Car people, solve my dilemma!!!!!

[Braineack]

yes, the prelude has a 8100RPM rev limiter.

I dont understand why you'd want a fuel truck behind you just because it has a high rev limiter? The prelude gets abysmal gas mileage in the city...that's when you need it to follow you.

rofl at suggesting the nemesis motor, it makes AWFUL mpgs and you would void the warranty by using the proper oil weight on it. They car went out of production because it couldn't pass the simplest of emissions standards and no one wants to buy a car with such awful mpgs, required an oil tanker to follow you since it consumed oil, and generally had no thrills behind it.

The RX8 has a 8500-9000 rev limit, fwiw. Better hire a fuel truck to follow you as well...

It does have one of the best chassis out there...

And an oil truck they burn loads of oil

i said that

 

[The_Traveler]

I was a professional auto technician for a decade, BMW's will destroy your pocket with cost of upkeep and repairs, and they arent that reliable. The Toyota will run forever and doesnt cost a lot to maintain, and IS the mot reliable car in the world. Thats a no brainer, Toyota all the way.

I leased first an Audi A6 and then a BMW 5 series for three years each, all maintenance included and loaner when either was in the shop, which was fairly often.
When the leases were up, the dealer put on a real full-court press for me to buy each of them.
As much as I loved the cars - and they were vastly different driving experiences - the looming maintenance costs scared me away.

 

[astroNikon]

geez .. buy a moped :mrgreen:

 

[Braineack]

yeah, there's an actual reason these luxury car manufacturers are offering maintenance/warrenty incentives like Hyundai and Kia were just to gain initial market value: People don't want to buy cars that break down often.

 

[Scatterbrained]

I was a professional auto technician for a decade, BMW's will destroy your pocket with cost of upkeep and repairs, and they arent that reliable. The Toyota will run forever and doesnt cost a lot to maintain, and IS the mot reliable car in the world. Thats a no brainer, Toyota all the way.

I leased first an Audi A6 and then a BMW 5 series for three years each, all maintenance included and loaner when either was in the shop, which was fairly often.
When the leases were up, the dealer put on a real full-court press for me to buy each of them.
As much as I loved the cars - and they were vastly different driving experiences - the looming maintenance costs scared me away.

I had a customer who bought an ML back when they first came out. It was in the shop so much his kid thought the ML was the loaner he drove when his car was in the shop.


I can remember putting brand new transmissions in Audi's and having them be bad right out of the crate. Fun. Sometimes I still have flashbacks of my VW/Audi days. Makes me shiver.

 

[benp2k6]

From the feedback here, you are going to be walking to work! LOL

My vote:


(my old e46.. she may have cost more than a toyota.. but worth every penny )

 

[BFiggy]

I've owned 4 BMWs and I would definitely go with the 135i... assuming it's been properly maintained and doesn't have any stories.

I currently have a 335i (with the N54 motor) and I absolutely love it. The turbos and fuelpump have been known to have problems but these are also covered under warranty... something like 80k miles or 8 years. Maintenance can get expensive if you go to the dealership but if you find a reputable indy shop it isn't that bad. Most of the work I've had done on my cars was just regular maintenance stuff like oil changes, brakes, spark plugs, etc.

As for mpg I'm currently averaging 20.6 and that's with a bunch of mods and driving it pretty hard.

What ever car you decide to choose just make sure you do your homework... run a carfax, get a ppi, check maintenance history and don't buy it if you aren't 100% sure it's the right car for you.

These cars are a blast to drive and I enjoy driving mine every chance I get... I can never get that feeling from driving a Toyota. And yes driving a BMW does make you an *******. lol

BTW how come you want an automatic vs a manual?

 

[Msteelio91]

I've driven both the Subaru BRZ and the GT86.

I hear that they are set up differently, like the BRZ has softer suspension setting or something like that. What's the real difference though, can you even feel it?

Read this... Subaru BRZ vs Toyota GT86 review, price and specs | evo

 

[JohnnyWrench]

I didn't read the whole thread but I can add my experience to the mix. I've daily driven a MINI Cooper S (a BMW built machine) for the last 8 years. Thanks to that car I'm now a hobbyist mechanic... :banghead:

 

[benp2k6]

I didn't read the whole thread but I can add my experience to the mix. I've daily driven a MINI Cooper S (a BMW built machine) for the last 8 years. Thanks to that car I'm now a hobbyist mechanic... :banghead:

Johnny, it is even in your name now!! Lol

 

[Msteelio91]

The Cooper S models are notoriously bad for reliability so I wouldn't bank on that so much.

They're all really like any other car; some last ages, others fall apart. It's just a matter of affording the repair bills you may come across.

No car is worth bankrupting yourself over.

 

[molested_cow]

actually, is the v6 mustang available in your area?

Yes, not sure if the new one is coming any time soon. It does cost as much as a new Corvette in the US though. Cars here costs about twice of what it is in the states.

Also, there's fuel tax depending on the engine size. It's a once-a-year tax, so even if you park the car all year round, you will still be paying it. I think they should integrate the tax into the gas prices instead to be fair.

 

[molested_cow]

actually, is the v6 mustang available in your area?

Yes, not sure if the new one is coming any time soon. It does cost as much as a new Corvette in the US though. Cars here costs about twice of what it is in the states. Our salaries are about 1/3 ~ 1/4 of what people make in the states, yet our cars cost twice as much. Also, my commute isn't long distance wise. It's just a lot of traffic. The drive will be about 45min with 35 of it in heavy traffic. Manual isn't too much of an issue to me. I did that years back with a manual and I thought it was ok.

American cars are quite rare here, they just aren't popular. The Fords here are European models mostly, built locally.

Regarding chasing the TC... I wasn't chasing him. He was my friend and I felt like my engine was gonna explode with the vtec kickin' in. BTW, the prelude I had was an automatic with sequential shift. It's no manual but I drove it in the "stick shift" mode all the time. It only had 4 speeds to play with and trust me, I did everything I could to get that car to go on those mountain roads. It probably won't feel as powerless if there wasn't another car as comparison, but as much as how I loved the car(I really did), it was a bit of a let down. BTW the fuel economy on my prelude was decent. I think I got 27mpg on a road trip once. I think it's usually in the 23~25 range. It did has a relatively small gas tank.

So the conclusion of 135i vs GT86 discussion is, for logical reasons, GT86 is the better choice. For sentimental reasons, 135i gives a bigger smile. I don't think I will continue to consider the 135i the more I read about it on different forums. I am not going to mod my car and "working" on cars in Taiwan isn't really an option. DIY market is non existent here so parts aren't too available to consumers. Furthermore, I don't have the space and tools to do it. The labor cost is considerable low here though. My mom's 2003 Audi A3 had a leaky engine gasket and got it replaced for US$250. I think it would have been a few hundred bucks more at least in the states.

So if there isn't any other car to consider, I just got to warm up to liking the GT86 more.

 

[BananaRepublic]

Steer well clear of any American muscle cars

Have you consider Masada Mx5

 

[molested_cow]

MX5 not available here, except a few automatic ones. Too rare, parts will be hard to get.