Car crushed by tree; what to replace it with?

mrchaotica

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No, not my TDI, my other car (thank goodness!). Scared you for a second, didn't I?

Anyway, I'm thinking of replacing my now ex-Accent with either:

1. A relatively economical pickup truck (a diesel Isuzu Pup would be ideal, except for the fact that they're ancient and impossible to find anymore). Anything capable of hauling a 4'x8' sheet of plywood (for DIY home improvement) would work; it doesn't have to be a truck.

2. A rear-wheel-drive 2-seat sports car, optionally a convertible.

Either way, I want something in the $5-$10K range and economy and reliability are important. Suggestions?
 
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Mike in Anchorage

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Maybe check out an old Saab hatchback. They carry enormous amounts of stuff. Then when you fold down the rear seats, you may as well have a pickup.
 

Conan

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Anything capable of hauling a 4'x8' sheet of plywood (for DIY home improvement) would work; it doesn't have to be a truck. 2. A rear-wheel-drive 2-seat sports car, optionally a convertible.

This is an easy one. Miata all the way! Not because you could actually haul plywood in it, but because it would be so funny to watch you try!

Seriously, I think I'd look for a MKIV Jetta wagon TDI, or a Golf or Jetta TDI with a trailer hitch. You can rent a trailer as big as a pickup bed from U-Haul for about $20/day. If you have room to stash it, a small trailer might be a good investment if you hang at Home Depot a lot.
 

Lug_Nut

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Before scrolling down to Conan's reply I was also thinking Miata and put the receiver / hitch on that. For bulky, light weight stuff like a half dozen sheets of 4x8, or a new gas grille, or a replacement sapling for that tree that fall, a Miata and small utility trailer may be just what you want.
 

mrchaotica

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I don't need another TDI; I've already got one! I've been thinking of putting a trailer hitch on my Beetle...

Ford Ranger and Mazda Miata are the front-runners in their respective categories, but what about other ideas? Is there any other truck that gets similar fuel economy (or should I say "screw it" and get a full-size Diesel)? Is there any other sports car that has a better fun/money quotient?

By the way, apparently when you post without Javascript enabled it strips all the line breaks out. Weird.
 
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Joe_Meehan

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For me I would not hesitate, a Miata. I had one and it was a great car. When I needed something a little larger I sold it where it ended up on the race track.
 

mrchaotica

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Would I be stupid to get anything other than a Miata (e.g. C4 Corvette, Nissan Z[X], Porsche 928 or Boxster, etc.)?
 

mrchaotica

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4 cyl. MT Ranger with a custom flat bed. :D
Is a normal Ranger bed not big enough to fit 4x8 sheets in?

I wish it were possible to get an "indestructible Hilux" (as seen on Top Gear) in the United States; then my decision would be easy.
 

yatzee

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very tough question. If you want something kinda fun, why not an 05+ Legacy GT? They go really well and have tons of space (in a wagon). Around here, they start at around 10k.
 

pm22071985

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Would I be stupid to get anything other than a Miata (e.g. C4 Corvette, Nissan Z[X], Porsche 928 or Boxster, etc.)?
i've got a c4 and 986S and driven a bunch of miatas, if you can afford it the 02+ 986S is a million times more fun. I wouldn't go 928 or Z, heavy and underwhelming. 951 are also fun. Put the plywood on the bug roof. Drive them all & decide...
 
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Honeydew

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Is a normal Ranger bed not big enough to fit 4x8 sheets in?

I wish it were possible to get an "indestructible Hilux" (as seen on Top Gear) in the United States; then my decision would be easy.
I believe the latest gen Ranger has a 7 ft length bed and less than 4 ft between wheel wells so you could haul a sheet of plywood perched on the wheel wells with the tailgate down. I said custom flat bed because a local kid has one and it seems to offer a lot of utility and looks cool too.

You are right about the hilux. I saw a brand new armored one at a show in tampa with a 3L diesel. It was in the US on "temporary visa". They had to ask me to stop drooling on their truck.
 

Cogen Man

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I could get a full sheet of plywood in this or on the rack. Sold it for my 2011 Golf TDI. The girl had to go also according to my wife. This shot was pre metal bumpers, 12K winch, offroad lights front and back and a Gobi ladder to the roof.
 

WVU TDI

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Would I be stupid to get anything other than a Miata (e.g. C4 Corvette, Nissan Z[X], Porsche 928 or Boxster, etc.)?
At $5-$10k I don't think there's anything close to the Miata.

Early 350Z maybe, but they had some pretty major issues. i.e. Never getting more than 10k miles out of front tires.

And if you would even consider a C4 Vette, I'd grab a convertible LS1 Trans Am/Z28 Camaro for the money.
 

Lug_Nut

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Could be worse. Does anyone remember this:



Fortunately, they were just gassers. ;)

Scott
Unfortunately it wasn't mine.....

regarding the compact truck bed size: First generation Dakota trucks were available with 8 foot beds. I believe they had specific rails located in the bed walls just above the fenders on which 4x8 sheets could be laid. The 4x8 sheets wouldn't fit between the fenders, but would fit above the fenders.
 
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mrchaotica

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very tough question. If you want something kinda fun, why not an 05+ Legacy GT? They go really well and have tons of space (in a wagon). Around here, they start at around 10k.
I should probably make it clear that I'm not trying to find a single vehicle that can haul stuff and be sporty; I'd rather have it do one or the other well.

Besides, I'm going to save the sport wagon/sports sedan thing for when I have kids (and then it'll be something like an Evo or CTS-V).

At $5-$10k I don't think there's anything close to the Miata.

Early 350Z maybe, but they had some pretty major issues. i.e. Never getting more than 10k miles out of front tires.

And if you would even consider a C4 Vette, I'd grab a convertible LS1 Trans Am/Z28 Camaro for the money.
Can Firebirds/Camaros go around corners?

Also, what about RX-7s/Supras/300GTs/300ZXs? I never said I was looking for something late-model, just that it needs to be halfway decent. In fact, sub-$5K is fine too.

regarding the compact truck bed size: First generation Dakota trucks were available with 8 foot beds. I believe they had specific rails located in the bed walls just above the fenders on which 4x8 sheets could be laid. The 4x8 sheets wouldn't fit between the fenders, but would fit above the fenders.
Having to carry stuff with the tailgate down down doesn't bother me. What would bother me is a bed that's too narrow... I imagine that suspending a sheet of drywall across the wheel wells might cause it to snap in half.
 

WVU TDI

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Can Firebirds/Camaros go around corners?

Also, what about RX-7s/Supras/300GTs/300ZXs? I never said I was looking for something late-model, just that it needs to be halfway decent. In fact, sub-$5K is fine too.
Of course they can :mad:

All of those are INCREDIBLY expensive to maintain/fix.

300ZXs (especially the turbo/All-wheel steering ones) are the most unreliable POSs in the automotive world.

Oh wait, 3000GTs are worse. 3000GTs (especially the turbo/AWD ones) are the most unreliable POSs in the automotive world.

Oh wait, the RX-7s are even worse. RX-7s (especially the ALL OF THEM) are the most unreliable POSs in the automotive world.

Its too bad to because, in my opinion, the FD RX-7s and late model 3000GTs are the best looking Japanese cars of the last 30 years, with the flippy headlight NSXs coming in a very close 3rd.
 

Lug_Nut

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idi: 1988 Bolens DGT1700H, the other oil burner: 1967 Saab Sonett II two stroke
Having to carry stuff with the tailgate down down doesn't bother me. What would bother me is a bed that's too narrow... I imagine that suspending a sheet of drywall across the wheel wells might cause it to snap in half.
There are pockets formed into the inner bed in which one places 2x4s running across. These keep the center of the sheets supported as well as the edges.
 

Pat Dolan

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Unless you are in the business, buying a truck for a few trips a year makes no sense. If you MUST have one, get a beater for a few hundred bucks and use it when needed. Trailer makes more sense, but an older pickup is about the same price (thinking late '60s Chev with 6 banger).

As to sports cars that are reliable and economical, there is really only one - Miata. For $10k, you can either get a super creampuff or a nice car and the mods to make it VERY quick. check out miata.net BTW: I have had most of the other cars on your list, as well as Miatae. The MX5 is hands down the most reliable and best supported in aftermarket - and best soloII competitor.
 

bhtooefr

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The Miata is dirt cheap to run, because the first and second gen have almost no components specific to them - the engines are out of economy cars (the 1.6 is the 323 GTX engine with higher compression and no turbo, the 1.8 is the earlier revision of the Protege 1.8 DOHC engine,) the transmission is a variant of the RX-7 version of a family used in everything from RWD 626s, to pickups, the rear end is either off of the same 323 GTX on 1.6L cars, or a variant of the RX-7 version of a family also used in the 626s an d pickups, etc., etc.

Other things to look at, though, along the economy-car-becomes-sports-car lines... Fiero, MR2... and that's about it. Not very practical - the general rule is, if you want practical and mid-engined, you go Porsche Boxster - but not bad cars. On the Boxster, though, cheap ones can need very, very expensive fixes that make a BHW balance shaft module look extremely cheap.

On the pickup front... you can get one of the indestructible Hiluxes - the trick is that it'll be a 1995 or older, and you'll pay enough for it to pay for the repairs on a Ranger and then some. You can even get a diesel between 1981 and 1988, with a turbo in 1986-1988, but those go for absolutely stupid money - probably cheaper to get an off-the-shelf Toyota bellhousing adapter for a TDI, and swap a TDI in. If it's called a Tacoma, you don't want it.
 

SisuKid1975

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...
I wish it were possible to get an "indestructible Hilux" (as seen on Top Gear) in the United States; then my decision would be easy.

Once in a Blue Moon, you can find one in the US. Rare, hard to get parts for. But they do show up every once in a while. I think they sold about ten of them here. It was around the same time that GM ruined the reputation of diesel with US consumers, and I imagine Toyota had difficulty selling them for that reason, despite the fact Toyota diesels tend to be very good.
 
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mrchaotica

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The Miata is dirt cheap to run, because the first and second gen have almost no components specific to them - the engines are out of economy cars (the 1.6 is the 323 GTX engine with higher compression and no turbo, the 1.8 is the earlier revision of the Protege 1.8 DOHC engine,) the transmission is a variant of the RX-7 version of a family used in everything from RWD 626s, to pickups, the rear end is either off of the same 323 GTX on 1.6L cars, or a variant of the RX-7 version of a family also used in the 626s an d pickups, etc., etc.
What sort of Miata should I be looking for (year, engine, trim level, etc.?) I'm leaning towards a second-gen because of the headlights, but beyond that I don't know that much about them.

Other things to look at, though, along the economy-car-becomes-sports-car lines... Fiero, MR2... and that's about it.
Is the MR2 Spyder in my price range? Would it be any better, performance-wise, than a similarly-priced Miata?
If it's called a Tacoma, you don't want it.
Aside from the fact that they got bigger, why would I not want it?
 

bhtooefr

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For Miatas, they're all good, except for arguably 1990-1991.0 ones, due to an issue with the crankshaft pulley coming off the nose.

If you want second-gen (I'll note, however, that the headlights are widely considered to suck on the second-gen Miata, whereas the first-gen, you can put an $80 set of real Hella e-codes on that work quite well), you get three engine choices, really - the "1999"-2000, the VVT 2001-2005, and the 2004-2005 turbo. Something to keep in mind is that the early ones have intake clogging (they were the first Miatas with EGR), and the later ones need premium gas (but the VVT ones have a lot more bottom-end torque.)

(Why did I put quotes around 1999? Because the 1999 model year started circa November 1997.)

While I'm at it... the first-gen, you get two engine choices. 1.6L, and 1.8L. 1.6s, note the comment about the early ones earlier. 1.8s are 1994-1997, and have more torque, and more power. And, the tallest geared Miatas are the 1994-1997 1.8s, if you care about fuel economy in a car like this.

As for MR2 Spyders... yes, they are available in your price range. One thing I'll say, though, is that at the autocrosses I've seen, Miatas beat the MR2 Spyders. But, if you want to play with a mid-engine car...

Finally, as for why you don't want a Tacoma... well, this is in reference to you wanting a Hilux... the first-gen Tacoma is a Hilux cab on a cheapened, Americanized chassis. (Remember, elsewhere, people ask their Hiluxes to do things that people would get an F350 for, here, so cheapening the chassis of the Tacoma made sense.) The second-gen Tacoma is an Americanized cab on another Americanized chassis.
 

mrchaotica

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If you want second-gen (I'll note, however, that the headlights are widely considered to suck on the second-gen Miata, whereas the first-gen, you can put an $80 set of real Hella e-codes on that work quite well), you get three engine choices, really - the "1999"-2000, the VVT 2001-2005, and the 2004-2005 turbo. Something to keep in mind is that the early ones have intake clogging (they were the first Miatas with EGR), and the later ones need premium gas (but the VVT ones have a lot more bottom-end torque.)
Which ones need premium? The VVT 2001-2005 and the 2004-2005 turbo, or just the turbo?
While I'm at it... the first-gen, you get two engine choices. 1.6L, and 1.8L. 1.6s, note the comment about the early ones earlier. 1.8s are 1994-1997, and have more torque, and more power. And, the tallest geared Miatas are the 1994-1997 1.8s, if you care about fuel economy in a car like this.
For a first-gen, is there any reason not to want the 1.8 (or rather, to prefer the 1.6 instead)?

And what about transmissions? Are they all 5-speed, or did some come with 6-speeds? Are there any problem transmissions to avoid (like the VW 01M)?
 
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