What cars have you given up on?

Labcoatguy

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New England region, USA
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There are always those attainable cars that you used to find interesting, desirable, and worth buying at some earlier point in life, but which later on lose their luster for one reason or another, especially if you can afford it now. I was thinking about the cars that I would constantly search Craigslist for, but now have no longer bothered with. It's quite a long list, actually:

1995-1999 supercharged Buick Riviera
1995-1999 Oldsmobile Aurora
2000-2001 Chrysler Concorde LXi
1999-2004 Chrysler 300M
1998-2002 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am (without the WS6 nostrils)
1997-1998 Lincoln Mark VIII
1995-1997 Jaguar XJ6
2002-2003 Nissan Maxima SE (with the 6-speed manual)
1990-1996 Nissan 300ZX
1990-1996 Mitsubishi 3000GT VR4
1987-1993 Mercedes 190E 2.6

Cars that are just about to fall off the edge of my radar include the (gulp) 1991-1995 Toyota MR2 Turbo and the Jaguar XJS and XJ12.

So, what cars make you think "I used to like this car, and at this point I could conceivably buy one, but I can't be bothered now" ?
 
Renault 5 Turbo leaps to mind, the Honda Prelude VTEC, the Corrado VR6.

Weirdly I was searching Auto Trader today looking at Galants. But then I found out how much it would cost to get a life size model of a marabou stork so gave up on those too.
 
A few of the cars that I have lusted over and came close to buying are:

- 1985-1992 Pontiac Firebird but it had to have a manual gearbox. Looked at one, it was in terrible condition and 2nd gear didn't work.
- 1989 Pontiac Turbo Grand Prix - never actually found one, but kept looking.
- Dodge Daytona - only managed to look at one with the Mitsu V6. Needless to say, I passed.
- 1992-1993 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP - with the mini-quad headlights!
- 1992-1994 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Convertible - once again with mini-quads.

Then I got smart and bought a Volvo. :ninja:
 
For a long time I really wanted a Chevrolet Caprice 9C1 police car. But browsing eBay and Craigslist it seems hard to find one that isn't in horrible condition unless you're willing to pay a lot more for it. And the interiors were pretty awful, I must admit. Blue velour seats fail to excite me. And even the Corvette LT1 V8 equipped ex-police cars only put out 260hp. I can go buy a brand new base model Dodge Charger with a 300hp V6 that would embarrass one of those old Caprice cop cars. And since a lot of police departments use Chargers as squad cars, it really wouldn't be hard to dress yours up to resemble one. Or just search eBay for an ex-police version. Bull bars ftw.
 
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Japanese cars. I simply realized I was too tall for them and I grew to hate the cult of fanboyism that surrounded them.
 
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R32 GT-R. Just can't find stockers anymore. :(
 
1st gen Mazda MX-5/Miatas - Why? Overpriced here. $3K for a literal scrap car, 5K for a high mileage not so good one, 8K for a good one. No thanks.
Honda S2000 - Really really expensive even for first year AP1, lowest I found was 15K.
3rd gen Toyota MR2 - Rip-off prices, 15-20K for heavily used cars.
7th gen Toyota Celica - I like it, but its FWD.
Toyota Corolla GTS(AE86) - Initial D tax and rarity, almost as bad as 1st gen MX-5 in price.
All Nissan 240SX - Unmolested cars are overpriced, molested cars are common and really undesirable.
Subaru SVX - I like everything but its upkeep price and the automatic transmission.
 
Because most GM truck owners around here are super levels of douchy ass hole touting how great their truck is
ex US Army Chevrolet Blazer
GMC Sierra 2001-2006

Ultra Rare for good price
GMC Typhoon
Buick Grand National

Hard to find in good condition
Oldsmobile Toronado (touchscreen 80s model) - hard to find in good condition
Ford Mustang 1980s - hard to find decent stock one
Ford Bronco 1966-77
Chevrolet El Camino any year


And some days, my truck...
 
I've always had a heart for oddball cars, or what'd be oddball here in Norway at least.

I for a long time wanted a Chevrolet Beretta... learned later on it's a horrid car.
Also have a urge to try get a Buick Reatta, the early ones with a CRT touchscreen monitor in the dash, but i also don't want it, due to all the problems that would follow :p
 
What first springs to mind is any Opel with Power ;)

I grew up in a family that only drove Opel, worked in an Opel Garage for 4 years, so I just got pushed in that direction. So anything with a red top 2.0 16V was very desirable a few years ago.

But the engine alone just isn't enough, some time I just had to realize the bad chassis that'll rust away, so I guess I will never have such a thing in my posession...
 
Anything that needs 98+ octane fuel, because on all the "badge" fuel stations here that got replaced with even more ridiculously expensive 100+ octane petrol.
 
I've given up on trying to find any early VW GTIs (either Mk1 or Mk2); they're fairly rare to begin with now (most of them have long since been made into refrigerators) and the survivors are usually so hellastupid it isn't even funny. In fact, I can't think of the last time I've seen a completely stock example on the road or in the classifieds.
 
I've given up on trying to find any early VW GTIs (either Mk1 or Mk2); they're fairly rare to begin with now (most of them have long since been made into refrigerators) and the survivors are usually so hellastupid it isn't even funny. In fact, I can't think of the last time I've seen a completely stock example on the road or in the classifieds.

plenty of those over here still.
 
Not that I've given up on them, I'd still take one if I had the opportunity, I just don't actively look for them anymore.

1996-99 Taurus SHO - Mostly because I have an earlier, V6 SHO.
Dodge Avenger - The new one ruined the old one for me.
Eagle Talon - Finding one is near-impossible, and you can get an Eclipse for way less.

There's more, but I can't remember them all.
 
Not that I've given up on them, I'd still take one if I had the opportunity, I just don't actively look for them anymore.

1996-99 Taurus SHO - Mostly because I have an earlier, V6 SHO.

You are willing to live with the auto-tragic?
 
Fiat post 2007.
Aston post Vanquish.

I thought you should list cars you can actually afford :p

For me it would be 3rd gen F-bodies. I wanted one of these as my first car when I got the driving licence 9 years ago. Then I started looking for something more sensible - Saabs (900, 9000, 9-3, 9-5). I thought of them as cool alternatives to the ever present VAG stuff cluttering our roads. Then I wanted a Mercedes W124, preferably a 300CE. And lately an Alfa Romeo 166 with a V6. All of these were meant to be used only ocassionally, for fun and roadtrips and I didn't give a damn about running costs.

But since I needed something for the daily commute, i started looking for diesels and ended up with the 156. I don't think I'll be looking for any of the previously mentioned cars again, not even as a second car.
 
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