“My car is faster than yours” ….. and what’s your point?

Yes I know my titles are a little strange, maybe a little of the mark in terms of grammar and proper writing technique but I don’t care. So just ignore my extra dots and awkward quotations and hear me out.

If you are an enthusiast like myself, a true gear head who just loves motorpsorts and driving any type of sports car from 1000-1000000$ this is the most important thing I have realized in my days of driving several cars in all different price points and classes. It’s not about how fast a car is or how it performs statistically, it’s the soul the car has when you drive it. It’s the intangeables that make you feel truly connected to that car. Things like the sounds it makes, the way the tail gets finicky if you push it too hard, the way the turbo boost just randomly kicks in, the way the car looks and feels, the way the shifter feels as your shifts through the gears, the engine note as you move higher into the RPM’s, and so much more things that have nothing to do with performance and all to do with how it makes you feel.

Let me give you an example that should rather effectively explain this:

Which car is significantly faster??

or

Best SUV for 35000$

This is one of my favorite categories and is also something that everyone can appreciate. Of course my background and passion has to do with performance variants (Thanks Tiff, Jeremy, Chris for ruining me) but I will make sure all my recommendations actually make sense for the masses.

All of these choices will be amazing all around SUV’s suitable for year round driving (even in harsh Canadian winters), solid reliability, great resale values and most importantly make you feel special going to and from work every single day. When someone tells me they have a price range in the 30000’s for an all around SUV, they are in for a treat.

I am using 35000$ for my price range for the simple fact that most new SUV’s (entry level of course…..CRV, RAV4, Escape, Tuscon, CX-5, etc etc) fall within this price range once you add a few options to the base model. Many people will look at these vehicles and immediately think that they are way too harsh on gas consumption, they are over the top in looks/luxury, they are way beyond my means, I can never afford that, maintenance will be too expensive, and so on. Then again nobody thinks about how pathetic their vehicles will depreciate once they drive it off the lot, they don;t have the ability to calculate that the depreciation curve destroys any saving you may get on fuel economy and maintenance (which by the way most of these vehicles I suggest will be CPO and many well below 35000$).

Fifth Gear Used Car Video

Fifth gear has some of the most knowledgeable and respectable automotive journalists I have ever seen. Tiff Needell is one of the most influential people in my passion of cars. Keep up the great work guys.

Tom Comegna

Best cars for under 10000$$

In this series of blogs, we will talk about sports cars, which is my true passion!! There is nothing like redlining a sports car, and pushing it to it’s limits, either in a straight line or carving the corners. Whether it be that high-revving 4 banger or that thunderous V-8 american muscle, here is a list of cars that you may have have never considered in the sports car market. Since these are “toys”, things like warranties are not going to be considered. Most of these cars are usually just weekend warriors, although consideration for good daily driver and year round usability (ie. Canadian winters!!) will be taken into account. In this specific post, we will look a what I consider are the best sports cars you can buy for under 10000$.

Best Cars for under 20000$

You may not think 20000$ can get you much when in comes to a true sports car, but that is the furthest from the truth. These cars I believe are just as good or better than some of today’s brand new sports cars, since many of them were the top dogs in their respective categories during their prime years. When it comes to spirited driving, these machines are hard to beat at this price. If you want to see some of my sports car choices for under 20000$ you know what to do:

First Car Ever Owned Stories!! Share with everyone!!

Shall we begin!

On my 16th B-day I already was a severe addict for the automotive world, more specifically having the “mod flu” that could not be healed unless I bought a cold air intake for anything and everything. I even considered putting an after market exhaust on my lawn mower just for the hell of it to gain /001 hp and potentially cut 10 more strains of grass per revolution. Yes it truly is an illness but let’s share our stories of our cars we had owned and loved and what we remember most of them…..all of mine will be about mods of course haha!!

I was 16 yrs old, and 8 months (quickest route to get license in Canada) and I had my sights set on one car for a very long time, the mazda MX-6. The year was 2002, and my local dealership had two on the lot, a 1994 v6 mystere 5-speed, and a 1997 mystere v6 4-speed auto. Since I was a coward I decided to take the easy way out and purchase the more expensive auto v-6 for 9500$. I remember the day I picked it up like it was yesterday, god I was so excited. Finally I could begin fighting the mod flu…..little did I know it’s chronic and untreatable at the time.

You paid 50000$ for your Ford?!?! Should have bought that Porsche.

Depreciation: Decrease in value due to wear and tear, decay, decline in price, market conditions, etc.

This word is well represented in the world of pre-owned vehicles. Immediately after taking a vehicle off the new car lot, your “new vehicles” are worth thousands less and continue on a rapid downfall as the days pass and the kilometers accumulate. Virtually all makes and models of vehicles tend to lose 10-20% of their MSRP value immediately once they are driven off the new car lot and continue to depreciate 15-20% on an annual basis of their current value. Those cars that are worth more than half their value after 4 years are considered to hold their value very well (ie. Select models of: Toyota, Honda, Porsche, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Acura, Lexus, Infiniti BMW, Mercedes etc) and those that are worth less than 50% of their value in 3 to 4 years are at the other end of the spectrum. At that point, most of the depreciation damage is done and its at this point when I would strongly recommend the purchasing of a vehicle.

But Tom!!! What about warranty issue and repairs???

Here’s some food for thought. You spend 70000$ (baseline, non optioned, without tax of course!) on your new Cadillac Escalade. If you look on the used car market, say trader.ca, you can find several better equipped 2-3 year old models (Same generation) between 40000-50000, some still under extended warranty with the certified pre-owned programs. Therefore, if owning a brand new vehicle is not a life and death issue, bite the bullet and wait a couple years before buying a specific model and the warranties will still apply. Why not buy a 15000$ award winning and sought after Honda pilot EX-L or Acura MDX? You won’t have to worry about repairs, get better MPG, still have all the looks and utility, wont depreciate much more and have an extra 50000$ in your pocket?? Brand new these SUV’s were 45000 to 50000!! I’m not even saying don’t buy these vehicles, I’m not saying stay away from Escalades and Fords, not at all. I am simply trying to get the point across that buying used is just as safe as buying new in many instances, even several 2 year old vehicles can already be at half their value, regardless of mileage.

This doesn’t just apply to entry level cars, SUV’s, trucks and vans. This rule applies to every single make and model you can think of excluding a handful of exotics. Actually when someone is in the market for a leisurely sports car, people should never purchase a new car unless money is no issue at all. I will explain in detail.

Seriously people, look into used cars, if anything buy a vehicle that is a year or 2 old, it has already depreciated significantly, more than likely has a factory extended warranty or the original still in place for many more years, costs thousands less and can still be financed with slightly higher interest rates. You will be surprised the find some vehicles you once thought were too expensive, are actually cheaper than that dodge avenger you want brand new??? (stupid, stupid, stupid…..)

If you have any questions about any make and model comparisons and used car values, or anything automotive (nothing with repairs please!!) ask me. So back to the title. Your going to pay 50000 For a brand new Ford Mustang GT, granted it’s an amazing car I completely agree, especially a Boss 302 (which is a great buy in my opinion, LS pack especially) however a base GT or…..a 996 turbo/GT3, C6 Z06, Viper SRT-10, 997 Carrera S, Super high milage 997 Turbo even!! All I’m saying is “ignore brand loyalty” and what you “think” you like and actually drive the other cars you can get for the money and then tell yourself which is a better buy. It’s your money, I really don’t care what you do, however you will thank me later assuming you take at least some positive out of this.

Live to Drive!!

Tom Comegna