Reply With QuoteMy wifes 50k mile Cooper S rang up around 5K in repairs and tires in 1 year and 10k miles of ownership. It drove great, but was not nearly worth the trouble.
CTS-V, GTO, or Mini Cooper S
In the next couple of years, I will need to get rid of my CR-V. It's been a good family transportation appliance but it's getting up there in miles and I won't need something quite so family-oriented. For under $15K (used), I have found three vehicles that still have four seats but that I think would be fun to own for a while: a CTS-V, a GTO, or a Mini Cooper S. Does anybody have any particular horror stories about any of these or have strong opinions that one is clearly superior to the others?
My wifes 50k mile Cooper S rang up around 5K in repairs and tires in 1 year and 10k miles of ownership. It drove great, but was not nearly worth the trouble.
Was that my old car?Originally Posted by Titus
M3 is always the answer.
No... bought it before yours was for sale, but I do believe I tried out the usability of the back seat of your car at an autocross shortly before buying it.
With the wife or girlfriend?No... bought it before yours was for sale, but I do believe I tried out the usability of the back seat of your car at an autocross shortly before buying it.
M3 is always the answer.
jrj512.
I drive to fast to worry about my cholesterol.
I'd go for the Mini...
Cory
2006 Mazda MX-5 GT (SOLD)
1999 Mazda Miata (FOR SALE)
2004 Chevrolet Z06/Z16
2013 Kawasaki Ninja 650
I've currently got an 06 GTO. It is an absolutely great car, I really love it. I actually was thinking about either this car or the CTS-V prior to purchase and what it boiled down to was for the money, I could afford a much nicer GTO than a CTS-V for the same money. I really wanted 4 doors, but the GTO does have very comfortable and spacious back seats with rear air conditioning as well. The LS2 is fantastic, and for my daily commute I average about 21MPG, not too shabby when I only got 27-28 in my Miata. The other thing that swayed my design was all the horror stories of the rear ends on the CTS-V's. I wanted a low maintenance car and the GTO has done great so far.
I will add however, the few things I will warn about the GTO:
- TINY trunk! For a car its size, it can't hold much, thankfully the back seats are of decent space
- Getting into the back seats is SLOW! You have to wait on the power seats to scoot all the way forward, and they aren't exactly fast
- The shifter has feel like it is in Jell-O. It really is awful. Uses a different design than other LS based cars and feels very disconnected. I HIGHLY recommend your first mod is to get a shifter. I got the Billet Pro, very pricey at $500 but worth every penny
I love the car and plan on keeping it pretty much forever, I also like knowing the car is fairly unique compared to the hoards of CTS's out there, even though mine may be a V
As for the Mini, if I had to get a FWD car, that would be the one, but I have sworn off owning any FWD car. Just a personal preference as I know they are supposed to be great cars, I still enjoy doing the occasional powerslide. A 400HP GTO does this quite nicely, even in stock form.
GTO.
The CTS will cost more and be more expensive to ensure due to brand and I betcha typical of the brand all the gimmicky electricals will stop working at 5 years and the plastic interior with the fake wood will crumble in your hands after 6 years.
I was interested in a Mini and everybody I know that had one where I live loved it for the first few months and then got rid of them within 2 years for what ever reason. The people I know that had them aren't really 'driving enthusiasts' however. I can't go by a car lot now without seeing a couple on it. They are usually automatics tho. Just makes me suspicious.
I drive to fast to worry about my cholesterol.
I'd go with the 'lac.
CTS-V for under 15K?
good luck with that...
I'd go with a Subaru
Cory
2006 Mazda MX-5 GT (SOLD)
1999 Mazda Miata (FOR SALE)
2004 Chevrolet Z06/Z16
2013 Kawasaki Ninja 650
My vote goes to the Goat. They drive nice and I really like the looks inside and out. Plus, you can't quibble with the classic American/Australian layout - big-ass 2-door with 4 seats and 8 cylinders. Grrrr. Get a 6-liter 6-speed and call it a day.
The Mini Cooper will be a blast to drive, but I shudder to think about repair costs on one out of warranty (a German car built in England - yikes!). I guess you should reread Titus' post about that - sounds scary.
The early CTS-V was an impressive car, but a little junky on the inside and chunky on the outside, IMO.
'94 Black & Black & Tan
'99 head swap, JR header, TDR intake & header blanket, MegaSquirt, RB hollow bar, Tein Flex, 15x8 6ULs, HD M2 Sport, FM cat, Borla cat-back, black '95M interior, MOMO Zebrano, IL Motorsport console...
Dyno Days
8/16/08 (bone stock): 103.1 hp/99.0 lb-ft - Dynojet
8/23/08 (Borla cat-back): 108.2 hp/104.1 lb-ft - Dynojet
8/13/11 (more stuff...): 126 hp/116 lb-ft - Mustang dyno
Roger Moore: the Danny White of James Bonds
Thanks for the inputs, guys. These are the kinds of things I was hoping to hear. I hadn't heard of Mini maintenance issues before, so that's good to know.
As for a CTS-V under $15K, yes they are rare, but they pop up every now and then. Who would think you could get a Miata for under $1K, but it happens (even if it's a $1900 one with a hardtop).
CTS-Vs under $15k aren't all that rare. I like the 1st gen CTS-V, but I don't think the styling aged that well.
GTOs don't really do it for me - I like the concept, but hated the "I'm a big Cavalier" exterior styling. I'm also not much of a coupe fan, since the lack of rear doors (imho) renders the backseat relatively useless.
The Mini is cute, but if you want a FWD hot hatch, the Mazdaspeed3 offers more speed, more practicality, and likely lower operating costs over the long term.
My pick for ~$15k four door daily driver fun would be a Mazdaspeed3 or Mazdaspeed6.
Iain
"We don't stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
Exactly.
For instance:
http://chicago.craigslist.org/wcl/ctd/1907609106.html
http://newyork.craigslist.org/brk/cto/1906319315.html
http://austin.craigslist.org/cto/1902897457.html
http://sanantonio.craigslist.org/cto/1902136345.html
I don't think it's a paragon of styling, either but it's better than okay in my eyes. I do like the suede inserts too since we're talking about TX here.
Good points but I actually like the GTO look as long as it hasn't been too pimped out by a previous owner. It would be yellow, btw. Another (questionable) personal preference.
I hadn't actually realized that the MS3's had gotten that low in price yet. Good pick!
Another consideration: the Caddy might be a better date car....
MS3's aren't that expensive new... and you NEVER know what the previous knucklehead did to that turboed car....
Why are you looking at cars is NY and Chicago lol?
Cory
2006 Mazda MX-5 GT (SOLD)
1999 Mazda Miata (FOR SALE)
2004 Chevrolet Z06/Z16
2013 Kawasaki Ninja 650
Because they were examples that disproved your claim.
There was one in Plano this past week that had been at Cars and Coffee. It had a really non-restrictive (read: "loud") exhaust on it but it was pretty nice and less than $15K. It had already sold (quickly) by the time you said they were hard to find.
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