Need Advice

[soundman98]

i didn't want to hear it either, but 4 cars, 3 accidents, 1 totaled car, and a stereo theft later, i really wouldn't suggest a car over $10k for anyone under 25--i never had a car worth more than $5k till i was 23. it's going to get damaged, scraped, and bruised, if it makes it 5 years at all. at least half of it won't even be your fault.

i always liked having coupe cars through that time period, and my parents liked it knowing that the vehicles i had weren't physically capable of taking a whole lot of people anywhere. but coupes of any type are generally seen as sportier, no matter the reality, and do generally carry an insurance premium for it...

insurance is most expensive for 16-25 year old's by no coincidence.

an 86 is a great thing to aspire to later on once you get all the other stuff out of the way, it would even be a good secondary car for you and your dad to have fun on the weekends with. but the biggest complaint i have even as an owner of one is that it's a poor 'car'. it's got almost no trunk, the rear seats are for storage, not people, and if you really start romping on it, the gas tank size is abysmal. i've only been able to own it because i originally had access to other vehicles, and by myself, i've always owned a pickup truck in conjunction with the car. the car works for basic commuting, but even grocery shopping is a stretch...

also, with the car market now, it's a great time to sell anything, but a terrible time to buy. if you can limp the honda along for another year or two, the market will likely place you in a much better buying position to get more for your money than anyone really can right now. and it's a honda! it's really not going to lose anymore value than it already has.

[Cheeky]

All good input/advice from the other people here.

Just my 2c, what are your goals for the car? To mod it and learn about car maintenance? To learn how to drive this specific type of car (or manual)? Or maybe just because you simply love the car? All are valid reasons, but your pops set the budget pretty high for a first car and that to me seems like he wants you to get something newer, maintenance/trouble free, practical, and a car that can run a long while.

So I'd start from there, identify your goals for what a good first car is, identify what his goal is for an ideal car for his son, and then aim for a car that fits both criteria. If no such ideal car exist for both your criteria, then one of you will have to make compromises (probably you)

[Craxel]

He set the limit at around 20k since he wants to match what he paid from my sisters car. He wants it to be safe mainly with a rear view camera and something reliable. He made me take a special drivers Ed class on top of other things even though that doesn’t replace experience he is expecting me to be safe. As far as plans on what I need is that I like the look of coupes. If I were to end up having a brz then I would mod it but with nothing engine wise. Just aesthetic and cosmetic changes. I also like the Mx-5 and fiat 124s but havnt thought that much about it.

[Craxel]

Thanks for the input!

[MuseChaser]

Originally Posted by Craxel

He set the limit at around 20k since he wants to match what he paid from my sisters car. He wants it to be safe mainly with a rear view camera and something reliable. He made me take a special drivers Ed class on top of other things even though that doesn’t replace experience he is expecting me to be safe. As far as plans on what I need is that I like the look of coupes. If I were to end up having a brz then I would mod it but with nothing engine wise. Just aesthetic and cosmetic changes. I also like the Mx-5 and fiat 124s but havnt thought that much about it.

Totally none of my business, but you've got me curious. Would you be comfortable stating what car your Dad provided for your sister?

[Craxel]

She drives a 2017 or 2018 rav4. Not sure what trim level

[2020BRZtS]

If it's a sporty coupe you are looking for a Scion tC may suit your needs. They are a little over half the HP of the BRZ but very responsive. They are also pretty insurance-friendly. I've had mine since 2008 and the only non-regular maintenance I've had is a dead TPMS sensor just a few months ago. You can pick one up for under 10K.

[gtpvette]

Speed is a function of power to weight,,, well for the most part. DO some computations on it.
86 2750/200 = 13.75
Supra 4001/382 = 10.4
C7 Vette 3300/460 = 7.1

[saltywetman]

insurance will be the main killer with this platform if you are under 25 years of age. I honestly scratch my head at all those younglings in my local 86/brz group when the topic of insurance comes up and find out they pay upwards of $250-$300/month to insure their cars! Insurance rates for these cars are likely high considering how many people end up wrecking them esp if you live in a place with snowy winters.

[HKz]

16 with an expensive twin seems a bit silly unless yall don't have money problems...I don't even want to know what the insurance costs, probably easily as much as a car payment. My first DD from 16 to 19 was a '92 240SX which we picked up for a few thousand and my kid's mom crashed it one day. Even if you've been driving, you're only 16 you don't have many miles on your experience odo so get something you'll be cool with parting away after a few years.. I plan on eventually giving my now 11 year old boy my twin but only after he's had a beater like a civic or corolla for a few years. My concerns with a twin for a very young driver would be the temptation to hoon without any regards for oher people, kids are too tunnel visioned and rarely notice everyone they are impacting, and the attention other drivers will give you for driving a sports car. People think I'm trying to race them all the time so imagine a young driver getting that attention on the road and potentially doing something silly. (go to YouTube and see all the fails with red light races)

At the end of the day, your dad is gonna be the one with the biggest undetstanding of what type of personality, driver, & human you are.. so perhaps he might see you as being incredibly responsible at 16. But even so, paying 22 K for a twin for a 16 year old seems quite steep, there are much cheaper twins and alternatives out there.

[Craxel]

Yea we had a conversation about it again and i think I’ve switched it up from a brz/86/frs to a midsize truck or jeep. Especially with cheaper insurance and he’s onboard with it.

[x808drifter]

Don't forget the mandatory sticker.

[HKz]

Originally Posted by Craxel

Yea we had a conversation about it again and i think I’ve switched it up from a brz/86/frs to a midsize truck or jeep. Especially with cheaper insurance and he’s onboard with it.

hmm you didn't have to totally kill the fun unless you would prefer interior room and utility if you can't get a twin plenty of cheap & relatively fun little beaters out there...civic & accord coupes, celicas, matrix/corolla xrs, tiburons, scion tc, 1st gen xb, rsx or pretty much any acura sedan, ms3, wrx, etc. right now with the suv/truck craze in both the used & new markets, looking at my local listings it seems like lots of used sedans, hatchbacks & coupes are undervalued so perhaps you could get a better deal. hell a few months ago i picked up a pt cruiser for 900 from CA and flipped it for double in AZ lol. lots of underappreciated cars out there

[2020BRZtS]

Originally Posted by HKz

My concerns with a twin for a very young driver would be the temptation to hoon without any regards for oher people

I agree with you. We had a kid in high school (1985/86) driving a DeLorean. Talk about no regard for other people. He was a chick magnet though.