$10,000 to $14,000

Just wanted to get your thoughts on these cars and which you would choose. All these cars can be had for $10,000 to $14,000. Which of these cars has the best combination of performance, style, potential, and interior?

2000-2002 Volkswagen GTI 1.8T or VR6

1997-1998 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX

2002 Nissan Sentra SE-R

1998 Nissan 240SX SE

2003 Hyundia Tiburon GT

2002 Honda Civic SI

2000 Toyota Celica GT-S

I'd say the GSX, but the 95-99's were known to have quite a few problems. The VW is too heavy and softly sprung for a car in its segment. The new SE-R's are built like crap. The Tiburon is overweight and unrefined. The Si is gutless and overpriced for what you get. The GT-S is difficult to find and has little to no aftermarket. That leaves the 240SX; rear-wheel-drive, awesome handling, huge aftermarket, nice styling, and great potential.

I have to vote for the GSX hands down. Honestly its the best in all possible stiuations. Fastest stock, mod or mod, best styling (Tib looks damn good too), And everyone knows the potential of the 4g63 with AWD.......... Hey thats why I got one :evillol:

Second would have to be the tiburon though, nice styling and decent stock performance & aftermarket potential. But beware, because my girl is going though lemon law right now with her 2003 Tiburon V6 (They sold her the biggest shit box ever. Almost died on the freeway because of the defects. Got into bad accident).

then it would go

240SX
Sentra Spec V SE-R
Volkswagen GTI 1.8T or VR6
Celica GT-S
Honda Civic SI

No question, an AWD DSM has the upper hand in every category hands down.

Call me crazy but for some reason I am leaning toward a 2002 Honda Civic SI? Why well I like the look and it's lightweight. The newest generation SI hasn't really caught on as well as previous generations (because the previous generations are better) but still I would love to slap on some bolt ons and TRY to crack the 14s, and then get a Greddy Turbo Kit slapped on and run 13s. The Eclipse I do like, but everybody has a fixed up one. There is no denying the potential of the Eclipse, so that is hard to over look over, but I'll have my AWD and Mitsubishi some day, when I get my dream car, the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution.

I like the Eclipse as well. The 240SX is underpowered and sort of has an identity crisis: luxury or performance. The eclipse is sort of too finely tuned, so maintanance might be slightly higher than the other cars. If you go with the golf, get it turbo-charged. The Civic is too popular.

The 2nd gen. GSXs are riddled with problems. I know I bitch about Mitsubishi's reliability a lot, and most of it is exaggerated, but the 2nd gen. Eclipses really do have a ton of problems. Gotta go with the 240SX on this one; it may be having an identity crisis, but it's still got RWD and a bad-ass suspension.

Golf GTi. Especially the VR6. Its go on for forever and a day. Not as stylish as others, but theres a charm to the golf. Plus its an icon in its own right.

Get a nice Sw20 mr2, Beautiful, Mid rear, pretty quick, good handling, nice interior.... and it's a toyta, you don't hafta worry about crankwalk like with the AWD DSM

240 from the choices you got up there. it's the only RWD that you have, RWD is more fun that FWD. Try it, you'll know what I mean.

?

$10-14,000 for those?

Some of the newer stuff on there maybe, just because it is new (not that that means **** in my book) but 5 figures for a 98 240SX? Hell my 300ZX TT was only $10,500.

a 10,000 300zx? na right? and around here any zx for 10g is probably too good to be true....stick with the Eclipse...power, looks good, aftermarket, and reliability

240SX...I dont like the portliness or styling of the 2nd Gen Eclipse...

240SX has handling and so much potential it's crazy...you can even find moddified ones on the internet that already have motorswaps and such...if that's your boat...if not...you can build up your own...regardless...in stock form...the only thing it lacks is power which is easily cured...and you dont have to break the bank doing so

a 10,000 300zx? na right? and around here any zx for 10g is probably too good to be true....stick with the Eclipse...power, looks good, aftermarket, and reliability

there has been mre than a few 300zxtt for 12 to 8 grand. along with vr4's. with mileage of 90,000 and up but i've had mine for 2 years and currently at 159,000 and its still movin like a beast

Personally i drive a 02 civic si and i love it! Ill admit with the choices you have it isnt the best but it is a blast to drive. If you are still thinking about getting one come on over to www.k-series.com and check out some peoples cars, feel free to ask some questions as the people there are very helpful.

a 10,000 300zx? na right? and around here any zx for 10g is probably too good to be true...

I don't know what the hell is up with Halifax then, even at dealerships TTs around here are in the $10-15,000 range. Not crapped out ones either. Usually around 70,000 miles with straight chassis, paint and interior. Hell, you can often find decent TTs for sub-$10,000. And NAs? You can get those for $5000 in great shape, sometimes down to $2500 if you don't mind doing some work.

Also, I don't really know where the confusion about my 300ZX being a Twin Turbo was...I put TT in the post and it says Twin Turbo in my sig...just sayin.


Anyway, if I had to choose one of those on the list, I would probably take the 240SX, mostly because you can get one of those way cheaper than $10-$14,000 and I'm familar with the car. Second might have to the GSX but after having to pull the engine on my friends GSX 3 times in 1 year, I think I'll pass on that.

My vote is with the eclipse GSX, it's every thing you would want

Just some real world advice... If you're not a mechanic then avoid the Turbo DSM's or whatever. The first generation ones run like champs, but Fast and the Furious put a lot of Eclipses into abuse. They have some heavy tranny problems, and people like to push the limits on the stock block. People say the stock block can handle 350HP just fine, but they don't mention how long the engine itself will last. A lot of these turbocharged cars are being sold used for a reason, you just have to watch out for that. I do agree with the other posters here though, you can find a decent priced TT as long as it's not a Supra or RX7, and it will run like a champ.

I was in the market about a year back and I found a lot of VR4's and 300ZX TT's for less than 13k and in nice shape.

the 240 isnt that expensive, great potential! ..mmmmhmmmhhmm... sr20 and an s15 front clip would be so damn awsome.... drool...

GSX wins. Easily. and btw you CAN get 300ZX's for 10-14 grand

I have to say the Gsx too

Out of those, maybe the Celica GTS or Civic Si. For that price, you could also afford an Integra GSR or Prelude- both of those cars would also be worth looking into.

I would go for a GTI or an Eclipse! Maybe a Civic too or a Tiburon, but this last one has an unpleasent interior. The 240sx is bland bad looking to me

Screw the 4 Cylinders, go with a VR4 or a 300ZXTT, nothing better than a TT 3.0L for that price range. Also they both are way better looking than any of the choices. If I had to choose 4cyl then I would go GSX because its turbo AWD and is the best looking on the list.

I picked the GSX. its AWD and turbo'ed what else can u ask for?

what else can u ask for?

um....no crankwalk!!! j/k :lol:

Lol

I'd go for the GSX or the 240. The only reason I have against the GSX is that weird looking lump in the hood.

LT1 C4 corvette.
300zx TT
3rd Gen rx7 if you are willing to put up with its characteristics.