An owner one day?

[BUG4LIFE]

Hello. Hope this is the right place to say hello?

Just doing a little research at the moment - checking out the cars here for sale etc and reading about peeps experiences with owning an NSX. I just bought my first house with my girlfriend so money a bit tight right now, but that dont mean I cant plan my next car purchase :D

I got a whole list of cars I want, depending on my cash flow, and I'm just trying to find out the pros and cons of them all. Here is my list -
Up to £20k - Scooby P1 or RB5, or maybe an EVO
£20k to £30k - NSX, TT Supra or RX7
£30k+ - Maybe still an NSX or an R34 GTR

If it was to be a NSX [and I'm liking the fact I could get a UK car with full UK dealer history, where a Supra, RX7 or R34 would probley be an import], I would want a 6-speed 3.2 with pop-up lights in orange - whats the chances of finding one of those in about a year or so? :D

Anyone owned any of the other cars and can compare running/servicing costs etc? Everything I have read about the NSX says how amazingly reliable they are and don't have to cost a stack to maintain - that true?

Cheers guys

[WhyOne?]

Hi,

I am one of the newest (and therefore least knowledgable) members here. I have only owned my car for 5 days, but there is a description of my transition from S2000 - NSX which may be of some interest to you here:

http://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=406687

(gratuotous pictures of my new car on page 3 of the thread! :D )

[BUG4LIFE]

Very interesting read WhyOne. One car I did forget to mention on my list was a 350Z - I wanted one for ages though now I just don't think it would be fast enough [bloody heavy car innit]. I have read of the supercharged 350Z that was at Goodwood the other weekend, with 380bhp - reckon that be the ticket in the £35k bracket. Though, like your experience of Nissan dealerships, I have heard such bad things of them :x

So, my chance of finding a late, pop-up headlighted, 6-speed 3.2 is slim - as only 9 cars were sold in 2001 [were any of those orange by any chance?]...damn!

Was that a buying guide in the October edition of Top Gear mag? I wanna get hold of a copy now, so I can read about your car etc.

[WhyOne?]

Was that a buying guide in the October edition of Top Gear mag? I wanna get hold of a copy now, so I can read about your car etc.

That's right.

If you PM me your email address, I'll scan the article and send it over to you. (By all means try to beg, steal or borrow a copy of the Mag, but when I was trying to source one a couple of months ago, it wasn't at all easy).

[jaytip]

So, my chance of finding a late, pop-up headlighted, 6-speed 3.2 is slim - as only 9 cars were sold in 2001 [were any of those orange by any chance?]...damn!
You do know that the 3.2 was available from 97 don't you??

[BUG4LIFE]

Yep. So really I got from 97 to 2002 [when the lights changed yeah?]. I been looking for some books about the history of the NSX etc but there aint none in Worcester. Gonna be heading up to the Bullring on the weekend so hopefully the big Waterstones will have some? Plus I'm gonna order a back copy of Japanese Performance mag with the NSX buyers guide - though I think that was from 2002 of something?

Cheers guys :D

[TheQuietOne]

Technically to 1997 - 2001 in reality although the face lifts are '02+'. As far as we are aware the newest pop up 3.2 about is Damian's 51 plate. I think there were about 5 IOP sold in that time, of which one is written off and one is red...and I can't see Simon giving up P27 any time soon...so you have your work cut out!

I'm based in Bromsgrove, Worcs and have a year 2000 3.2 Red with a Black roof - one of the latest in that spec if you ever want a quick spin - providing you don't turn out to be 15...have learnt my lesson on this forum before! Having said that I'm only 26 myself...what are you driving currently - a Beetle?

Cheers,

Matt.

[trackdemon]

Well first thing to say is that you may want to re asses your price bands/cars:

Up to £20k will buy an NSX, albeit of older vintage but still perfectly fit and useable (just like ine in fact ;)).
£20-£30k: way too much money for Supra or RX7 - these are firmly in the £10-£20k catagory, but they both represent good buys for that level of expenditure. This is the right price level for a pop-up 3.2, but unless simonprelude feels like selling his car I think your going to struggle for your exact spec
£30k+ R34's are hugely expensive to run but wicked to drive. You'll get a stunning NSX for this money

My own (30k miles / 3 years) experience of NSX ownership suggests that everything you've read is true regarding reliability & running costs. Build quality is immaculate; the engine, gearbox, chassis are all peachy and its rare & beautiful. Frankly, for £20k-£30k nothing comes close IMHO.

[BUG4LIFE]

Nah I'm 27 dude, though I wish I was still a teen!

I used to have a New Beetle [I know I know, it aint any kind of sports car, but I love old Beetle's and needed a car that was gonna get me to work and back from Ledbury - thus a New Beetle. It was a 1.8T though which I had remapped to 225bhp! It was fun and the chicks digged it.]. My current ride is a 1989 BMW 325 Motorsport cab [which I'm trying to sell as I need the money for my house]. It's 17 years old but only got 58k miles on the clock! When I have sold the Beemer, I'm gonna pay off the loan and get my favourite car of all time with what's left...a Mk2 16v Golf GTi. I can then save any money I haven't spent on washing machines or microwaves and put it towards my Japanese supercar :D

I would love to come and see your NSX dude. Just say where and when :D :D :D

My Beemer
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b197/BUG4LIFE/Cab01.jpg

My Bug
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b197/BUG4LIFE/BUG02.jpg

[TheQuietOne]

Mr Bug,

Cool, well once i have verified your details through the 'NSX Police' computer I will assess you as a potential passenger / viewer of my car, and let you know :wink: !

I'm guessing you are fairly local to me then?

Matt.

[BUG4LIFE]

I have seen some Supras for £20k+, an example being a 2001 import with only 6k on the clock. Though yeah trackdemon the majority of RX7's and Supras I seen are way below the £20k mark.

I guess I would get a non pop-up light version if I had a £30k+ budget - but still in orange! Cos right now I'm loving the idea of an NSX sitting on my driveway. The only car that my change that would be an R34 GTR, though the running cost could kill that?

I got ages to do all my research as its gonna be a good year before I can think of buying a new car.


I live in St Peters in Worc now bud, just off Junc 7.

[AR]

5 IOP sold in that time, of which one is written off

mea culpa,
mea culpa,
mea maxima culpa

[AR]

BTW mate nothing to do with me, but Pande's car is a bargain. Have a look at the For Sale forum.

Cheers

AR

[WhyOne?]

I have emailed digital scans of the October '05 Top Gear Mag. NSX Buying Guide to those who requested it. :D

[BUG4LIFE]

All come through ok mate, cheers muchly :D