Alternative to Porsche 911??

[Kazza]

Personally I have never liked any of the Porsches. My choice would be a beautiful BMW convertible. But, at the end of the day, it's what she wants

 

[Humperdinkel]

There is no substitute for a Porsche 911 except for a GT2 ...... Shame you cant get hold of some real AUSSIE MUSCLE :rockon: :rockon: :rockon: :drool: :drool:

 

[tuningfork]

On the BMW Z3 - anyone here have one?? I'd love to know how it matches up against these other seriously fun cars.
TO TUNINGFORK: How did it drive? Fun, fast, furious? Did you drive it at all in our New England winters?

Z3 was a very fun car, the more hp the better. The bigger 6's (2.8, 3.0, 3.2) provide the best thrust, although the 2.5l that I had loved to rev, and was plenty of power in low-gear city driving, on the open twisties. Steering and braking were great, chassis can get a little wild on rough roads (it is an old design rear suspension from the E30 3 series) but there are lots of places that sell hop-up parts, and it is possible to bolt on the "M" components. Mine did not have sports package suspension which would have helped. I never drove it in winter, but there are plenty that do with proper tires. Weight distribution (like almost all BMWs) is perfect 50:50. They are not prone to rust, and have a very solid feel to them (for a convertible).

 

[Pondrat]

Humperdinkel, you're a genius! The "ute" version of the Ford there would be perfect - she actually wants to get an old Porsche 911 convertible and a beatup pickup truck to haul stuff. Now she can one car for both! If there was only a way to drive it back from Melbourne....

There is no substitute for a Porsche 911 except for a GT2 ...... Shame you cant get hold of some real AUSSIE MUSCLE :rockon: :rockon: :rockon: :drool: :drool:

 

[Kazza]

Dan :spank: a Ford :shakehead:

 

[Pondrat]

What do you think?
Spyder i

There is one in my neighborhood on sale for $6500. Anyone ever driven that?

 

[bcityroller]

Thanks so much to everyone who chimed in - what a response! Great ideas too.

There was a lot of nods to the Miata, and I agree, seems like a fun car for cheap, but it's not serious enough of a driver's car to compete with the Porsche. I will, however, suggest that she drive one to see if it fits the bill for her.

I really do think you should have her drive a Miata before you write them off - it's one of the few cars that are much more than the sum of it's parts or the paper spec sheets. I am biased in that I had a 90 with suspension work and basic power upgrades (intake, exhaust). It was tons of fun, surprised lots of cars at the track (the black 350Z in the photos didn't pass me all day) and there is an enjoyment to be had from using all of the capability that a vehicle has and still being with the realm of reasonable behaviour. Suffice to say although I've since had nicer and much faster cars since then, the Miata is the one car I wish I had back. Plus there's lots of them out there where someone else has done all the work and you can get it outfitted at a fraction of the cost. I drove mine year round with winter tires and the removable hardtop.

 

[lonesoldier84]

Yeah, the Mazda MX-5 is a PERFECT fit to your description, with the added bonus of being infinitely more reliable as an old car than the other ones mentioned.

It really is a quality roadster that is wicked fun to drive as its so low and centred and light.

get one of those else youll be paying more for maintenance for ANY of the other options.

 

[bcityroller]

Check out miata.net classifieds for examples of what 10k might buy you.
Here's a good driver/track car example
Miata.net Classifieds

but without A/C etc, it's weighted toward track. And one with more work that might meet the 10k bogey with some negotiating.
Miata.net Classifieds

 

[lonesoldier84]

you can easily find a slightly older one for under 5k as well. Still in great shape too.

 

[Pondrat]

Thanks again, folks. The Miata does seem ideal, especially after hearing from owners who all echo that the stats don't do it justice. Great! This is what I was hoping to hear from everyone - a common, easy to find, cheap, reliable, FUN convertible.

Good work team.

BCityRoller - what upgrades do you recommend? Maybe you can send me a PM or email at michaeldonlin at gmail dot com if you feel up to geeking out and reminiscing about your days with the Miata and what you did (or would have done) with the car.

 

[Botch]

Aussies get naked FZ's... and Mustang pickups?!?! :Flip:

 

[Dennis in NH]

I like the Miata too. It's a nice little roadster and seems to handle well.

I've a 1999 Boxster myself and find it an excellent handler although not as inexpensive as a Miata. The Miata is almost as fun but costs less.

I test drove an MR2 Spyder and found that as fun (maybe just a little more fun) than the Miata.

It will be hard to find a nice, reliable, fun-to-drive convertible for 6K but keep your eyes open as sometimes you can get a good deal. Also, as others said, take a look at insurance and maintenance costs.

Dennis

 

[Botch]

Dennis, how is your Boxter for reliability, if you don't mind my asking?

 

[Ridgeback]

There is no substitute for a Porsche 911 except for a GT2 ...... Shame you cant get hold of some real AUSSIE MUSCLE :rockon: :rockon: :rockon: :drool: :drool:

We get 'The Thunder from down under' here too,in the shape of Vauxhall Monaro's.Everything from the quite tame 375bhp shopping models,up to the ball breaking 500+bhp fire breathers that crack 60 in under 4.5 secs and go on to over 190mph They are amazingly cheap too :thumbup:

We also get the Maloo

 

[RJ2112]

Thanks again, folks. The Miata does seem ideal, especially after hearing from owners who all echo that the stats don't do it justice. Great! This is what I was hoping to hear from everyone - a common, easy to find, cheap, reliable, FUN convertible.

Good work team.

BCityRoller - what upgrades do you recommend? Maybe you can send me a PM or email at michaeldonlin at gmail dot com if you feel up to geeking out and reminiscing about your days with the Miata and what you did (or would have done) with the car.

If you have watched the English auto show Top Gear.... they've liked the Miata from the get go.

There was a whole feature piece done on the first serious redesign, and it was made plain that rather than make the car bigger and heavier, the design team had the mandate to keep it just as fun as the first gen car.

A light car with a low center of gravity, and sticky tires is heaps of fun. Doesn't need a lot of power to make for an enjoyable driving experience.

If at all possible, stick with a rear wheel drive platform.... much better 'feel' for what the front end is doing....

 

[lonesoldier84]

It is not a good car made cheaper to hit a price tag. It is a car made to be good at that price tag. There is a subtle difference which results in a great car.

And yeah, the designers were given the specific mandate to make it as fun as possible.

 

[bcityroller]

Thanks again, folks. The Miata does seem ideal, especially after hearing from owners who all echo that the stats don't do it justice. Great! This is what I was hoping to hear from everyone - a common, easy to find, cheap, reliable, FUN convertible.

Good work team.

BCityRoller - what upgrades do you recommend? Maybe you can send me a PM or email at michaeldonlin at gmail dot com if you feel up to geeking out and reminiscing about your days with the Miata and what you did (or would have done) with the car.

Sent you an email.... not sure whether to feel offended or complimented by the "geeking out" bit

 

[Kazza]

We get 'The Thunder from down under' here too,in the shape of Vauxhall Monaro's.Everything from the quite tame 375bhp shopping models,up to the ball breaking 500+bhp fire breathers that crack 60 in under 4.5 secs and go on to over 190mph They are amazingly cheap too :thumbup:

We also get the Maloo

Yep, we build pretty good cars

Holdens rock.

I have 2 x V6 Holdens - heaps of grunt :rockon:

 

[Wolfman]

Dan :spank: a Ford :shakehead:

Hey, i have a Ford Falcooooooooooon (falcon) XR6.... Love that Car...big heavy brute of a car, with just enough grunt to have some fun!

Nearly boughjt the "Boss" version, when i bought mine, but petrol was $1.90 a litre at the time....and was not looking like going back to "normal" prices!

:rockon: