OT: say hello to my little friend Options

[zymurgist]

I got the check for my dad's old Camry on Friday. It was an old car and it had issues, but I hated to see it go because it was once his baby. I did some car shopping, even considering cash for clunkers using my old Mercedes (which I think is too nice to have the engine seized up on purpose), and decided that rather than buy a new car, I would go with a used car and go more upscale.

I live a long way from the office, so I need a car that is reliable, good on gas, and comfortable on the highway. I didn't want to spend a lot on a new car since I know I'll be putting so many miles on it... I figured that a quality used car would be a good idea.

I drove a couple of Camrys and Accords, but I had to look into the Acura RSX. I work with a lady who drives a 5-speed coupe and a guy who drives a 6-speed Type S, and they both can't say enough good things about their cars. So I drove a couple of RSX's too. Loved the Type S, but it takes premium unleaded... that's a definite minus for my commuter car. So I found a local one owner base 5-speed with 41K miles. Drove an Accord with manual transmission and the RSX back-to-back, and that sold me on the RSX.

I picked up my car yesterday. It has brand new tires on it and a cold A/C. It corners well on local twisty roads, shifts like a dream (compared to an old Porsche!), a little bitty leather wrapped steering wheel, and a sunroof. It's not the fastest car on the street, but that's not why I bought it. I think I'm going to enjoy driving to work a bit more than I did when I had the Camry!

[CliffBraun]

Cliff, goodluck on finding a 05-06 -s for cheap.... they are still holding their value very well (with some still above the 20K mark).

Yeah, I'll probably never get one. I might end up putting a K20 in something though,

though, the fault with the type-s was the transmission. 2nd gear is the bitch of the problem.

Yup, They had to have mine apart twice because they didn't replace the screwed up synchro on 2nd when they fixed the design issue. After that it shifted beautifully though.

For auto-x, stiffer rear sway, and better tires helps. I thought even stock the car wasn't bad, but now that i went from 205's to 245's... holy hell does this thing turn

I actually had decent tires on that at the time, the same, but slightly bigger than on the 914. I just decided to go with a better platform for my autox car, and I can only afford one.

[dw914er]

Cliff, goodluck on finding a 05-06 -s for cheap.... they are still holding their value very well (with some still above the 20K mark).

Yeah, I'll probably never get one. I might end up putting a K20 in something though,

though, the fault with the type-s was the transmission. 2nd gear is the bitch of the problem.

Yup, They had to have mine apart twice because they didn't replace the screwed up synchro on 2nd when they fixed the design issue. After that it shifted beautifully though.

For auto-x, stiffer rear sway, and better tires helps. I thought even stock the car wasn't bad, but now that i went from 205's to 245's... holy hell does this thing turn

I actually had decent tires on that at the time, the same, but slightly bigger than on the 914. I just decided to go with a better platform for my autox car, and I can only afford one.

the the type s transmission was either solid, or shit.... but def lackluster to honda's typical reliability. thats why people who go turbo or supercharged go with a 5 speed because it will survive better.

a k20 swap would be cool in something ligher like a civic EG hatch or something. I just like the rsx over most other honda's.

and good tires is always key. 205 to a 245 is a huge difference, and all season michelin stock tires to Yokohoma Advan a13's gives soo much grip. I'll see how i do at the next auto-x i go to (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) ... however the 914 at a near 2000lb's and mid engine design makes it better for auto-x. The rsx is louder though (IMG:style_emoticons/default/happy11.gif), and that's what i have with me when im at school