If you want to build a custom car that'll be faster than a stock version, you could probably spend your hard cash on various performance parts and your spare time on cobbling up your custom machine...or you could buy something that another person has created....you just need to not mind the creator's vision and execution. Could you drive this next thing? Find this 1981 Triumph TR7(?) offered for $15,000 in Roseville, CA via craigslist.
If you are going to get into a classic Porsche and don't want to pay an arm/leg for entry fee, you might need to look into the less loved front-engine water-cooled Porsche club. Thankfully, you've got a number of options, but if you can't find one of the rare 924 Turbo models you probably can't go wrong with an inexpensive 944. Like this 1985 Porsche 944 offered for $3000 in Sacramento, CA via craigslist.
Do you know whats better than a million bucks? Having a car that looks like a million bucks but cost you less than a used Kia. Better still is a car that'll have even the most well read car guy scratching his head when you drive by and THAT, my friend, is worth a million bucks if you ask this guy. You can read all about the Cimbra SS by Amore in this old DT article that is probably full of conjector and innuendo...what else is new/old? Find this 1978 Amore Cimbria Kit Car offered for $3,500 in Huntsville, AR via craigslist. Tip from Rock On!
There are a few key things that I like about this next ride. FIRST, is the color. I'm a sucker for bronze/copper/gold paint that doesn't look like something aftermarket rattle can job...and this looks appropriately bronze without the brassy tones you'd expect from a bad dye job. NEXT, the price is reasonable. And finally, those two little letters HF means high fuel economy (42mpg city, 50 mpg hwy) which wasn't achieved through hybridization but through weight loss and incredible gear ratios. Find this 1988 Honda CRX HF offered for $2,800 in Long Beach, CA via craigslist. Tip from FuelTruck.
Yes, old wagons are the best. Even better is an old green wagon...an old green American wagon with an old green interior, and with a V8 and an awoooooooga horn. And you are gonna need that awoooooooga horn with 2 tons of steel and manual drum brakes. Find this 1969 AMC Rebel Wagon here on eBay bidding for $6,500 with 3 days to go, located in Lompoc, CA.
Who says a 911 is a rich man's car? Well...the mechanic might think so...but if you've got another car for when the 911 is getting its interplanetary marmon spindle (IMS...just google 996 IMS and read all about it) replaced then the 996 is a car you could drive every other day of the year without needing a second job or a rich daddy. Find this 1999 Porsche 911 Carrera 2 offered for $10,500 in Paradise Valley, AZ via craigslist. Tip from FuelTruck.
The Lotus Europa has always been a favorite car over around these here parts -- we DT writers love its lightweight composite chassis, mid engine high revving powerplant and cheap entry price. Time has driven the nicer examples to higher prices, but you can still get nice cheap Europa for the price of a 911 rear bumper mounting flange and we think the Europa is sweet. Find this 1970 Lotus Europa S2 offered for $7450 in Long Beach, CA via craigslist. Tip from Hugh.
Okay, it is Friday, time for a Coffee Brake. The question of the day is: What did you drive today, how many miles, and did you enjoy it?
This next car is a two parter. The first part came from tipper Jeff who writes: I love this era of the Jaguar. I know Ford's ownership of Jag effects the pedigree of the brand a bit as the V8 drivetrain used was basically the same engine found in the Mustang, but c'mon.... this is a close as you'll ever get to looking like a late model Bond/Aston Martin car without spending anywhere near the coin. The Supercharged version of this same car (the XKR) is an even better example of bang of the buck. This email was followed a few minutes later by... Aaaaaand per my last email.... a 2007 Jaguar XKR. Miles are higher, but where are you going to get this kind of car, with this kind of look and these kinds of numbers. Find this 2007 Jaguar XKR offered for $16,787 in the Woodlands, TX via craigslist.
If you are looking for a sub $15k American car to take and win a trophy at your next car show...don't go out and by a cheap '57 Chevy. Or a '65 Mustang. Because those things are everywhere and the nice ones are really expensive..but what you should get is a 40th Anniversary Corvette, because this next one is nice enough for a museum, but priced like a depreciated classic. Find this 1993 Chevrolet Corvette 40th Anniversary offered for $14,800 in Houston, TX via craigslist. Tip from Jeff.
Most of the Firebirds you'll find littering the pages of this website are the older "Rockford Files" bird, or the cheap Knight Rider generation birds, but this next car comes from 1993, which was the fourth and final generation of the legendary thunderchicken. Find this 1993 Pontiac Firebird offered for $3000 in Snohomish, WA via craigslist. Tip from FuelTruck.
Here we've got a car that is really a story all by itself...because what do you suppose the total costs have been on a Bentley Turbo R for the past 126,000 miles? Let's start with depreciation, with a base price of $203,500 plus $12,000 in options in 1997, this thing lost $200,000 in value over the years (or $1.68/mile)...plus the 12,600 gallons of premium this thing consumed at a conservative 10mpg for $37,800 at $3/gal average fuel cost. Add in the cost of consumables like $275 headlights and you've got at LEAST $5000/year for the past 21 years for $105,000. Plus $1200 per year for license/insurance/registration for $25,200...so total WAG for cost to run is $368,000 or $2.92 dollars per mile..which is about $1/mile MORE than taking uber. Find this 1997 Bentley Turbo R offered for $15,000 in Pocatello, ID. Tip from FuelTruck.
Most of the automobiles features on these pages are inexpensive classics or late model maniac machines...with an emphasis on cars you can drive and enjoy on the cheap for years on end. However...there are sometimes cars that cross our path that offer a combination of exclusivity and cool factor at an economy car entry price...BUT you might need to put thousands of dollars and hours into a restoration. Ehh...what else are you gonna do with your weekends? Find this 1966 Lotus Elan S2 offered for $18,500 in Worcester, MA via craigslist.
This next car comes as a tip from Hugh who writes: What do you call a T-bucket roadster with a Jaguar XK engine and an automatic transmission? A lotus Seven of course! It's almost as strange as that desert boat pickup thing. Maybe pickups that aren't pickups week? I dunno...but this next car sure is a pick-me-up. Find this 1960s Lotus 7 Replica offered for $19500 in Centerreach, NY via topclassiccarsforsale.com.
Last year, Porsche celebrated the 55th anniversary of the 911. The 911 of 1963 doesn't share much in common with the 2018 911 other than maybe possessing four wheels and being rear-engined. You definitely coudn't use parts from a 1963 911 on a 2018. In 1966 Alfa Romeo debuted their two seat Spider and changed very little over its 28 year production run. Meaning that you won't have too much trouble with parts for whatever year Spider strikes your fancy. Find this 1978 Alfa Romeo Spider for sale in Astoria, OR for $6,300 via craigslist. 
In case you live under a rock (and YES, i do understand living under a rock with all the scary stuff out in the big wide world...this next thing being a case in point...anywho) there is this festival of drugs and debauchery out in the Nevada desert that is called Burning Man...but should probably be called I spent a week in the desert blasted out of my gourde on methamphetamines and now I've got this rash and my junk is burning man...but that doesn't fit well on a bumper sticker. But who am I to judge anyway...wait..I'm exactly the person to judge because I created a blog specifically to pass judgement on other people and their cars...yes. Therefore, I judge this car...awesome, but overpriced. Find this 1997 Chevrolet S-10 Boat Art Car offered for $8000 in Oakland, CA via craigslist. Tip from Hugh.
Another day, another 