New or Used: Buyers Remorse, C5 Vettes and Self-Anointed Cultural Creatives

Jing asks:

Well my question is fairly simple. I’m in the market for a new car and just like everyone else, I am trying to maximize the earning value of my money. I’ve been arguing with myself for over a month now trying to make up my mind but the more I try to focus on one particular car, the more I find my thoughts straying towards another. I have the feeling that inevitably I am going to be facing buyers remorse no matter what decision I ultimately make. With that being said, I don’t have a choice set in stone but ideally I want something sporty.

I originally had my eye set on the genesis coupe but I found my eye wandering towards the 370z instead. The base model is at the upper limit of my price range and while my heart says yes, my mind scoffs as it’s practicality or lack thereof. The alternative is either a Honda CR-Z (Yes, I know what most people here think of it) or a 2011 Kia Optima/Sonata plus a 650cc sport bike. The pricing is about the same for both options, but I cannot for the life of me decide whether to go with the more expensive (and cooler!) car or a more practical commuter coupled with a crotch rocket. What say you all?

Sajeev Answers:

Don’t lie to yourself. You couldn’t care less about maximizing your money’s earning potential. If that was the case, you’d be at Steve’s office signing the paperwork on a 2004 Buick Regal, or comparable. Take it from a fellow Asian person, you gotta try a lot harder to be cheap. A zero option 370Z with your penchant for buyer’s remorse? That’s gonna work, for like a year. And making two loan/insurance payments on a car and sport bike…let’s not even go there.

So what’s the middle ground? Maybe a Genesis coupe, or a Sonata Turbo, if you keep either long enough to take advantage of the warranty and minimize the impact of depreciation. If not, buy a 2-3 year old sports coupe, like a 350Z. It’s certainly an enthusiast’s car but performance on a budget is the sole domain of the C5 Corvette. The old-fart-Corvette stigma is a tough emotional hurdle but that’s how you go fast, carry plenty of stuff, get great fuel economy, and look cool. Don’t fool yourself, a C5 Corvette destroys everything in their wake. Buyer’s remorse won’t even have a chance.

Steve Answers:

Corvettes are for old people? You would be surprised how many young folks who aren’t self-anointed ‘cultural creatives’ end up buying them. The Corvette absolutely crushes the 370Z in virtually every objective measurement… including sales in the U.S. of A. Heck even Jeremy Clarkson, long-time critic of American cars, absolutely adores them.

I can’t believe this is even a question. Go get yourself the best bang for the buck sports car on the history of the planet. Test drive it. Notice how everything it does completely obliterates the sales failures that are the 370Z and the Hyundai Gene-snooz. Revel in the fact that the powertrain for this vehicle can easily last well past the 250k mark with proper care… and drive it. A two to three year old version with low miles will make the Nissan/Hyundai products look like the piss poor alternatives that they are.

Need help with a car buying conundrum? Email your particulars to mehta@ttac.com, and let TTAC’s collective wisdom make the decision easier… or possibly much, much harder.