Fun to drive sedans?

[thescreensavers]

G35 /thread

really, its a great car. and you can easily find an 06 in your price range with low mileage.

If your not totally into it, test drive one before you decide.

I do have G35 so I bet you thin I am biased, but really I was in the same boat, G35 is a great candidate.

 

[Atty]

I still haven't heard what the OP considers "fun to drive." You have "sporty" cars like the Mazda 3 or Fusion Sport, then you have cars that actually enter the performance realm like a Mazdaspeed3/6, Legacy GT, G8 GT, etc.

Oh, thought I covered that already. :x

Negative on any Mazda first off, every girl in my town drives one, and I'd just get shit for driving a girl car, not worth explaining to the idiots.

Anyway, the only car I've seen suggested that really strikes my fancy is a G35 but I have no idea how reliable they are or what I'd be getting into as far as repair, maintenance, etc, costs are.

To more directly answer your question: I'd prefer a car designed to be sporty and fun to drive vs a family sedan that they can cram a new motor and tweak suspensions on to tap a different market or feed a Dad's mid life crisis (without breaking his bank or his wife breaking his balls...)

 

[angry hampster]

I think I'll stick with my 305 when I get around to building it up. Yeah a 350 would be easy to do as well, but the most I'd ever do to the engine is prob a rebuild with cam/intake/headers/carb. I don't remember for sure but I think the 350 required slightly different engine mounts in my car

350 is the exact same on the outside. You will not need different mounts. If you're going as far as putting a cam in it, you might as well just put a 350 in. Finding a 4-bolt isn't even necessary unless you plan to spin over 6000RPM.

 

[amdhunter]

I like the way my GLi drives. 4 banger Turbo 2L.

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

fun to drive and no manual trans.
does not compute.

 

[exdeath]

fun to drive and no manual trans.
does not compute.

Stalled autos and turbos aren't fun?

 

[angry hampster]

Stalled autos and turbos aren't fun?

Having a foot clutch and a stick is always more fun than an automatic.

 

[hanoverphist]

Having a foot clutch and a stick is always more fun than an automatic.

except when doing the road creep in 5 miles of traffic due to an accident in the az summer heat. id rather have an auto trans then. but aside from those rare occurrences, i prefer my 5spd manual trans

 

[holden j caufield]

Mazda 3, does a prius count because I rented on and that was loads of fun to drive.

I'm partial to the 2004-2008 Acura TL manual transmissions since I have one. It's he funnest sedan I've driven, lots of power when I downshift and floor it. If you get the auto it won't be very fast.

 

[fbrdphreak]

You listed insurance and police attention as factors in your decision.

The fact is that any overtly sporty car, even a sedan, will have high insurance rates and almost certainly attract police attention.

If you want low insurance and low attention from law enforcement, a generic looking sedan is your best choice. Fusion w' manual transmission won't attract attention, but it'll have more kick than your clumsy Camry.

Really? Is that a fact? Have any sources for your facts? I didn't think so.

My Legacy GT had lower insurance costs when I priced it against comparable Honda Accords. Now take the very similar WRX and the rates skyrocket.

Why? Because far more teenagers drive WRX's than Legacy's and they wrap them around trees.

While credit rating plays a large role in individual insurance rates today, you also have to look at the trends for that vehicle as a whole. Hell, my 06 GTO had rates just slightly higher than an Accord when I bought it. Over the 2 years I owned it, rates started going up towards the end. Why? Resale dropped the values into the low teens and more teenagers started putting them in ditches.

P.S. You can't get a manual transmission on a Fusion with the V6, only the I-4. While peppy and sporty, it would get its ass whooped by a V6 Camry. Facts, my dear boy, facts.

 

[fbrdphreak]

G35 /thread

really, its a great car. and you can easily find an 06 in your price range with low mileage.

If your not totally into it, test drive one before you decide.

I do have G35 so I bet you thin I am biased, but really I was in the same boat, G35 is a great candidate.

When I shopped G35's in mid-08, I couldn't find any recent models in that price range. It was all high mile 03-04's, with dated interiors and looking like all of the other thousands of G35's on the roads in my area. Not my cup of tea, especially when most didn't have sport suspension, limited slip diff, or even a manual transmission.

The newer ones seem really nice, but the older ones are just EVERYWHERE and look really generic now, to me at least.

 

[Shlong]

Used G35 from 05 or 06 (when they updated the interior and the front bumper / back lights) if you can find it in that price range.

 

[secretanchitman]

any 3 series. 335i is one of the best sedans to drive today, as well as the new S4 (new A4's i believe dont have a V6 anymore).

 

[angry hampster]

any 3 series. 335i is one of the best sedans to drive today, as well as the new S4 (new A4's i believe dont have a V6 anymore).

$12-20k.

 

[Atty]

$12-20k.

This.

If I could find a 335i around the low 20's I'd buy it in a heart beat. Although the cost to insure it and the maintenance fees would probably destroy my income but I'd have a lot of fun!

 

[alpineranger]

What about the new Suzuki Kizashi? Excellent warranty, good value, they have gotten pretty decent reviews.

 

[stateofbeasley]

My Legacy GT had lower insurance costs when I priced it against comparable Honda Accords. Now take the very similar WRX and the rates skyrocket.

Why? Because far more teenagers drive WRX's than Legacy's and they wrap them around trees.

The Legacy GT is hardly an overtly sporty car. Aside from the hood scoop, it looks like any other Legacy.

The overtly sporty stuff in the OP's price range, like a Nissan SE-R Spec V or Scion Tc are almost all purchased by younger people. As you yourself said, these people are more likely to get into accidents. Most of the cars in his price range that are "sporty" are going to have higher insurance and attract police attention.

P.S. You can't get a manual transmission on a Fusion with the V6, only the I-4. While peppy and sporty, it would get its ass whooped by a V6 Camry.

And the Camry would still handle like a whale, unless he is able to find a rare SE trim model. That actually might not be a bad choice, if he wants more of a sleeper type car that won't attract attention.

P.S. Straight line speed != "fun to drive".

 

[fbrdphreak]

The Legacy GT is hardly an overtly sporty car. Aside from the hood scoop, it looks like any other Legacy.

The overtly sporty stuff in the OP's price range, like a Nissan SE-R Spec V or Scion Tc are almost all purchased by younger people. As you yourself said, these people are more likely to get into accidents. Most of the cars in his price range that are "sporty" are going to have higher insurance and attract police attention.



And the Camry would still handle like a whale, unless he is able to find a rare SE trim model. That actually might not be a bad choice, if he wants more of a sleeper type car that won't attract attention.

P.S. Straight line speed != "fun to drive".

I give up. Listen to this man. He is very, very smart.

 

[wiretap]

MKV platform VWs are fine. The Jetta I had as a service loaner felt more sporty than the focuses/mazda3s/cobalts/fusion rentals i've driven. There aren't really any mechanical gremlins with the 2.5/6at drivetrain, and ditto for electrical ones too.

I beg to differ. I had a GTI MKV and the thing was in the shop more than I drove it.I bought it brand new and within less than 10k miles I had the transmission replaced, the turbo replaced twice, about a dozen sensors replaced, the ecu replaced, and countless other problems that had to be troubleshooted. Every time I hopped in the car a new warning light would come on. The damn turbo in the thing failed two times on me and filled the intercooler with oil. I'll never buy a VW again.. they have about a mile of wiring in them too which is a nightmare trying to trace down the 1000 electrical problems I had.

If the OP wants a good fun to drive sedan, I'd look to a WRX. The maintenance costs aren't too bad, they are quick with a lot of modding potential, AWD owns in all weather conditions, they're pretty unique on the road and not a lot of people have them, they're reliable with plenty of cheap alternatives for replacement parts, the online community is huge if you ever need help with them, etc.

 

[MovingTarget]

Since you live in FL, I would definitely consider going RWD. Manual transmissions are much easier to deal with down there as well as the hills aren't as bad (and no ice). I only wish I had a manual to learn on while I lived in Mobile (which had similar climatic/land conditions).

 

[MovingTarget]

Damnit, double post.

Anyway, on second thought - just rebuild an older 80s car. It is much more fun to drive something fast that isn't necessarily designed to be that way than it is to drive something w/ 500hp in traffic. :/

 

[Freejack2]

As much as I like my Accord I wouldn't recommend one to you. You may be able to get an EX for 20k with some hard bargaining but while it will handle well for a car of it's size, it's a full size car. Even with 191 hp, it's acceleration is going to be hurt by the curb weight especially with an automatic transmission.

One option which I'm not entirely sure can be done on a Camry might be to improve the handling of the car you have. New tires with good handling will help, suspension upgrades maybe, bigger front and rear sway bars perhaps?
The car stock Camry handles horribly, I had one for a rental over Thanksgiving and even on interstates it's handling leaves a lot to be desired. But maybe with some mods...

 

[MikeMike]

G8 GT > G35.... no doubt, no if ands or buts...

 

[fbrdphreak]

Since you live in FL, I would definitely consider going RWD. Manual transmissions are much easier to deal with down there as well as the hills aren't as bad (and no ice). I only wish I had a manual to learn on while I lived in Mobile (which had similar climatic/land conditions).

Funny thing about FL is that for months at a time there is rain every day and torrential downpours on a regular basis. This is not a good combination with high powered RWD in South FL traffic at least. Maybe in other parts of FL it's not as bad. I'm glad I don't have my GTO anymore living down here. Rain is what took it out in NC and I'd have to get a beater if I had it down here.

 

[Atty]

does a prius count because I rented on and that was loads of fun to drive.

I suppose but we already own one of those, why would I want another? lol

Also, after further consideration, getting a "sleeper" car may be a better idea, like a Fusion but I don't know. I'm going to have to compile a list and test drive cars, see what I like.

Edit: Although one thing I'd love to do is work on the car, IE: add aftermarket parts, etc. ugh, decisions, decision, decisions.