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is gonna take a while. Before the mourning is over though, I will need to buy a new car. And I need some help. My budget is ~15k, and I would like something not much older than 2006 for loan/insurance reasons. My first pick is a Toyota MR2 Spyder, but the only one I could drive atm is a sequential shifter as I can't handle the manual, and there is only one of those in houston (who I will be calling). Even if that one is in good shape I probably won't be able to get my bank to back buying a car that old. Therefore, I need some other ideas.

There are 3 parts of me.

Part 1) Something sleek, small, and sexy ala MR2.

Part 2) Something sporty and stylish but more functional like a mazda 3 or a mini-cooper

Part 3) Something sensible, like my old camry. This part is crying for attention while the other parts are trying to kill it. Especially part 1.

I'm going to take the day off of work tommorow and maybe friday to find something. Help my halforum.com, you're my only hope.

Rickshaw.

Only if you're included. You have to sing smooth criminal any time I am getting into the rickshaw.

Options like the "Automatic Smooth Criminal" is where they get ya. rly:

I'd think of sporty and stylish, with a dash of cheap and cheerful. I have a Suzuki Aerio SX (now replaced by the SX4), known to the Euro-types as the Liana. It has gone 58K miles so mar with barely a whimper. A loose heat shield over this past weekend and a noisy serpentine belt have been the only big repairs outside of a rear-end collision a few years back. Space is out of this world. There's not much I can't carry in the thing.

I say you go with a 1987 Dodge Shadow.

The fact that it was Jon Voight's car will up the value.

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/searchres ... 9583215137

Plenty of used MR2 Spyders under $15,000. May require a bit of a drive to go pick it up though.

Mazda RX8, always highly rated, and nearly practical.

What do you think about a car that has ~100k miles on it. Its a 2003 GTI for 6,000$. Seems like a solid deal, but that's high mileage.

Necronic said:

What do you think about a car that has ~100k miles on it. Its a 2003 GTI for 6,000$. Seems like a solid deal, but that's high mileage.

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Would not buy a VW, especially one with a turbo, with anywhere near 100k miles on it.

Yeah, seems like they aren't the most reliable cars, and at that mileage I am guaranteed some problems. Damnit. Can't find shit out there right now. I'm being too damned picky.

Might I suggest a Mazda Miata?

There are very few cars on the road that are as reliable and as fun to drive.

The only problem is they really aren't that functional due to their tiny size and being convertibles.

If you come across a Chevy Cobalt SS Sedan, that would be a real winner in every category.

I also found an 06 GTI with 60k miles for 13.5. Dunno about the Miata, I can't drive standard, so that kind of ruins the possibilities there. If I could drive standard I would just go with the MR2. Fuck. I have been looking for 1.5 days now. I have to find something by tomorrow.

Edit: 04 Mazda 3 w/ 2.3 L , 86k miles for ~10k.

Alright, I think I found her. 2005 Mazda 3, ~10k, some nice added features (nice wheels, nice bose audio system), ~50k miles. I need to do some research to make sure that's not too much money, but it looks really damned clean:

http://apps.dealerconnection.com/dealer ... Code=10164

Using the area code provided in that link, I found this over at autotrader.

2006 with under 20,000 miles.

thats really nice, but its a manual, and i can't drive those. Really wish I could, there are many better deals formanuals out there, like that one

Totally off topic, but my mom gets all nostalgic every time she sees Wayne's World because her teenage/young twenties car was a powder blue Pacer just like theirs.

To Necronic, if you're still looking for a used car, might I suggest Jeeps, specifically Cherokees. My family has had two Cherokees that have been amazing. We had a 90 Cherokee that lasted over 200K miles with few problems, and we currently have a 98 Cherokee that has almost 140K and is still in pretty much pristine shape. (My dad is also a very excellent shadetree mechanic and does almost all the work to his cars himself, and keeps them maintained pretty diligently, so this may have a bearing on the quality)

This of course would be in the "sensible" category, and not in either of the other categories.

Necronic said:

thats really nice, but its a manual, and i can't drive those. Really wish I could, there are many better deals formanuals out there, like that one

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My bad, you already stated that.

2007, 19,310 miles, $8,995. Automatic.

Too late. Just bought the one I mentioned. Highish mileage, some superficial scratches, plus some issues with some tires and a crack on the dash. However, it runs nice, and here's the kicker. Last dude that owned it put in a 5k sound system, nice rims and low profile tires. That's right, I am now officially a white dude with a shitty ricer.

Edit: And for that mazda you mentioned, that's a salvage title, I know the dealership, they only sell salvage titles.

Edit2: Forgot to mention, the one I got has a SWEET little neon light on the dash I can turn on. Its totally sweet. Gonna go get some mad bitches with it later.