a large degree of body damage. Fun because... well... picture yourself doing a sweet 3rd gear burnout next to a Pruis with a vanity plate that reads "50MPG" and has a bunch of organic/etc bumper stickers. And to think I'm trying to sell this bucket of amazingness for under 1/3 of your budget...

Seriously, best beater ever. I might just keep it...

I hate citing Wikipedia but the writeup is pretty detailed. According to their article, in 1994, the seats and suspension got softened, steering got slower and the trans got lower ratios for 1st and 2nd.

The models with the spiffy BBS rims should have HICAS (4-wheel steering). There was also a version with hydraulic suspension, which I imagine would be a maintenance nightmare.

And thanks to the JDM VIP crowd, there's actually some aftermarket stuff available (coilovers, exhaust, etc).

P.S. If the Q piques your interest, have you looked at the Lexus LS400?

thestig99 wrote: '91 Saab 9000 Turbo with much more power than it can hope to put down and a large degree of body damage. Fun because... well... picture yourself doing a sweet 3rd gear burnout next to a Pruis with a vanity plate that reads "50MPG" and has a bunch of organic/etc bumper stickers. And to think I'm trying to sell this bucket of amazingness for under 1/3 of your budget... Seriously, best beater ever. I might just keep it...

This.

I love the 2.3T 9000s so much. SO MUCH.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHpM0pb-CcE&feature=related

And here's some old school 900 action for you:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YGHtwnqHG8&feature=related

lesabre400 wrote: I hate citing Wikipedia but the writeup is pretty detailed. According to their article, in 1994, the seats and suspension got softened, steering got slower and the trans got lower ratios for 1st and 2nd. The models with the spiffy BBS rims should have HICAS (4-wheel steering). There was also a version with hydraulic suspension, which I imagine would be a maintenance nightmare. And thanks to the JDM VIP crowd, there's actually some aftermarket stuff available (coilovers, exhaust, etc). P.S. If the Q piques your interest, have you looked at the Lexus LS400?

I may have helped build an XF10 Lexus LS with a 1JZ-GTE and a 6 speed that eventually was turned into a 'drift missile' back when they were just called a 'drift beater'

Eventually it met it's demise and the swap was moved to an S140 GS300

In reply to chapel:

I took pics of a slammed XF10 on black nascar steelies at the drift meet at Mosport last year. I was searching Kijiji for cheap 400s as soon as I got home.

And I LOVE the S140s. I was looking at importing the JDM version (with the 2JZ) before the insurance companies started raping gray-market car owners. Now I day dream about doing an LSX/6-speed swap.

White_and_Nerdy wrote: I got my B13 Sentra SE-R for just over a grand. It's ugly and rusty but it's a joy to drive. My other car is a Miata and I prefer RWD, but the SE-R's balance is among the best of any FWD car I've driven. With a dab of left foot braking, it can swing its tail around with the best of them: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ByTLgtWgnk4

On my way home today someone pulled up behind me in a well kept NX2000. I wanted my 91' back instantly.

Can't find one that isn't rusty or trashed anymore.

i second the q45 and saab ideas.

q45s are ridiculously priced. You'd be hard pressed to get a b13 sentra any cheaper. Ridiculous.

lol you're right Q45s are cheaper than B13 SE-Rs by a LONG shot