ervtx

Paul, I hate to tell you this, but pissing off your ex-wife might prolong the "dad still doesn't know anything" phenomena!

racer

By DE are we talking 1-2 times/year or 6-10 times a year? For the occasional DE, any car works well. If you stick with it, then other things might come into play (like a steel roof vs a convertible); parts availability where you live; Also, how much "safety" equipement do you want him to have on the street? Exposed rollbar to his knoggin? ABS, TC, Airbags and all the other safety stuff that cars have?

How much HP do you want him to have? Me and my brother started with 1.7L 914s with about 80hp. Couldn't get into trouble if you tried! I imagine the 944/Miata/E30 are the "modern" version of that car.

Boxsters (early 2.5's) can be had under under $10K nowadays and "S"s in the mid teens.

BTW, what is the budget?

hacker-pschorr

I own both and disagree.

I would push for the Boxster. If he cannot appreciate what a pure sports car it is (and the fact that dad is buying him a Porsche) then get him a Volvo wagon and a card that says STFU.

TedA

Awsome ....just f'ing awesome..

pmgoodwin

A lot of great input, as I new there would be, except VRs viper suggestion.

Mini's aren't on the list because TWS doesn't allow them.
Driveway Austin has race prepared Miata's so a trip back over there is in order.
Dad's paying. His sports preclude him working. 5K-7K would be a good range
Hadn't thought of a E36
ERV - "anything" I do is going to annoy her
He may do a couple DEs a year but I'll also have him in the instruction program at the local track (20min practice sessions for $25)
He'll have a HANS before I do

He didn't think this was as funny as I did.

BTW: I'm also looking for a DE/DD but my budget is bigger.

TedA

I drove a 86 944 turbo for my first 3 to 4 track years. Only mods were a LBE and M030 sways with R comps. For three of those years I drove it to and from the track, it was very reliable. Brakes were dead solid. I shared the car in different run groups with my son as he was learning. Non modded motor I believe is the key to reliability. I bought the car 6 years ago and could likely sell it for within $1k of what I bought it for.

TedA

86 944 turbos can be found in this range, especialy these days.

BMW is also an reasonable $$$ choice.

TedA

Maintain this mentality, trust me on this

VERBOTN

VW-GTI my I want car when I was in HS way back when

paralleltangent

Paul, if you'd like to take a closer look at or chat more about 944s let me know, I have a Turbo and a 944Spec car and I'm near you.

roberga

Smart car

RonCT

First I think he needs to re-think his attitude before getting into any car on the track. To "decline" cars like a Miata and Boxster suggests maybe he's not ready. 99% of the kids in the US would give their left arm to be so fortunate as to even have a car, never mind be able to help in the selection of a DD / DE car, where a BMW or Porsche is even an option.

My 20 year old son learned on my 997S then my GT3. Now he's loving DE in a used Boxster S (fast, perfectly balanced, efficient, etc.) that I got for my wife for Christmas. He's not picky on what car he's going to drive on the race track, he's just amazed and thankful that he's so lucky. When some of his friends at college, including his girlfriend, found out he's driving a Boxster S, they were absolutely impressed and jealous. The last thing in their minds was that it was a "chick car". I've probably seen 25 Boxsters since taking delivery in Christmas and 4 out of those 25 had a woman driving (and one was my wife, the other my daughter). My daughter just turned 18 and is thus able to DE, so she will be also driving the Boxster S on Monday and Tuesday at Watkins Glen.

Remember that scene in Ronin where Sean Bean asks DiNero what kind of gun he likes? DeNiro passed it off and basically said "I just take a tool out of the tool box..." meaning I use whatever I'm given and use it well. Same thing with the car - there can't be any ego or pride involved, else he will start with a chip on his shoulder and the learning won't be as pure. He should be thinking about advancing his skills, not worrying about what others might think about him based on what car he's driving.

Back to your original question... Is there a brand you are trying to stick with, such as a Porsche so you two can do Porsche DE? If so, you can't go wrong with a used Boxster and as a favor you might have it painted pink If "any brand", then I'd be looking at an older E36 or early E46 for the balance and utility if it's going to be a DD / DE car. Me, I'd not send my 17 year old to school in a Porsche or an M3, but a used E36 or E46 sounds fine. VW GTI is also a nice pick, especially if you want to try to stick with the German labels.

vt951

Here are my votes for a reasonably priced DE and DD combo car:

1. e36 M3... you can get them for $6 - $8k these days, in good condition. They handle and brake very well in stock form, upgrades are pretty reasonable, and it's got lots of room to carry tools and tires to the track.

2. 944 n/a... same as above, but you can buy them cheaper, upgrades cost a little more, it's slower, and a little less cargo room.

shmark

Easy. Early 944 is the best choice. My son is almost 15 and we're starting the car shopping, looking for a 944 to work on and get right before he's driving full time. Cheap to buy and maintain, low power, excellent handling (to get him out of trouble), and a great school car. He's been with me to a number of autocrosses and races and is going to learn the proper way to drive, not that crap the schools call driver's ed. $4k will get you a really nice one, go through the bushings, brakes, fuel lines, etc. and he's got something safe that the girls will like.

[edit] and I say this as a 928 owner...an early 928 (esp. an auto) is also a good choice being low power, great handling and safe, but will definitely cost a little more to make right, maybe 7k total.

DrJupeman

+1000000000

If he's worried about his friends teasing him about "chick cars" then he should realize that as soon as he says how his "chick car" is a track car and shows some video, etc., I think his friends will be more jealous than insulting.

When I was a kid I used to get teased a lot because I was a very active singer (choir, opera, etc). The teasing stopped when the other kids saw what I was able to buy with my singing earnings (stereo, car, etc).