For 12 years I only drove 2 seaters, 5 miatas and a 350z. I never regretted it, especially with the miatas. If I ever needed room, I opened the top.

I have carried many boxed guitars and amps to ship out using my miatae. I even used one to move a glass topped dining room table. I covered the trunk with a blanket, tied the legs to my boss frog roll bar, and carefully set the glass on the passenger seat. Drove real careful and everything made it in one piece.

I drive a Camry now, and for that last 4 years it has been slowly sucking my soul out. On a whim I test drove a 2019 mx5 last week.

I found my smile, a a glimmering hope happiness!

Now I just need to crap out $30k and I can be a “normal” person again.

With an X3 (or some SUV, or minivan in the household), I think you can confidently go sporty for your car. I drove a 3 series and 5 series for multiple years and loved it. I'm in a Subaru now as I needed to go automatic due to joint issues. I'm doing better now and actually considering transitioning back. The M240xi is on my list as a possibility. The M3 Comp is on my list as a dreamsickle.

This last May, I was stopped at a light 11:30 at night... Was headed back to hospital with wifes belongings as she had been admitted that evening...

A tired driver with a 3/4 ton Chevy truck, and heavy custom bumper hit me at 45mph... He was yawning, and didn't see me stop or light change... thankfully he swerved and hit me in right rear of car. 2009 Corolla.... No, not sporty, but small...

It crushed in back of car, wrinkled side of car on passenger side, and torqued vehicle so hood would not align...

I did get to see my wife in Hospital, but via ambulance. :-)

I was alright other than being very sore for sometime, and still bothers the heck out of me looking in my rear view mirror at a light watching all the folks not paying attention to the road...

All this to say... Bigger wins. Every time. His truck had a scratch on the bumper, literally, a scratch...

Give me metal, give my family metal, sporty cars are fun, BUT, Bigger always wins...

Been driving my BMW for 9 months now every day. It beats my old truck for getting around in traffic, but is stiff on the road and just not very comfortable for the hour and a half drive I have to make.

I am going to buy me another truck this winter as a daily driver.

quote:

Originally posted by aileron:
I try to run the Bullitt daily, even when my 4WD truck would be a better choice. 480HP, 6-speed manual, RWD with studded tires - what could be more fun?

And unlike some owners of exotic cars, who merely title their cars there, you actually live in Montana. My son just bought one of those Bullitts and it's pretty cool.
I had a spoiled childhood. In 1958, when I turned 16, my dad bought a 1957 Thunderbird. Officially, it was his car but I drove it through high school and college and grad school. I had an uncle, who owned a Cadillac-Pontiac dealership and just before I got married in 1967, I ordered from him a 1967 Pontiac GTO convertible. It had the HO engine, Hurst shifter, the works. It was a hot rod although today your average Nissan Maxima would blow its doors off 0-60. My wife at the time, made me sell the GTO after a few years because we had a child and the GTO was not air-conditioned (who orders an HO engine with air conditioning?). In 1974, still smarting from the GTO sale, I bought a silver 1971 Corvette T-Top with red interior and I still love that color combination. I outfitted it with chrome Dayton wire wheels and drove it for twenty years. Great car and a real head-turner. One day, I noticed I was having more and more trouble getting in and out of it. For a time, I tried to convince myself I was becoming taller but finally had to face reality, age. Since then, it has been a succession of 4-wheel drive SUV's. Currently, it's a 2017 Subaru Outback, which Consumer Reports assures me is the best vehicle for senior citizens- OUCH! My younger brother continues to carry the torch. He has a garage filled with exotics including two Ford GT's , the original and the current one, a Lamborghini and a Ferrari. Moral of the story, go into Law not Medicine.

my daily driver was a 97 T100, then a 200 Tundra (both bought new) until 2010,

still have the Tundra, but the daily driver was a 2010 then a 2013 Mini Cooper S,

no regrets, would still be driving the 13 if some asshole in a Silverado had not totaled it for me,,,

not a long range car, as in great around town (my avg drive was 30 minutes to work), but it would be tiresome on a long distance trip sometimes (depending on road conditions)

they are quick,
handle better than most cars even think about,
and off and on ramps were a dream,

A Camry is my "sporty" car. Wife wants a SUV and it is her turn to pick

My two sporty cars were a 350z and then a 2015 5.0 Mustang. They were both daily drivers i.e. my commuter car. I'm in one of those jobs where I can't stay home in inclement weather, so for now I'm in a Jeep Rubicon. The sports cars were definitely fun to drive, but now that I've turned 40, I'm more likely to be the guy cruising along at or under the speed limit, instead of driving like I stole it.

quote:

Originally posted by r0gue:
With an X3 (or some SUV, or minivan in the household), I think you can confidently go sporty for your car. I drove a 3 series and 5 series for multiple years and loved it. I'm in a Subaru now as I needed to go automatic due to joint issues. I'm doing better now and actually considering transitioning back. The M240xi is on my list as a possibility. The M3 Comp is on my list as a dreamsickle.

What's the word on the AE ND?

No.

Get on with it.

Yes! After years driving a 3/4 ton towing machine as a commuter, I retired and bought a MINI Cooper Clubman. No regrets.

I drive a Mustang Mach 1 with 6 speed manual transmission. Car before this was a BMW M550 that was Dinan tuned and I regretted the extra 4 doors. My wife and I have almost always had a sporty car and an SUV since about 1994. We flipped flopped back and forth when kids came into the picture. Before the Mustang, the last manual transmission was a 2002 Nissan Maxima. I do not regret the Mach 1 at all, it is fun to drive and the harsh suspension is part of the fun. I don’t put a ton of miles on this car and don’t have to drive it in the snow and ice. Biggest drawback is the lack of options in the tire size (the rear’s specifically 315/30-19) which limit my options and have an entry price @ $500 per tire.

It’s sad that more vehicles do not come with manual transmissions. I have no time to play on the phone or get distracted because I’m focused on driving the car… the way it should be.

My Mercedes from earlier in this thread is gone.
Briefly had a base Mini convertible, fun but the effects of sitting for over a year were showing problems.

Daily now is a 2017 Fiesta ST.
6 speed manual, tight suspension, and still gets 30mpg

I am on my third Miata (MX-5).
I’ve had a 1997, 2007, and now a 2006 that a previous owner did heavy suspension and engine mods on.
It sounds great, has great performance for a small car, and is very reliable.
There’s JUST enough room in it for my 72 year old full sized body.
Always three pedals w a 6 Speed. No regrets.
Just remembered, wife has a 2001 SLK230. Only two pedals..

Accomplice, read this and follow he guidelines: https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...0601935/m/6240074315

quote:

Originally posted by p113565:
I am on my third Miata (MX-5).
I’ve had a 1997, 2007, and now a 2006 that a previous owner did heavy suspension and engine mods on.
It sounds great, has great performance for a small car, and is very reliable.
There’s JUST enough room in it for my 72 year old full sized body.
Always three pedals w a 6 Speed. No regrets.
Just remembered, wife has a 2001 SLK230. Only two pedals..

A Miata is on my 'one day' list. Have driven many & love the accessible go-kart driving.
For me, it'd be a late NB or ND.
Seems the Camaro LFX V6 conversion is becoming more popular than the LS swap. 300hp out of the box.
Rob Dahm is doing a 1 rotor swap in an NA that I've been following. IIRC, the whole engine weighs around 100lbs.

A year ago I almost bought a two year old C8 Vette. I could do it as a daily driver in nice weather, I don't care how hard it is to get in and out of it! It didn't have the option to raise the front end two inches for curbs and such.
I still may get one, keep it for a couple years and sell it for a loss, who cares, it'll be fun!!

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
Accomplice, read this and follow he guidelines: https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...0601935/m/6240074315

Okay, I just deleted the post. Sorry for the resurrection of an older thread.

Now why in the world would you delete that post? All my post said was to indicate when you've bumped an older thread. Good grief

What is the very first thing I said in my post?:

quote:

I don't object to the resurrection of old threads, as long as new posts to such threads are relevant to the subject matter at hand. This can actually be of benefit, since an old thread on a given subject might contain quite a bit of information or perspective.

How did you get "I should just delete my post and apologize" out of that? Did you even bother to read what I wrote? It doesn't seem so.

Yes I do. I drive my 2002 Miata or my 2016 GTI more than my trucks. Miata is my spring and fall whip, GTI summer, winter and road trips. Have two trucks and the wife’s Passat if I need something to haul people or “stuff”. No regrets.