My nephew is 19 and is excited about buying a new car. However he wants a "race" car. At first he was very rediculous as to what he wanted, but recently he's become quite open to suggestions.

I was wondering what you guys thought a good car for him was. Right now he drives a beater Ford Ranger that he delivers pizzas in. He's strangely comfortable behind the wheel of any car and is a very good at driving. I've seen him behind the wheel of my brothers TransAM WS6 and his mothers Mustang GT and I'm shocked at what he can do with the cars despite having never driven them before.

Anyway, if you could give ME suggestions to give HIM I'd really appreceate it. HOWEVER:

1. He is only interested in a Manual.
2. His price range is limited. He claims to have about $2000 saved and says he'll have about $450 a month to spend on a car and insurance.
3. He doesn't like Cavy's, Sunfires, neons, and most trucks.
4. He wants something that he could modify easily to make faster and is obsessed with Turbochargers.
5. He is aware of preformance upgrades and has found a great deal about them himself, but wouldn't be able to do a lot himself. He has never worked on a car before.
6. He wants a car that is "good looking" but not expensive. (example He'd get a honda civic, but only if he thought it was a good model and he could find a few things to make it more "stylish", but speed is still his #1 priority)
7. IF he modifies the car he would like to get it running LOW 14s as cheaply, easily, and fastly as possible.
8. He wants a car that is reliable and hopefully has lower miles (so a more recent model is also a good idea).

YES I know this is a BIG LIST with plenty of unrealistic guidelines, but I would REALLY like if you guys could give me some advice, your opinions, or links to websites that could help him out.

1988 Fiero GT... you can turbocharge the 2.8 V6 thats in it already (altho it should either be low milage or you should rebuild it before you just slap a turbo on there).. you also have the huge list of available engine swaps... and you can get 'em for real cheap and you can get REAL nice ones for fairly cheap and they're also very cheap to insure... i dont remember off hand how much mine was gonna be to insure, but it wasn't much more than my grand am...

you should tell him to look into the fiero... not many ppl like them and i know i plug them in every thread of this nature

hehe...

-Daniel

Well I said something about that to him and he seemed interested but stated that finding one in good condition was unlikely.

He's really into Integras and Eclipses. I told him that the Eclipse would kill him in insurance (but would 200 a month cover it?). I tried to convince him to get an older Talon TSi or a Civic and work on that. He's considering it, but just isn't being very realistic.

any more thoughts guys?

plymouth lazer

Same thing as an Eclipse/Talon 1st gen.
Actually, an early DSM would be a great choice. Not only would it be pretty quick for cheap, he'll learn about cars since it will require a good amount of maintenance

-Ben

yeah but sometihng about plymouth screams sleeper... what would you be more scare dof.... i drive an eclipse or i drive a plymouth

Those damn things seem to be broken more than they work.

It all depends on how you mod them. I know quite a few DSM people who know what they're doing and their cars are reliable. The key is to not buy a modified DSM, get a stock one, take care of any recalls and known problems, then you're set.

-Ben

im talking even stock they are maintanance nightmares.

I don't agree. I just bought an 1998 AWD Tsi Talon and it looks like it's going to hold together solid, even after mods. I think that the reason that so many people complain about the DSMs are because they are one of the most easily modified cars, and new guys tend to get carried away, THUS destroying the car. As for the stock, I think that has to do with how people drive them and the fact that they aren't QUITE as solid as an american sports car (Although I think the diamond star cars are the japanese counter-part of the american company that also bears the logo of a star. We all know that Chrysler hasn't been on par with GM or Ford in terms of reliablity for quite some time).

What have you guys heard/noticed that goes wrong with the Eclipse/Talon/Laser, anyway?

I don't see anything wrong with a Laser (although I don't consider it stylish). Um... he could try to find a used Mustang GT... get a Talon or Eclipse (better looking than that Talon). I would say go with a Civic though. He can find simple mods for it, and TONS to make it look "cooler." He'll pay less than the DSM, and if he just wants to do minor stuff that Civic probably wont mind. I don't know how easily he'll get to 14s though without some work. 14s would require some decent funding with some weight reduction.

Well, pretty much all you have to look out for as far as major stuff is crankwalk. Some 2nd gens get it. How many miles are on it? I think somwhere around 50K if it hasn't happened already, it most likely won't. Either way, check out ww.dsm.org and other DSM sites for more info.

-Ben

Ive seen lots of problems with the AWD system and the head gaskets, timing belts. We wont even sell them here because everytime we do, it blows up in our face.

1988 fieros are just the most desirable years for fieros because of their suspension upgrades... and fieros really aren't that hard to find in good condition, and if it breaks they have a nearly cult-like following of ppl that will help you fix it and sell you parts for real cheap...

i'm at work right now so i have access to a T1 line, so here is a list of some of the better fieros on ebay right now to serve as an example...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2425162969&category=6419

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2425043416&category=6419

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2424891726&category=6419

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2424644038&category=6419

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2424357080&category=6419

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2424427010&category=6419

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2424402678&category=6419

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2424114674&category=6419

you can also always look on autotrader and things of the like... depending on where you are fieros pop up for sale all the time... you just have to weed through the crappy ones... hehe..

-Daniel

Hehehe.... gor is just sitting there going fiero....fiero....fiero....fiero.....
Or am i mixing threads?
someone will notice ya soon buddy.

well the deal was so good and I figure that I can make it haul serious ass, that I just got it without putting tons of thought into it being a problimatic car. But to be honest I really don't hear people complain to much. Everyone seems to like them well enough and a few problems here and there aren't going to piss me off THAT much. But you guys make it sound like this was a bad idea. I mean what does everyone honestly think? Who all has had experences with such cars?

I think that a Fiero would actually be a fine car for him by the by. Although my bitch ass cousin has one and I always think of him when I see them.