Rad Era Classic Instead of New Car?

My wife and I had a show on where they clean up older cars. Upon seeing a pretty immaculate one go for 17K she said "that might be a nice alternative to getting a new car if you don't have a lot of money"

Naturally it started the wheels spinning on how I could add another vehicle to the fleet but with 6 cars at the house I'm not seriously going to do this.

With that said the line of thinking has merit: You can get a nice car for under 20K with all the creature comforts and there are places that will finance it. Also many of these cars have really good parts support; some of the cosmetic bits might not be available but the parts to keep them running are.

I have several that would fit the bill for me but Fox body Mustang or NA Miatas come to mind.

What's the age cut off for this exercise? 25 years, or 1998? At least '00?

15-20 years old is a nice sweet spot where cars are just "old" but not "classic".  2003-2008?

I've been eyeing a 90's volvo wagon (either 240 or 940) OR an early 90's Benz. 

All my cars are in that range. 96, 2004, and 2005.

My Element and Miata have great support and really no issues keeping them running. My Mitsubishi Mirage has good support for the mechanicals if you are patient as it is a JDM only engine but a lot of the other parts are easy to come by since a lot of it is the same as the USDM model. I've been this way for a long time and only really had a newer car for a very short time period and sold them for profits during covid. 

Pros: very affordable and to me they are more engaging to drive. Cheap insurance but you may not get full replacement value without a FMV policy. Get a decent amount of attention. A lot of I use to have one or dang, I haven't seen one of those in a while. 

Cons: Check the financing rates. No buy downs so they may be in the 7-9% range. The insurance part. It is an older car with older tech so no carplay or android auto. Check the support beforehand. Popular cars are no problem but I don't have a Mitsubishi Legnum VR-4 as a DD because of the parts issue. 

All said, It's never been an issue in the last 20 years. I just keep up on the maintenance and change things earlier than are probably needed. 

My current fleet numbers three. They are a 1990, 1996, and a 1997. I don't want or need anything newer. 

In reply to John Welsh :

Radwood says 99 so I'd say go with that.

Nothing inherently wrong with the idea of driving a nice clean Rad Era car. The challenge I have is spending 15-20k or more for one.

It's one thing if we're talking genuine collectibility and rarity, like a Viper, Cobra R, NSX, etc. (I know those are all well over 20k). But I have a hard time imagining a world in which I'd pay 20k for a non-Cobra Fox Body. Yet, perusal of various adverts suggest that might not be a crazy price.

The thing is, these prices are high, because guys who grew up with those cars are reaching middle age. Prices are unreasonably high at present, in my opinion. I wouldn't want to buy into this era of car now.

If anything, now is the time to look for deals on true classics. Even 5-years ago, prices on any classic (pre-'73) car were crazy. Now you can find clean driver quality cars at what are overall very reasonable prices.

For the record I'd routinely driven older cars. It's only been in the last 15 years or so that I started driving newer cars (5yrs old). My outback is now 12yrs old and I may well keep it for 10 more but in the back of my mind I'm always scheming a way to drive an old car again.

I used to drive a lot of 70s cars but found the 80s-90s to be the sweet spot where the cars come with AC and things like power windows and a decent radio. 

I saw a nice 944 the other day that I think would fit the bill nicely............but maybe a CRX or 240SX or a Celica GTS would be nice as well. 

When I consider a Rad-era car for a daily driver, a few speed bumps come to mind: airbags, NVH, fuel mileage, maintenance needs, rust, and reliability.

To a lesser extent, driver aids like backup cameras, abs, lane alert, various stability controls make newer cars easier, if sometimes less fun.

I'd also expect a higher level of fit and finish and improved passenger and driver comfort in a 2020 vs a 1990, no matter the brand.

Most modern cars are appliances, but what's the overall driving/riding experience in a 2018 Toyota Rav4 compared to a 1990 BMW 5-series or a 2000 Acura TL?

I'd dd a lincoln mark 8 or a 96+ S-class. But the econoboxes from that era, no thanks lol

DocRob said:

The thing is, these prices are high, because guys who grew up with those cars are reaching middle age. Prices are unreasonably high at present, in my opinion. I wouldn't want to buy into this era of car now.

If anything, now is the time to look for deals on true classics. Even 5-years ago, prices on any classic (pre-'73) car were crazy. Now you can find clean driver quality cars at what are overall very reasonable prices.

This is a really good point. Granted, you give up a LOT of creature comforts going back to a 50's or 60's car. I think the 90's were the golden era: acceptable safety, reliability and performance while still being mechanically simple enough that a home mechanic can fix them. Then again I'm a radwood era guy so I'm very biased

Some of us still haven't started driving anything newer than Radwood era...

I think by 98 or 99 cars were basically as reliable as they are today. Today's cars will be faster, safer, cleaner, better MPG, more comfortable, in general. But daily driving a very nice 1998 honda accord would not get you to work any less regularly than a 2023 accord would.

But I also think used cars of reasonable age have always been a "better buy" than brand new cars in most situations. If you happen to like cars from the 90s, it's a great time to be alive!

In reply to DocRob :

None of my cars were over 10K.

Yeah some are but there are a ton of great cars from that era where the prices are under 15K. With that you are buying good examples and not run down cars. For me it's having variety and scratching different automotive itches for the cost of 1 average new car. ($40K) I would have no issue hopping in any of them tomorrow and going 1000 miles+ as actually I've done just that this year in each of them. 

So, the premise isn't what you can pay cash for. But what a financed 17-20k buys you.

To get a loan for a ~20+ year old car and justify it, you'll have to target something with actual collector value. We're not talking econoboxes or bog standard F150s or Explorers. We're talking Mustang GTs and Cobras, LS1 Camaros and Firebirds, M3s and M5s, etc.

Looking at Hemmings there isn't a clean Fox Body that is under 10k, the average price is 21k.

MKIV Supras, FD RX7s, early Z06 Corvettes, 300ZX Twin Turbos, second Gen Lightnings, and Fox Body Cobras are all off the list of sub-20k.

The SN95 Cobras, LS1 F-Bodies, first gen Lightning are all still there, though barely for the Lightning. I'd drive an SN95 Cobra or 1st Gen Lightning any day of the week. Especially the Lightning. The MK VIII Lincoln would be interesting. Have to be a good price though, because airbags will have to be replaced.

My first vehicle was a standard cab '84 F150 in Wimbeldon White - and a '93-95 Wimbeldon White Lightning would be awesome.

But here's a perfect example of ridiculous pricing. Multiple first gen lightnings have sold in the 40k range in the past year. For a standard cab F150 with a 351W in it...That's CRAZY money. You can buy a beautiful, rust free, driver quality '68-72 F100 shortbed for ~half that.

I don't know about the market for MR2 Turbos, Integra Type Rs, etc.

In reply to DocRob :

I haven't checked in a while but I seem to recall a couple of places offering decent rates on amounts as little as $7500 and they weren't especially picky about what you bought.

I could at this point buy a 20K car cash but again there are cars out there that you could get financing in this range. 

It's pretty much the path I'm currently on, except I'm updating the early rad era car to make it more reliable and comfortable.

We have 2 appliance cars now, and we'll likely keep 2 appliances for the foreseeable future. But I drive a lot, and most of that driving requires a back seat, but NOT a third row appliance.

Enter the project Porsche 911. I bought a solid, rust free desert car without an engine for project car money, and now I'm working on installing a modern engine, short circuit A/C, and a few modern creature comforts. I won't have the beautiful air cooled flat six sounds, but the rest of the driving experience should remain more or less intact.

When I'm done I should be in my financial sweet spot, (way less than buying a new or lightly used appliance) It should be a car that I'll enjoy driving, with what I hope are the added benefits of reliability and comfort.

With any luck, reality will at least resemble the theory behind the build. I'll let you know how it works out.

Biggest problem I see is that nobody is going to finance you for a car that old and I'm not in a position to just hand someone $20k.

But I could finance a new vehicle.

AClockworkGarage said:

Biggest problem I see is that nobody is going to finance you for a car that old and I'm not in a position to just hand someone $20k.

 

But I could finance a new vehicle.

My bank will actually do it.....the rates are higher though.

You can find a really clean Mercedes (W124) 300TE wagon for under $10k. Early-'90s models with 24-valve M104 engines are awesome daily drivers that will more than keep up with modern traffic. Quiet and comfortable, too. The big Brembos from later 500E and various AMG models will bolt right on (if you're into that kind of thing).

In reply to LanEvo :

And you can manual swap them

I'm in the process of building an E30 that fits the parameters, but I bought it before the prices climbed.  Mission statement: fun, reliable, comfortable. 

Rebuilt M50 (with M54 rotating assembly), fresh rubber bushings and new dampers, working A/C and a bit of time spent on sound deadening.  Not as fast as a modern, but I expect to be smiling every time I'm in it.   

Would also consider an MX5 for this duty, but the back seat has been/will be handy. 

DocRob said:

But here's a perfect example of ridiculous pricing. Multiple first gen lightnings have sold in the 40k range in the past year. For a standard cab F150 with a 351W in it...That's CRAZY money. You can buy a beautiful, rust free, driver quality '68-72 F100 shortbed for ~half that.

Wellll...not exactly. Those high dollar Lightnings you cite are low mileage, vacuum bag trucks that were never driven much. 'Real' trucks like mine (no rust, tired paint, 150,000+ miles) are still $10k-$12k. Maybe a couple grand more if the paint looks good.

I hate mine more than I like it these days and would cash a $10,000 check for it.

One downside to that period is the plastics. They are old, dry and brittle. My Lightning dash (that I just had apart) has more broken pieces where screws and nutserts go than I can count. Then there's the computers with leaky resistors, unobtainium parts like rear bumpers and fog light switches and tires in a size only two companies bother to make them...and charge for the privilege. And it's getting to the age/mileage where I worry about the electric fuel pump or other injection parts failing that won't be a roadside fix.

If I do sell it, I'd love to replace it with a 70's or early 80's truck. But the prices have become pretty insane.

Thanks to this thread I was looking for 90-93 Lumina's online last night and then I dreamed about it. Yikes. 
I think the memories of driving a 30 year old car may exceed the reality but I would try again. 

AClockworkGarage said:

Biggest problem I see is that nobody is going to finance you for a car that old and I'm not in a position to just hand someone $20k.

Can you not just get a line of credit and buy whatever you want?