Trading in for a new MS3.. thoughts?

[ZooMIN3]

just to re-cap on the metro....i upgraded to a new metro...

2001 Ford Focus ZX3... lol


nearly 7 years later, MS3 2008 Black Mica GT!! YEY YEY!!

the slocus is paid in full, and yup, i got the wife an 05 hatch...trying to talk her into the 5spd...no go. a few months down the road, I hear this talk of the Speed3? I had to get one. 3 yrs later... its on order... whew, this waiting is really gettin to me! I hate you all that are driving the Speed3 right now.... j/k! ;-)

To Vtec guy; just hang in there man; you have a sweet car for your first ride. I think I read somewhere on this post that you can't mod your ride since it'll void warranty, or am I smoking crack? If I were you, I'd mod it anyways. hehe...

In all; if you're set on trading that mugga in; try to get a good deal on it. That 7 grand may be used to at least knock down the price of what's thrown on top of the MS3. You'll more than likely end up walking out with 2-3 over MSRP... Depends on how much you owe on the SI and what its worth will be the deciding factor on how much the dealer will jack up the price on a Speed3.

I'd say go get it appraised, and see what the outcome is. If you'll be able to afford it, hell why not? At least you'll be in your MS3 finally.

-J

 

[I vtec do you?]

Why is everyone assuming this is my first car? My first car WAS (admittedly) given to me for free by my parents. It was a 1993 ford taurus. It had no paint left on the body, the previous owner just applied gray primer so it wouldn't rust. We paid $800 for it.

I didn't start off with an SI, I busted my ass working while going to school so i could afford one. Now I just want something I can enjoy since I'm working for it. Why does this make me a spoiled brat? I'm still not understanding. I can (and appreciate), however, everyone's opinion on why buying a different car at my age is a mistake. I do know a car isn't an investment.. well not a very good one anyways.

 

[CX-7owner]

I got lucky, My parents didn't want me working while I was in high school and bought me a Volvo S40(getting great grades was the payoff), then I PAID for new tires and they blew out on a trip to go replace the S40 on my OWN (I piggy-backed on my dads credit)with a CX-7, So the insurance replaced it, but I'm guessing I don't really have a point here, if You're only losing 800 bucks, cheaper insurance, happier driving experience, You PAID for it regardless if your parents financed it for you or not, GO for it, its the reason I was ready to trade in my underpowered 2.4i for a CX-7.

 

[exNeon]

that grinding thing sounds familiar, check out the edmunds road tests for the car, or perhaps it was the ign.com test of the si. i dont recall where, but one of them had the same issue, and they got it fixed.
granted theyre a company doing reviews, but you might find useful info or use the article as leverage to get it fixed. and try more than one dealer if the first still refuses.

 

[exNeon]

here it is

http://www.edmunds.com/apps/vdpcontainers/do/vdp/articleId=109422


"
Brakes were not the only problem we encountered during our year testing the Civic, however. Near the 10,000-mile mark we noticed the shift lever became reluctant to find 3rd gear during the upshift from 2nd. The issue was even more pronounced when the car was cold. With our next scheduled service right around the corner, we called Honda of Santa Monica to kill two birds with one stone.

Our local dealer had handled all of our service needs on the Civic to a high level of satisfaction until this visit. So we were disappointed to learn that its technicians "could not repeat the issue," but even more so when we learned this was the first they'd heard of it. Minimal research on our part found Civic Si owner forums on CarSpace and other Internet sites that described this same problem, assuring us we weren't alone.

Various tips were available online at the time offering potential fixes, but none of them were approved by Honda. Our intentions to sell the car after the test dictated that we keep it in stock condition and wait for Honda to issue a service bulletin. It didn't happen during our ownership, so we taught ourselves to make an extra effort to engage 3rd gear.
"

 

[I vtec do you?]

Thanks for posting that up.

I printed out several pages from 8thcivic.com members describing the same thing as me, but the dealership (two of them) told me it was a wear item, which isn't replaced under warranty. To make it worse, my mom was with me, and they were making me out to be the most horrible driver in the world, telling me how the car had to have the transmission ripped out, ripped apart, synchros replaced, and then put back in, which was going to be a whole mess..

And yeah.. I think the brakes on the SI are awful. If you're breaking and you go over some rough stretch of a road, the brakes all but fail. Something I've never experienced in another car...

 

[exNeon]

i guess the only thing to do then is to contact the honda regional rep. you can either try to get some contact info from a dealer or call honda of north america or whatever and see if they will give you some info.
ask about tsbs or if they have other complaints on file and file one yourself.
you might also ask if the 08 models have any differences regarding the tranny.

 

[chriscecc914]

you most likely will learn the hard way like I did. I'm 21 and ive already owned 4 cars. The only car that was handed to me by my parents was my first car which was a POS toyota corolla. Like you, I quickly got bored or my cars and traded or sold them for bare minimum. I probably lost out about $10,000 by trading my mustang gt in. I always had the fastest car out of my friends and I paid for everything. It is a waste of money but it will teach you a lesson in responsibility.

 

[Dragon Queen]

you most likely will learn the hard way like I did. I'm 21 and ive already owned 4 cars. The only car that was handed to me by my parents was my first car which was a POS toyota corolla. Like you, I quickly got bored or my cars and traded or sold them for bare minimum. I probably lost out about $10,000 by trading my mustang gt in. I always had the fastest car out of my friends and I paid for everything. It is a waste of money but it will teach you a lesson in responsibility.

Indeed I wish I would have done some things differently as well.....I know financially I would have been better off.

 

[I vtec do you?]

you most likely will learn the hard way like I did. I'm 21 and ive already owned 4 cars. The only car that was handed to me by my parents was my first car which was a POS toyota corolla. Like you, I quickly got bored or my cars and traded or sold them for bare minimum. I probably lost out about $10,000 by trading my mustang gt in. I always had the fastest car out of my friends and I paid for everything. It is a waste of money but it will teach you a lesson in responsibility.

How do you grow bored of a 400+ RWHP mustang?? (shocked)

 

[fourthmeal]

Same way you can grow bored of a Kawasaki ZX-14.. I had a Turbo Supra doing about 400 or so to the wheels, but you can get bored of replacing headgaskets...


Hey, an idea if you want to sell that thing. Consider going to CARMAX, where they will appraise your trade independent of what you purchase. This way you can keep the sly business of trade-in out of your new car purchase. Trust me, as a former car salesperson, you will want to try to go to CARMAX first to get a price quote on your car.

 

[CX-7owner]

I Went to Carmax to trade in one of our Tauruses, they offered $1700! Total rip off IMO, So I called cash4yourcar or something and got $2400

 

[elderlycoffee]

263hp performance car + 18 year old driver = Trouble. Don't worry the MS3 will always be around, just be patient grasshopper.

However there are some exceptions... Like myself.
I've had the car since October the first "accident" I've had was three weeks ago when I gave my front right wheel curb rash.

And I won't be 18 till next month...

 

[fourthmeal]

I Went to Carmax to trade in one of our Tauruses, they offered $1700! Total rip off IMO, So I called cash4yourcar or something and got $2400

While I can agree with you that they may lowball you, it usually is because they are looking at what the market value will hold vs. their profit (which is under 3%) I've been in their shoes before, and I've sold 3 cars to CARMAX. Of those, two of them were at KBB fair trade value minus any substantial wear and tear, and one of them was well beyond KBB excellent value, + a little extra for being such a clean car. This was my Supra.

 

[a10thunder]

I am the current owner of a Civic Si sedan and I don't understand what this kid is talking about. I went from a WRX wagon to the Si sedan. The K20Z3 in the Si is not a torqueless wonder. I'm a gas miser so I usually shift below 3000 RPM, I have no trouble keeping up with traffic. The Si has i-VTEC, which continually adjusts timing, even below cam switch-over. If you look at the Si's stock dyno chart, you'll see that you get most of the engine's torque at 2500 rpm. I hit VTEC for spirited driving on backroads and autocrossing. I rarely use it for everyday commuting. I can even handle tricky highway merges below 5000 rpm. You do not need to hit VTEC in first gear to get the car moving unless you want attention.

I drooled after the Mazdaspeed3 when the initial specs were released. However, I could not find a MSP3 below MSRP when I needed a car. I was able to get the Si sedan for under $20k and I think it's the best performance value out there. If OP wants instant torque, he may want to look into good ol' American V8s.

 

[TheDutchGun]

Just keep your civic dude. Negative equity is a b****.