Question of the Day: What Vehicle Would You Buy with A Budget of $5,000?
So despite some good critical thinking and a number of interesting answers, too many of us were able to have “change
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Comments
Kyle
Easy - I'd pick a fox-body Mustang, 2nd Gen RX-7 or a 1st Gen Miata.
Brian
88-91 Honda CRX
Manny
1990-93 Toyota MR2 Turbo
Eric
BMW E-30 chassis 3 series.
John
You could get a nice early 944 for that...
Jim Bro
I just bought a 1990 Audi V8 Quattro w/85,000 miles in excellent condition for under $5,000.
My next car is going to be a sporty car. Early Porsche 924's and 944's are available, as are early Supras.
Don't forget that you can buy good 2000 model Explorers and Mountaineers for $5,000. I know this because I have one that was worth $7,000 last year.
means98
http://maine.craigslist.org/car/663332197.html
end of story
Mike
MKII Mr2 N/A.
Derek
A classic (1950s or 1960s) VW Bug. I have wanted one since I started driving in the early 90s. Several of my friends had old bugs in high school and I loved riding around in them.
Jeff
E30 BMW. 325i, 5 speed. Easy question, and one that hits closer to home for me than the $20k limit. :)
Paul In Jersey
I've already got that going on and it's a 1993 Miata. With another $5k, I'd either get an E30 or a Kawasaki KLR650.
Sharky
'83 to '86 Honda Prelude. I had an '84 that I bought from a friend for $1K in in 1994. Although it had 178K miles at the time it was extremely reliable, running to 215K before dying. It was one of the best handling cars I've ever owned, so much fun to drive. For 5 grand I could have one in much nicer condition with much lower miles. Unfortunately most of them are trashed at this point.
Jeff
2001 Protege ES.
Lance
Alfa Romeo 164S.
jacob
id buy a l67 powered gtp or seei, then spend the money on mods to run 12's
Dane
1992 BMW 325ic... 5speed... any color but red... or Green...
Nate
I'll second the early 944. Although I'd go for a 16-valve 944S if I could find one in decent condition for under $5 grand.
In fact, there's a guy on my street who owns a beautiful red '83-'85 944 (I don't know the exact year; all I know is that it has the pre-85.5 interior). The car is almost never driven; it used to be in the driveway under a cover, and now it's in the garage under a cover. The only thing is that, in the condition that it's in, it's probably worth more than $5 grand. And, judging by how long he's held onto it, I doubt he'd sell...
Chris
Easy the hot hatch 1984 VW GTi. I had one once and I'd buy it back in a heartbeat if I could.
Mena
I wouldn't buy ANY car for $5000. It'll cost more than that just to get it in decent running condition. And even if it's a good running condition, the mileage will so high that there WILL be some major maintenance due.
Patrick from Astoria
Mena: BO-ring.
Seconds on the Miatas, E30 Bimmers, and 944s. (Actually had a dream once where after slogging through a frozen Maine swamp, a mechanic in a repair shop that I found said that a good 944 is simply the best sports car for the money on the market.) Seconds and a happy smile for the air-cooled VW.
Personal nomination: Triumph Spitfire. Small, light, great-handling (at least for the 1971 and later cars with the revised rear suspension), eminently tunable. Not much elbow room, but a long enough cockpit for all but serious baskeptball prospects. One of the prettiest cars ever made, up until the really huge bumpers at the end of the run.
Mark in Maine
I think I'd probably buy another 944 - I owned one years ago, and enjoyed it a lot. As far as not buying ANY car for that sum - granted, there might be some work that's necessary - Couple of weeks ago, I bought a '90 Camaro RS Convertible (305) for $1800.00, and drove the thing home - I think it might need brakes, but it runs and drives. . .
Garfield134
'93-'97 Honda del Sol Si (got one) or V-tec (would be nice). Forget the "S" model.
Fun to drive, roomy (I'm 6'3"), cheap to run (35+ mpg and NOT babying it) and cheap to insure. Yeah, there are faster cars out there but are they cheap to run at $3.60 per gallon? In my opinion, it is more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow. The car feels faster than it really is and provides lots of smiles per mile.
BTW, mine has just under 180k miles on it and going strong. Yeah, it's Honda reliable.
sam
a tata Nano
Wes
I've always wanted a Benz. Auto Trader has one, and I'd even have $1,005 left in change:
Used 1995 Mercedes-Benz C220 Sedan.
Other options I would consider:
Used 2000 Toyota Camry CE
2001 Buick Le Sabre Custom Sedan
X3 SoB
Even lamer Question. The MR2 that means98 lists looks good. A CR-X is a good choice, with some mods and upgrades. Early Miatas are also a entertaining option.
X3 SoB
Good luck finding a good 944 under 5K, a better choice would be a 924.
Cicero
Buick GNX
Austin
So happens I'm looking for a classic to drive for the summer but my budget is half that.
Hoping it will have working A/C for the Texas summer.
Tony D
92 to 96 Honda Prelude, preferably with the Vtec motor. I just sold my 92 for 3300 bucks and it's going strong with 331,000 kilometers on it.
Eric
That's faulty logic. I spent $5k on my 1991 BMW 318is with 89k miles. I've probably spent $1500 on both maintenance and performance upgrades, all of which I could have let go if I wasn't anal about my car and didn't want it to go faster. I've put 12000 miles on it, all of which have been flawless. I just drove it 1000 miles to Road Atlanta last weekend and didn't think twice making the trip in my 17 year old car.
So I've spent $1500 over two years. That's a lot less than the insurance premium I would be paying if I had a newer car, not to mention the fact that I only have $6500 in it compared to the $20+ I would be spending on a newer car.
If you are an educated buyer and you know what you are getting into, and especially if you can work on your car yourself or have a reliable mechanic, you can definitely get a solid car with high performance potential for $5k. Furthermore, it will probably be much more satisfying because it's cheap and fun transportation, you won't be saddled with payments, you won't have to worry about it as much (if my car gets scratched no big woop because I'm painting it this summer :-)), and you can have some fun working on it and making it better.
Don't buy into the capitalist mentality that you always have to get something new and better. Sometimes cheap and old is better.
corco16446
I'd track down a 97 or 98 stripper Jeep Cherokee. Alternatively a 2001 Ford Focus
Jim Bro
Austin -
If you look real hard on eBay, Craigslist and in small town classifieds, you will find 75-85 Camaros, Firebirds and an occasional Fox body Mustangs with good, no rust Texas bodies for less than $3,000.
Jason Salcido
Definitely an old Alfa Romero Spider. Those things still look sweet. Just in time for summer. I'd also go for an old honda del sol, miata, toyota mr2, mazda rx-7. I think its also cool that I saw in other posts that one can get a V8 vehicle for under 5k.
Jason Salcido
A pontiac fiero might also be interesting.
Ducati Minor
Jason,
I owned a Veloce. Believe, $5K won't buy you a good one. The S1 Duettos run for around $10,000 and up; the S2 (1970s) were mechanical nightmares; the S3s offered fuel-injection, more electronics, and clutchless ignition. Despite that, the S3s were slow, unreliable, and cramped. The S4s actually run in the S1 range, and offered power-steering and auto trannies.
southern
You say Vehicle, not specifically car..........bet I could pick up a decent starter Motorcycle for that price...........Say a yamaha 250......brand new with warranty.....and probably have some change left over
Ducati Minor
I'd buy a Kawasaki Ninja 500R or a Suzuki SV650S.
Trinks
Assuming we're talking hobby car, I'd pick up a nice 240SX or Miata, maybe with a bad motor to drop the price, and then spend the rest of my budget fixing and tweaking it. A decent Civic plus an engine swap, suspension upgrade, and general repairs would also be a possibility.
Trinks
Haha, maybe next we'll do under $500 so it can qualify for 24 Hours of LeMons
Joshua
Well, I already spend that $5K on my hobby car a few years ago, a '71 Volvo 1800E. Of course, college+ hobby car don't make for the fastest progress in either.
So the next $5K dream is a Royal Enfield Bullet motorcycle, a new 50 year old bike with a warranty. Also the 944/E30 is pretty compelling
quikemart
Assuming this is a car for commuting and is fun to drive, I have three options:
1. E30
2. ZX-3
3. 1997-2003 Saab 900 SE/9-3
All Manual of course.
Phr3d
ez, 1978-9 BMW 528i. Can be bought in very nice condition for $3k and $2K to perfect driveline & suspension. Much like earlier e30 commentaries, with the joy of the 2.8 engine. Not the purr of L-Jet, but the grunge-metal -song- of the K-Jet and damned-near indestructible (300K mi engine, easy).
Just be careful on decreasing radius turns, lol, there aren't many left and they tend to be scrap after backing over an embankment (though if you use Pirellis that actually tell you by sound AND feel of impending disaster, the radius-ass-swap isn't a problem). REAL you and me less-than-race-car driver ability .8G cornering and 130mph all day, every day. You WILL scare friends with a correctly sprung and Bilsteined -ancient- e12.
old joke, "mixed emotions: your mother-in-law pirouetting your e12 off a cliff."
driving course
The MX5 in the picture is probably one of the best bets. My wife's about to sell hers for around that amount and it's given 5 years of fun, and very cheap, motoring.
ric in richmond
1991 318is BMW E30 with the best engine ever put in an E30.
MJK
'92 Taurus SHO 5 speed
Justin
Z31 300ZX 1986-89 Turbo, you can pick one up for cheap, drop about $1500 into it and you have a car that not only perform(265 whp) well, but also run for ever. The VG30 is one of the most reliable engines. Parts are cheap and easy to come by and swap with a lot of other Nissans.
94 Taurus owner
Either a 94 Taurus SHO
or an 1964 Mustang V6
Eric
Word. Check out M42club.com.
C Tizzle
'95-'97 Probe GT....that car has a special place in the cockles of my heart. Great Mazda motor, short throws from the stick, and handled really good....with a few mods....one helluva sleeper
Pedro
+1 word. I second (or third, whatever) the 1991 318is.
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