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NA or NB, MX-5/Miata. Great handling. Parts are cheap... plentiful.. lots of aftermarket (miatamania.com, flyinmiata.com are just a couple) Simple cars with not much to really break. Drivetrain relatively reliable. May feel underpowered by todays standards and a bit small for larger people. A year ago, I found a 2006 NC for $11.5k with 13k on the clock... but I totalled it. Newer models are even better but I'm still seeing them over $20k which would be a stretch on $30k/year income.
YJ or TJ jeep Wrangler. Its the 4x4 miata... of sorts. Good offroad. Parts are cheap and plentiful Lots of aftermarket support. Simple cars with no much to really break. Not really good on gas mileage (brick like aero dynamics).
NO way to know how much you can really afford.... $30k a year is (not much) and we would need to know other factors like your expenses.
S2000 is way out of the budget. Fiat 500 is known for reliability problems. Mini Cooper base has expensive parts (BMW).
At $30,000 a year? It all depends on what your other bills look like and how much money you are willing to put down.
No one here can recommend what you can afford based off that! We would need to know what your other expenses are such as housing, credit cards, utilities, etc.
NA or NB, MX-5/Miata. Great handling. Parts are cheap... plentiful.. lots of aftermarket (miatamania.com, flyinmiata.com are just a couple) Simple cars with not much to really break. Drivetrain relatively reliable. May feel underpowered by todays standards and a bit small for larger people. A year ago, I found a 2006 NC for $11.5k with 13k on the clock... but I totalled it. Newer models are even better but I'm still seeing them over $20k which would be a stretch on $30k/year income.
YJ or TJ jeep Wrangler. Its the 4x4 miata... of sorts. Good offroad. Parts are cheap and plentiful Lots of aftermarket support. Simple cars with no much to really break. Not really good on gas mileage (brick like aero dynamics).
Agree with all of this. I have a Jeep TJ as a weekend car, and it's a lot of fun, manual transmission, take the doors off, top down, and go. Wouldn't mind have an NC Miata also for something sporty. Both are good values if bought right like anything else.
To me with your income the only answer I can see is a Miata. They are small and slow but certainly more reliable than the Fiat, Jeep etc. The Vette is out of your price range and the Mustang may cost a lot to insure and won't get the MPG of the Miata.
As I'm tall I'm not sure I could fit in a Miata but I always thought when I retired a V-8 Mustang convertible would be a blast for a second car. Their reliability isn't that bad, certainly good enough for a second car, and you can get a used one for not that much money surprisingly.
Last edited by DaveinMtAiry; 04-14-2018 at 04:04 PM..
OP - you had a very precarious situation at work, from your previous posts. Unless that has been taken care of, I think you are asking for more stress and headaches by getting a used convertible.
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