GT4/WRX STI/EVO, Next Car Conundrum Options

[yarik83]

To buy or not to buy, that is the question.
Imagine yourself in the year 2010, credit cards are paid off and ability to pay $600/mo into car payments. Imagine yourself having to choose between 3 car brands: Toyota, Subaru and Mitsubishi.
Cars up for consideration: GT-4 Celica, Subaru WRX STI and Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution.

GT-4 Celica
1994-1995 approximate mileage 60,000 miles approximate cost $10,000 USD
Pro: Sentimental Value
Con: Average lifespan of a car is about 20 years and vehicle is already 15-16 years old; being pulled over all the time

Subaru WRX STI
2005-2007 approximate mileage 30,000-60,000 miles approximate cost $20,000 USD
Pro: 4 door sedan on steroids
Con: Thousands on the street
2008-2010 approximate mileage 0-20,000 miles approximate cost $25,000 USD
Pro: 5 door models could be used to transport large® objects when necessary
Con: Higher Purchase Cost

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution
2003-2005 approximate mileage 50,000-70,000 miles approximate cost $20,000 USD
Pro: 4 door sedan on steroids
Con: Thousands on the street
2005-2007 approximate mileage 30,000-50,000 miles approximate cost $25,000 USD
Pro: 4 door sedan on steroids
Con: Thousands on the street

2008-2010 approximate mileage 0-20,000 miles approximate cost $25,000 USD
Pro: 4 door sedan on steroids
Con: High(er) Insurance Rates
So question is: to buy or not to buy?
I know I know… but GT-4 is not legal in the states and yada yada. Let’s close our eyes on legal issues for a second. After all taking a risk is part of the game.
I am window shopping early; obviously it would be silly to walk around with a big check for $25,000 and expect to make a right decision when the time comes. Having Toyota in my DNA, I think it is very hard, mentally, to get away from having one. After all myself and Toyota has been “married” since 1998. Divorce is certainly an option but since Supra was the last performance model and celica was the last appealing model, I doubt that I have anything to look forward to with exception of FT-86 model which is nice but not that nice. So looking back in time I spent nearly 10 years of my life dreaming about GT-4.. so I got myself the closest thing (engine swap) but having been surrounded by AWD Subaru and Evolution cars.. I feel that I don’t quite fit in. Then of course GT-4 has made itself available, at least to our Northern neighbors and getting one to Florida became that much easier. Legal aspects aside… I could be driving one here in the states, legally or not come February. But then vehicle age and limitations have to be considered. Even with lower mileage car is already 15 years old and it is a 2 door bundle of joy that will probably get pulled over every other day. Of course I could spend a little more cash and get myself an evo or a sti and have no legal issues at all, I could have a sedan or a 5 door and probably higher insurance but I would be driving either car until at least 2025-2030. Those cars, of course have advanced AWD system with upgraded electronics and yada yada but the curves are gone, rarity is missing and aside from practical use of having 4 or 5 doors and lasting a whole 10 or so years longer than a GT-4 would… they are not that special. Of course 2008+ models look different from previous models but that is kind of expected. In either case purchase of those would be expected come Summer.
What would you do?

[yarik83]

In 2007 I had a long talk with my boss on where and how to invest my 401K. While he went ahead and dumped most of his 401 fund into high risk stocks and was up by 40 or so percent, I chose to take a safer route and dump every penny into bonds. So stock market crashed and he lost 80 percent of his 401K while I lost about 10 percent give or take. I had a 6th sense tell me right then and there not to listen to his advice and it turned out to be a good hunch. $10K is a large investment which can make me very happy or very disappointed. Provided I have a few months left until then... I spent the last 2 months being tormented by the thought of "what if". Buying a GT-4 in canada is not like running down the street and physically looking at it, giving it to mechanic for thorough review and have some sort of lemon law backing it up. Buying a GT-4 in canada is exactly like buying a cat in a bag. A 1 shot deal that may go either very sweet or very sour. Obviously I hope for the best but since there is no legal way of registering a gt-4 here, my only option is (and I don't want to give any wrong ideas to people) to bring the car here, do a switcharoo and drive it as a car that was bought and registered here legally and have that car parked/garaged/forever forgotten but never sent to a junk yard. There is really no other way to do this unless we can somehow mysteriously make next year a 2029, send me back to my 20's and rewind my life for the next 10 years. $10K is a large gamble which would be a lot easier to execute if canadian brokers would start importing not just from japan but from left hand drive countries in europe that do have lhd celicas.
Driving a rhd car in the states is like wearing a green hat in a orange field. You will stand out and if a cop is having a really bad day and your celica vins were swapped and they found out... well you know where I am going with this. On the contrary you could be driving a lhd model with absolutely no modifications and nobody would ever know.

Tough choices eh

This post has been edited by yarik83: Nov 1, 2009 - 12:37 AM