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@Mark@weird.autosI have a #WeirdCarMastodon #QOTD
if you were a teen driver in 2024 what car would you want ballin’ on a budget.
@Mark I had a look at what's for sale now between $3k-5k as that would be about my limit. And then for something old but must be quirky AF. And I reckon I'd be rocking this Bongo.
https://www.carsales.com.au/cars/details/1973-mazda-bongo-manual/SSE-AD-17179567/
My first car was a seventies Mazda, if I couldn't find a running Beetle in that price range, I'd love this van to death.
@Mark Volvo wagon. Gustavo Fring may have been a psycho but his taste in cars was beyond reproach.
And there are a few within 200 miles of me around the $2000-4000 range, apparently!
@Mark also at least some of them have 5 cylinder engines, which is at least a little weird
Not sure what budget means nowadays, but maybe a high mileage Lexus IS.
@Mark https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicle?listingId=721069359
14k for one that is barely broken in.
@Basmitharts @Mark
I know the first gen IS is a fav among enthusiasts, but Lexus really luxury’d-up the second gen and damn it’s so nice. I’d still love one to go with my Miata.
@Mark I'd get sonething super low key like a Kia Rondo and LS swap it.
@Mark Miata is still the obvious answer here.
Not sure if you can still find any of the SC 3800-powered GM midsize sedans, but that'd be something else I'd look for.
Honda Fit
Any non-WRX turbo Subaru with 3 pedals (Outback XT)
5-speed V6 S197 Mustang
The most raggedy 3.5L Odyssey I could find
Any manual Mazda3
@wheeljack Honda fit is my pick. Second gen manual is nice but 3.5 gen has CarPlay. Finding a manual is getting hard but most young people want autos. Of my kid wanted a car I would force them to drive stick just to reduce distracted driving.
@Mark I'm looking to be making this very decision/purchase here in about two years. My kid doesn't have to like it, but he does have to at least learn to drive stick. Right now I'm keeping my eyes open for a ratty Miata.
@wheeljack @Mark can you find one in a low price range there?
@wheeljack @Mark yeah you couldn't find a runner here for under $5k, probably more like ten or above now.
@wheeljack I’ll take him For a small Tour of highway on ramps in my fit and he’ll want one. I live smoking cars with double the power and AWD. I do the same ramps in the Audi and it’s not fun at all.
Taught my son to drive in my old NB and it didn't take.
First thing he did after college was move somewhere where he didn't need to own a car.
@Basmitharts @wheeljack Metrocard Is Always The Answer
@Mark My opinion is that this is the perfect time to own something weird and unreliable. It probably shouldn’t be fast though. Setting my budget at about $6k.
A quick scroll on Craiglist doesn’t come up with a ton of interesting stuff, but for the outdoorsy this would be nice.
https://southjersey.craigslist.org/ctd/d/spotswood-1996-jeep-cherokee-se-4dr-4wd/7775703996.html
(Manual — Wait is this rare? Someone ask Dave Tracy)
Best car superlative was won by an eclipse my graduation year. Plus red convertibles are always ballin
https://southjersey.craigslist.org/cto/d/shamong-2007-mitsubishi-eclipse/7781743637.html
@Mark okay, I took this approach: when I was 17, I bought a 38-year-old car. So if I was buying a 38-year-old car today, I’d be looking for a (gulp) 1986 model. And Wolfram Alpha tells me that, in 2024 dollars, I paid the equivalent of $6,854 for that car. So, putting those parameters into my local CL…this has to be the one!
I actually like the looks of the rubber-bumper Spiders, though I’m leery of a seller who can’t spell Alfa. Otherwise, a perfect answer!
https://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/cto/d/redwood-city-1986-alpha-graduate-spider/7778631063.html
@autonerdery the (mis)spelling bothers me too, but yeah, that looks like a fine specimen overall, and a palatable price...
@Mark I've been thinking about this for a while and it's a really hard question to answer. Back in the day I wanted a Eagle Talon with the turbo engine. Now there is something weird you probably haven't thought about in a minute
@Mark what I got was a crappy, beat up old farm truck. If I were in similar circumstances as back then. Then I would probably end up with a beat up old farm truck
@Mark teenager me would have wanted to Challenge her with a Hellcat engine. There's some small possibility I would have been able to afford a V6 Charger