Motors Fixing to buy a car for Hawaii, suggestions please :)

I'm looking for something convertable to ship with myself to Hawaii when I move in June, or at the very least w/ a sunroof (moonroof). I don't want to spend a lot, as most of my time in Hawaii will not be spent in the car, so somewhere around 10-12k or so would be good. Used of course, not looking for a new car. Just need suggestions, I've checked on a couple things, but most everything out seems to suck or costs 60 grand. PS - needs to be a car attainable in the US for 10-12k USD.

Right now the closest car I've been able to find is the Audi A4 1.8t (turbo) quattro, for it's AWD and easily-modified turbocharged engine that gets good gas milage. (The hills there get pretty massive, my honda insight doesn't even come close to scaling them, and the 6cyl jeep I rented once was even chugging a bit). I'd prefer a convertable, but the only two I've found that can be had semi-inexpensively used are the toyota MR2 (piece of crap car) and the mazda miata (I just don't like how it looks, but I may end up having no choice).

 

I really like the Mazda Miata MX-5...

We have one and it has got a rather good gas mileage, though a lot of power....
The on ly problem is, it has only two seats and after about two hours, sitting in it becomes really uncomfortable....

 

Does it really have much power? The older miata's I have driven have all been very sluggish, 0-100kph in 8-9s, which is rather slow. Is the body style any different? I looked on the website and didn't see much difference in look, but I've never seen one in person. How much trunk space does it have? Thanks.

 

Forget the trunk - you can fit about nothing in it....when me and my sister drive to the mall, we don't even get two boxes with mineral water in it...it's not that small, but it is just built so stupid...
I'll try to find a pic for you...


This is the model we have, the MX-5...
It has 140 HP, I'd call that strong for a car that is so small (ok, I'm not American )

 

Thx for the info. Oh, and I think you are from DE - Americans aren't the only ones with high output engines you know. I seem to remember renting a supercharged mercedes at the airport last March when I visited, and enjoying the autobahn for all it's worth.

But you are right, 140hp should not be too bad in a car of this size.

Cheers

 

Yupp, you can get some really nice cars when you go to the rental-place

When my exchange-partner came here, we got us an Audi S3 and took him for a ride...I think he liked the 160 mph

 

Ok, been looking around, considering BMW Z3 2.8l now. Any ideas/comments? I've found them under my (new) limit of 18k with good milage, and have heard nothing but good reviews. Let me know what you think.

 

Mazda Miatta = Bleh! IMO. They are an ordinary car trying to be somethiing a bit special and it fails. Ive dirven one and it seemed gutless to me i have to say and the handling is just plain dull. (I did a few weeks work at mazdas European office a few years ago and even mazda dont rate them).

Audi A4 = Woohoo IMO. I drive the non quatro version (i couldnt afford the quatro but i know you dont see many of those out there so price should not be too bad with the ammount of quatros about) The 1.8T engine is a great little power unit neither gutless or overstated. Should give great MPG as compared to the majority of US cars. (I get 34-6 MPG (UK gallon!) with alot of urban driving). The handling is great. Firm and sure footed without being uncomfortably hard for passengers. My uncle has a quatro one in canada with the aftermarket turbo chip and a few other hotted up parts which help a little but are not as "hot" as he expected them to be.

BMW Z3 - Look nice but im not sure about the ride. Ive never driven one so this is just what i have heard. The convertable version suffers alot from chassis flex when pushing it, but the roofed version is the business. I would guess, being a BMW lump, that the engine is powerful and fun to drive but IMO there is too much electronic help with modern BMWs taking some of the fun out of driving.

Good luck with making your choice.

 

/me whallopes Monoltih about the back of the head with the "Wrong Forum" stick

The new style Audi A4 convertibles are lovely, not sure what price you'd have to stump up over there though.

 

Unfortunately, you can't find them used. Too much for what I want to pay, I've been researching a ton of cars, and I've almost completely talked myself out of a convertible simply because I can't find any good offerings in the price range I'm wanting to spend. (Decided to take it up to 15-18k or so, nothing higher). Oh, and thanks for the smack.

 

i like my 3.1liter Chevy Malibu LS you can get it with a power sunroof. it handles the big hills here in the UP of michigan with the snow and ice just fine. just make sure you look at the LS or you get the wimpy 4 cyl

 

Found a couple for your viewing pleasure:

http://www.cars-on-line.com/99must14833.html
http://www.cars-on-line.com/98bmw9255.html
http://www.cars-on-line.com/86ferrari14155.html
http://www.cars-on-line.com/98mb14452.html
http://www.cars-on-line.com/97land12362.html
http://www.cars-on-line.com/00cam13382.html

 

Thanks bud! I checked them all out, I'm not a big mustang/camero fan so I'll pass on those two, the ferrari has a bad base vehicle so no thx on that, the bmw is the older body style (*cries I LOVE the 2000+ m3 but it's not gonna be that cheap...*). The mercedes is interesting, just wonder about the engine size, and the LC is a bit overkill for what I need, hehe. Great ideas though, I'm starting to think of more things I could do car-wise now thx to you!

 

you can get a base model or a used civic in that price range... my 98 civic dx coupe gets around 30ish to the gallon, and is valued under 10k... you can probably find a civic with a sunroof etc for around 12k used without a hassle and they get decent milage and have more than enough power in their stock forms

 

Ahh, I just saw a Mini Cooper S!!! Now I know what I want, with the dual sunroof! Anybody know any good spots to find cars for sale (used) other than ebay and autotrader? Ebay has some great deals but mostly Florida, which is more than I want to drive to check out the vehicle pre-purchase.

Cheers!

David

 

Try and get the original Mini Cooper imported from the UK. A perfect example of British unreliability, but they're lovely to drive and an absolute classic.

(this might not actually be feasible, and also you'll need to get used to right hand drive, but it sounds like a great car for your needs, especially if you get the 1.3.)

 

Uhm, I need a reliable car. Not only that, but I'll be in Hawaii and any pre-existing rust would be _bad_ (and there is bound to be some on an original cooper). Right hand drive isn't a problem, but a 1.3 litre is probably a bit small. I'm looking at the mini cooper S with the 1.6l supercharged engine.

 

New mini = false mini.

The 1.3 would be so much fun.

Seriously, for the money you have to spend, you'll get one with no rust.

*n

 

Get like a 1993-1995 mini, put a 1600cc Rover K Series engine in it!

That would rule so ****ing hard.

Could be done for about £9000 to a VERY good level of engineering...

*n

 

I would have though air con would be better than a cabrio; you'll probably get bored of the sun soon and want the coolness for practical reasons. And would you get either from a classic mini?

and penski - you maxing hypocrite! i'll get ee with an air filter!