Hi everyone! I know there is a lot of car forums out there and the answers will be kind of biased here considering it's a rotary forum but still ! I always loved the ambiance here so I decided to come here once again and to ask you guys for some advices !



So here's the situation, I'm 20 years old and I always have been a car freak. I'm going to the university next year but since I still got about 5-7 years of school before I get my real job, I'd like to have a weekend car to get my hands dirty and have some fun lol !



I got around 7500$-11 000$(MAX).



Here's what i'm "preferably" (no necessarily) looking for :



-4 seats or 2+2

-Around 150-250hp (not trying to kill myself here ehe)

-Really don't care about the drivetrain

-Really don't care if it's turbo or supercharged or N/A

-Recent (1995+)

-Over 15 MPG

-Look good





I only intend to use the car during the summer weekends. Also, I probably won't do any lapping, drag, drift, rallying, etc. at the moment. I just want a car to cruise around town and have some fun with in the curves and on the highway ! I might do a few bolt-on engine upgrades but nothing crazy. All and all i'm looking for a car that deserve to be washed, polished, waxed and babied !





Here is a list that I came up with that fits in my price range and my taste:



1998-2006 AUDI TT

2001-2005 AUDI A4



1991-2000 BMW 3 Series (Coupe)

1991-2000 BMW M3

1998-2005 BMW 3 Series (Coupe or Sedan)



1999-2004 FORD MUSTANG GT

2005-2009 FORD MUSTANG V6



2003-2006 INFINITI G35 SEDAN



2002-2003 SUBARU IMPREZA WRX SEDAN

2004-2005 SUBARU IMPREZA 2.5RS SEDAN



1998-2005 LEXUS IS300



2003-2008 MAZDA RX-8



2000-2005 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE









But now, here's the deal, I just found a really clean S4 FC GXL for about 2000$. So what should I do ? Get myself a bit indebted and buy one of the car on my list ? Or another car in the same price range (if you guys have some other suggestions) ? OR get a FC, be debt-free and slowly modify it to my taste ?



thanks a lot, and sorry for the super long post! Just wanted everyone to get the whole picture

 

Debt-free is a wonderful thing, I'd go that option whenever possible.

 

A car is nice. Car payments, no so much.



Stay debt-free if you can. Don't forget to budget for such things as insurance and running costs. Forced-induction cars tend to need major work around 100k miles. Good n/a cars can run trouble-free for 200k or more. We used to own a very nice Audi 2.7T. Ask me how I know.



Nothing against Audi's, they're damn nice cars. Just do your homework. A couple major repairs can double your "investment" in the car in a very short time.

 

i'd go either with the rx7 or 8...



the audi's get expensive to run, they need timing belts, which requires pulling the front of the car off $$$, plus the coils go bad all the time, which is no problem, except it leaves you stuck with a dead car.... the 1.8T's are just not that fast, even with a ton of mods, its a HEAVY car



BMW's are ok, but they need all kinds of things from bushings to rewelding the floor cause the suspension fell out. the owners know a lot about the E36/E30's but there is NO information about anything newer.... which would be fine but most of the aftermarket parts are pretty crap



the subaru's are really good, the pre 08 STI might be the best car off the showroom floor ever. the pistons are weak, but you actually don't need to mod the car



the Rx8 has an excellent chassis. the rear seats actually work. they've been pretty reliable too. the engine is a little bit of a bummer, the car is ok stock, you have to work, but more power is hard, not like the FC where you can put an exhaust on it and gain 20hp.



i think the G35 is fugly and stupid, but that's what makes it a nissan.



dunno much about the mustang, one of my friends has had one, and its been fine.



eclipse is a waste of time IMO. you can make power, but you need a dustpan and broom to sweep up the engine and trans parts it'll leave behind.

 

Actually the gen 3 Eclipse isnt that bad. I have the Dodge version of it and its been OK despite the abuse. Its just really watered down and has limited aftermarket. Needs work to be fun, but could be had pretty cheap.



WRX is a great car with lots of potential. And can benefit from hand me down stock parts from the STI. But it would have to come down to a coin toss to choose between the WRX and the Evolution.

 

oh good point, i'm talking about the first and 2nd gen eclipses (up to 2000? 2001?) i don't know anything about the newer ones

 

even though i hate them... i'd say get a mustang. HUGE aftermarket for them...and most importantly,the parts are dirt cheap. With a lil suspension work, they can be made to handle well enough to keep up with everything else on a track with novice or intermediate drivers. There is also a huge # of them on the road and easy to find just about any information about anything on them that you could possibly want to know.