HardHitter

Well, as my senior year has begun, my parents have told me that they are going to give me $10,000 for me to use in going towards a new car and I am debating on the following. Mazda RX-8, 2000-2001 BMW 325/330Ci, 2000-2003 Lexus IS300. With the $10,000 I'm getting from my parents, I'll have about $30,000 that I've saved up over the past few years for a new car, however, I of course do not want to spend all of that. I'd like to spend at max 26,000-27,000 so I would like your help.

I can either pickup a base 2004 Mazda RX-8 for around that price, maybe a little over. Or I can find a 2000-2001 BMW 330ci for around $24,000 loaded, or a 2001-2003 Lexus IS300 for around the same price as the BMW. So in short, do I go with the Mazda RX-8 and sacrafice all the other features I could get in the BMW/Lexus, or buy a used BMW/Lexus fully loaded and use the extra $2,000 or so to modify the car?

What are your thoughts?

Japan8

Look in the RX-8 discussion forum. There is a section on what people have been paying for their 8. Get the sport package... at invoice or under you're at what... $25k? $26? Take another $1,200 and get aftermarket leather. The only thing you won't have is a sunroof... but hey... that's just extra weight and what not. The nav... take it or leave it... different strokes... as the saying goes.

What you've got now is a brand new car with full warranty. My next choice would be the Lexus just because the maintenance costs will be lower. BMW... I love 'em. Got to run the full line pretty hard some years back (1999) at a BMW charity drive in the States. The only problem... my aunt bought a used BMW. It no longer has warranty now and repairs are... ouch... costly. So she takes it to a local BMW race/tuner shop for all her work... much better, but still not cheap.

Just remember... when you buy used you could be buying someone else's problems and especially with sports cars, you never know how the previous owner treated the car. Would you want one that was redlined daily and burnouts at every traffic light?

Vertigo-1

iTrader: (3)

It's kind of funny reading this on a site where people tell you to sell the RX-8 if you're going to shift below 5k...

cel1122

^^
I think the point is you don't get a car that has been through a rough life..you get a new one.

mysql101

The insurance on the RX-8 will also be lower then the others listed.

To give you an idea:

My ford mustang convertable costs more (not a surprise)

My 2000 Saturn SL1 that has a book value around $3000, 4 doors, and what I can only assume to be 50 hp costs about $70 more per 6 months than my RX-8, with the same exact full coverage.

RXE16T

BM's are nice, especially the 330ci, so are Lexus', but at the end of the day:

1. they look pretty ordinary (styling wise),
2. don't have any cutting edge innovations (freestyle doors, rotary power,etc) ,
3. expensive to maintain and
4. most importantly, are not brand new.

shorty911

i can help you out i think because im currently facing a similar debate with the price range of 24-26k ive driven all these my parents have a 330ci and my friend has a older style lexus is300 i really love the rx8 and im pretty sure im going for it after i drive the new mustang gt's just to make sure i wouldnt want one but im about 90 percent sure im going for an 8. For 26 grand you can find a loaded rx8 with about 6-7k miles i think thats the smartest idea, you can find one at a dealership that someone bought and couldnt handle payments so they got rid of it to the dealership or something else but as far as car i think you should try for an rx8. GO 8!

HardHitter

Yeah, I've been keeping an eye on the new 2005 Mustangs, look really nice and the GT Premium is only about $26,000 MSRP so it is another consideration to the 8. Great style, cheap, however, I am sure it's going to be just like the older Mustangs, everyone and their moms will have the new Mustang by the end of the year. When do these come out by the way? I'm thinking of test driving one just like you shorty, but I absolutly have fallen in love with the RX8 in looks and style. Just need to test drive everything and find one with a nice price/color.

Hammer

The new Mustang is out now. I've seen them on the road already. Used Beamers are cheap, but it costs an arm and a leg to get anything repaired. Remember this, especially if you are on a budget. I've seen so many people over the years buy a Beamer for the cool factor, and then cannot afford to drive or fix it when something happens.

Go ahead and test drive the RX-8. It will make your decision much easier. I'd give you about a week before one is sitting in your driveway. (You can get them pretty cheap now that the 2005 models are on the lot, even though they are basically identical to the 2004 model)

Hammer

Now I don't care who you are, that's funny.

HardHitter

Yeah I remember when I was young, my mom had BMW's and all they had were problems. I was probably about 5 years old and I just remember that one day after Karate, the car wouldn't start and AAA had to come get us. I can picture it so well, I have no idea why I can, but I just remember it so well. Also, my friend bought a 1997 I think BMW 318ti or something like that and his clutch went out or something like that.

Strange, I haven't seen the new mustangs anywhere and I live near a Ford dealership. Maybe they don't have them in the front--I would think they would.

I'll probably go about test driving the RX-8 and 2005 Mustang this weekend.

RotaryNoob

Picked up a base 8 for 23K. 7K in mods will get you some boost and some suspension mods. That 8 would smoke both the other cars mentioned in a straight line and in the twisties and it would be brand new.

Ike

If you're getting an AT, get the BMW or Lexus. The AT ruins the car unless you're not into performance much and aesthetics are by far the most important thing to you.

HardHitter

I am going to get stick. No doubt about it. I've had a 96 Blazer as my car for the past 4 years, and once I learned how to drive stick in my friends beatup Ranger I fell in love with it, and then when I drove my friends 323i that was manual, I fell in love even more, so much easier than the truck, and so much quicker to accelerate.

I am basically not going to be racing people, not really into that, just more of a show car and just a nice car to have overall. Will do mods such as tinting windows, maybe some nice tires/wheels, etc etc. Would like to have the options such as the sunroof and the heated seats, don't really need navigation, however, I'd like to have it, especially if I go to college somewhere else other than my area.

Ike

I say go get yourself RX-8 then. The BMW while nice is pretty expensive to maintain unless you don't drive much and can get one still under warranty. Then there's the stigma of being a BMW owner... The IS300 is kinda porky, kinda slow, and it's hard as hell to find the MTs, especially used.

Ike

I say go get yourself RX-8 then. The BMW while nice is pretty expensive to maintain unless you don't drive much and can get one still under warranty. Then there's the stigma of being a BMW owner... The IS300 is kinda porky, kinda slow, and it's hard as hell to find the MTs, especially used.

EZZY

you'd be much happer with an 8..... but im baised :D

e

HardHitter

How much does it costs usually to get a kit like the Mazdaspeed kit painted and installed? So how much would the kit cost, and then how much would painting cost and then how much would mounting cost?

Who knows, the appearance package might be enough "flare" for me.

shorty911

Yeah appearence package is great but the cool thing abotu the mazda speed kit is alot fo mazda dealerships also deal mazda speed so when you get one you can work them, say if i buy this you get me a deal on the mazda speed kit and have it installed here and it already comes painted to match the 8 it should cost more then 3k

On another note im not biased and i say the rx8 is a much better buy then the other cars listed and it is just so perfect when your driving it your just like wow i feel like im in a car i cant afford or something but you really can!

sti_eric

I don't know your situation, but I would discourage anyone in high school from spending $25K-$30K on a car (unless your parents are planning on supporting you financially for the next 5-10 years). There is just too much volatility ahead for you to make that kind of financial obligation. There is college to pay for, there is the problem of finding a good paying job after college, and you will want to buy a house after you get that good job. Believe me, being able to put a good-sized downpayment on a house will be much more satisfying than buying a car. If you put that $30K in a mutual fund for the next 5 years, you will end up with $40K-$50K. (Again, this is all really moot if your parents are going to be taking care of all your financial responsibilities).

Based on your list of cars (BMW, Lexus), it looks like you are more concerned with the image your car presents than the fun factor of the car. But, if you take my advice and don't blow $25K-$30K on a new car, there are a couple of lower priced cars that are much more fun to drive than any of those you listed: WRX and SRT-4. These can both be had for around $15K (used) and are just a blast to drive. Good luck with the decision.

shorty911

imo the srt-4 was the biggest pos ive ever sat in it was horrible in every way.

RX8_Buckeye

Every Mustang being built right now is a pre-order. As a result, the average lifespan of a Mustang on the dealer lot is less than 2 hours (just read that in an article)! There were about 25,000 pre-orders before Job 1, which was on Sept 7. The plant has been ramping up production and now makes about 400 per day. So you can see how with the orders rolling in it will be a while before you'll be able to get one. Assuming 6-day work weeks, I'd guess it'll be another month or two before you'll be able to take delivery.

It's a very nice car by the way--a huge improvement over the old Mustang. My biggest problem with the Mustang is one that others have mentioned: everyone and his brother will have one by mid-2005. I like that the RX-8 is still relatively rare.

AbusiveWombat

Don't get a BMW or Lexus. They're old man cars...wait a few years and then they'll fit your image. As a college grad, IMO, you should get something fun, impractical, and sporty. You can get that 330 when you get married and start having kids.

Also, I've got to agree with STi_Eric. $30k is a lot of money...especially when you're starting off in life. A car is nice and all but it's a terrible investment. Personally, you could probably pick up a nice improvement on your current wheels for 20k and have a fat 10k sitting in the bank/mutual fund. The economy is still pretty shaky and as a new grad with 0 experience you'll have a hard time impressing employers if you do lose your job. It's funny, no matter how smart you are, employers put a LOT of weight on experience.

mysql101

Hindsight is 20/20. I agree with everything you said, BUT when I was his age, I went for Porsches. I have nothing to show for it now that I'm older. Of course I had parents telling me buying expensive cars was a waste of money, but who wants to listen to that?

HardHitter

I'm starting to really like the 2005 Mustangs only thing is I want leather seating, and I don't think the Mustang comes with leather seating unless you upgrade to the GT which is V8 and I don't think I need to V8 do I?

But as of now, it's between the BMW 330ci, 2005 Ford Mustang, and Mazda RX-8. I'm going to test drive a RX8 locally here from a private dealer. Here is one RX8 Here's the other

I'm test driving the $25,500 on Saturday I believe.