You can make a honda go around a track as fast as just about anything, but it still does not "handle" as good as a proper 50/50 rwd sports car. I'd rather have a 200whp well balanced proper sports car than a 300whp FWD turd. But i live in an area that is all mountain roads and tiny backroads. On the highway or a commuting car I may feel different.

For a DD, even my integra is "fun" and could be made to handle great. I assume the mx6 would be similar. What do those things weigh?

Thanks for all the info man, I'm going to seriously consider getting rid of my honda for one. I can sell the honda for more than it's really worth (honda tax ftw) and buy a clean example pretty easily. It would be really fun to have a reliable 200whp on my DD, and I really think they look pretty awesome too.

I guess that's the difference. I measure performance with numbers, and don't care how the numbers are achieved. FWD, AWD, RWD, YourMomWD, whatever. Fast is fast. My MX6 is faster around a corner than my Miata. Ergo: Handles better.

Given a 200whp Miata and a 300whp turdbox FWD car... fuck it. We'll use my own cars as an example. ;)

Given a 240-250whp Miata and a ~350whp turdbox MX6 for some fun backroad shenanigans, i'll just take the faster car.

I've gotten some pretty big backlash over the years concerning these MX6s and how i do things with them vs how other people do them. I prefer to play to strengths rather than fight weaknesses. Some people have a very deep-rooted issue with that.

My MX6 weighs just under 2600lbs. They aren't lightweights, but aren't pigs, either. They're built like vaults, everything is overbuilt and heavy. Your average daily driver with a full interior and working everything will be in the 2700-2800 range. They don't feel that heavy, and i doubt it'll be disappointing coming from an Integra.


I'll spam you with any leads i find on nice ones in your general area. :)

Understood, that is a reasonable argument too. It's all personal preference beyond performance numbers. I didn't build my miata for performance numbers, just for pleasure. And it delivers.

Please DO spam me with any good deals you see. I'd be willing to make a trip for the right price.

The honda is ~2700lbs, so likely not much different there. I have no doubts they can handle well, too. I'd probably keep it mostly stock suspension, or if i were to upgrade it would be for comfort and not raw performance. i like my DD's to be nice, comfortable, with a/c, powersteering, good stereo, etc.

This thread has gone from bad to worse.

I feel like you may as well start hunting for a '90 Talon TSi AWD.

Yo, give me that.

Yes, without a second thought.

Am I the only person that loves me some rotary? I mean, as a DD, hell no, but as a weekend track car or street car, YES. Sure, they have a shit ton of issues and you really need to know how to take care of them plus finding a good builder for the motors, but the powerband is nuts. I'll own one someday, and I'll never LSx swap. Get the motor sorted out, and be happy.

Yes, this is totally doable if the rotary is NA. I'd totally rock a three rotor NA, even in a daily car and expect it to be dead nuts reliable. The formula Mazda guys can go several seasons without a rebuild. It's when you add boost and try to make it fun that it sucks. If you had something small and light enough that a two rotor NA would do the job, more power to you. Only trouble is, a built NA rotary is a thirsty beast, expect mileage in the low teens at best which makes it a poor candidate for daily use but tons of reliable (and fairly cheap) fun on the track.

This thread illustrates that there's a right and wrong way to do everything, and as usual, most people are fixated on the wrong way and the results it gives.

This is what I don't understand with most people. If you can't afford to do something right, then don't do it. OR, be smart with your money and save! I'm 18 years old and I am able to afford a $15,000 car plus having the cash to race it and do mods, but I understand that it all comes with time and discipline.

How did you save 15k by 18? Genuinely curious.

If i had SAVED $15,000 by 18... that would have meant that i cleared more than that after bills and shit were paid in a 2 year timespan.... I would STILL be working that same job if that were the case... lmao

I guess its doable if there were no other bills...
Its only $7500 per year, assuming only having worked since 16

you guys are assuming he bought the car outright... this was a bad assumption on your parts.


shame.


being able to afford a $15,000 car means he's able to spend $200 a month on a payment.

Thats what i did... i was 18, and bought a $34,000 Mini Cooper JCW...
I worked 1 full time and 2 part time jobs... Not that it made it any less Irresponsible.

BUT... he said he SAVED the money. Maybe he meant downpayment though... idk

Worked hard and got a good job (combination of kissing ass and work ethic), started car pooling to work and back, and didn't spend unnecessarily. I'm not buying the car outright. $4200 down, and because I'm 18 and have no credit, plus it's an 8 year old car, my loan sucks. 48 month at 13%. Expecting to pay $350-360 a month and insurance is gonna be around $150. Good for a teenager actually for full coverage (flawless driving record so far, knock on wood). Gonna try to refinance a year or two from now, to get a lower interest rate. Part of my reasoning for getting this MSM was to build credit early, so I didn't want to save and buy it straight up with cash.

My advice: buy a $500 car and spend the rest on hookers and blow. being tied down to a car payment this young and in this shit economy is a dumb idea. You're lucky you can be a hard worker...


13%. rofl.

The economy is fine doing what I do. I'm a photographer at (currently, they may shuffle me around again) Lone Star Chevy here in Houston. I'm a subcontractor, and the company I work for is growing quickly now. I'm secure in this job, and plan to keep it for the next five years or so. Still have a year of high school left, and then 4 years of college. After that, who knows. I'm hoping that I'll be in a management point somewhere down the road and then maybe I'll move to Colorado if all goes well and try to move along with actual photography (it's what I'll be majoring in). Even with that ridiculous payment, I'm still good on money, and I'm going to throw more than that monthly when I feel like it.

In-before-older-guys-try-to-give-Ethan-a-bunch-of-sound-financial-advice-earned-through-the-mistakes-they-made-themselves-and-then-Ethan-ignores-all-of-it-because-he-is-convinced-he's-got-it-figured-out.

I.E. he is going to do what many of us did when we were 18.

hahaha... W-I-N......

we all learn eventually i spose... lol

The words "steady job", "photographer", and "contractor" should never be used together. I hope for the best for you, but every photographer I've known has had a pretty interesting job history.

Don't get yourself in a tight spot. You are 18, you don't need a 15k dollar car.

Actually, ignore what I just said and get a FD rx7 :bowrofl:

Just don't give me shit when I start a build thread please!

Nobody will give you shit on your build... Unless you do exactly everything that you shouldnt do, and expect amazing results. lol

Hellaswagstanceddd bro.
No. I won't be doing that. No dorifto either.

Do you want to play the Rape Game?

Oh yes, please doctor.:giggle:

You're already not playing it right.

I figured. Oh well, live and learn.

fixed

:fawk: Okay, I get it now. I knew I had heard it somewhere.

Well now that my clever analogy has been missed, butchered, and is now a good half page away from the post in which it would have made sense underneath....

Agreed. While I didn't find a turbo rotary THAT unreliable, an n/a rotary is so much more reliable. My favorite cars I've ever owned have been my FB n/a rotaries. My black '83 with the Mikuni 44mm carbs and RB full street port exhaust was the best sounding car I've ever owned, and the most responsive and most fun car I've had. Plus it was a fucking breeze to work on, with all emissions stripped off. It literally had 2 or 3 lines, and less than half a dozen connectors, then two nuts on the engine mounts and the engine was ready to come out. Diagnosing any issues it did have was simple. I miss that car so much. Unfortunately I could never get a title for it, and had to scrap it.

My turbo FC with basic mods was super reliable, I was talking mainly about FDs.

Agreed, FBs are rad, never had one to call my own though, just driven friends.

The only reason my Turbo II was ever unreliable was how butchered the engine electrical and emissions were. There is no other car like the FB to me. A properly built, carbed FB is my ideal everything car. Daily, fun weekend, occasional track, whatever.

I think if i ever decide to try a rotary, a FB would be for me. One with a nice n/a 13b swap, or one of the rare models that came with that motor. Sounds like fun.

I've heard of the handling on the FB being similar to a miata feel-wise, but the miata has more potential and "better" handling overall.

You'll want to do something about the steering on an FB. Seriously the worst thing about those cars, and something that ruins the whole thing for me.


HERP DERP RAW SPORTS CAR WITH RECIRCULATING BALL STEERING BOX.

Even with sloppy worn out suspension and tall sidewalls, it had a real nice feel to it. Nothing mind blowing, but a reasonably nimble little car. Miata does have more potential for sure, but an FB can achieve levels that most would be happy with.

I never found it that much of an issue. Ratio was a bit slow, but mine was snug and slack free, and pretty responsive. Though it did lack feedback, which is a pretty big negative. Otherwise, given all of the positives for me, I was able to overlook that little issue and keep a big shit eating grin on my face while zipping around town. No sound is better to me than that car with the big Mikuni carbs and the full RB exhaust, revving up a little past the redline.

On a related note, I wish now that I had kept all of my 12A parts to build a nice streetport carbed engine, just to have for when the time comes to buy my next FB. I will own another one day. I sold all of the parts for a pretty nice chunk of change though. About $800 for the old housings and rotors alone, plus $400 for a 15 year old rusted out RB exhaust. I only paid like $1200 for the whole car several years before that. So I got some fun out of it, and made a little profit.