DGS49
Diamond Member
Despite all hopes to the contrary, a "sports car" is a THING. It is an open-top, two-seat roadster with rear-wheel drive and a stick shift. The examples are too numerous to mention: MG, Triumph, Morgan, Miata, Z3/4, Corvette, M-B SL, S2000, and so on.
"Sporty" cars are not sports cars. GTI, Civic Si, Mustang, Camaro, Challenger, M3, S3/4, etc. There are NO FWD sports cars. Period. Sorry if that offends you Mitsu-3000GT fans.
In any event, I am about to dispose of my pristine '04 350Z roadster, and I will try to upgrade, possibly in the Spring. I won't buy anything new, and have a budget of around $20-24k. Casting one's net these days is a fairly simple, if time consuming, matter of getting on one of the car sales sites (Autotrader Carguru, etc) and searching for a convertible, 2-door, RWD, stick shift, in the right price range, year range, and mileage range, then sifting through the results. Being from the Northeast and retired, I would prefer to buy a car from a state where it will likely never have been subject to winter driving, although my Houston-born Chrysler is showing some signs of UV damage from sitting in the sun too long. In any event...
The likely candidates are a Corvette, 911 Carrera, Boxter, Z4, S2000, M-B SL, or possibly a Solstice/Sky Turbo (very impractical). Maybe even a supercharged Crossfire. On paper, the Corvette wins, I think. It performs, is relatively easy to get worked on, should last forever, and gets good gas mileage. But the others are all OK. The 911 seems to have a problem with the "intermediate Shaft Bearing," whatever that is, because a LOT of the 99-'05' ads mention whether this thing has been replaced or not. And I have no doubt that even though a 911 is built to last forever, replacing the IMS is probably a couple thousand dollars (it's such a big deal they tell you that it makes no sense not to replace the clutch at the same time, if it goes).
Any thoughts? My own experience with these cars is that the Corvette is seldom described as "fun to drive," as is my Z. It does everything extremely well (except go over bumps), but it does it so easily that the thrill is missing. The Porsche is often described on Edmund's as a great "every day driver," and something that is exceptionally reliable - except for the aforementioned issue. The GM turbo-4 is a great engine, and I assume that the GM twins would go like stink, and be available at a good price, even for a pristine, low mileage car.
Any thoughts?
P.S. I realize that a 911 does not meet my general definition of a sports car, because of the two little pretend seats in the back. It is the exception that proves the rule. I suppose there are a couple Ferrari's with back seats, too. WGAS?
"Sporty" cars are not sports cars. GTI, Civic Si, Mustang, Camaro, Challenger, M3, S3/4, etc. There are NO FWD sports cars. Period. Sorry if that offends you Mitsu-3000GT fans.
In any event, I am about to dispose of my pristine '04 350Z roadster, and I will try to upgrade, possibly in the Spring. I won't buy anything new, and have a budget of around $20-24k. Casting one's net these days is a fairly simple, if time consuming, matter of getting on one of the car sales sites (Autotrader Carguru, etc) and searching for a convertible, 2-door, RWD, stick shift, in the right price range, year range, and mileage range, then sifting through the results. Being from the Northeast and retired, I would prefer to buy a car from a state where it will likely never have been subject to winter driving, although my Houston-born Chrysler is showing some signs of UV damage from sitting in the sun too long. In any event...
The likely candidates are a Corvette, 911 Carrera, Boxter, Z4, S2000, M-B SL, or possibly a Solstice/Sky Turbo (very impractical). Maybe even a supercharged Crossfire. On paper, the Corvette wins, I think. It performs, is relatively easy to get worked on, should last forever, and gets good gas mileage. But the others are all OK. The 911 seems to have a problem with the "intermediate Shaft Bearing," whatever that is, because a LOT of the 99-'05' ads mention whether this thing has been replaced or not. And I have no doubt that even though a 911 is built to last forever, replacing the IMS is probably a couple thousand dollars (it's such a big deal they tell you that it makes no sense not to replace the clutch at the same time, if it goes).
Any thoughts? My own experience with these cars is that the Corvette is seldom described as "fun to drive," as is my Z. It does everything extremely well (except go over bumps), but it does it so easily that the thrill is missing. The Porsche is often described on Edmund's as a great "every day driver," and something that is exceptionally reliable - except for the aforementioned issue. The GM turbo-4 is a great engine, and I assume that the GM twins would go like stink, and be available at a good price, even for a pristine, low mileage car.
Any thoughts?
P.S. I realize that a 911 does not meet my general definition of a sports car, because of the two little pretend seats in the back. It is the exception that proves the rule. I suppose there are a couple Ferrari's with back seats, too. WGAS?