[budgy]

I will not be able to do this for atleast another 2 years but, this is an honest question, and I need some educated opinions and advice. Just got the Mazda 3 in December. I love the car so much, I honestly would be happy with it just bone stock, but I would love it even more with some upgrades I priced out everything I want to do to the car over time and it should probably be around the 7-8 thousand dollar range.

Now heres the other side of the coin, I would love to own a second car, probably an RX-8, WRX STi, or whatever, regardless of what that second car is gonna be I know I will spend close to 60k on a new one.

My question is that, if I know the Mazda3 will be my daily driver and winter beater eventually, instead of investing all this extra money into that car to make it look nice and go faster, maybe I should just pay off the loan on the car as soon as I can, the sooner I do that the sooner I can get my second car.

I guess I got a lot to think about soon, because I like to plan out my life financially as much as I can. I need to make up my mind because this summer I might end up dumping 3 grand on a set of rims and tires, or put it towards the loan on the 3. Decisions, decisions.....

 

[dinu01]

1-I'd leave the 3 stock
2-If you have TONS of extra $$$, get an RX-8, otherwise be realistic about your $ (think Sycho)

 

[budgy]

Well...I dont have TONS, but I think if I was careful with what I make I could be behind the wheel of a $50,000 car in 2-3 years, depending on if I get an advancement in my career which I am currently working my butt of for...

 

[dinu01]

Just be realistic. If you can pull it off, congrats!

How do you feel about an RX-8 off a lease?

 

[budgy]

I don't know about a lease, the idea of not getting anything at the end of the term just freaks me out, would be a bit cheaper though right?

I guess I will have to do some shopping around, I bet I could get a basic RX-8 without the worthless options for less then 40k, my stepmom got a Tribute from this dealer in town and I got my 3 from them as well, so I think they would look after me as far as price.

 

[atl]

Going to go the same route as you. Pay off the MZ6 as fast as possible then grab another car.

 

[budgy]

Going to go the same route as you. Pay off the MZ6 as fast as possible then grab another car.

Awesome, I think I have finally narrowed down my choices, depends on how much I want to spend on a car and how long I am willing to save up.

If I want to spend 40k I will get an RX-8, if I want to spend 50K I will get an Infiniti G35, if 80K :shock: BMW M3. But this is all way down the road from now, probably after my warranty on the Mazda has expired. So I might need to get another daily drive at the same time, probably another Mazda 3

 

[Black7]

The RX-8 is basically a toy - if you want to invest that kind of cash into a toy, go for it.
Another option is to look for an older toy and learn to work on it yourself - find something old enough that it is easy to work on - let's say an RX-7 (sorry, I'm a bit bias). Buy a factory shop manual, start adding performance mod's, find a forum that supports the car - do the work yourself where ever possible, get it painted, tinker with it, turn it into something you can be proud of. You will then have a toy (maybe even a classic), you'll learn something, and have a hobby to boot. If you don't enjoy working on cars and have no interest in learning, then ignore this post.
BTW, this is prety much what I did - the 3 is my fun little daily driver and the 7 is the one I pour all my time and money into - but I've learned a ton and really enjoy the challenge of keepin an older sports car on the road.