battle of the sports compact cars

which one would you choose out of these choices? considering all have lets say 50k miles

EDIT: Doh, the firebird is the 3.8L V6 also

Firebird then the 240

I'd go w/ the 240, simply because the V6 Mustang and Firebird are slow compared to their V8 counterparts.

It's still as fast, if not faster than a 240

EDIT: your right about the mustang.

But on ANY kind of course I wouldn't touch a v6 F-Body! :nono:

from what you listed 240sx all the way

Ditto. 240

i would choose the 240 becuase i'm biased :iceslolan . but for real, out of all those choices, its the japanese import thats RWD, and the v6 stang and f body does not have alot of support. for the 240, there are tons of options. from engine swaps to turbo charging the original motor, to cheap and easy brake up grades, to very balanced chassis. and tons of interchangable parts with other nissans.

While I would have to change it to a 93 S13 Fastback 240sx, I agree the S14 is the all around better car.

see I am very surprised here. I thought everyone would pick the 240sx, the reason why I'm surprised is b/c of the price of the 240sx. It's the most favored (so far), most rare of the bunch, yet the most cheapest?!?!?!? Whenever I look up cars.com or autotrader.com, preludes and integras go for 7-8k, V6 firebirds and stangs r around the same price as the 240sx as well. Shouldn't the 240sx be worth more if the demand is there? Seems whenever I see s14's @ 5-6k they don't sell

The demand for the other cars on the list is greater. That and well...its still just a 96 240sx. They got potential but they ain't super cars.

^ I dunno about that, I think the demand for the 240sx is greater b/c they are much rarer. Also go by the 240sx forums, they have one of the most posts on there, a lot from ppl tryin to find a 240sx and buying one.

and i'm comparing 240sx's to other cheap sports compact cars/ponies, not talkin about super cars.

240SX...nuff said

1991 240sx 5sp with intake vs. 1994 firebird v6 auto

I beat the firebird by a very little bit. But i did so a few times in a row. The firebird is also alot more complex, more computers and what not so more will and can go wrong. My friend only has 40k on his and already alot of sensors have had to be replaced.

I would take a 240sx, although I do like firebirds they are not easy to work on. Insurance on a 240sx is much cheaper and get better gas milage. You can find a decent S13 240sx for under 2grand. I got mine for 800$ with a new clutch and exhaust. But if you have some money to blow unlike most 240sx owners, go for a S14, Try to get an SE with lsd stock, makes things much funner. They may not be the fastest of the cars listed but its probaly one of the funnest cars up there.

Mx-6 = I had a 1993 Ford probe GT for awile, it was quick and fun. Pretty reliable but i blew a head gasket at 98k.

Mustang V6 = high insurance for a slow car that you see every 30 seconds on the road.

Hondas = I like hondas, but like the mustang they are very very common and are realy nothing special. And besides that, alot of stupid people automaticly deam you a ricer no matter what.

1991 240sx 5sp with intake vs. 1994 firebird v6 auto
I beat the firebird by a very little bit. But i did so a few times in a row.
I think the 94 had the 3.4 L, and later models had the 3.8 and more hp.
Mx-6 = I had a 1993 Ford probe GT for awile, it was quick and fun. Pretty reliable but i blew a head gasket at 98k. I had 95 GT, was a blast, but anything BUT reliable
Hondas = I like hondas, but like the mustang they are very very common and are realy nothing special. And besides that, alot of stupid people automaticly deam you a ricer no matter what. HAHA I know, when I was younger I wanted to get like a crx (something cheap) just to gain some tuning skills, but I quickly realized this, and figured it would be funner just to do it to a cooler car. And I was happy for doing so...my 95 gt. Liked it alot better than hondas and never lost to one.

yea the 96+ F-bodies had the 3.8 l 3800 engine series II, they were lighter (aluminum construction) and also faster (200 hp, 225 tq). The 3.4 liters were made out of cast iron block, and made 160 hp, 200 lbs of torque.

I'm surprised the 240 is eatin up the competition right now b/c it's probably the cheapest and rarest of the bunch

yea the 96+ F-bodies had the 3.8 l 3800 engine series II, they were lighter (aluminum construction) and also faster (200 hp, 225 tq). The 3.4 liters were made out of cast iron block, and made 160 hp, 200 lbs of torque.

I'm surprised the 240 is eatin up the competition right now b/c it's probably the cheapest and rarest of the bunch

lol no....the 3.8 is all iron and they started putting em in F-bods in 95 as an option in cali. As far as performance......with an experience driver a 3.4 5 speed is capable of low 16's and a 3.8 low 15's. Btw, what is so special about a 240sx? They are all of a sudden these great cars....lol Ooh..they can drift.....wow
lol

well yea i know they came out in 95 also, they came out as a special edition firebird, I believe only 1000 were made. My friend has one. They were mainly massed produced in 96 though. And I thought the 3800 engine series II were aluminum, i guess I was wrong.

And 240sx isn't all that great of a car, but look at the other it's being compared to above. I forgot to put in the eclipse, oh well.

From the list as posted, I would have to say the Nissan.

lol no....the 3.8 is all iron and they started putting em in F-bods in 95 as an option in cali. As far as performance......with an experience driver a 3.4 5 speed is capable of low 16's and a 3.8 low 15's. Btw, what is so special about a 240sx? They are all of a sudden these great cars....lol Ooh..they can drift.....wow
lol

shame on you for saying that. you domestics guys make fun of hondas and other japanese imports for being FWD. alright now we have a RWD import and now you make fun of it for being able to drift? sorry even though drifting is cool, its not for me. however there is no denying that the 240sx has the highest potential here. and when i say potential, i'm not just saying engine, i'm saying brakes, suspension and chassis. the WHOLE PACKAGE. and it can actuall put the power down cause its good'ol fashion RWD just like the way you yanks like it. and it is a beautifully balanced chassis with very good weight distribution.

on the engine side, you can cram almost anything in there, there is one driving around with a LT1, there are ones driving around with supra TT engines, there are quit a few Skyline powered 240's, and tons and tons of SR powered turbo 240's all running anything from low 14's to 11's, and not to rule out turbo charging the original factory engine. on nissaninfiniticlub.com i have one of the lowest whp on the board for a turbo KA. there are plenty of high 300whp and 400whp 240's running low 12's with very little invested.

now lets talk about brakes, this chassis shares alot of parts from other nissans. i upgraded my front 10 inch single piston calipers with a set of 4 piston calipers and 11 inch rotors from a 300ZX TT for only 200 bucks. try gettin taht kind of brake upgrade for any other car on that choice for that price? you can't even find an upgrade liek that for triple the price. also you can swap the rear limited slip differentials from a infiniti J30, a Z32 300ZX, and other nissans. you can also swap
larger MAF from a 300ZX to gain more air flow and have less restriction on the intake side. ( granted you need the ECU to the tuned to run this )

now suspension even though the front suspension runs on macpherson struts it has tension rods and if you buy adjustable tension rods, you can adjust your caster, and the rear has a 5 link independant suspension. the car handles beautifully with very little suspension mods. the only grip that i have is that the chassis is alittle flimsy but thats nothing a front and rear strut tower car can't fix.

i would like you even come up with all that option for any of those cars listed up above.

the 240sx is in reality a 300hp car that is designed to handle 300hp from the factory but just tuned to shit for the U.S. market. i know the other V6 versions of the F bodies were 300+ hp cars from the factory as well, but they used smaller brakes, and they weight a good amount more so even if you want to compare engine swaps to engine swaps, the 240 would still edge it out.

nice way to put it TatII. Now I should have really included the eclipse, that would have been interesting. Since eclipses are easily modded also with the 4g63 engine, though its reliability sux ass

how 'bout a turbo miata/mr2? just a thought.

turbo miata

You're going to hell for that.


I can see the potential. Doesn't weigh anything, setup to handle great, room enough for some big engine upgrades (There was a guy stuffing 5.0 supercharged Mustang engines in them...you can't tell me that wouldn't be a hell of a ride).





But still, you're going to hell for that.

You're going to hell for that.

I can see the potential. Doesn't weigh anything, setup to handle great, room enough for some big engine upgrades (There was a guy stuffing 5.0 supercharged Mustang engines in them...you can't tell me that wouldn't be a hell of a ride).

But still, you're going to hell for that.

Those little mofo handle like nothin, very common in autocross. It just needs to beat S2000 on regular basis.

lol, I am getting tired of recommending Z32, most people just aren't ready for it.

240SX by miiiiiiiiiiiiiles

I read somewhere in a mag that mx-6's were the best handling sports compact car out of the group above, this true? I thought 240sx's would handle better

The firebird is anything but compact...

For any type of racing, i'd go for the 240. NIssan has some nice engines you can put in there. For the streets I like my firebird(v6). It's got a nice amount of power, turns heads, and is better looking than the 240 (IMO). But I wouldn't want to race with it.

I meant to put battle of the sports compact/pony cars

5.7 i love your sig...and im a mustang fan. Actually i want a ta, but i cant afford.

yea 5.7's sig is funny as hell. always that rivalry against stang and F-bodies

Gotta love that rivalry. It's acually not anything really against mustangs... I just don't like slow cars that people claim are very fast. I would LOVE a new Cobra...but then trade it in for a 07 camaro in 07 (hopefuly)....LOL

mustangs and firebirds should stick with v8's IMO. for some reason, 4 and 6 cyl. mustangs make no sense.

mustangs and firebirds should stick with v8's IMO. for some reason, 4 and 6 cyl. mustangs make no sense.
:iagree:

240 All The Way

nice sig castrophe, I like that 350z pullin that 360

i dont see how mustang or firebird are sport compact....

^ well i already stated before, mesed up on title. Meant to put battle of the sports compact/pony cars

why the hell is the integra ls in the list ?? at least put up a GSR or type R ... type R would beat any one of those cars stock for stock , and both have more potential

why the hell is the integra ls in the list ?? at least put up a GSR or type R ... type R would beat any one of those cars stock for stock , and both have more potential


good point why is it the stock the integra

i'd say 240 has more potential than ITR, just swap an RB25DET engine in :naughty: . Or an SR20DET, gettin one soon hopefully, for only a grand :naughty:

Or you could always just turbo the KA24, it's a pretty strong motor itself.

yea my ultimate plan is to build up the KA. PDM ECU when it comes out, jwt cams and heads, and then turboin that junks with an F-max turbo kit. I like the KA engine, it doesn't get as much credit as it deserves

the k20 is a monster when boosted , even with bolt ons those things are sick ....

Yep, I don't know why so many people swap it out for the SR20, you lose almost half a liter in displacement that can't be made up for as easily as you can just turbo the KA.

MX6 all the way.

Swap it out for the KLZE and turbo it.

Yep, I don't know why so many people swap it out for the SR20, you lose almost half a liter in displacement that can't be made up for as easily as you can just turbo the KA.

it does have a better powercurve, and higher revving. Not to mention it does have much more aftermarket support. But I'm still keeping my KA, torque baby :smokin:

i picked the 240

1995 Nissan 240sx, officially declared winner of the cheapo sports compact/pony cars. Ironically, it's probably the cheapest out of all the list on there. I forgot to put Eclipse, oh well though

hehe, you also forgotthe escourt...back when they made the escourt GT's...thoes where beasts...

I don't think America has any sport compacts that are on par with the Japs, except of course the SRT-4.

240 all the way.

I'd have to go with the 240 as well, but I don't think the firebird is that bad. I raced an auto firebird with a borla exhaust, and I barely edged it out. They look good too. I've always wandered would it would be like if you dropped in the 3.8 from a gnx into one or supercharged one with an Eaton m112.