Which would you pick???

[chevydrummer76]

Alright I'm not 100% sure yet...but I've been contemplating selling my truck. I love it but I think I want something newer with more options.

I'm open to any suggestions to feel free to suggest other cars, but right now here are the ones that I'm interested in. Oh and my budget is under 10k.

LT-1 Trans am/Firebird...I love the raw power and looks of these cars, but I see so many around.

BMW m3....hot cars I might be able to find one for 10k....maintenence bills scare me

92-94 lexus sc400....4 L v8 is a quick solid motor, sporty...dont know much else about these cars maybe someone else in here does?

GMC Typhoon....all i have to say is awd turbo....reliability is questionable

silverado 5.3 L.... decent gas mileage for a truck, good styling....but I'd miss the power of my truck.

Alright go at it.....my budget is under 10k!!

[NISSANSPDR]

I think the GMC Typhoon is a great platform to work on...

The SC400 is a great car...comfortable, quick, and sexy. Only thing you gotta watch out for is if things DO start to break...Lexus dealer costs are a bit pricey...but they do give you a loaner car which is good and not everyone does that. (My mom owned one for 10 years...no major problems w/it)

[chevydrummer76]

yah my parents owned an ls400 and put a ton of miles on it and only had a couple brake problems.

My dad runs a car dealership so i can get a warranty at dealer cost.

[kman10587]

Lexuses are extremely reliable, so I wouldn't worry about it much. My personal pick would be the LT1 Trans Am, because they're drop-dead gorgeous, I'm pretty sure the gas mileage is the best of that bunch, and the LT1 is an awesome motor with a large aftermarket. The BMW M3 would be my next pick, followed by the SC 400 (no manual tranny = thumbs down), and I don't care much for trucks.

[chevydrummer76]

heres a pic of a nice sc400

[nbw]

hard to choose really. kind of an apples and oranges thing you know?
I would love to go bmw m3, great handling, good power. I'd keep it fairly stock and just have fun autox'ing it. But then again, there isnt anything about BMW that says cheap so that can be a concern.
The LT1 f-body would be blast. Easy to modify and maintain.. not so cheap on gas though. lol I would have to say the LT1 would probly be the best bet if your looking for a "fun" car with out too many worries.

[curtis73]

Originally Posted by chevydrummer76

LT-1 Trans am/Firebird...I love the raw power and looks of these cars, but I see so many around.

BMW m3....hot cars I might be able to find one for 10k....maintenence bills scare me

92-94 lexus sc400....4 L v8 is a quick solid motor, sporty...dont know much else about these cars maybe someone else in here does?

GMC Typhoon....all i have to say is awd turbo....reliability is questionable

silverado 5.3 L.... decent gas mileage for a truck, good styling....but I'd miss the power of my truck.

Alright go at it.....my budget is under 10k!!

Trans Am and Firebird are great cars. I'm not a big fan of the "batmobile" look, but the LT1 is one heck of a motor. Good reliable power from the engine anyway. Don't get scared of BMW. If I remember correctly, you do all of your own work, right? If that's the case, it will cost less to maintain than the Lexus. The problem with BMW parts is that they're mostly made by Bosch, sold to BMW Germany, who then sells it to BMW America, who then farms it out to local dealers, then they tack on as much as 800% markup. That's nine times its invoice price and about 15 times higher than Bosch originally sold them for. Buy them online and they're as cheap or cheaper than Nissan, Toyota, and Mazda parts. If you use a BMW repair person, they'll charge 15 times as much for the parts and soak you with excessive labor since its a "specialty" car. If you actually work on one, you'll find that maintenance and repair are infinitely easier than a Chevy. All of the electronics, connectors, and maintenance parts are so easily located, most of them on the top front of the engine.

The Typhoon is a great truck. You're right about the reliability part, but at least parts are cheap. You might want to find out the common failure points and see if those parts are cheap or if the typhoon-specific parts are expensive or hard to find.

Lexus would be one of my first picks. Nice car, pretty good pwer, very nimble handling for its weight, good reliability, awesome luxury. Ever play with one? The door hinges are a double cantilever design that swings FORWARD, not so much out. That makes parking lot entry and exit so much easier. Slick little thought that is just one of the nice tidbits Lexus added to that car.

The 5.3 claims good mileage on the EPA sticker, but they are not returning the figures they suggest. I would double check that with some current owners and see what they're getting for mileage.

Of those choices, I'd pick the Lexus. If you suggested a non-M Bimmer I would have said that. How about a non-M 3 or 5 series? You can pick up a nice E34 (88-96 5 series) or how about an E36 (91-98 3 series) ?

I might also suggest a Mustang. I'm not a big fan, but 60 gazillion owners can't be wrong.

[FormulaLT1]

I had a list very similar to yours(except never been big on trucks, at least not yet) a few years back when I was looking for a sporty all around good car that wouldn't kill me financially but instead of the M3 I had a V6 Z3 on my list. Anyway . I ended up getting my first BMW a 97 2.8 Z3 and BMW are amazing cars I had a extended warranty that came with it so I get to drive pretty much every kind of car BMW makes when my car was in for servicing(scheduled maintenance of course) and the M3 pretty much every year was super fast amazing handling car with all the toys.. I did however after trading in my L98 C4 Vette for the Z3 find myself missing the Muscle car feel of V8 torque. I then decided to get a LT1 F-body and while its not a all around great car cause it doesn't handle like my Z3, it doesn't get great gas mileage, no heated seat here, and you hit a bump in the road and it ain't going to go unnoticed but straight line balls as well as fun factor, take one for a spirited test drive and try not to smile. OK so now for my recommendation after I have given you my background and reasoning for it and will probably shock people who know forums I mod and see my Sig but I say if your looking for a all around good dependable car with balls, can handle, and comes with all the fun toys inside M3 without doubt, sure they are expensive to service but they are very dependable for the most part. If your looking for a fun muscle car to go fast but not really a practical car but will give you the speed bug for sure LT1 F-body. Good Luck to you in whatever you decide.



John

[BP2K2Max]

i don't know about an M3 for $10G. i was looking for an M3 before i got my current car and they were going for $15,000-$20,000 for a 95-98. i'd have taken it but i didn't wanna pay that much and still have a vehicle without a factroy warranty. i've seen them listed for around $12K recently. and maintenance is costly i have a friend with a 325i that was charged $1250 to replace the factory exhaust system.

[NISSANSPDR]

Originally Posted by BP2K2Max

i have a friend with a 325i that was charged $1250 to replace the factory exhaust system.

He should have gotten an aftermarket one instead...I mean worse comes to worse...the Midas special will run you maybe 300-400 bux

Or he could get a nice exhaust system for around 650.

I guess your buddy deserved to get taken due to his lack of foresight.

[chevydrummer76]

My dad manages a car lot here locally, so I can get pretty much any car on the lot slightly above what they took it in for (they have to make a little bit). I went down there yesterday and checked out a 94 sc400 that I could have had for a little over 6k...but it had to many miles.

[Dreamspawn]

Either the LT1 Trans Am or the sc400 both of which are very nice cars. If there are alot of firebird/trans am around you get the lexus then. BTW nice truck dad has bout the same model GMC with a 350 4 bolt main, round track roller cam, 4 barrel carb *dont know size* bour 400hp looking at a 500hp engine guy next door had in his 32 cheacy hot rod.

[Ssom]

If it were me I'd get the M3 or the SC400 (Though they're called Toyota Soarers in this part of the world and come here second hand from Japan). The Lexus has a nice V8 which can certainly be worked and turned into one helluva motor (Like the F40 replica down here with a TT Lexus V8 ), it may be an Auto, but then again it's a GT, so what? They have pretty much every luxury feature known to man and Lexus reliability. Did I mention how nice an sleek it looks?

M3- It's a BMW, 'nuff said. It's going to be reliable, it's going to be easy to work on and like curtis says, if you know where to look, part prices shouldn't be a concern. It's a sportier SC really, with a manual and a few less mod-cons.


Others. Sorry, but I wouldn't get a Firebird/Camaro, unless I wanted the engine and the engine only. The Camaro is unpretty and the Firebird somewhat overstyled, it's not going to handle as well as the BMW and it's not going to be as classy as the Lexus, nor are they all that well screwed together. The engines are awesome though.

Typhoon- A turbo-charged beast from the 80's? Be careful, no matter who makes it, the chances of it being a money pit are high. Wicked truck though. My second all time favourite truck after the Ram SRT-10.

[lamehonda]

Typhoon, if it has reasonable miles on it.

[chevydrummer76]

Well I'm pretty much set on the Sc400. I drove one that was on my dads lot and liked it a lot, but it just has too many miles. I've been shopping around for one....but I've realized these things aren't easy to find.