Best US "Tuner Car" for $9-13k?

[northmiler89]

Alright, I know this will bring a lot of bickering, BS and fanboi's but if you had $9-13k (give or take) to spend on a car to modify and stance in the US, what would it be?

I want to pick up another car soon and figure I will have about that much cash around. I figure Id see what guys who have actually owned these cars think and what people in the market are looking at for a new ride.

I want something that can be made pretty quick (low 12second range and able to go faster with a bit more $ invested) , get decent gas milage (22city/25 or more highway), look good and not crazy to repair/maintain.

My thoughts...

Suby WRX- Pros- fun motor, sounds good, good aftermarket, awesome community
con- weak ass trans, tends to spin bearings and eat piston rings

Mazdaspeed 3- Pros- super fun, makes power with little mods, fun interior
con- HPFP issues and weak rods

e36 m3- Pros- fun, nimble, stanceworks coils, great sound, looks great from the factory
con- mod options suck, expensive repairs, every douche has one

e39 m5- Pros - classic body, comfy interior, badass, sick sound
cons- crazy expensive repairs, higher milage

350z/g35- pro- sound amazing, rear end kicks out on demand, pretty good looking, tons for sale and "cheap"...stanceworks coils
cons- tons of them on the road, little underpowered (early models), expensive n/a parts and FI

honda s2k (latest car that i think could be worthy) pros- fun, agile, great trans, cheap parts, lots of FI options, reliable, decent gas milage, tons of after market options
cons- tons of great looking modded ones around, not that original, weak differential


Just my thoughts, looking for some ideas and to toss around opinions/experiences!

Thanks

-Brandon

[Stike]

s2k, 350, g35, mazdaspeed3 my top choices from your list.

[exexpat]

"every douche has one" applies to all of the cars below. Do something different, completely different. I'd rather see just about any American or Korean car than another played [model edited to protect the innocent].

Suby WRX- Pros- fun motor, sounds good, good aftermarket, awesome community
con- weak ass trans, tends to spin bearings and eat piston rings

e36 m3- Pros- fun, nimble, stanceworks coils, great sound, looks great from the factory
con- mod options suck, expensive repairs, every douche has one

350z/g35- pro- sound amazing, rear end kicks out on demand, pretty good looking, tons for sale and "cheap"...stanceworks coils
cons- tons of them on the road, little underpowered (early models), expensive n/a parts and FI

honda s2k (latest car that i think could be worthy) pros- fun, agile, great trans, cheap parts, lots of FI options, reliable, decent gas milage, tons of after market options
cons- tons of great looking modded ones around, not that original, weak differential

[Stike]

those could also be cars he likes and is interested in. to me anyways idgaf who else owns one or what theirs looks like. when i do a car its cause i want to and i like it. lol

i'm not going to mod a chevy aveo cause its different. but, just my opinion.

[northmiler89]

"every douche has one" applies to all of the cars below. Do something different, completely different. I'd rather see just about any American or Korean car than another played [model edited to protect the innocent].

No doubt. This is just for something fast and fun to whip around. I am going to sell my m3 and with that money, I will dump it into something that I can make "mine" and really slam around and do WTF ever i want to it.

I remember you from volvospeed about 6 years ago now! Back when Kevins v70t5m was all the talk

those could also be cars he likes and is interested in. to me anyways idgaf who else owns one or what theirs looks like. when i do a car its cause i want to and i like it. lol

i'm not going to mod a chevy aveo cause its different. but, just my opinion.

Yea no doubt. I just put sooooo many miles on cars that I dont want to go buy the low milage e39 m5, c6 z06 or lotus exige s/c that I want to finance because I cruise around like it is a religion and really "use" my cars. I put like 3k miles a month on my cars, I would be paying $2k a month for maintenance on something like those.

I will come across something to really do something special with when it comes to me, but it may be a long time before I find THAT car. The rest are all just to hold me over till then. Then again, kind of sounds like female relations lol... not the marriage kind of guy I just hope I dont manage to finally find THE car that is a keeper at the same time I find "the one" (LOLROFL) and have to pick one or the other... because the chick will lose! ahhahahahhahahahahhaha

[kramerbuccs24]

K swap civic. Don't trust me? Drive one once and rip it through the gears and you'll be smiling for days.

[Lukey]

s2ks do axles and diffs when lowered

[prod0660]

I second the kswap civic ...220hp all motor on a bubble or w.e will haul a**, but depending where you live it'll be a Target for thieves ,,the e39 m5 is one serious piece of machine , BUT its hella expensive to fix ( currently my.528is costing me almost a $1k to redo my cooling system ) m5 require more money but truly epic cars . I know everyone hates em but srt4 are best bang for your buck ..or a 240 well done

[kartikeya]

You can get an older S2K for 13k right?

There are plenty of good options though, including totally underrated stuff like the Infiniti G20.

[Oxer]

S2K gear boxes are made of glass when you try to put power through them. Diffs and axles are made of glass regardless.

[Kielan]

Fd rx-7.

[OSSHWA]

Not trying to toot my own horn here, but i'm surprised that the Mazdaspeed MX-5 didn't make your list. Granted the only made them for two production years, but even so it's not that difficult to find one. They are relatively fast out of the box, extremely nimble, good looking and have a decent aftermarket being as it is a Miata afterall. They can be had for about $13k in great shape w/ low miles too.

[Petis]

Fd rx-7.

^ not on a budget, because no matter what the engine will need replacing/rebuilding eventually.

302 swapped fc rx-7 though Super reliable, cheap, and parts at every auto zone.

Swapped civics with boost are always good for a smile, but fwd gets old fast.

Ka-t powered s13 is an awesome 'bang for the buck' build as they have good torque on low boost (enough to get in trouble at 10psi) and you can go to track/drift days and burn the tires off around the turns.

NA Miata 1.8 with boost is a good platform for grip and drift and will keep you smiling with that 'I get to drive a go-kart on the road' feeling, every day of the week. They are small as hell, but they are more comfortable than a s2k. I'm 6' tall and my miata was way more comfortable to drive than my buddies s2k, and both were slammed on the ground (less than 1'' subframe clearance).

[kartikeya]

FD RX-7 is a good idea. Shoulda thought of that. Shopping smart, and proper maintenance with a few preventative mods can make it plenty reliable.

Downside to an NA or NB Miata is that you have 0 storage space. Trunk is a joke, and there's no room for things inside if you have a passenger and the top down. I wouldn't recommend it as an only car.

I'm gonna throw SC300 or MKIII Supra 2.5R into the suggestion box though. IS300 too, actually.

[Kielan]

LS1 swapped FD?
Mk4 R32?

BMW 540i
NA Miata
FC RX-7
Mercedes 190e