Questions for the Car people

meotter · Jul 27, 2005

you can get skyline gtr's in the US... there is a company in california called motorex that imports them and they are completely legal to register & drive in the US. motorex paid to have a bunch of them crash tested etc. the going price is about 80k USD.

The 240sx is rear wheel drive. It's very popular to modify since the "drifting" craze has swept the US by storm. simply put, drifting is the art of driving a car sideways, while still maintaining control of the vehicle.

The WRX in the US have a 2.0 liter turbocharged motor. the non turbo model (the RS) has a 2.5 liter motor. The STI has a 2.5 turbocharged motor. The STI accelerates with a certain brutality that is hard to explain unless you've been in one. Suffice it to say, it's nutty. fuel economy can be hammered in the STI too... I filled up, drove 40 miles (fairly spiritedly) and was already down to a 3/4 tank! ouch....

My opinion of the 3000GT VR4 is that it's a fast car, with a lot of power, but it's boring to drive. the stats on paper are pretty impressive, but it's just got no soul, plus it's a heavy weight, which means braking is ok at best & fuel economy is not so good.

A very fun car to drive, is the mazda miata. Very balanced in handling, with just enough power to dance all over the limits while not feeling like you've endangered yourself. Granted a new Honda Odyssey can probably beat it in a drag race, the miata really shines in the turns... from the near perfect gear changing to the incredible handling.

The celica is a nice car too. It's a shame they're discontinuing it this year (along with the mr2 spyder which is also a phenomenal car). Being that it's a Toyota, it'll pretty much last forever, if you take half way decent care of it and assuming it wasn't abused horribly before you. The GT model is a bit slow in my opinion, especially in an automatic, but remains a fun car none-the-less. I don't think prices for parts is going to go up since the car is being discontinued. The car is still new by most accounts & will have dealer replacement part support for a long time still. You will pay a pretty penny for parts, but that's pretty much how it is for all Japanese cars.

good luck with your car search

Xmetal · Jul 27, 2005

havoc said:
Do they oxygenate your gas over there? They do here, put all sorts of "additives" in it to make it more environmentally friendly. I am not complaining though, I think we are too dependant on all fossil fuels, and understand and applaud what little efforts our government has made in that area, however it makes it alittle harder for the performance crowd.

I don't really know but I can tell you our lowest octane rating is 95RON and stretches as high as 98RON which is what 90% of all the performance cars use over here - it's horrendously expensive at $1.25 a litre but it's the cleanest fuel you can buy here on the aussie market. The clubracers and off-street drag racers use C16 race fuel which is 106RON but you can't buy it outside a racecourse/drag strip, retails at around $1.60 a litre.

The Japanese get the better end of the deal, 102RON pump fuel.

havoc · Jul 29, 2005

Yeah it is a heavyweight, but i really want awd and i don't wanna the cost of a WRX or EVO LOL. I would rather spend less and build it into what i want. I will say this about the vr-4, it is predictable, maybe thats what you mean by boring, but i like that in a car. I like to know where i stand at all times. The miata is a fun car, but its too small. I can't get into it with the top on and its a deathtrap in an accident. The lack of vr-4's around here may lead me to antoher car in the end, I like the 300zxTT, its about the same pricewise as the vr-4 and lighter, but the rwd is real skittish when moddified, and i am not much of a drifter. The 300zx if done properly can come close to a poor mans Supra, though it would still be lacking. Who knows i may still win the lotto, in that case i'll get my Evo8 and be very happy

Nikon Fan · Aug 1, 2005

Well I'm still searching, everytime I find one there's a kink in the road...either a bad carfax check, or it's too far away, or way over priced. I see why folks say they hate car shopping now, at first it was fun but now it just sucks. I'm thinking of taking me a road trip to either Texas or Illinois because that's those are the closest places to me that have cars in my price range, that have clean carfax reports. Sorry just had to share my frustration...my mother is insisting I change my mind and pick another car which just makes me even more frustrated b/c I know this is a great car and the one I want. Okay I'm done venting...

havoc · Aug 1, 2005

LOL, it can get frustrating really fast when you are looking for a specific car in a specific price range. Good luck to you, and don't settle for one that doesn't completely fit your requirements, you'll be glad you waited.

meotter · Aug 3, 2005

if it makes you feel any better, my friend's neighbor lives in NJ and wanted a brand new mustang GT, they're in such high demand around here (to the point that another friend traded their 6 month old one back to the dealer and got what they paid for it towards another ford vehicle) that he flew down to florida to pick it up and drive it back to NJ.

AWD options that don't include a wrx or evo? what about a brand new saab-aru 9-2x? it's the same as a regular wrx, but with that special gm employee pricing, you can't beat it! even a used regular wrx (227hp) is a nicer car (IMO) then the 3000gt.

other AWD options: mitsubishi galant VR4, mazda 323gtx, celica all-trac, audi w/quattro, etc. Personally, unless your area of portland gets tons of snow (i'm not really sure of the weather, other then rain) you're probably better off under most circumstances to just get a 2wd vehicle with snow tires, rather then awd or 4wd. with the awd, you sacrifice fuel economy & acceleration for the benefit of a few days of benefit. However, i digress, the reason i say the 3000gt is boring, is not because it's predictable (predictable is good), it's because it doesn't engage the driver at all. there is a lack of communications between the car & the driver that leaves me numb.

Xmetal · Aug 3, 2005

meotter said:
other AWD options: mitsubishi galant VR4, mazda 323gtx, celica all-trac, audi w/quattro, etc. Personally, unless your area of portland gets tons of snow (i'm not really sure of the weather, other then rain) you're probably better off under most circumstances to just get a 2wd vehicle with snow tires, rather then awd or 4wd. with the awd, you sacrifice fuel economy & acceleration for the benefit of a few days of benefit. However, i digress, the reason i say the 3000gt is boring, is not because it's predictable (predictable is good), it's because it doesn't engage the driver at all. there is a lack of communications between the car & the driver that leaves me numb.

Can you get the Mitsubishi RVR in the US? It's a wicked little car and has 'sleeper' written all over it. :twisted:

meotter · Aug 4, 2005

i've never heard of or seen an RVR in the states before... i just did a search and saw what it looked like... that would certainly qualify for a sleeper

Xmetal · Aug 4, 2005

meotter said:
i've never heard of or seen an RVR in the states before... i just did a search and saw what it looked like... that would certainly qualify for a sleeper

Indeed, Mitsubishi Nimbus shell + Lancer Evolution engine/running gear = practical sports car. :twisted:

Done up correctly they can embarass a Supra off the line at the traffic lights. :mrgreen:

Corry · Aug 4, 2005

Call me an idiot, but what do you mean by 'sleeper'?

Xmetal · Aug 4, 2005

core_17 said:
Call me an idiot, but what do you mean by 'sleeper'?

Sleeper = A car that doesn't look fast but it really is.

Example....

You wouldn't know that this car was running a 'watered-down' version the same engine and drivetrain that was used in the Toyota Celica World Rally Cars . :wink:

It's known as the Toyota Caldina and you won't see it outside Japan.

So if boy racer in his riced up Honda Civic decided to give it a run at the Traffic Light Grand Prix - he'd lose out badly.

meotter · Aug 4, 2005

in photography terms, imagine somebody is taking pictures with what looks like a disposable camera, but inside they've actually gutted it and replacd it with the latest electronics so that it shoots almost as good as a D-SLR.

a sleeper is the wolf in sheeps clothing.