The $61,800 question (or, car prices really do follow inflation)

"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein) 01/13/2014 at 19:03 • Filed to: None

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With all the new sports cars announced recently, I got to thinking, there are a lot of nice performance cars available nowadays, but a lot of us look back to the early 90s as a sort of end of an era where there were these awesome cars like the FD RX-7.

I also got to thinking, I really wish some car company with a non-pretentious badge would make a 400 hp, 3000 lb, LSD, rwd sports car and sell it for $45k. I'm driving a car that comes pretty close to this ideal— !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , which I like a lot—but hey I can always dream about something lighter, more powerful, and less snobby.

So I did some playing with an inflation calculator if what I want is in any way realistic. (and yes I have a TL;DR at the bottom)

Here were some of the better performance cars available in 1994 and what they would cost in 2014 dollars:

Acura Integra GSR - $19,850 - $31,217.41
Chevrolet Corvette - $36,285 - $57,064.16
Chevrolet Camaro Z28 - $17,309 - $27,221.26
Ford Mustang GT - $17,505 - $27,529.51
Honda Prelude VTEC - $25,000 - $39,316.63
Mazda Miata - $$17,000 - $25,998.51
Mazda RX-7 - $36,500 - $57,402.28
Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4 - $41,275 - $64,911.76
Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX - $21,459 - 33,747.83
Nissan 300ZX TT - $40,099 - $63,062.31
Porsche 968 - $39,950 - $62,827.98
Toyota Supra Turbo - $44,100 - $69,354.54
Toyota MR2 Turbo - $27,588 - $43,386.69
VW Corrado - $25,150 - $39,552.53

*1995 BMW M3 since there was no 1994 - $37,950 - $58,037.85

If you average out the current-day prices of all the fancy, top-level cars on the list (let's call this group the NBA) you get right about $61,800. This was kind of depressing because it kinda makes you realize how expensive cars like the RX-7 and Supra Turbo were in their heyday.

Current NBA cars? Corvette, Camaro ZL1, Mustang GT500, C63 AMG, Boxster/Cayman S, F-Type base, and (maybe?) the M3/M4, and maybe stretch and include the RS5. I get that only luxury brands and top-level muscle cars are still playing in this price bracket. It makes sense because that's what people will spend money on.

Somehow, the NBA cars don't seem as neato to me as I feel like they should. Maybe it's because I was 10 when the FD came out, but nothing on that list makes me say, "SOMEDAY THIS WILL. BE. MINE." Maybe it's because they're too heavy aside from the C7, Boxster/Cayman S and M3/M4.

If you average the price of the more affordable cars (let's call this NCAA basketball), you get $33,500.

In that general price range today you have the Camaro, Mustang, Miata, Genesis Coupe, Toyobaru, 350Z, WRX/STi, GTI/Golf R, Evo, Fiesta/Focus ST, 228i. Almost all of these are nice & light. Good bang for the buck on all of these cars.

But back to my mythical car. I find it interesting that my ideal price point is right between these NCAA & NBA leagues. Let's call it the NBA D-League. To afford a car like this, you don't necessarily need to be overflowing with cash, just a step or two above middle income and slightly stupid when it comes to being willing to waste money on cars, like me.

Aside from my 135is (and the M235i that replaces it), it would appear the closest, on paper, is the 350Z Nismo. Maybe include the CLA 45 AMG. S4/S5 can play here even though they're still too damn heavy for me. But what else is there?

Mainstream brands like Toyota shouldn't play in the NBA because nobody buys a $60k Toyota that's not a truck, but they certainly could play in the D-League.

TL;DR - We need more $45-50k non-snobby performance cars that don't weigh too much.

The Prince of Peugeot > Textured Soy Protein 01/13/2014 at 19:30

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370Z?

HammerheadFistpunch > Textured Soy Protein 01/13/2014 at 19:31

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"Porsche 968 - $39,950 - $62,827.98
Toyota Supra Turbo - $44,100 - $69,354.54"

"The Supra was an affordable sports car" - said anyone who doesn't understand inflation.

I did these same numbers with my land cruiser (97-2013) going from 51,720 - 75,104 which is inline, but still slightly cheaper than a 2014 model($78,755) The difference being that they both pay a 25% import tax, but % based tax really screws people over with inflation. Granted, it has 2x the power, its smoother and comes with more toys. on the other side of the coin, it no longer has front and rear lockers as an option. I paid less than 1/10th of that price

TwoFortified > Textured Soy Protein 01/13/2014 at 19:32

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To use your analogy, I think you're looking for the sort of full-package NCAA cars such as the Nismo 350Z, which you mentioned. I mean, think about it: You want something powerful (check), lightweight (not-so-much-check-but-whatever), RWD (check) sports car (check) with an LSD (check I assume...at least a 1.5 anyway).

Let's see...Arguably the WRX is NCAA class and the STi is in the D-league IMO...GTIs...well, I don't know much about them. The Evo is pretty pricey, I think you have it in the wrong price-bracket category, but I'd think it'd fit nicely into the D-team analogy (If lacking in the RWD department). Don't know much about the rest I guess.

Remember also, that many of these cars (AFAIK) roll off the factory floor with Aftermarket/Cross-compatible toys available.

Can't find a RWD that comes stock with an LSD? Buy one and install it (or have it installed. A shop shouldn't/wouldn't charge you for more than like 3 hours of labor on that...and even that seems a bit excessive). Want better suspension than stock? Same story.

At the end of the day I hear you. On the flipside, I've never been in the market for a new car, and those 90's cars you listed have sort of been my bread and butter. No complaints here!

PS9 > Textured Soy Protein 01/13/2014 at 19:37

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Indeed. Not hard to see why some of them vanished.

Team6.1 > Textured Soy Protein 01/13/2014 at 19:45

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Aside from the 3000lbs (if you remove all the safety features) Mustang GT with 10k to spare. Buy slightly used and save even more. I've been to the track and easily held my own against M3's, hot hatches, older Porsches/Vettes. Aside from a stiffer suspension and more rubber you almost couldn't ask for more in stock form.

Orange Exige > Textured Soy Protein 01/13/2014 at 19:49

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Wow I hadn't realized the RX7 and Supra had cost that much.
I'd never really thought about it but I guess it makes sense.

I definitely do agree with you.
Miata goes a long way but sometimes you need a little bit more. What happened to the Japanese - why did they give up this mid-level sports car segment in the 00's?

GrauGeist > Textured Soy Protein 01/13/2014 at 19:54

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Subaru SVX LSi - $34,295 - $53,934.56

The current 2014 Audi A5 Quattro is a pretty close equivalent, and in the same $50k ballpark for an AWD performance coupe.

Textured Soy Protein > TwoFortified 01/13/2014 at 19:56

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Yeah I hear ya, I included the Evo in NCAA because it starts at $35k but fully optioned it's $45k.

I guess what I want is rather than the uber top model of an NCAA car, a car that's designed more as a proper sports car and can be had without all the extra gizmos and stuff. But not quite so expensive as the NBA cars.

Textured Soy Protein > The Prince of Peugeot 01/13/2014 at 19:57

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That's what I meant, dunno why I said 350Z. Brain fart.

Textured Soy Protein > The Prince of Peugeot 01/13/2014 at 19:57

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That's what I meant. Not sure why I said 350Z instead.

N/A POWAAAHH > Textured Soy Protein 01/13/2014 at 20:02

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Now I see why people thought muscle was better than imports in the 90's

Textured Soy Protein > Team6.1 01/13/2014 at 20:04

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True, there's always the modified used car route, and I've been down it before. The problems with that are:

You can't lease or low-interest finance modifications.

Unless it's a particularly desirable/unique car with particularly desirable/unique mods, you need to part it out before you sell it out get killed on depreciation.

That said, part of me wants to get a used Z4M Roadster and supercharge it when the lease on my 135is runs out.

Textured Soy Protein > Orange Exige 01/13/2014 at 21:07

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Several reasons:

Japan's government rolled out much stricter emissions laws for the 2003 model year. So a lot of performance cars that weren't particularly new designs by then got discontinued rather than re-engineered.

It's expensive to own any car in Japan, both in terms of parking costs in dense urban areas, and keeping up with maintenance in order to pass inspection. You need to have the car inspected every 2 years and it costs anywhere from $1200-2500 just for the inspection, so older depreciating cars tend not to stay on the roads. They get sold off to grey-market import friendly countries that have right-hand drive, like New Zealand, Australia, and (to a lesser extent) the UK.

Japan has a rapidly aging population that continues to work and take up the higher-earning jobs, so younger people are earning a lot less. The people who can afford sports cars are no longer interested in them and the people who are interested in sports cars can't afford them.

Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney > Textured Soy Protein 01/13/2014 at 21:41

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Thank God. I try to make this point to the savants on the front page all of the time. Bless you and your belief in data.

Team6.1 > Textured Soy Protein 01/13/2014 at 22:17

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Those new ones do look nice. Remind me of the old M-Coupes. I love those. Every time I see one I freak out

briannutter1 > Textured Soy Protein 01/13/2014 at 22:48

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Wait ten years for your favorite car of the decade or 1/2 decade and buy the best used example and you'll have a very nice collection when you are 60

Orange Exige > Textured Soy Protein 01/14/2014 at 00:06

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Wow that was really informative - thanks a lot for that explanation!

That registration cost is insane! I feel like I'm being abused at the DMV paying ~$200 for registration - I couldn't imagine 10x that o_O

I'm imagining the point is to limit the number of cars on the road and this is understandable for highly urban areas of high population density, but nation-wide? Seems a little excessive. I can only imagine the number of people in the U.S. driving around in vehicles that cost less than a Japanese registration (myself included). Which means that all these cars probably just aren't on the road (theoretically) in Japan.

Textured Soy Protein > Orange Exige 01/14/2014 at 00:19

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Here's a good blog post showing what it takes to pass the inspection yourself rather than pay a shop to do it. This guy still ended up spending about $1000.

http://followrory.blogspot.com/2013/06/shaken…

Orange Exige > Textured Soy Protein 01/14/2014 at 00:40

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Wow that's absurd.
Reading that made me imagine myself owning a car in North Korea, jeez.

At that one single cost of ownership, it seems like car ownership has gotta be virtually nil for middle class young adults (folks like myself) in Japan.

The inspection is a good and a bad thing... I mean I can't criticize Japan for their inspection details - it seems a whole lot more legitimate than our inspections, especially since you actually do the "tests" yourself and don't just sit in a waiting room for 10 minutes - but government "efficiency" at this cost? Not reasonable at all in my opinion.

boxrocket > Textured Soy Protein 01/20/2014 at 12:21

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One of the things that shocked me a while ago in Motorweek Theatre was the price of a Mitsubishi 3000GT:

Textured Soy Protein > boxrocket 01/20/2014 at 12:26

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Yeah those were really expensive. Partly because it was one of the very first modern hardtop convertibles, and partly because there were some trade tariffs on expensive Japanese cars in the mid-90s.