"472CID" (472CID)
01/04/2014 at 09:45 • Filed to: None
2
29|
"472CID" (472CID)
01/04/2014 at 09:45 • Filed to: None | 2
| 29 |
So yesterday I asked "what's the best horsepower per dollar used car?" So I decided to find out. (The fact that I make pointless spreadsheets on my weekends gives you an idea just how socially awesome I am) The numbers before you are based on the KBB used car value for a private seller in GOOD condition. I realize that some of the values are absolutely ridiculous ($5200 for an M5 lol) but it is an easy way to get values on a lot of cars.
1995 Chevrolet Caprice 260 $1,375 $5.29
1994 Dodge Ram 2500 300 $1,699 $5.66
1995 Oldsmobile Aurora 250 $1,525 $6.10
1994 Ford Taurus SHO 220 $1,372 $6.24
1996 Cadillac Deville Concours 300 $1,885 $6.28
2000 Chrysler 300M 253 $1,850 $7.31
1994 Buick Roadmaster Wagon 260 $1,980 $7.62
1996 Ford Taurus SHO 235 $2,032 $8.65
2000 Nissan Maxima 220 $2,121 $9.64
1996 Mercedes S600 408 $3,959 $9.70
1998 Buick Regal GS 240 $2,411 $10.05
1994 Nissan Stanza 94 $1,022 $10.87
1996 Camaro SS 306 $3,627 $11.85
2004 Ford Crown Victoria 250 $2,997 $11.99
2000 Toyota Camry [control] 192 $2,370 $12.34
2000 BMW M5 400 $5,242 $13.11
1998 BMW 750iL 322 $4,413 $13.70
2000 Jaguar XJR370 $4,944 $13.36
1994 Chevrolet Corvette 300 $4,108 $13.69
1995 BMW M3 240 $3,473 $14.47
1994 Mitsubishi 3000GT 320 $4,665 $14.58
1994 Ford F250 245 $3,751 $15.31
2000 Camaro SS 320 $5,096 $15.93
1998 Chevrolet Corvette 350 $5,805 $16.59
2002 Nissan Altima 240 $4,564 $19.02
2001 Audi S8 355 $7,714 $21.73
1999 Mercedes E55 AMG 349 $7,647 $21.91
1994 Ford Mustang Cobra 240 $5,360 $22.33
1994 Nissan 300ZX turbo 300 $6,894 $22.98
2005 Pontiac GTO 400 $9,728 $24.32
2003 Chevrolet Avalanche 2500 340 $8,504 $25.01
2005 Chrylser 300 SRT8 425 $10,871 $25.58
2004 VW Phaeton W12 444 $11,387 $25.65
2004 Mustang Cobra SVT 390 $11,743 $30.11
2005 Cadillac CTS-V 400 $12,447 $31.12
2006 Dodge Ram SRT10 500 $16,197 $32.39
2007 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS 303 $9,961 $32.87
2003 Audi RS6 444 $16,985 $38.25
2002 Mercedes CL600 302 $13,561 $44.90
2005 Mercedes CL65 AMG 604 $33,144 $54.87
So what did we learn here? Well it seems this method of measurement isn't very useful. The simple formula gives too much weight to the cheapness of a car, for example a $2000 200hp car will be better than a $5000 400hp car. I used a 2000 Camry to see how a "normal" car fairs. As it turns out it's better than most of the cars that spring to mind.
Next up we'll look at (power/weight)/$ that should be interesting...
davedave1111
> 472CID
01/04/2014 at 09:48 |
|
What happened to the V8 Jags I posted? UK prices, but still less $/hp than the best in your list.
oldirtybootz
> 472CID
01/04/2014 at 09:54 |
|
In regards to the 1994 Nissan Stanza, the same year Altima had 150hp and is similarly cheap. I owned one and it's still the third most powerful vehicle I've owned. My Bronco also cost $1500 and had 185hp when new. My modern cars have made 134hp and 160hp.
DollaMoneyAve
> 472CID
01/04/2014 at 09:57 |
|
Are you making a separate thread for the (power/weight)/dollars question? That's a good one. However, it still might be biased towards the cheaper cars
|
472CID
> davedave1111
01/04/2014 at 09:59 |
|
KBB doesn't list values in sterling...
theloudmouth
> 472CID
01/04/2014 at 10:03 |
|
I really don't want to be "that guy," but for clarity you may want to retitle this "$/HP"
|
472CID
> DollaMoneyAve
01/04/2014 at 10:04 |
|
Yeah I put something out today or tomorrow. It should still be skewed to the cheap, but interesting all the same.
|
472CID
> theloudmouth
01/04/2014 at 10:05 |
|
Fair enough
|
theloudmouth
> 472CID
01/04/2014 at 10:06 |
|
I should definitely say, thanks for putting the list together, it's very interesting.
I only pointed that out as I'm guessing you may get questions from others.
John Norris (AngryDrifter)
> 472CID
01/04/2014 at 10:09 |
|
Pointless? For what its worth I enjoyed the two posts. Interesting to see others candidates and educational to see the results.
|
davedave1111
> 472CID
01/04/2014 at 10:18 |
|
Yeah, but if you're allowed to have the cheap US muscle cars, I ought to be allowed cars that are really cheap because no-one can afford to run them in the UK :)
I'm afraid Parker's Guide - UK equivalent of KBB - doesn't offer free valuations on cars of the age we're talking about, but there are any number on Autotrader, so you can get a good idea of pricing. (And that's a $7b business...)
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/adv…
Pretty typical example for £700, which is roughly $1k. 290bhp, so a bit under $3.50 per hp.
Europe really ought to win this one, because with our petrol and road taxes bigger engined old cars go for less than the less powerful versions. The 3.2 XJs are worth maybe 50% more.
|
472CID
> davedave1111
01/04/2014 at 10:24 |
|
Yeah as someone who loves to look up automotive specifications, trying to find good info on non-US market cars can be really difficult sometimes.
As to the UK prices, you guys have crazy cheap cars. I'm always mystified by the kind of cars Top Gear gets for the price with their cheap car challenges. It would be fun to see a list for the UK, but it'd ought to be separate.
Dsscats
> 472CID
01/04/2014 at 10:41 |
|
Since when can you find an E39 M5 for $5500!?!?!? And a running Impala Ss for $3500? I need some sources!
|
472CID
> Dsscats
01/04/2014 at 10:56 |
|
http://www.kbb.com/bmw/m5/2000-bm…
http://www.kbb.com/chevrolet/cama…
I assume you're referring to the Camaro SS. The Caprice (which is nearly identical as an Impala SS) is listed at $1300.
|
davedave1111
> 472CID
01/04/2014 at 11:40 |
|
The cars are cheap to buy because they're so damned expensive to run. Just for a laugh I ran an insurance quote on that Jag I linked. I'd get fairly cheap insurance - over 30, 1 year NCB, own another car - for someone living in London, but it's still £800 a year for 5k miles of social use only. That's already more than the car costs.
Add another £225 in car tax, plus £40 or so for a mandatory annual MOT.
Now think about the petrol it uses. You'd be lucky to average 20mpg (Imperial) in general use, although you might see nearly 30mpg on a long slow run. 5,000 miles at 20mpg is 250 gallons. At UK prices, that's about £1,600 in fuel costs.
The total annual running cost before the usual old Jag expenses would be three to four times the value of the car, even if you don't use it a great deal. Keep it just for weekends, do only a couple of thousand miles, and you're still looking at double the purchase price annually in running costs.
One other minor factor is that 160k miles is a lot more here than in the US - that's a real high-miler by our standards. Compared to the effect the running costs have, though, it really makes very little difference.
mcseanerson
> 472CID
01/04/2014 at 11:56 |
|
Had no idea the taurus sho could be had for so little. They must love them a lot where I live because I never see them that low. Quick internet search confirmed the kbb value.
|
M54B30
> 472CID
01/04/2014 at 12:48 |
|
I'll take that $5k M5 off your hands
|
M54B30
> mcseanerson
01/04/2014 at 12:50 |
|
I owned two (91 & 93) and paid $1300-$2000 for them. Worth extra money for a clean example. Awesome cars.
|
Dsscats
> 472CID
01/04/2014 at 13:46 |
|
That m5 says 6200 and up. Sorry, the impala was a miss read.
|
472CID
> Dsscats
01/04/2014 at 14:03 |
|
Says 5200 for me, perhaps it factors in your location.
|
Dsscats
> 472CID
01/04/2014 at 14:13 |
|
Damnit LA
|
mcseanerson
> M54B30
01/04/2014 at 15:05 |
|
Yeah I am not a Ford guy (my blood cells are bow tie shaped) and I was not overly impressed with the performance of a 200+ hp sedan from the early 90's but oh man that noise. I think they'd be worth 2k just for the soundtrack alone.
|
M54B30
> mcseanerson
01/04/2014 at 17:24 |
|
They're super reliable - both had over 250k miles (I put 50-80k on them) and I never did anything but oil changes. I only sold them because I needed to make room in the garage (and on the insurance) for a BMW and a Grand Cherokee.
Of all the cars I've owned, I don't miss any as much as I do the SHOs. Weird, I know.
|
mcseanerson
> M54B30
01/04/2014 at 19:51 |
|
Really? I always heard you had to do more valve train maintenance with them.
|
M54B30
> mcseanerson
01/04/2014 at 20:43 |
|
I never did any.
Mike_Smith
> 472CID
01/05/2014 at 14:36 |
|
Clearly the best metric is (price) times (Nordschliefe lap time in seconds), the lower the better.
|
472CID
> Mike_Smith
01/05/2014 at 15:44 |
|
That actually sounds like a neat idea. I can't figure out a good formula for $ per power/weight anyway.
|
Mike_Smith
> 472CID
01/05/2014 at 17:34 |
|
(hp) / (tons * kilobucks) could work for that, but it still only awards cheap straight-line performance.
Parth985
> Dsscats
01/14/2014 at 00:19 |
|
Realisticly no one is getting an e39 for under 14k I own one and it very though to find one in working order for under that even at 14k your looking into 4 grand of maintaince if your lucky and kbb is completely inaccurate judging values of e39 m5s
|
Dsscats
> Parth985
01/14/2014 at 00:35 |
|
http://losangeles.craigslist.org/sgv/cto/427279…
http://losangeles.craigslist.org/wst/cto/427471…
http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/cto/4247998104…
These have to count for something. The E39s are great, but I agree with maintenance.