Stuck between Viper and Porsche 996TT

Dare I say it to you, what the hell.... Z06. There, I said it. If you want something to beat the chit out of and is cheap to mod and fix you gotta go with the Vette. I keep my eye open (www.corvetteforum.com) for a nice 2001-2002 beater. Those poor guys who bought them a year or two ago and put about 10k in mods into them are getting crushed in the resale market.

P.S. I'm with your wife on the blue with white stripe Viper though....

 

Although I was only there a week, I had the same feelings about being there in Maui. I stayed at the Marriot in La Haina and after a few days roaming around I'd seen it all. Every morning there were spectacular views to wake up to. And it was very peaceful and relaxing. There doesn't seem to be any middle ground, just peasants and well-to-do types....I hope this statement doesn't offend anyone, but that's how I saw it. I do remember riding the old British double-decker bus called the La Haina Express around a bit....that was kinda fun. Like you said Allenlambo...nice to visit but.....

 

I spent 4 whole years on Windward Oahu, so I'll add to what's been said:

- Cockroaches. Everywhere. The 3-4inch ones are called B-52's. I woke up one night with a 6"+ centipede on my arm -- see photo for a sample.

- If you live on the wet side of the island where the rain comes in, as I did, everything metals rusts badly. Stone nicks on the car become orange streaks in weeks, dripping orange blobs in a few months, and in about a year can be a hole through the metal. Irons last about a year-18mos before, other appliances crap out much faster too.

- In Honolulu is not as bad, but for me WalMart was 45mins, a decent grocery store 35mins (ie. one that doesn't have $7 milk, $3 bread or $6 cereal). If Costco had a bank they'd have your whole life in check!

- Oahu has so many theaters now movie screens are like 1 for 10 residents, so that's a common activity.

- Half the clothing collections in various stores are too warm/hot to actually wear there, and shorts seem to stay up in price year round. They actually sell winter/seasonal stuff there. But, you can wear sandals year round... and no one thinks different if you're only wearing the $2 ones from the supermarket (Surfah brand). If you like clothing, it can be frustrating because wearing a sportcoat or suit means certain death by heatstroke.

- The 2-lane rural highways around the islands are some of the most beautiful in the world, but alas, the 25-35mph speed limits and endless legions of dawdling Mustang driving tourists ruin most drives. Honolulu has absurd traffic - up there with Boston or Seattle rush hours.

- Real estate prices are so high because of Japanese speculation in the late 80's-early 90's when they were riding high. They drove up prices statewide something like 350% in a few years. What's ironic is that the real estate's value as rental and vacation property means even middle-class locals can't afford to buy houses now.

- The laidback lifestyle is pleasant, but not if you're a capitalist with things to do. Last year Forbes wrote that it's political economy is on par with Cuba, and that doing business there was voluntary financial suicide. The Governor got pissed, but hey, what can he do?

- That leads to the two biggest problems: no great high-end jobs, and little room for economic growth. There's not much there aside from tourism and related real estate. There's not a lot of room to expand, and commercial development is not viewed highly there. Wages are high and transportation costs unbearable, eliminating any fabrication or industry not involving macadamia nuts or woven baskets. Pineapples there come from Thailand and the Phillipines, even all the cute Hawaiian souvenirs and fabrics are made in China.

So, what happens is you live there and you feel like not much is happening and that you're 'out of the loop' as to progressing personally and executing any personal plans. Like Frogman said, you feel like you're in Groundhog Day. You can't do much from there, especially young people - in my college business program all the talk was "when I move back to the Mainland... " or "when I move to (insert Asian country here)..."

If you were retired (like my stepfather), that would be different. But it's certainly not a place to get started, unless you're committed to the islands by family. Even a Honolulu law partner told me to go to SoCal and not Oahu, because the big businesses there were using LA and SD firms nowadays anyway. If you're 'going somewhere in life,' it means somewhere other than Hawaii, unfortunately.

 

Wow thanks for the insight. Man are my dreams based on warped reality! I thought Hawaii was a great place.

Well so cal it is. Probably law school here and practice here. My goal in life is to make 65% of Ryan's earnings, then I should be golden

 

allan, again, try the viper! Ive never driven either, but you seem to like MUSCLE and the viper also has the "wow" factor, which is cool, and its something you havent had...the porsche is a great car, but youve been there and turboing or s/cing the viper isn't even necessary, LPE has a 600 HP NA kit! add the juice and your good to go, i REALLY like the SRT-10 too, abs brakes, and an interior designed by a japanese...so it might work! longtern, the engine should last, its so simple, low stress. lemme know what you think of my rationale only problem is i think youd want a coupe, tell dodge to bring it! and support an american car! hehe. or get a ford GT

 

One of the greatest stories I've heard yet.
Still sounds like wishfull thinking though.

 

The bras gotta go. I liked the red one with the white rally stripes you were looking at before.

 

The interior on that one is really nice. I love red on black. But I still like the exterior on the other one better.

 

hahahha

get an ACR if you do get one.
How much does it cost to get a car shipped to you out there? Just curious.

 

My roommate got his car shipped from CA to Hawaii last summer for $1100.

 

Hmm... not as bad as I thought.

 

Allan,

There was a 2002 viper for sales here. Red with white stripes. I think it is supercharged with NOS (though the nos was never hooked up). I can check if it is still for sale for you if you like.

 

The Viper does certainly give a lot of bang for the buck. You think they drop in price so much just because they are Dodges? I mean the production numbers are fairly low. BTW Allan, don't you like the Hennessy Venom 600 or 800?

 

Allan, def a coupe? remember, the 2003 gives the all-important .3 liter upgrade! also, it is ergonomically superior, and if you don't mind a convertible...