Recommendations for a first car?

[kshimmi]

I'm 16 and will most likely take this car to college. I'm looking for something that isn't a coupe or anything that the insurance cars will be able to charge me a small island for, but ideally a sedan. I'm looking for something that can take corners and would actually be of some use on the track (so NO mustangs or muscle cars of any kind.) Reliability is definitely a priority, and something that is possible to improve without taking the damn thing apart. I was looking at maybe a 2005 E46 330i, Civic Si, and Impreza. Price limit is something $15K or less that I could get used with less than 80K miles.
Pardon the lack of research or probably good things to work on, but I'm new.

[mwebber12]

How about a 2008 MazdaSpeed3. You may be able to find one for around $15k with less than 60k miles. They are somewhat rare though so it might take some time to find one.

[kshimmi]

Thanks for finally replying
I was actually looking at a 2005 Supra RR (the non-turbo one) because turbochargers jack up my insurance rates to ungodly proportions. Is that a good choice?

[speediva]

Honestly, you are going to pay an arm and a leg on insurance for anything you "like". Find something cheap and reliable for college and get something nice when insurance drops at 25. Crap happens at college (like my ivory Infiniti getting a 2.5 foot PURPLE streak down the side because some AH couldn't back out of an alley) and you really don't want your nice car being destroyed because of it.

[Moppie]

Spending $15k on your first car is a really good way to lose $15k.

At 16 it's impossible to know what you really want from a car, what you will enjoy owning and driving as you have no experience beyond what you learned to drive in and what you read in magazines.

Your first car should be something really simple, but with potential for lots of fun.
That means it doesn't have to look good or go fast, but should have room to carry 3-4 mates/girls.
It should be cheap to run, and if it gets damaged should be easy to fix, or no big deal.

Spend $2-3k, keep the rest of the money for booze, girls and food (or a house deposit if you want to be responsible) and look for something like an old Honda Civic.

[DeltaP]

Word!

[kshimmi]

Thanks for all the attention all of the sudden guys! I was actually looking at a Civic Si for a first car, cheapish, reliable, reasonably fast, and good on the milage and insurance. Thoughts?

[speediva]

MUCH better! The Si model will give you a little bit of fun without costing you a MEGA fortune in insurance costs. I honestly wouldn't spend more than about $5-6k on a car at this point in your life. Don't rush the process... the right car will come along if you're willing to wait and/or drive a few hundred miles.

Keep us posted on your progress/choice!

[fredjacksonsan]

There's lots of V8 Dodge Chargers in the market for 15k.

[yoyocar]

my recommendation is:
1. used car, not new car
2. i personally prefer japanese made, toyota Camry or honda civic
3. within 100,000 miles, better less than five
4. get it from trusted dealers, with good credit. not owners

good luck