Anyone tried to "quit" being a car enthusiast?

[nick663]

2 thoughts on this:
1.  Buying cars that are older and bottom of the depreciation curve is a good way to enjoy vehicles without going broke.  Something like an E46 M3 could be kept as a 3rd car, driven 2-10k a year, and it'll never lose value.  Same goes for a 996 Turbo, any Japanese halo car from the 90s, etc.
2.  I've actually kind of kicked the track day "bug" by getting heavy into online sim racing.  A good setup for sim racing is sort of expensive (1k on the basic end) but it removes a lot of the headaches of car prep while allowing you to fight with friends on track.  I still have a w2w car that I'm prepping for endurance racing with a few friends but to be honest, I'd rather do sim racing than track days.

To be honest, cars are only money pits if you're buying them very new and eating depreciation or modding them heavily.  If you can stay away from those two issues, cars really aren't that expensive.

I was going to recommend the Ford Focus RS as a WRX alternative for someone wanting to go full boy racer but I couldn't find one for sale under $25k. I guess they must have gotten the head gasket issue sorted out.

Along a similar line of thinking: the Civic Type R is very quick for what it is.  May be a challenge to get one at 25k but they have held their value very well so I wouldn't be opposed to stretching the budget a bit to get into one.  You have to be okay with roughly 30 fake vents and wings though... which is a deal breaker for a lot of people. :)

[joe189man]

Anyone have a recommendation for an enthusiast vehicle that can fit 4 people for around $25k? As in, if you, as a mustachian, wanted to feed the vehicle fix need in your soul and transport 4 people, what would you buy? I found you can buy a 6 year old maserati sedan for ~$25k, or a porsche Cayenne for similar or less. Any type of car, just curious what folks would want

if i had no budget i would love to do a restoration of a ~1996 4 door F-350 to make it a 2021 technology truck.

i drive a 2010 mazda 3 hatchback that has some zoom zoom so it makes driving fun at least

Have you considered a newer Mazda 3 hatch? I do not know what model of 2010 you have, but we recently went from the '06 GT to a low-km '14 GT and I cannot believe how much the fun factor has increased! Not going to pin-you-in-your-seat with 300hp, but certainly enough that even my car-loving DH has fun driving it. I LOVE when there is no traffic on the ski hill road! Zoom-zoom indeed.

i hadn't but looked over the weekend, Mazda has a 3 variant with awd and turbo pushing 250 horse, i test drove the speed 3 when i got mine but the GF now wife cant drive stick so i had to pass, may investigate this more along with other suggestions

[spartana]

Not a car enthusiast but motorcycles. Got my first little dirt bike at age 12, had many dirt and road bikes ever since then - often as my only vehicle - and got my rid of my last road bike a couple of years ago (Ducati Monster - that hot naked Italian just didn't fit in with my lifestyle then and he had to go ;-)). Even worked in a motorcycle shop throughout my teenage years to support my "habit" -  and meet boys! Got an old beater van at 16 so I could haul my bikes to races and to the desert. Even after I FIREd my first trips were long solo motorcycle camping trips on a small Yamaha cruiser I had for years as my "daily driver" (had the sports bike too - a Suzuki GSX/R but not for road trips).


Anyways it's been a couple of years and I am jonesing hard for another bike - probably an adventure dual sports bike. I've morphed my love of motorcycles towards bicycling over the years but doesn't quite scratch the itch. Hoping this thread will talk me down from the ledge. I should probably stop reading blog of the forum members here who are living the adventure motorcycle life like @EndlessJourney .

ETA: I haven't owned a car/vehicle for over a year now and just rent occasionally so am deciding what I should get. That is making my motorcycle road trip lust grow even though I'm trying to be practical and get a small van for road trips.

@spartana,
If I was single & that was your online dating profile I'd be nervously (assuming I'd be just one of the hundreds) replying.  ;) 


I grew up on bikes too.  My dad used to rev the engine on his little Honda to call me home when I was about 5 years old.  I don't remember how old I was when we got the first minibike, but I think I was 8 or 9 when dad bought a junk AMF Harley Davidson 125 as my first real motorcycle.  It was a "team builder" for my little brothers and me, meaning they'd help push it up the hill so I could roll-start it & give them rides. 


Gene & Neda are my heros too.  I follow them on ADVrider (Gene is "Lightcycle" there) and here's their website for folks wondering who they are: [size=78%]http://www.ridedot.com/faq/[/size]

LOL! Unfortunately I think it caused more potential dates to run away screaming.

I've been pretty fixated on various blogs like @EndlessJourney - especially those by solo women doing RTW bike touring (both by motorcycle and bicycle) - but that looks like it won't happen for quite awhile with the pandemic except in my own country (USA). So now having to decide if I'd rather just get another car (most practical and cheapest), a small van (somewhat practical but most expensive and only needed occasionally), or another motorcycle (totally impractical but inexpensive-ish and fun) for longer distance road trips and to use around town when I can't ride my bicycle. Motorcycle lust is real!

[NorthernMonkey]

Look at c90adventures on youtube for someone doing motorcycles round the world on an ultra tight budget. A good 20 hours of youtube black hole

[spartana]

Look at c90adventures on youtube for someone doing motorcycles round the world on an ultra tight budget. A good 20 hours of youtube black hole

Well that was a fun wormhole. Liked the arctic trip. His bike is just a bit too small for me (I'm looking at 650cc and above) but I'm pretty amazed he did it. My longest trip was several months tent camping on a 550cc and it was very easy and comfortable...mostly.

[norajean]

2 thoughts on this:
1.  Buying cars that are older and bottom of the depreciation curve is a good way to enjoy vehicles without going broke.  Something like an E46 M3 could be kept as a 3rd car, driven 2-10k a year, and it'll never lose value.  Same goes for a 996 Turbo, any Japanese halo car from the 90s, etc.

To be honest, cars are only money pits if you're buying them very new and eating depreciation or modding them heavily.  If you can stay away from those two issues, cars really aren't that expensive.

Good advice. Late model cars are generally vulgar, common, uncool and depreciate too fast. Getting something older and wrenching on it yourself is much more fun, cool, and wayyyy less wasteful. The farther back you go the cooler the cars get, easier to work on, and in some cases cheaper to buy. 60s-90s Japanese sports cars are amazing. I nearly picked up a modded Datsun Fairlady roadster last year. I’m still looking for a cool bargain two-seater.
Along a similar line of thinking: the Civic Type R is very quick for what it is.  May be a challenge to get one at 25k but they have held their value very well so I wouldn't be opposed to stretching the budget a bit to get into one.  You have to be okay with roughly 30 fake vents and wings though... which is a deal breaker for a lot of people. :)

[Just Joe]

Another option is building a sleeper. cheap car, big engine. Old car newer engine. Outside plain and cheap.

My version has always been go slow - build out the hobby vehicle over time. Mostly b/c in the past I was either short of time or money. That requires alot of procrastination. ;)

If you want to quit, just go cold turkey. Reasons: Maintenance of hobbies will never end, only slow down. Enough "toys" and that can create quite a cost or a maintenance cycle. As a person gets older maybe that goes from fun to a weight on their mind.

[Kroaler]

I wish sales tax wasn't so high.  I've owned more cars then I can remember.  I can't seem to find a "forever" car.

In a perfect world I'd buy mostly depreciated cars, drive them for a few months till I get bored and fix whatever maintenance items are due in that time my self then sell them and get something else that excited me. 

But without a dealer license the purchase  transaction just takes too high a % of the vehicle price since sales tax alone is a %.   

I actually looked at leasing basically a shack that meets the minimums to have a dealer license in my state.... For reasons I haven't.... But it would be cheaper than eating the transaction cost every time.  If you had some buddies and you guys all went in on it, that would be the way to do it.    Each of your inventory vehicles is basically a slow flip.

I'd like to acquire a Q50 sport Hybrid and daily that for a while. Really good specs for an affordable hybrid.

[ericrugiero]

I wish sales tax wasn't so high.  I've owned more cars then I can remember.  I can't seem to find a "forever" car.

In a perfect world I'd buy mostly depreciated cars, drive them for a few months till I get bored and fix whatever maintenance items are due in that time my self then sell them and get something else that excited me. 

But without a dealer license the purchase  transaction just takes too high a % of the vehicle price since sales tax alone is a %.   

I actually looked at leasing basically a shack that meets the minimums to have a dealer license in my state.... For reasons I haven't.... But it would be cheaper than eating the transaction cost every time.  If you had some buddies and you guys all went in on it, that would be the way to do it.    Each of your inventory vehicles is basically a slow flip.

I'd like to acquire a Q50 sport Hybrid and daily that for a while. Really good specs for an affordable hybrid.

+1 

I've thought that for a long time.  If you shop around you can find good deals.  It's totally possible to buy a $25,000 vehicle, drive it for 6 months and sell it for $25,000+.  The problem is the $1,750 sales tax I would pay to do this.  This makes the transaction costs way too high in most cases.  If they had a "1031 exchange" program like real estate rentals where you only pay sales tax on the difference between purchase and sale price of prior vehicle (or income tax on profit) it would be much more manageable.  Alas, the gov is not interested in making less money. 

[rothwem]

I'd like to acquire a Q50 sport Hybrid and daily that for a while. Really good specs for an affordable hybrid.

Stay far away from these, they use the weird direct adaptive steering that has a clutch on the steering column that allows the wheels to be disconnected from the steering wheel so it apparently feels super weird to drive.  They pan it in such a hilarious way in this car and driver review: https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a15106981/2014-infiniti-q50s-hybrid-awd-long-term-test-review/

I think a cool value in high performance hybrids right now is the Acura RLX sport hybrid, which uses a well received dual clutch transmission, the proven Honda J35 V6, and an electric motor between them. They then put an additional two electric motors on the rear axle for torque vectoring.  Of course since it was an expensive sedan (not an SUV), it sold poorly so they depreciated like crazy. 

[cmou]

Great question, I quit being a "car" guy by quitting being a house/two car garage guy. I realize now that wrenching in the garage was a form of meditation for me so I just look for other ways to get that mental isolation. My wife and I moved to a small apartment in PHX and kept just her SUV. There I became a mountain bike guy with a cheap mongoose fat tire bike so I got my wrenching kicks on that.  Mountain trail days replaced my track days and I could go as often as I wanted for free. Then we moved to a very flat Florida where the closest mountain biking spot is an hour away so I took up skateboarding for the first time at a ripe 37. Theres a skatepark two blocks from my condo and again, you get to gear out and tune for even cheaper than MTBing. I go at 7am when the park is empty and get plenty of old guy thrills learning to skate bowls. costs go down, exercise/health goes up(not including some character building bruises and scrapes). I do also have a small Vespa 150 to get around town faster that scratches the itch when I'm desperate to do vehicle maintenance.

[Just Joe]

Keep downsizing. Next in line is R/C cars and ships in a bottle. ;)

I know what you mean about wrenching as meditation. Its a good thing.

[mtnrider]

Yup.  Quit it back in my 20s.  As a hobby it was too expensive.  And as a side business I realized that I was losing money when looking at the big picture.  I lost some friends when moving away from it.

Plus, where I live, cars older than 10 years or so are rusting away.  It's less fun than the LA scene.

I still do the wrenching on my bicycles, with some of the same wrenches I owned at age 19.

[Just Joe]

Yep, I have some tools that I bought at around age 14 or 15 when I started working on cars. Yes to everything else you said.

I really like the learning aspect. Sort of like engineering - finding solutions, learning to apply them correctly, improving upon the original sometimes.

I oscillate between electronics (I'm very much a novice) during the cold/dark months and cars/carpentry/scooters/bicycles during the warm months with long evenings.

Last night I built a 90V/9V AB battery for a 1951 Zenith radio that is an amazing long distance radio.

Not quite as exciting as a long sweeping curve at high speed steering with the throttle but its something to do that I find interesting and affordable.

This spring I'll put a paint job on one of my antique cars. I have to stay busy. With enough DIY I can get my money out of my hobbies when I sell.

[spartana]

Great question, I quit being a "car" guy by quitting being a house/two car garage guy. I realize now that wrenching in the garage was a form of meditation for me so I just look for other ways to get that mental isolation. My wife and I moved to a small apartment in PHX and kept just her SUV. There I became a mountain bike guy with a cheap mongoose fat tire bike so I got my wrenching kicks on that.  Mountain trail days replaced my track days and I could go as often as I wanted for free. Then we moved to a very flat Florida where the closest mountain biking spot is an hour away so I took up skateboarding for the first time at a ripe 37. Theres a skatepark two blocks from my condo and again, you get to gear out and tune for even cheaper than MTBing. I go at 7am when the park is empty and get plenty of old guy thrills learning to skate bowls. costs go down, exercise/health goes up(not including some character building bruises and scrapes). I do also have a small Vespa 150 to get around town faster that scratches the itch when I'm desperate to do vehicle maintenance.

This. I've been using more sports and recreation activities (some a bit extreme) to keep the motorcycle-wants away. I find its more satisfying and probably less dangerous (mostly). And of course less expensive and more environmentally friendly. It doesn't always scratch the itch but kind of keeps it toned down. One thing different is that I HATE working on mechanical stuff now (was a "professional wrencher" lol) so knowing I have to do that again pushes down the urge too.  But still...going very fast is fun!

[Bloop Bloop Reloaded]

Audi e-Tron unveiled today - looks great. With that, the Taycan, and Tesla's upcoming Roadster v2.0, car enthusiasts have a lot to look forward to, even in the electric car age.

Now just have to get battery tech to improve so that we can get lighter cars. Imagine a 1.0 - 1.2 tonne car with the power of one of those EVs. Would be ballistic!

[RWD]

Audi e-Tron unveiled today - looks great. With that, the Taycan, and Tesla's upcoming Roadster v2.0, car enthusiasts have a lot to look forward to, even in the electric car age.

Now just have to get battery tech to improve so that we can get lighter cars. Imagine a 1.0 - 1.2 tonne car with the power of one of those EVs. Would be ballistic!

The Hennessey Venom GT comes to mind. 1,250 kg. 1200+ hp.

[paulkots]

Audi e-Tron unveiled today - looks great. With that, the Taycan, and Tesla's upcoming Roadster v2.0, car enthusiasts have a lot to look forward to, even in the electric car age.

Now just have to get battery tech to improve so that we can get lighter cars. Imagine a 1.0 - 1.2 tonne car with the power of one of those EVs. Would be ballistic!

Those cars will bring new enthusiasts and some old enthusiasts will also be into them but they have nothing in common with petrol burning cars(except for shape and 4 wheels). Most of enthusiasts that I know will never be into electric cars, they are great daily drivers but they have no emotion. Changing gears, hearing a rumbling V8 or a screaming flat 6, vibrations, smell, etc.

[Googs860]

I'm a car guy through and through.  In the past, i've jumped between cheap cars (E46, mini, '81 honda civic wagon that-i-wish-i-didn't-have-to-sell) to the shiny cars (brand new Focus ST, Hyundai Genesis Coupe) while i've grappled between financial efficiency and that sweet, sweet smell of oil and grease on your hands after you wash them for the 30th time and your back hurts because you laid down on your torque wrench accidentally.

My 'solve' to merge my petrol and mustachian tendencies has been to try to make the most cost efficient performing car I can, and I finally got it right this time around.  I bought a used Miata for < 5k, did my research, compiled a list of the best bang-for-your-buck improvements that would result in the car that i wanted at the end of the road, and then scoured CL and FB marketplace for those parts.  Bought a couple pieces new (Flyin Miata wheels and tires), but the majority was all either sourced on CL (sway bars) or the DIY route (air intake, lots of elbow grease to fix/clean rust rather than replace parts, etc).

Currently sitting at $7,156 all in cost (including registration, taxes on purchase, etc).  Only major purchase left may be an exhaust if I can't patch the stock one.

[MiatAccountant]

I'm a car guy through and through.  In the past, i've jumped between cheap cars (E46, mini, '81 honda civic wagon that-i-wish-i-didn't-have-to-sell) to the shiny cars (brand new Focus ST, Hyundai Genesis Coupe) while i've grappled between financial efficiency and that sweet, sweet smell of oil and grease on your hands after you wash them for the 30th time and your back hurts because you laid down on your torque wrench accidentally.

My 'solve' to merge my petrol and mustachian tendencies has been to try to make the most cost efficient performing car I can, and I finally got it right this time around.  I bought a used Miata for < 5k, did my research, compiled a list of the best bang-for-your-buck improvements that would result in the car that i wanted at the end of the road, and then scoured CL and FB marketplace for those parts.  Bought a couple pieces new (Flyin Miata wheels and tires), but the majority was all either sourced on CL (sway bars) or the DIY route (air intake, lots of elbow grease to fix/clean rust rather than replace parts, etc).

Currently sitting at $7,156 all in cost (including registration, taxes on purchase, etc).  Only major purchase left may be an exhaust if I can't patch the stock one.

I came to the same conclusion but in my case, did buy a new Miata after waiting for it for 25+ years after I realized I wanted one.

Exhaust, definitely go aftermarket (not sure saving a stock one is worth it). Adds so much driving enjoyment.