fast car under $20k which one?

[pred8r]

Just out of curiosity.......If you had $20k to spend on a quick car what would you choose?

Car guidelines -
Minimum 2 seater, 2 or 4 door
Age doesnt matter.
MUST be unmodified and 'factory standard' eg. NOT Mazda 808, 20B twin turbo
Must be an Australian released vehicle (Any make released here for sale as new)
NOT a private or low-volume import
was/is available for purchase by the general public
0-100 in less than 9.0 seconds
'should' 400m in less than 16.0 seconds
Its current market value must be under $20k generally (not I bought a '99 WRX STI outside Crown Casino for $1000)
A link to(some specs of) said car (not a requirement, just nice)


Mercedes Benz 'A-Class' A190 Avantgarde
0-100 - 8.8Sec
Top Speed - 198Km/h
http://www.carsales.com.au/pls/carsales/!cs_content.dealer_vehicle?vehicle_id=2736941&current_rec=2&total_rec=4&sort_type=1&keyword=A190&state_id=7&search_distance=25 (http://www.carsales.com.au/pls/carsales/%21cs_content.dealer_vehicle?vehicle_id=2736941&current_rec=2&total_rec=4&sort_type=1&keyword=A190&state_id=7&search_distance=25)

[Bernard Siong]

i would go for a 99+ integra type R

theres a couple advertised for 22000 on ozhonda but im sure you can talk it to 20gz
they're not the fastest cars but they are a very good all rounder car, nice styling, nice seats, excellent suspension and good reliable performance engine.

are you after 2 doors or 4 doors? does number of seats matter?

the s14s are also a nice choice, pretty quick cars with also very nice styling.. had to be series 2 but, series 1 doesnt look mean..

[oneightoo]

my car of choice..

2JZ Toyota Supra

nothing beats it for looks, lol, there'll be people who disagree, but this is my opinion..

[Poogene2001]

Porsche 928S
Can pick one up for 20K-ish from about 1985.
5 Litre V8, 235KW, Still looks good and seats 4 (kinda).
Sure servicing and repairs will cost a fortune, but its a PORSCHE!!

[blueraven]

keep it in the opel family and buy a near mint calibra turbo..0-100 in 7 seconds..awd, 6 speed, leather etc etc.....

a mint one will be well under 20k.. you would have the change left to either make her look prettier or go alot faster.

[1OPL2C]

yep, calibra turbo! cheap n fast

and looks sik!

[auzvectra]

just pick up a corsa 'b', n stick a v6 in 1, would easily be under 20K, i reacon about 10k, so leaves u with 10k for wheels n other fancy stuff :D

[JohnBu]

ever thought about a Astra SRi Turbo, still should have some warantee left..

you should be able to pick up a higher km one for $20k, running cost are quite low for this car and is still newish..

other than that, a clio sport,

[Tricky Ricky]

Saw an Audi Quattro for sale a while @ $15K....went for a test drive, the performance was amazing and handling was very competent with 4WD. It's a 84 model but since you said age doesn't matter. I was very tempted!! See photos below:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v323/ryc735/f5_1_b.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v323/ryc735/ef_1_b.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v323/ryc735/8c_1_b.jpg

[pred8r]

This is NOT a car for me or anyone i know.
Im just curious to see what people would choose. :)

[entice]

Mazda MX5

cheap, fast-ish, lots of fun, and easy to service and insure (depends on age)

[btm]

Supra or Celica GT4 maybe....

you can pick up an early 90's GT4 for around the $12K mark

[01CDsedan]

1999-2000 VT Series II SS - the first of the models with the Gen III V8. Getting down to the $20k mark now. If you get a non-sports model (eg. Berlina) with the same engine you may pay even less.

220kW and 440Nm easily modded with exhaust and LS1edit into the 250-300kW range. 0-100 in the low to mid sixes stock and 400m in about 15 seconds (much quicker than that modified). Parts and servicing available everywhere. Economical for something with that performance and that size engine. And nothing beats the V8 sound and feel.

Much more respect on the street than pretty much all of the other cars mentioned here so far too :P

[bill142]

01CDsedan is right. Your best bet is a Commdore or Falcon from the late 90's earlu 00's. Mods and parts are easy to come by and both cars are generally reliable and reasonably built. They both carry their share of faults but when your paying the price of chips you can't expect champange performance.

[oneightoo]

i think that street respect will depend on which street your on..

[Wattie]

toyota MR2 turbo, and boost it a bit, theres one near my house, mid mount engine, so quiet inside, rear wheel drive, light and fats, but only 2 seats... :(

[01CDsedan]

01CDsedan is right. Your best bet is a Commdore or Falcon from the late 90's earlu 00's. Mods and parts are easy to come by and both cars are generally reliable and reasonably built. They both carry their share of faults but when your paying the price of chips you can't expect champange performance.

If anything, the AU Falcon would be an even better buy than the Commodore. Not as quick, but because the AU suffered from being so ugly, its resale value sucks even though it's an excellent car. Result is that you could probably get a newer Falcon for the same money compared to the Commodore.

[01CDsedan]

i think that street respect will depend on which street your on..

To an extent it will depend on whether you're with the musclecar crowd or the import crowd.

[Wattie]

come to my place, i think we have an AU falcom owners clubhouse im my street, theres like 3 houses in a row, and 5 au falcons in the driveways...

[oneightoo]

a dozen eggs, 2 per car, 2 cars get 3, any 2 in particular you dislike more?

[imad4u]

bang for your buck, i would have to go with a nissan s14 series 2

http://www.carsales.com.au/pls/carsales/!cs_content.private_vehicle?vehicle_id=2734125&current_rec=14&used_rec=10&total_rec=114&sort_type=&total_rec=114&sort_type=&make_id=5&model_id=110&keyword=MANUAL&state_id=-1&search_distance=25

[oneightoo]

lol the car was owned by senior citizens..

thats funny..

[imad4u]

i know i wouldnt look at that car to buy... old people + Towbar... wonder what they have been touring in...

[pred8r]

S14 look UGLY from the back, S15 OTOH.....:eek:

[Alfonzo]

They're an aquired taste. Lucky, I've aquired it :) I love S14a... but I'd give my left nut for a manual S15...

And sorry - I'd NOT buy that A class based on the fact that if you ever had to turn a corner at high speed, you'd find yourself lying on your door handles. Mercedes have confirmed that one for us.

[pred8r]

They're an aquired taste. Lucky, I've aquired it :) I love S14a... but I'd give my left nut for a manual S15...

And sorry - I'd NOT buy that A class based on the fact that if you ever had to turn a corner at high speed, you'd find yourself lying on your door handles. Mercedes have confirmed that one for us.
That was something i didnt know. They have just been ruled out as a potential car for Mrs Pred. Forester GT perhaps.
Either that or she gets my SRi and i get a Ute of some sort (Im considering buying a house to renovate within 12 months)

[NUTTTR]

audi quattro turbo IMHO!! LOVELY car and a very high street cred, very rare and quite a nice car for the age... very expensive though :(

[GeeeAus]

I believe the Proton Satria GTI to be one of the strongest contenders. It packs 103KW of 1.8 MPEFI 16v Power and does the dash in 7.8 secs.

Proton owns Lotus, and as such the engine head, and suspension have had significant tuning and optimization, which results in a zippy, fuel efficient and quite entertaining drive. It seat 2 comfortably, looks good and has a nice gearbox with well optimized ratios.

http://autoweb.drive.com.au/cms/newsarticle.html?&start=60&showall=&id=PRO&doc=pro9912211

AND its' Cheap Used.


GeeeAus

[anicorsa]

toyota MR2 turbo, and boost it a bit, theres one near my house, mid mount engine, so quiet inside, rear wheel drive, light and fats, but only 2 seats... :(


I was thinking the same thing...

[JasonGilholme]

anything thats honda and has vtech!!!!!!!

[mr_sikma]

aslong as it wasnt my money i would get this... ( not completely meeting your criteria ;) )

Sigma Turbo, silver/black, built 2.6 GT35/40, Supra 5 speed, run 11.9 seconds at 119mph, full street trim, will go a lot faster, $12000

Shove your commys and Jap cars. Apart from a rotor this would eat anything for the price :)

[01CDsedan]

I believe the Proton Satria GTI to be one of the strongest contenders. It packs 103KW of 1.8 MPEFI 16v Power and does the dash in 7.8 secs.

Proton owns Lotus, and as such the engine head, and suspension have had significant tuning and optimization, which results in a zippy, fuel efficient and quite entertaining drive. It seat 2 comfortably, looks good and has a nice gearbox with well optimized ratios.
GeeeAus

Except....it was designed by Mitsubishi in the late 80s/early 90s, so there's your reliability shot...and it was assembled by Proton, so there's your quality shot...

[GeeeAus]

Except....it was designed by Mitsubishi in the late 80s/early 90s, so there's your reliability shot...and it was assembled by Proton, so there's your quality shot...

Rubbish.....

The vehicle has proven itself a reliable piece of equipment, and it fits the selection criteria well. It’s a sound proposition for a quickish sub $20k car. That’s why I recommended it.

In that I am correct.

Reliability reports are generally very positive as one would expect from a Mitsi with a mature tried and tested design. The lotus input makes it a great drive.

Example:

http://www.ciao.co.uk/Proton_Satria_GTI__Review_5340340

http://uk.cars.yahoo.com/car-reviews/car-and-driving/proton-compact-and-satria-2002430.html

GeeeAus

[pred8r]

Id stand by GeeeAus in this one, they wouldnt still be selling new ones, after all the years they have been out now, if there were reliability issues.

[01CDsedan]

I stand by my original statement.

You could do a lot better than a car designed by one of the world's greatest designers of shortlived cars working their crap design heyday - ie, the 1980s - built by one of the shoddiest carmakers around.

[Tricky Ricky]

audi quattro turbo IMHO!! LOVELY car and a very high street cred, very rare and quite a nice car for the age... very expensive though :(

Check P.1 :)

[RapidSRi]

I stand by my original statement.

You could do a lot better than a car designed by one of the world's greatest designers of shortlived cars working their crap design heyday - ie, the 1980s - built by one of the shoddiest carmakers around.

Performance & Budget are not two words than combine easily.

But the Satria GTi is definately worthy of credibility as a fast compact. I am not a fan of Mitsu but even with unorthodox styling it suceeds as a racer under 20k to me. The Lotus treatment helps.

[Dee]

i cant pick a car under $20K.... how about under $30K.... i'd pick a Corolla Sportivo :) ohhh wait, i did


and i even have the same engine as a Lotus Elise... just a lot more de-tuned than the Lotus :(

[CJB]

i cant pick a car under $20K.... how about under $30K.... i'd pick a Corolla Sportivo :) ohhh wait, i did


and i even have the same engine as a Lotus Elise... just a lot more de-tuned than the Lotus :(
But your car rocks!!!

I had heard good things about the Sportivo, but wow... still goes really good, and that 6th gear must come in handy!!!! :)

[01CDsedan]

and i even have the same engine as a Lotus Elise... just a lot more de-tuned than the Lotus :(

Hehe...I used to say the same about my RB Gemini, the Isuzu 4XC1 engine that it had was a relative of the 4XE1 in the Lotus Elan...

[GeeeAus]

Hehe...I used to say the same about my RB Gemini, the Isuzu 4XC1 engine that it had was a relative of the 4XE1 in the Lotus Elan...

Wait, you won't acknowledge the Satria GTI as a worthy cheap zing, zing, but you've had a gemini.

Wow......!

GeeeAus

[Dee]

i'd much prefer a gamini too... i was looking at a TD when i decided the Sportivo would be a better option :D

[btm]

i'd much prefer a gamini too... i was looking at a TD when i decided the Sportivo would be a better option :D
what was the final feature that sold it to you....?

[Dee]

what was the final feature that sold it to you....?
the 30 year newer engine :) i would have liked to have played with a 75 gemini... drop an SR20 in it :D make it go

[01CDsedan]

Wait, you won't acknowledge the Satria GTI as a worthy cheap zing, zing, but you've had a gemini.

Wow......!

GeeeAus

Yep :)

The Gemini was a quality Isuzu product that was very competitive in its day. Proton is a bottom of the barrel manufacturer with low quality, flat out competing with Kia (I note a recent Wheels article saying Proton is getting in German consultants to show them how to build cars to an acceptable standard) and the Satria is a typically cheap Mitsubishi design.

I'm sorry you don't agree with my views...but I don't want this to become a personal issue, and I think it's about to, so I'm not going any further with this discussion beyond this post.