Choices for $130k Car?

So I’m planning to buy a fun/semi-DD car late this year. My budget (cash + $30k or less financing) should cover a $130k car….as long as the Oil & Gas market keeps improving. Had planned to buy one of the junior supercars (570S, Huracan, 458, R8+) until all the trouble started, so I think I might downsize rather than wait a couple more years. None of the cars on the list below would be new or super low mile.

So here is a list of cars with asks either within $130k now, or should be by the end of the year. Not looking to pick a car based off your suggestions, but some may have owned them and/or have insight.

In a perfect world, the car would have 550 hp or more, be dual clutch automatic, have up-to-date driver aid technology (don’t care about Nav, radios, and the like), be able to take to work a day or two a week, and provide a sense of occasion.

So the first thing then to note, is all these cars have flaws based on my perfect world description. So with each one, I’ll list my perceived flaw(s).

My car history is a couple of Shelby Mustangs as a teenager, 4 Corvettes over a span of 20 years, a Porsche 996TT for 8 years, currently have a Lamborghini Diablo Roadster in a very subdued bright yellow metallic, so it blends in traffic.


At Or Close to $130k Ask Price:

McLaren 12C – Perceived reliability issues

Lamborghini LP-550 Gallardo – Single clutch transmission, old tech

Porsche 991 Turbo S – Sense of occasion? Looks too much like a standard 911 to feel special?

Porsche 991 GT3 – Assume the sense of occasion is better than the Turbo, still looks too much like a regular 911, is it underpowered (at 475 hp) for street use? Obviously more than I could handle at the track

2014 Audi R8 V10+ - Old tech, at least has a DCT

Ferrari 550 Maranello – So pretty, yet so wrong….probably is too close to the Diablo in function and usage


$110k Ask or Less – Could actually Pay Cash:

Ferrari 430 – Old platform, Single clutch transmission, a little underpowered?

Porsche 993TT – Guilty pleasure, wrong in every respect for what I’m looking for, still love the car


Clearance Rack at Neiman Marcus - $85k or less:

Corvette Z06 Convertible – Make tons of these, antiquated automatic transmission

Gen 5 Viper – Obviously if it was a great car, they would still be making them, manual transmission

Jaguar F-Type R – Heavy, filled with old tech

Nissan GTR – Meh, it’s a Nissan

So am I missing anything that would be a good fit? Would I be better off waiting for one of the junior supercars? I don’t see many options stretching to $160k, maybe just a Ferrari 599.

 

good list but I think regular 993 is around 100k and turbo double that. 991gt3 should be close to 150k. cant go wrong with Porsche cpo used cars

 

For me, it would either be a new Porsche GT3, Viper, or Z06 Vette.



Mark

 

If you're worried about the direction of the oil and gas market, why not sit on your bank roll for a few years until you're feeling more fiscally confident? Or, get something like a 996 generation GT3 for less dough?
T

 

My first question would be...How long is your commute?...Does it involve a lot of stop & go traffic?

Driving a "Performance Car" in a driving environment with NO CHANCE at utilizing it's performance is merely an effort in futility.

Buy 2 DeTomaso Panteras, Use "1" occasionally as a DD & set the other "1" up for the track...WIN/WIN!!!

Caveat..I know the term "occasionally" & "DD" are not synonymous.

 

WOW! Your commute must be something else if 475hp is insufficient!!!

 

Aston DBS. Most likely done with depreciation so you don't have to worry about energy prices.

 

Everyone is different but the BMW i8 is one if the most interesting and beautiful cars around today andis in that price range.

 

Thanks for the comments, appreciate your points of view.

On the 993TT, there are lots of 80k mile cars at $110k asks. Plenty of even 30k mile cars at $160k asks.

There are also plenty of 991 GT3s not to far out of the price range. On carsdotcom alone, there are 5 2015 cars with asks $140k and less, and the 2014s with replaced engines even less so by the end of 2017 they should be at the budget point.

Feel pretty good about 2017 in O&G, and I don't have to buy something immediately.

The commute is 20 miles each way in Houston Texas, so takes between 25 minutes and 50 minutes depending on time of day. This wouldn't be my daily, so if I'm leaving at a heavy traffic time, I can leave it at home. If it turns into just a Fri-Sun car, fine.

I really want a modern car (except for the 2 guilty pleasures) so would not opt for a 996 or a Pantera.

Thanks for the suggestion about Astons, but the couple I have driven have always seemed to underperform vs their claimed statistics AND their tech has always been behind everyone elses.....they look the part though.

 

If that's the case, I would strongly encourage the 993TT.

Drive one.

Matt

 

I was going to say the same thing! I've driven most of the cars on that list and owned a 12c. As a semi-DD, the i8 would definitely be my preferred choice.

i adore mine!

 

I was in the same situation just recently and settled on the Mercedes AMG GT S, ver happy with it. You can get a brand new one for that price. I looks stunning, incredibly fast, sounds amazing and feels like a supercar. All the cars you listed are great but most won't make good daily or even semi daily drivers.

 

+1

 

This would be my pick as well...

 

Maserati GranTurismo...a great DD.
Malcolm

 

amg over maser just bc maser is old, old platform and amg is brand new

 

Funny this car comes up.....tried to drive one last week. A local MB dealer had a used 991 GT3 that I was told they have been sitting on for several months AND a used GTS that had an ask of $110k. So took a trip to drive both.

So I get in there, and the sales guy said NO TEST DRIVES unless the car has been agreed to price wise, set up financing, run credit check, and sign paperwork that I'm buying the car. I'm kind of confused as I am handing over my license and insurance card.....since I've NEVER been refused a drive at the local Lamborghini or McLaren dealership.

So when he looks over my insurance card, he see I have a Lamborghini. So maybe he thinks the policy is harsh so he takes me over to the sales manager. He prattles on about how expensive these are, not everyone can handle them, etc and the policy stands no matter what my experience is.

But then I fire back "but you don't have any issues about my safety though as long as I agree to buy it right?" He stammers a little bit and says yes.

So bottom line if an authorized dealers considers his company's car too dangerous to test drive......they can shove it.

Mercedes Greenway Plaza is a joke....

 

Lambo Diablo.

Or 991 gt3.

 

May I suggest you go to your local BMW dealership and ask for an extended test drive of a BMW i8. I had similar desires as you. I was cross shopping a similar list to yours when my BMW salesman suggested I take an i8 out for an extended test drive. The first day I had it, I liked it. By the third or fourth day, I had to have it. The experience is hard to quantify in raw numbers, which I think is why car magazines adore the car, but some enthusiasts tend to ignore it. I can tell you first hand that the i8 is a fascinating piece of engineering that has many layers to it. She has more personalities than Sybil and each one is completely unique. She is enormously fun to drive on the backroads and can keep up with anything out there in that environment, is a cruise missile on the highway yet still manage to be absolutely serene in full electric mode slogging though Philadelphia on my daily commute. Oh...and I have averaged 45MPG over 8K miles!

All that being said, I could see how it may not be everyone's cup of tea... I would at least take one out for a few days if I were you and see for yourself.

 

Interesting, never had a dealer make such a ridiculous request just for a test drive, that being said I wouldn't hold the entire brand responsible for the actions of one dealer. Before I got my GT i went to a Mercedes dealer in another city to drive the C63 AMG S, the manager was very reluctant and just offered to drive me in the car himself because he's worried about the insurance, he was very apologetic and professional about it though. What's interesting is that shortly after I visited the Ferrari/Maserati dealer in the same city and I test drove several cars no problem. So the experience definitely varies amongst dealers.

As for the i8, seems like car journalists and folks here on FChat really like it, I myself wasn't a fan of the looks, I got a chance to check it out in person and wasn't impressed by the interior, it just felt and looked cheap even though the example i was looking at was well speced out.

 

Horrible dealer. I know Sewell MB GM and Austin MB GM...you will get treated with respect and can drive what you wish (except Sewell doesn't have one).

Don't judge a brand by one idiot dealer...also don't deal with floor guys, get to management. Simple. Good luck.

 

Joe, nice to see you in the discussion...have been following your posts since your Mondial days.

So i8.....Have never even considered it, let alone driven it. My perceptions of the car are that visually it has never appealed to me, and it always struck me as being more of a science project than a sportscar.

As a comparison, I like the NSX conceptually much better, where like the 918, the motors are used as a driver aid, not about fuel conservation.

Of course, the Acura is stupid pricey (only 7 listed on carsdotcom with asks less than $190k)....while there are 19 i8s on the same site with asks less than $100k.

So tell me, how do the two cars compare in your view?
Am I missing the point of the i8?

 

Unfortunately, that kind of disrespect sticks with me, so I could never take it seriously again. Speaks volumes when he puts up these rediculous roadblocks in front of a car his company manufactures. Hard to believe they sell new ones like that....but I guess they do since he made no attempt to walk me 100 ft over to the new car area to get me some assistance there.

Meh, no loss for me, just made it easy to scratch one from the list.

 

I think your right on re i8. Its a good looking car that has decent fuel economy for the performance it gives. Its a gt cruiser, not a sports car. But mid engine and cf chassis with high door sills dont make for practical use so its neither here nor there. Nsx gives 80% hypercar content for 20% cost. Would be at home on track where i8 would not.

 

Thanks! I will always have a soft spot for my old Mondial

The i8 is a really eccentric sports car. It has no track pretensions, so it's is geared towards usable real world performance. In that vein it is more similar to an older Ferrari 355 than a 991 GT3. Still, the thing that shocks most people when they get behind the wheel is how fricken fast it feels. 420lbs of torque can snap your headback pretty brutally at launch. That torque is not reflected on a stop watch, but you feel it immediately whenever you touch the gas... that is the beauty of the electrical motors. The little three cylinder is a marvel in itself. It revs wonderfully and has lots of punch. It makes a ton of HP for its capacity. The icing on the cake being a little electric motor that's attached to the gas engine to fill in the torque gaps while the turbo spools up. The engine has won an international award for good reason. It's actually far more sophisticated than the mini engine, contrary to popular belief. I contacted BMW NA with some technical questions and was given a long winded response from an engineer there via email on the technicals... the little three banger has all sorts of insane technology that allows it to deal with the brutal demands of being in a performance hybrid environment. It can essentially redline from cold all day long without damaging the internals. It's a little beast of an engine.

What I really like most of all is the usability. The i8 has no clearance problems, I take it everywhere. My kids sit comfortably in the back, people love it because of the hybrid thing so I don't get any bad blood, and it is just really easy to live with. I average driving around 1k miles a month In it...

I don't know enough about the NSX to form an educated opinion. I will say that I feel like Buck Rodgers driving the i8. It's also a car that really encourages you to get involved to get the best performance or economy out of it, you have to become educated to the driving dynamics and modes and operate it "professionally". I have thoroughly enjoyed geeking out with this car. It's the new millenniums version of learning how to heel and toe

All that being said... I've blown through tons of cars... and bought enough cars on other people's advice only to sell them two months later because they weren't for me. My best advice is to see for yourself. The dealers are more than willing to flip you the keys for a few days. Take one long enough to form an educated opinion and disregard whatever initial perceptions you have. When I first drove mine... I hated the interior, three days later I loved it. It's a car that for the right person, can really grow on you. At this stage in my life...with enough toys and such limited time, I wanted an uncompromising sports car I could take the kids to school and then to work on Monday and barnstorm with on Sunday. It's that and so much more. It's not perfect...but it fits my needs and my lifestyle perfectly. Maybe you will feel the same way too

Whether you like it or hate it. I would love to hear your thoughts!