my first car

hey all, i am about ready for my first car and after getting a rush in my friends 300zx 450hp 460trq i had my heart set on a car that i could turn into a nice machine, i have my heart set on the 1991 3000gt and want to kno wat u all think??? should i look at another car??? or will i be happy witht this, my dad will pay 2,000 i have to come up with the rest

Is it a VR-4? If not, you may not get the rush you're looking for.

well in order to get around insurance i was going to see if i can get the base line 3000gt and maybe swap the engine for something thats twin turbo, and i can only spend a little more then 3,000 so im not expecting the car to be a beauty when i get it

it would cost you much more to do a swap then it would be to get a vr-4 in the first place, and, by the looks of it you are probably pretty young. Just have the car added to you dad's insurance and the insurance would be low for the car anyways.

well i had a talk with my dad and he said getting seporate insurance just for me would be cheaper then adding me on, because of my age the insurance will cost lots, and getting the vr-4 wont help insurance cost either

I personally don't think anyone should have a vr4 as their first car. I've said it a billion times and I'm sure I'll say it a billion times more. It's nothing personal against you, it's nothing about your driving. But I know if I had gotten one as my first car, I wouldn't be here typing this right now. Read teh FAQ, if you still want a 3000gt, get a base for 2 years, then upgrade to the vr4. At 16 (I'm guessing) you probably wont have the experience behind the wheel, or the money to keep the vr4 on the road. Again, nothing against you, I'm simply saying I've read way too many threads that start like this, the kid gets argumentative, gets the car, and then 2 weeks later there is a new thread about how he wrecked at 100+. Just my .02

First car I ever test drove was a 91 vr-4 ( just turned 16). I had my heart set on once since I as in 7th grade. Couldn't afford it so I got a del sol. 2 Years later I was fed up w/ it and got a 3000GT SL. 2 years later I bought a 94 vr-4. I should have just saved up and bought a vr-4 in the begining. Plus the insurance on my car went up $40 a year when I switched to the VR-4 on my own policy (i've never been on under my parents). Then I switched to geico and saved over 40% off my car insurance so it was actually cheaper:)

So I'd save up and go w/ a VR-4 and drive it like you payed for it and it's all you got.

I agree with igovert...

Unless you have been in some sactioned racing club you need your first car that will give you adequate warning that you have reached the limits of your traction, weight shifts from manuevers, you don't have enough experience to judge what is a safe speed, how to react when something goes wrong or how to drive smoothly (Let us all chant this now... Slow is smooth, smooth is fast...).

A VR4 will feel safe until you reach the limit and then BAM! you are all of a sudden sliding sideways if you are not completely aware of the warning signals.

i understand the whole young guy with a sports car thing but, im not going to drive crazy my parents see this when i drive and they allowed me to drive my moms car and my dads 05 2500 suburban, both cars my sisters couldnt drive beacuse my parents didnt trust them, if i get a vr4 i wouldnt trust it at high speeds unless i had several upgrades like brakes tires break rotors etc, iv been in my friends 300zx doing 70 on sharp turnes etc the car handles nice but i kno he can do this stuff in his car because he went to racing school and his car is on slicks and has several other upgrades, i guess ill look into a vr4 ill just have to check and see what ensurance i would have and all of that

thanks for all the comments, what condition do u think a vr4 would b ein for $4-$5,000?

what condition do u think a vr4 would b ein for $4-$5,000?


barely working :grinyes: No, you maybe able to find a very high mileage one for that, but I'd say be prepared to pay 2x that much, and realize these are not cheap cars to own. Premium gas, lots of necessary maintainence, expensive parts, and high insurance are hard to afford for students. Trust me, I tried, and it put me under more financial stress than I want to remember. [Read: this is why it's been garaged for a year]

4-5k is going to be a rather sh*t*y VR4 unless you find one hell of a deal. My 1991 SL was $5,000 (only 35k motor and brand new transmission). Might I add, fixing a Vr4 will practically make you mortgage your parent's house. They are very expensive as are the SL's and base models(just not as expensive). Not to call you a liar but almost everyone (especially 16 year olds) who gets a sports car and says they arent going drive crazy (including me) usually ends doing the opposite (some more often than others). Whatever you do good luck and be careful.

terrible condition, and you'd have to put alot of money into it... just get an SL and save up later man. That's the reason I wrecked my z31T, I wasn't experienced enough in RWD and while I avoided one accident I couldn't avoid another.

What I'm saying is that, a VR-4 is really a bad first car. I've had friends buy fast cars like that, only to think themselves invincible and wreck it two weeks later.

hmmi guess ill stick with the standard 3000gt

^ that's a great idea man, with a few supporting modifications you can prolly run high to mid 14s

Just don't make the mistake of getting an SOHC :banghead:

I personally don't think anyone should have a vr4 as their first car. I've said it a billion times and I'm sure I'll say it a billion times more. It's nothing personal against you, it's nothing about your driving. But I know if I had gotten one as my first car, I wouldn't be here typing this right now. Read teh FAQ, if you still want a 3000gt, get a base for 2 years, then upgrade to the vr4. At 16 (I'm guessing) you probably wont have the experience behind the wheel, or the money to keep the vr4 on the road. Again, nothing against you, I'm simply saying I've read way too many threads that start like this, the kid gets argumentative, gets the car, and then 2 weeks later there is a new thread about how he wrecked at 100+. Just my .02

EXACTLY!!!

yeah twin turbo sounded nice tho :grinyes:
wats SOCH?:confused:

SOHC=Single OverHead Cam
DOHC=Dual OverHead Cam

96' and below 3000GT's were all DOHC's, but in 1997 they came out with a base model that was SOHC. The SOHC engines made an output of 162hp while the DOHC's that had been the base for the earlier models made an output of 222hp.

:grinyes:cool i plan on getting the 1991 base model, doesnt the car weigh 4,000lbs tho???:confused:

More around the 3400-3500 area. The Spyder VR4's were the ones that weight the most. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I think they were around 3800-3900lbs.

wow thats a heavy car almost 4,000lbs

:grinyes:cool i plan on getting the 1991 base model, doesnt the car weigh 4,000lbs tho???:confused:

You'll be happy with a n/a 3000gt. They still have impressive handling and good performance in the top of the powerband. Not to mention you can plan on saving more gas with a n/a. On the highway I average 26mpg. Not bad for a sports car. My only advice is try to find a manual if you can (unlike me :banghead: )

yeah i think its important to leanr how to drive stick

yeah i think its important to leanr how to drive stick

Learning to drive a stick does come in helpful and isn't that hard to learn for most people but it delivers better performance and I along with most others think it is more fun to drive.