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Sachmoney · 03-22-2008, 10:58 PM

Sorry Kotch, I was very happy that UConn lost. I hate Jim Calhoun.

tetrishead · 03-23-2008, 12:36 AM

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vectorwega - that's assuming the used car is purchased through a dealership with a warranty. a 2002 model BMW (shown earlier in the thread) is pushing 7 years old and will have absolutely no warranty, extremely high maintenance costs (minimized with purchasing a new car.)

I have gone both ways and found that new cars are the better way to go. Implied warranties only cover power train usually and expire in a very short period. A long term bumper to bumper warranty is necessary IMO to avoid unforeseen repairs which can easily be a staggering economic investment, especially on a sports car.

Every manufacturer warranty is transferrable, and most if not all cars have 3-5 year 60k-ish mile bumper to bumper warranties. The second you drive a car off the lot it loses 10-15% of its value. If we're being serious here, the greatest value is a car that is <6 months old that the owner got tired of/didn't have enough money to own/had some emergency.

E46 M3s are wonderful cars, and if people are uncomfortable with six year old cars then they're probably not really "car enthusiasts." Yes, upkeep on BMWs is expensive, but presumably if he's looking for a sporty car in the mid-30k range he's not opposed to slightly more expensive maintenance costs.

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Lexus makes the worst cars ever. They put you to sleep. When I ride in my mom's ES, I feel like I'm going to throw up. Toyota just makes really quite cars that make you feel so detached from the driving experience.

Yes, and they're supposed to be that way. The worst cars ever would be a maker that produces unreliable and unsafe vehicles. Lexus cars are essentially for older people, and they're very comfortable and reliable. You are taking what they do and putting it into your own context to say they make horrible cars.

Sachmoney · 03-23-2008, 11:37 AM

Yes I am putting it into my own context tetris. They make very good cars in terms of reliability. They make very bad cars in terms of driver experience. Yes, a majority of Toyota (and Lexus) drivers are older. There's a reason for that.

tetrishead · 03-23-2008, 11:47 AM

I've always thought Honda was chronically underrated in comparison to the praise Toyota gets. I don't particularly care for them, but they've always been ahead of the curve with more powerful V6 options on the Accord (even if it is, unfortunately, FWD), the S2000 is a real drivers car the likes of which Toyota has never produced, their trucks and SUVs are quirkier and have much better gas mileage, while Toyota kept hybrid technology on one car for years (the Prius) Honda spread it around (Accord, Insight, Civic all predate non-Prius Toyota offerings) and if you actually aggregate all MPG for all car options from both Honda is much, much better. The TL is a nice car that I'd much rather have over an ES, even if it should've had SH-AWD, and the TSX and RSX (again, despite the FWD) were the only real sporty cheaper cars from a luxury brand for a long time.

I don't understand Toyota love either, I guess, is what I'm saying. I don't disagree with you that they make boring cars.

VectorWega · 03-23-2008, 11:51 AM

What are the reasons for that? I would say for Toyota, because many older people tend to want reliability and value rather than flash.

Regarding Lexus, I think the #1 reason is because young people tend to not have as much money. However, I think that Lexus has done a great job of marketing in the past 5+ yrs and think that many sub-30 yrs old people would like to have one (btw, most of the people I know that drive a Lexus are around 30 yrs old).

Sachmoney · 03-23-2008, 12:52 PM

The IS is a nice car, but they don't have a manual on the V6 and they don't have one on the new F that is coming out. I just think that's messed up. Mercedes isn't offering a manual in the C AMG car either. Things like that just irk me.

atlhawks · 03-23-2008, 06:16 PM

Toyota Supra ****es all over anything Honda has ever manufactured - an s2000 is not "a real drivers car."

ish718 · 03-23-2008, 06:42 PM

Amazing how this turned into a car thread...

Sachmoney · 03-23-2008, 06:45 PM

It was partially a car thread to begin with.

UriA702 · 03-23-2008, 07:23 PM

I have been saying for a while a car forum on CC would be awesome. A lot of students could receive purchasing advice from parents, etc. Not really part of the higher education process, but cars is always a great topic.

wolfpack12 · 03-23-2008, 08:36 PM

I've been hearing talk about both the Toyota Supra and the Mazda RX-7 being brought back. Anyone know if thats true?

Sachmoney · 03-23-2008, 10:25 PM

That would be cool. Also, like people could get advice in buying versus leasing and everything.

I don't know about the Supra or the RX-7 coming back. The Supra is the only Toyota I've ever liked. The Rx-7 is just an awesome car.

tetrishead · 03-24-2008, 01:12 AM

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Toyota Supra ****es all over anything Honda has ever manufactured - an s2000 is not "a real drivers car."

I thought people who watch The Fast and the Furious movies might show up in this thread. I track on a regular basis, and I've raced road courses competitively, what about you? The Supra is a fine car, the IV was the popular variant, it was popular because it had finely tuned ABS and 2JZ-GTE was a solid engine to change turbos on. It was still a very heavy car, and Toyota has produced nothing since that can be considered an actual sports car. You can't really track it stock, it has to be stripped, which is why it's considered a grand tourer more than anything else.

As for the S2000 statement, well, it essentially invalidates any view you will probably ever have on cars in your life. The reason it's such a poor performer on the street is because the car gives as much road feedback as it does, and it and the Miata are probably the best handling cars under $40,000. Even though I mock it for being torque-less (which most Hondas are), the engine is amazing and something that revs that high is a joy to drive. I can take it that the only racing you've ever done is in a straight line, with other people who do not know how to drive. With the exception of a rotary, I don't know another powerplant that'll take as much abuse as a F22C1.

As for the Supra/RX-7 thing, there have been rumors about a Supra V forever. They may very well rename the FT-HS "Supra" when they start selling it, but it's not going to be what people expect. I agree with Sach that the RX-7 is an awesome car (for much of the same reasons the S2000 is an awesome car), and as for it coming back... Well, the argument was Renesis is going to be "redeveloped" and they wanted to use the RX8/MX5 platform for something other than those two vehicles. People have said the Kabura concept was meant to be a precursor to a new RX-7, but I'm not sure we'll see anything before 2010 if at all.

Mr Payne · 03-24-2008, 01:39 AM

Toyota Supra - Proves that Toyota is a very good engine builder. There is a reason you rarely see it raced at the local club events.

wolfpack12 · 03-24-2008, 10:55 AM

tetrishead, what kind of car do you track? I have a 2nd gen rx7 (well...my dad has a 2nd gen rx7 that I drive sometimes) and I've been thinking about doing some track duty with it. I race my motorcycle all the time. Maybe we frequent some of the same tracks. IMHO, Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama is the best track in the south/ southeast area. You should check it out sometime, they also have a great museum, focused on motorcycles though, but anyone would enjoy it.

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There is a reason you rarely see it raced at the local club events.

Because they stopped production in 2002, and people who think they can "race" continue destroy them. The Supra is going extinct.