first car situation

I'm 17 and I just recently got my license a month ago and I have been driving my parents 2002 Xterra (they just bought two benzes and kinda discarded the thing). I am not much of an SUV person and I want to change cars. When my dad finishes paying the car note off this month, the car will be mine outright. I have two questions.Would it be wise to sell the Xterra and buy a car that I would enjoy? And if so what car should I buy. I like the s14 240sx. I've done tons of research on it. But I am open to other options. Even the 95 M3 sounds fun. I've done hours and hours of research on that too. I've also researched the V8 stangs between the 5.0s up until the previous generation. I'm getting a nicer car for graduation. This car will most likely become a project car to work on next year, when I take a year off in between hs and college. I want a car with great potential, but a fun daily driver for now.

at your age, unless your parents are infusing you with money, an M3 may be a bit of a handful. 240SX's are fun cars, but not very fast. V8 mustangs are faster, but a bit less forgiving to drive.

thx. i will most likely search for a s14. ur right about the m3. and the v8 is not really what i need right now. my friend just bought an s14 shell and is doing a sr20 swap. i will most likely buy a s14 that is drivable and do the swap later on next year. is there any other advice you could offer?

Check out insurance rates first.
As a teenage male, you are already the highest-risk most expensive to insure demographic group.

You will be going from a relatively cheap-to-insure SUV to a performance car which will only make insurance more expensive.

Also there is the issue of safety. When I first got my licence, I nearly killed myself in over-powered cars on several occasions, because like many teen age males, I drove like an idiot. I am not saying that you are a bad driver, but by the fact you are considering these cars tells me you would drive them fast, maybe too fast for your experience. I probably would too, at your age.

The fact that I drove a Cherokee most of the time is the only thing that saved my ass. You may be doing yourself a big favour to keep the Xterra for a year or two until you have more experience.

I agree with magic. What I would suggest is looking into some slower but still nice RWD cars, so if nothing else you can get accustomed to their handling when you are ready for a faster car.

If you like the styling, I would suggest checking out a lot of the older luxury cars.

Oh of course i know about the insurance rates. the 240sx is actually one of the lower priced RWD cars when it comes to insurance. I wont be moving to fast tho lol, i appreciate the concern. I wont even begin modding until two years after I have been driving (no spare time).

Didnt they just start making the XTerra within the past 4 years or so? Why trade that in for a 10-15 yr old car? I know you want something you can build up, but if you're not going to for 2 years, why not just keep the Xtera?

why not keep the xterra, find an old fixer upper like an older 240sx or something and use the xterra for hauling parts. it will ultimately come out way cheaper because the xterra's are good suvs, strong engines (vg33) and you wont need to worry so much about dumping all your time and money into a pit

I am selling the Xterra, not trading it. The s14 is 7-10 years old not 15 years old. And I really don't like driving the Xterra. The decision is not final yet though, I'm still searching for a car that would suit me best.

i admit its ultimately your own choice, and a 240 is a good choice if you can find a descent one.

I am selling the Xterra, not trading it. The s14 is 7-10 years old not 15 years old. And I really don't like driving the Xterra. The decision is not final yet though, I'm still searching for a car that would suit me best.

Exactly, like I said, 10-15 years old. And I knew you werent going to actually trade it in because no dealership that accecpts trade ins would be selling a 240 b/c they do not keep cars that are that old on the lot. It just doesnt make sense to me to get rid of the reliable Xterra when you're 16 or 17(I forget what you said) and get a car that will most likely have 100,000+ miles for a "project" car that you wont be starting until 2 years down the road. If you dont like the Xterra, sell it and use the money to get a newer car with a warranty.