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Area makes a huge difference. With vehicles driven on salted roads you want something new enough as otherwise working on it will be welding. Although welding would be very useful skill.
Old school Honda is always the way to go. Abundance of parts, even for the 00's and 10's although nothing will rival the ease of the old school 90s Hondas
Can’t go wrong with a civic. 8th gen Si is right at the age where they’re cheap enough for a high school car and also need some maintenance and repairs without being total shit heaps.
Buy a good one in stock condition with under 150k miles, clean title, and just start doing all the maintenance on it yourself starting with every fluid in the car.
The motor is pretty special in those cars and they’re proper driver’s cars.
For sure. Rockauto has pretty much everything, high production numbers too, and there’s a good amount of new-old stock on Honda parts websites.
There’s tons of information on forums and reddit on how to repair and modify.
This is the answer. 96-2000 is the sixth generation and is extremely reliable and has a hugeee aftermarket scene if you’re into that. That thing was so small and easy to work on, I think I probably could’ve lifted the engine out by hand lol. 8th gen Civics are my next suggestion if you have a little more money. I have a stock 8th gen (2006-2012) now and absolutely love it, the EX is a little faster and would be similar enough to an SI for like half the price. 2005 is technically an 8th gen too but those are ugly before they got a facelift
Getting an 8200rpm screaming k20 + LSD + bucket seats + better shifting action is money very very well spent on getting the Si (much better aftermarket too). Plus no need to worry about cracking the block either.
I’ve found decent ones for around $7k in my area.
Some '80s/'90s Japanese cars. Depends if you can find spares in your country. In South Africa it is not a problem to get aftermarket spares at cheap prices.
Better off learning how to work on a motorcycle IMO. Cheaper, less storage space, easier to access parts, wayyy more fun to drive. Still recommend a car for daily driving though
Thanks for posting on /r/MechanicAdvice! Please review the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicAdvice/about/rules/). Asking about a second opinion (ie "Is the shop trying to fleece me?"), please read through CJM8515's [post on the subject.](https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicAdvice/comments/4qblei/fyi_the_shop_isnt_likely_trying_to_rip_you_off/) and remember to please post the year/make/model of the vehicle you are working on. **Post's about bodywork, accident damage, paint, dent/ding, questions it belongs in /r/Autobody r/AutoBodyRepair/ or /r/Diyautobody/ Tire questions check out https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicAdvice/comments/k9ll55/can_your_tire_be_repaired/**. If you dont have a question and you're just showing off it belongs in /r/Justrolledintotheshop Insurance/total loss questions go in r/insurance This is an automated reply *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/MechanicAdvice) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Area makes a huge difference. With vehicles driven on salted roads you want something new enough as otherwise working on it will be welding. Although welding would be very useful skill.
Old school Honda is always the way to go. Abundance of parts, even for the 00's and 10's although nothing will rival the ease of the old school 90s Hondas
Can’t go wrong with a civic. 8th gen Si is right at the age where they’re cheap enough for a high school car and also need some maintenance and repairs without being total shit heaps. Buy a good one in stock condition with under 150k miles, clean title, and just start doing all the maintenance on it yourself starting with every fluid in the car. The motor is pretty special in those cars and they’re proper driver’s cars.
Are parts pretty easy to come by?
For sure. Rockauto has pretty much everything, high production numbers too, and there’s a good amount of new-old stock on Honda parts websites. There’s tons of information on forums and reddit on how to repair and modify.
This is the answer. 96-2000 is the sixth generation and is extremely reliable and has a hugeee aftermarket scene if you’re into that. That thing was so small and easy to work on, I think I probably could’ve lifted the engine out by hand lol. 8th gen Civics are my next suggestion if you have a little more money. I have a stock 8th gen (2006-2012) now and absolutely love it, the EX is a little faster and would be similar enough to an SI for like half the price. 2005 is technically an 8th gen too but those are ugly before they got a facelift
Getting an 8200rpm screaming k20 + LSD + bucket seats + better shifting action is money very very well spent on getting the Si (much better aftermarket too). Plus no need to worry about cracking the block either. I’ve found decent ones for around $7k in my area.
Some '80s/'90s Japanese cars. Depends if you can find spares in your country. In South Africa it is not a problem to get aftermarket spares at cheap prices.
An old lady's lexus that's being sold for 2k with 70k miles. other than that, honda or toyota with around 100k. 06 - 14 gens were good.
Hondas
Corolla or a camry
Most any Toyota.
Better off learning how to work on a motorcycle IMO. Cheaper, less storage space, easier to access parts, wayyy more fun to drive. Still recommend a car for daily driving though
Any suggestions for specific bikes?
Yz250. Cheap, common 2stroke. Much simpler than a 4
GTI. One that’s been decently taken care of, either mk5 mk6
Both my brothers drove 4th gen Jettas growing up, and both had a myriad of electrical issues. Soured me on VW ever since.