I bought my J new and I love my car, but to be 100% honest, I'd never buy a J again unless it was a beat/mod car. I say this because there is so many cars out there with better options, looks, and even build quality. Instead of spending what I spent on my 05 Cav, I wish I would have gotten a used 00+ luxury car.
BIGGSZ24 wrote:I Wanna See You Suffer wrote:ok, if so many of you on here dislike, or even hate these cars.. why the f*ck are you people still here? especially those of you who have only owned one, maybe 2 of them..
Because many of us may have friends or gf's that have J's,whatever,my answer was an honest one to the OP.I honestly would not buy one,mine was free,for the main reason that I want something faster,imho you have to spend way too much money to achieve high hp.I'd rather get a Talon or Eclipse or something else that responds better to mods and has more of an aftermarket support.
good answer.. but really, I've heard the DSM argument time and time again. its not really that hard to pull mad power from a J, unless you have the old 2.2 or even the 2200. even one of my good friends that been running DSMs since the beginning is impressed with what J cars can do, and his DSMs have all been MINIMUM 12-second cars (well, not cars.. he had one main beast and he just rebuilt the motor when needed.. which was frequently), so he knows what fast is. look at how well the turbo Cavis and Sunfires have responded to boost.. achieving the same hp numbers as some of the competition, but with lower boost levels. it seems to be more and more common to see a boosted j-body walk all over a Skittle or DSM, with no problems
I can see how some people might grow out of them and want something more family-oriented, but most of the responses are a lil hate-felt, or thats how I'd take them at least. like I said, I guess I've had better luck than most, 'cause I'd take a J over 90% of the cars on the road just out of sheer dependibility and ease to work on, not mention how cheap parts are and the gas mileage
R.I.P. JessE Gerard 7.11.87 - 1.25.08
The Radiation Nation Facebook Twitter Twisted Metal Alliance
I just mod mine, I would buy another to mod. Personally I have a Lincoln Mark LT as my "Family Car" to go on vacations and such. My work car is a Dodge Magnum, response is great and plenty of room. Unmodded on the second 2, all of the money goes into the J.
FOR SALE
I <3 my chevy
01' Z24 5 speed
422whp/400wtq
T4 Turbocharged
Built LD9
HP Tuners
Believe me,I loved my Vert. and it was fairly easy to work on and mod but being the 2.4 and not the ECO was a drawback for me,I used to favor the LD9's but the ECO just has more support.I know DSM's break alot and are a b*tch to work on but I can go on many sites such as modifiedcartrader.com and find a DSM for less than 10k that would smoke 90% of the J's on this site and the cost is FAR less than the amount of money that I would want to put into a J.
I don't know where your from but aside from members in JBOM I sure don't see a whole lot of high HP boosted J's running around.I have much respect for guys like Hahn and Boosted for what they have accomplished but I am sorry I would have never sunk all that cash into a J,JMO
15.2@89mph 2.171 60ft. 9.830 1/8 R.I.P. "LULU"
i would, if my car goes beyond fixing id look for a cav sedan. my main reasoning is if anything does need fixed in the future, i already know a decent amount about the car and parts arent tooo horribly hard or expensive to obtain compared to parts for VW (we have a passat, just a personal example...IM NOT COMPARING A J TO A PASSAT SO SHUT IT lol) other reason is im not looking for any fancy car right now. there are other more important things in my life like our new house. i'd rather have a decent car to get from here to there and a nice house... than a nice car and an apartment or not as nice house. (and we dont have the funds to have both, so those of you who do have both a nice car and house, you too can save your breath)
so yes... i would... but i would go with the best deal that i cam across at the time.
well, at least you Biggs express the love you had for the car at the time.. but reading "I would never own one again" from the majority just seems f*cking harsh. I say that about the 2 Honda CR-X's I owned yrs back (in between Js, not replacing them) and I say that 'cause the cars were POSs and would never run right. now if you guys had similar experiences, then by all means, tell me to shut the f*ck up 'cause no one wants to keep on with a car that just wont act right.. but with 4 main Cavaliers I've owned (that were actually meant to be driven), they've went above and beyond the call of duty despite the mileage or even reckless abuse I put them thru. they've proven themselves time and time again, and in the 7 yrs I've been here, I've learned these cars inside and out (or pretty damn close)
and in comparison, yea you're gonna find more DSMs thatr are faster than Js 'cause quite simply, there are more built DSMs than j-bodies out there. the j following is still relatively small while DSMs are almost as popular as Hondas and FR Nissans and Toyotas, so its not a shock when comparing the law of averages and then the aftermarket support situation.. but the real comparison is taking a similarly tuned j-body and DSM, and seeing whats up. the j will win, simple as that. most boosted Js (or at least the ones I've seen) running at, lets say 8psi, produce more hp than other turbo cars running the same boost levels
I'm from central FL, and we do have some pretty fast J cars here. I'm also aware of JBOM (I'm not a part of the "problems" from the past), and yes, they do have respectful cars, so that should just go to show you what these cars can do.. and also, there is nothing wrong with a Passat. I'd take one with 22" staggered BBS's and an Air Ride kit anyday (but then again, I'm also a VW enthusiast as well)
R.I.P. JessE Gerard 7.11.87 - 1.25.08
The Radiation Nation Facebook Twitter Twisted Metal Alliance
I would absolutely buy another J car if I needed to replace my present one. I have a 96 base coupe w/ the 2.2 and 3 sp auto, pretty basic. This is my commuter car and it's perfect for that purpose. It runs smooth, has killer a/c, and is very easy to drive. It'll probably run forever but the rust is getting extensive, one day it's gonna be "time". I'm already eyeing low mileage 04's and 05's.
Ive only ever had them
I dont mind them but now with everything i know about them i would move into something better
2ca0va0lier0 wrote:For 5-7k i think you can get a WAY better car than a J. i enjoy driving it but i would much rather have like a 95ish 300zx
Ooh me too. I almost got one on eBay with the Twim Turbo 3.0 for 3k but it needed body work so bah I kept the Sunfire. I love my car but its pretty basic and theres still a lot to be desired. I couldn't see driving this car much past the time when I can get the funds for something better. Unless it were to become a second car for heavy modification but for 7k you can get a lot better DD.
Man look at all this hat eon a forum based on this very car! WOW..
I'd by another anyday... Unless I had a child in which case I would by an appropriate car. I have kept hold my my first cavy for almost 7 years and it was a champ.. maybe not best in class for HP or luxery but front point A to point B it was just fine.
My reasoning is there good car's for the price, parts are cheep (-->Econobox<--), so financailly in a market where "depreciation" is inevidable and your will lose money how ever you look at it, yea there one great by.
But if you're worried what others think of you, your swagger, or worried about penis size. Do what idiots do. By a car to prove to themselves or others something stupid.
" Aint nothin' but a Peanut!"
Y E S
Member of JBO - 9 Years & Counting...
Depending on what you are looking for. If I could easily afford them, there are some cars I would buy before another J.
But if you are looking price vs age vs mileage, etc....
J wins, hands down.
I just bought my second one a few months back. Its a 2004 Cavy base model 5spd (with AC, sunroof & cd player). Had 66k miles on it and I bought it for 5k. Not only that but it was worth a lil more because it was a florida car, never seen salt or snow (like all the ones around here in New England go through unless garage kept). They are cheap on insurance, pretty cheap overall and I don't see it having many problems due to it being pretty low mileage and well upkept.
My 2002 would last forever If I didn't @!#$ with it. I turned it into a headache creating a monster out of it. I would honestly trade my 04 eco for another Cavalier of equal mileage/options/conditon, in a heartbeat if it had a 2200 in it. I would rather have a 2200 in my beater. They are workhorses.
If you go for MOST other cars in the same price range you are looking at higher mileage. Like Hondas/Acuras/Toyotas.
When I was looking for a second vehicle I was looking at Cavaliers/Sunfires & Cobalts.
If I had a lot more money I would have been looking at other cars but I was in your situation, looking to spend around 5k.
My vision was to take those potential car payments and put that towards me 2002 instead.
Call me crazy, but I'd own a 3rd 2nd gen in a heartbeat, but not a 3rd gen ever again. Both my Gen 2s have thus far been retardedly tough, and super easy to work on. Unless you have to replace an oil sending unit on a 2.2, that is. Requires more bending than is possible with the human arm. Even for me, that sucked.
2010 Honda Fit LX
in one simple answer- NO; as it's just too small and since I live in snow country, it's just not practical, nor is it comfy enough to truly hold four adults. If I were to get another J, it'd be a 2nd gen Z24, if the condition and price were right. To me the 3rd's just look too "importish", and the interior looks cheap. My next vehicle of choice would be something 4WD.
If you got it, a BIG truck brought it!
i wouldn't. i'm lookin to replace my 2000 z24 right now, about the same price range as the OP. i've just had too many problems with my 3 j's. plus i'm kind've over them. i'd like to have a nicer car with a nicer interior that didn't rattle like hell when driving over a rock, let alone gravel roads.
they're great starter cars, but in my case they've been absolute money pits. time to step it upfor something a little nicer.
Check out my build thread!
I might be looking for a manual J as a beater in the future. Reasons are because 1) they're cheap to find, 2) I know them pretty well if anything minor should happen, and 3) only as a beater, because there's much better stuff out there today if you were looking for a non-beater car.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
- Sold my beloved J in April 2010 -
i have only had my cavi for a little over 9 months and its just a daily driver with a few mods, and i am happy with it. it may not be the most comfortable at times but i'm happy with it. and i for one feel safe in my car. there are safer but for a cheaper dd car it does good. after spinning out and losing control, hitting a bank at 37 mph and flipping onto the roof the car held up very well, suprisingly. It saved my life and for a cheaper car i'd reccomend it.
It all depends why you want another car. The point of the J is cheap, reliable transportation. If you want something to get you around that won't break down often, that takes cheap replacement parts, won't suck down a lot of fuel, won't have you worrying about parking lot dings or comprehensive coverage, the J is a good choice.
2002 Cavalier 2200 5spd
I would buy another one if I wrecked my cav and had all the parts left over just because it would be easy to swap everything over and continue my project without losing absolutely everything I had spent on mods at the time.
If I had to pick another project car I would pick a dc2 integra with a jdm front end swap. Great aftermarket and I like the way those cars look.
If you just want a DD get the newest nicest car you can.
I personally like the sport compact thing right now and thats why I got my J, because most people hate them and whats worse than losing to a cavalier? I dunno.. owning one? Honestly just get what you like and enjoy, I got mine because I like the way it looks and its an underdog that has potential if your willing to spend the cash and put in the time to make it happen.
JBOK.org / J-Bodies of Kentucky
