FR-S vs. Used Sports Car Market

[WolfpackS2k]

Originally Posted by Dave-ROR

996s are great deals if you pick wisely (or if you keep 12k around in case you need to replace the motor).

Of course you can look for wear/abuse, that should be done with all used cars.

911s are very reliable cars (always rated very highly in all durability tests) but naturally if something breaks it will most likely cost a lot to fix it. And then if you take the car in for any type of preventative maintenance that won't be cheap. But they are such well engineered and hardy cars. A 10 year old 996 seems like a fantastic track and DD car. 320 hp and 3,000lbs (Carrera 2) makes it faster than a Cayman S while costing less. I love love love the Cayman Ss but until they're in the mid to high 20's I can't think about buying one. Like Dave-ROR I won't spend more than $500/mo on a vehicle. My S2000 is in immaculate shape (and has a 100k warranty) which leads me to believe I could sell it for $20,000 which would be ideal considering I currently only owe 12k on it. Having $8k to play with could make getting an older vehicle (i.e. Porsche) easier to get.

On the flip side I'm considering buying a house in a year or so and flipping cars around the same time only complicates things

[Dave-ROR]

Originally Posted by WolfpackS2k

911s are very reliable cars (always rated very highly in all durability tests) but naturally if something breaks it will most likely cost a lot to fix it. And then if you take the car in for any type of preventative maintenance that won't be cheap. But they are such well engineered and hardy cars. A 10 year old 996 seems like a fantastic track and DD car. 320 hp and 3,000lbs (Carrera 2) makes it faster than a Cayman S while costing less. I love love love the Cayman Ss but until they're in the mid to high 20's I can't think about buying one. Like Dave-ROR I won't spend more than $500/mo on a vehicle. My S2000 is in immaculate shape (and has a 100k warranty) which leads me to believe I could sell it for $20,000 which would be ideal considering I currently only owe 12k on it. Having $8k to play with could make getting an older vehicle (i.e. Porsche) easier to get.

On the flip side I'm considering buying a house in a year or so and flipping cars around the same time only complicates things

I should buy a house, but I'm not sure how much longer I'll be in Florida, and with the housing market, especially here.. it's not really a wise move :P

911s can be reliable, but the M96 does have it's issues (especially earlier ones). Maintenance doesn't help with IMS failures. Leaking RMS can be replaced, and eventually (assuming the crank is still centered) you might even get one to seal up. 997s have the RMS problem too though, I've seen more than one leaking on the showroom floor :P

I love 911s also though, and Caymans, and would deal with their issues if it was my 3rd street vehicle. I would not go with an Air cooled 911 anymore though, I love 964 RS Americas and all, but they are just not what I want out of that kind of car anymore. Rebuilding the air cooled engines is a lot easier though from what I've heard (I've never rebuilt a water cooled one though, but the air cooled 911 SC motor we rebuilt was cake).

I sold my 06 S2K with ~18.5k miles in Oct 2008 for just over 20k in great shape as well (front bumper had a slight indent about 1/4" around and a paint chip or two from a PVC pipe flying off a truck on the interstate). Have values gone up?

[SUB-FT86]

I dont owe a thing on my car and I already have 8k saved but I need to find a 2nd job before I buy another car. I dont like financing and I dont mind buying used if it has low mileage(under 30k) so if it has a low 20k+ price or even lower used I might get it. There is only two cars I want. The GC 3.8track or a FRS

[mrKiKaZ]

I'm still waiting on official specs for the FRS but I have been really considering an AP2 s2k. The next car I purchase has to be a pure sports car and can take being tracked all the time. I just don't feel the FRS is going to be as pure of a sports/track car as an s2000. Nor do I feel it will be able to take the same type of abuse an s2000 can.

[Marrk]

Originally Posted by mrKiKaZ

I'm still waiting on official specs for the FRS but I have been really considering an AP2 s2k. The next car I purchase has to be a pure sports car and can take being tracked all the time. I just don't feel the FRS is going to be as pure of a sports/track car as an s2000. Nor do I feel it will be able to take the same type of abuse an s2000 can.

This is a concern for me, too. Lately, I've been stopping Subaru owners on the street to ask them how their cars are holding up.

Anyone care to comment on the likely durability and reliability of the FT-86?

[ichitaka05]

Originally Posted by mrKiKaZ

I'm still waiting on official specs for the FRS but I have been really considering an AP2 s2k. The next car I purchase has to be a pure sports car and can take being tracked all the time. I just don't feel the FRS is going to be as pure of a sports/track car as an s2000. Nor do I feel it will be able to take the same type of abuse an s2000 can.

IDK how you can state that statement without seeing what FRS can do AND it haven't even came out w final spec yet.

Both AP1& AP2 had weak chassis in front suspension area resulting SPOON to make re-enforcement kit.

Originally Posted by Marrk

This is a concern for me, too. Lately, I've been stopping Subaru owners on the street to ask them how their cars are holding up.

Anyone care to comment on the likely durability and reliability of the FT-86?

Can't say for sure. They're usin FB engie which is new to tuning world, result there's very limited pro & con

[tranzformer]

Originally Posted by Marrk

This is a concern for me, too. Lately, I've been stopping Subaru owners on the street to ask them how their cars are holding up.

Anyone care to comment on the likely durability and reliability of the FT-86?

I have rarely heard bad things about Subaru. Except for the small issues with WRX/STI engine. But I wouldn't worry about that with this car.

[fatoni]

Originally Posted by ichitaka05

Both AP1& AP2 had weak chassis in front suspension area resulting SPOON to make re-enforcement kit.

what?

[Marrk]

Originally Posted by fatoni

what?

He's referring to a sub-frame design. The car had front and rear sub-frames. If you set your mind to it, you could mess them up, but most people didn't have any problem with them. At least, I didn't.

Even with the sub-frames, the car had an incredibly stiff chassis and communicated road feel and suspension action very well.

N.B. I was in Westwood this week and stopped at a light to talk with a dude in an AP1. He said it was his second AP1, and in between he had had an AP2. He said, "This car is still the most fun to drive for the price bar none." I couldn't argue with him.

[ichitaka05]

Originally Posted by Marrk

He's referring to a sub-frame design. The car had front and rear sub-frames. If you set your mind to it, you could mess them up, but most people didn't have any problem with them. At least, I didn't.

Even with the sub-frames, the car had an incredibly stiff chassis and communicated road feel and suspension action very well.

Thanks for the detail explanation. I try to remember exact weak spot, but I couldn't remember. :happy0180:

[cyde01]

i drove an ap2 for 2 years, it was a damn nice car. but i never had the opportunity to track it, so it was almost too track oriented for me. no rear seat, no luggage space, and no roof really killed it for me. if i had been able to track it regularly then i might have been able to put up with the sacrifices, but no use looking back now.

i'm sure with mods and upgrades the frs would be able to match/surpass the s2k no prob. as far as durability for the track? toyota's sports cars in the past were always durable so i don't see why this car wouldn't be, but then again i'm not that familiar with subaru. don't cars have to be durable in order to rally?

[Aki]

The big thing you gotta take into account for used cars is maintenance cost. Not just how often it needs to be fixed, but how much parts/labor is.

For example, a Lotus Elise can be had for low-20s, but parts is freaking expensive. If you need to replace a headlight, that's like a thousand dollars or some obscene amount. Fun as heck to drive though..

[ichitaka05]

Originally Posted by cyde01

i'm sure with mods and upgrades the frs would be able to match/surpass the s2k no prob. as far as durability for the track? toyota's sports cars in the past were always durable so i don't see why this car wouldn't be, but then again i'm not that familiar with subaru. don't cars have to be durable in order to rally?

Yes, gotta be strong & certain point flexible. Subaru is in 300GT & Super GT, so I'm not too worry about their chassis been weak. Only weak chassis they made is first gen Impreza (GC sereis). They're called "watermelon" due to lack of chassis stiffness... but from GB and so on, chassis is hella strong

[fatoni]

i dont think there is any reason why anybody would want a flexible chassis unless you are talking about safety issues and junk like that