help! i dont want a ricer

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KramerSwinger70

KramerSwinger70

70 Dart Swinger360
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so with gas prices goin sky high yet again, im thinkin about parkin my 70 dart( /6 daily driver). ive mentioned in another thread im in search of my 1st means of transport, my 96 3.9l dakota sport. its likely i wont find it, though and if i do, the owner may not want to sell it

i hate the idea of having to buy a run-of-the-mill rice rocket, since ive only owned dodge an im quite faithful to em. really to any american brand.

my question i guess would be if anyone has a suggetion to an american car (ford/chevy/dodge/ect) that is known to get 20+mpg city an is at least not ugly as sin.

the only car that comes to mind is a dodge neon srt4 or a 90's ford thunderbird. yes, id rather have a tbird than a civic or camry any day.

so, even though ill prolly end up with a honda, do you, my fellow mopar people, have any suggestions? im not considering any v8 for obvious reasons, aimin more for a 4 banger or high efficiency v6. my budget is maybe $2500 once i get a new job

thanks in advance
 
Well, you don't need to be a ricer to drive an import.

SRT4 is a cool car but I believe it requires premium fuel.

My honest suggestion….. Get a good used honda or toyota, maybe even look at a mazda or nissan. Get an easy on gas and reliable 4 banger.

A driver that gets good MPGs and reliability will free up money for your "fun" car.


Just remember……. Leave the fancy wheels, fart-can mufflers, and body mods out of your budget.
 
Haha yeah it's sad how many rice rockets there are round here. They think theyr hot **** blowin the doors off my stock 40 year old /6. I wud say kids these days, but it's MY generation if idiots.

Hmm a nissan wudnt or mazda would be acceptable haha lil nicer than a civic. I dnt know I'll prolly end up in a civic or something similar. Just dont wanna

Had no idea an srt4 ran premium. Forget that! Guess I'll just have to drive a cookie cutter commuter. Ah well. The dart(wen completed) will make up for the lack of cool factor in a Honda I suppose
 
You did say daily driver right???I'm pretty happy with the base Caliber (5 spd,no air,cruise,gps,..)I got It a couple of years ago when gas spiked before,...15 k brand new,Lifetime warrenty, Made in USA...SRT's were running 22-24k, Dechromed It, Ditched some of the underhood plastic...Tossed the hubcaps,...30-34 mpg,...Its on the road 7 days a week,...If she not driving It, I am,...We run a D-50 at work, there everywhere on craigslist for cheap...Mitsu's were supported by Mother Mopar back in the day
 
I know I'll seem pessimistic but... Better mpg isn't a cure. More like a pain pill. If your pain at the pump is severe a pain pill is prescribed. If your pain isn't severe, just live with it. There probably are a few things you can do to that 6 cyl to improve its mpg. I would bet it gets much better mileage than a large percentage of the vehicles on the road today.
Back when my junior got his new drivers license and a used Accord I know he was burning more fuel than me and my 73 Valiant. reason being, he never parked the darn thing. I called him butterfly. LOL
Everyone's daily commute is different. Everyone's mpg is different.
Next time you fill up take notice of what everyone else is driving and try to imagine how often they come to the pump. It doesn't matter really. Everyone's paying the same price per gallon.
 
You can buy a lot of gas for your /6 with the money you'll spend on something else.
Gas prices go up, then down.
As to "rice", I guess it depends on your perspective. I'm 51, and my wife and I have an '07 Accord that gets about 30 mpg. At my age, I don't see it as "rice", I see it as an extremely sensible car that is stone reliable. At your age, you seem to feel that driving anything Japanese will ruin your rep with people, some of whom you may not even know. Don't worry about what other people think, you'll do a lot better in life, overall.
 
The cost of insurance for another vehicle will wipe out any savings in gas. You're better off to keep driving the Dart.
 
If you don't want a rice burner then don't buy one. Problem solved.
 
How many miles do you drive in a week?
You can put a lot of gas in the Dart for $2500 plus the extra insurance and maintainance.
If you are looking for a different car for better handling, driveability, creature comforts, or if you want to drive the Dart only on nice days, that's a different story.
If it's gas milage only, it would take several years to make up the difference.
That's unless you drive 500 miles or more a week.
BTW, the Dakota Sport won't get much better milage than the Dart, it would be a cool truck though!
 
yah, i bike would be great for fuel. But really what do you have against a foreign made car? (sounds like you maybe just want something unique with good mpg, compromise is good)

I'd think that /6 would not be doing you that bad, what mpg you getting?
 
What wrong with Civics? I had one just like this back in the 80's. 1978 CVCC 5 speed 4 banger that would peg the speedo at over 100mph. I junked mine after my first wife drove it for a while. Wish I still had the car, glad the ex is gone. This was the second gen Civics after the tiny debute ones. Mine had black tinted windows. If you can find one of these go for it.
 

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I agree with the folks that are saying to just suck it up and drive the Dart. $2500 still buys a lot of gas for that car. I went through the same thing several years ago when gas hit $4.00 but all of my cars got no better than 11 MPG so jumping to 20+ was a huge improvement which after all of the math of adding insurace, registration, car price & maintenance, paid off for me in less than a year.

Like was said, everyone's driving habits are different but when I was in my early 20's, I drove no more than 5000 miles a year. It's also a hassle to have lots of cars and have to maintain them all.

One of the reasons I bought my '64 was to drive daily because I love the '64 Darts and my current daily driver (88 BMW 535is with 274,000 miles) is having steering issues even after I spent $700 in front end parts on it, and it's rusting and leaks like a seive when it rains leaving puddles of water in the floorboards. (so buying the Dart was kind of a reaction to being pissed off at my car) :toothy10: But man, the BMW is a REALLY nice car all around and like our Slant 6's, it has a slanted 6 and still runs like a goddamn top. I think the body is just wearing out because I beat on it mercilessly. :snakeman:

I'd still rather drive my '68 Chrysler 300 daily but with a 90 mile round trip to work, it hurts the wallet too much.
 
I agree with most of the others here; stick with the /6. Car payments suck and eat whatever savings you think you'll be getting with the better mpg car. However, I did break down last year and get one of these; Dodge Avenger. It gets between 25-27 mpg, depending on how heavy my foot is during the week. The only other vehicle I had that was running was my Ram 2500 4X4 which only gets 17 mpg. With diesel prices sky rocketing, I chose to get something a little more economical, or at least that's what I told myself at the time.
 

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well if your looking for a non ugly as sin car with decent mileage. I drive a chevy cavalier. 2.2 liter with a 5 speed manual and its pretty dam good on gas.
 
Well I wont have cash for a new car till I get a new Jo , which of course is no garuntee. And I don't want to invest that kind of money into the /6 cuz I'm swappin that motor out for a 360, which I'm gonna build for good mpgs. I've been working on a way to squeeze 20mpgs outa it an get 265-330hp. That's where I wanna spend savings after I get something more reliable an better at the pump

It's not so much I have a thing against a foreign car, cuz I know theyr reliable. I just want something a little cooler than the boring 4-door. Im splitting hairs, I know, and will prolly just go with a 90s accord or something. Was just wondering Wut other options were out there that I didn't think of.

Brand new car is out of the question, since I got no credit yet really. But a used caliber sounds alright if I can really get 30mpg with it

My dart has just way more issues that simple mileage. My suspensions falling apart, for instance haha. I have owned it about a year n a half an havnt really gotten much done on it.


Oh and I'm driving roughly 1500 miles a month. I've out almost 19000 on it since I bought it in sept 09. And if I am to get the job Im aiming for, my commute will be 50 miles round trip instead of 10
 
What about a dodge stealth? These were joint venture with Mitsubishi. I think their engines range from 4 bangers up to twin turbo v6 with awd
 
Damn….. This is the very car I learned to drive in. My step dad drove one as his commuter.

His was in perfect condition and was even the same color. What a great car it was, I never see any on the road anymore.
 

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Here is my solution. If you dont want to drive the slant. You can find early to mid 90's toyota pickups 2wd in the price range your looking for. With the 4 banger and stick you can easily get 28-32 mpg. Just make sure its tuned up. Yep, its still foreign, but you can sure haul a load of american made parts in the back of it !!!!!

-RPM
 
73charger said:
Well I wont have cash for a new car till I get a new Jo , which of course is no garuntee. And I don't want to invest that kind of money into the /6 cuz I'm swappin that motor out for a 360, which I'm gonna build for good mpgs. I've been working on a way to squeeze 20mpgs outa it an get 265-330hp. That's where I wanna spend savings after I get something more reliable an better at the pump

It's not so much I have a thing against a foreign car, cuz I know theyr reliable. I just want something a little cooler than the boring 4-door. Im splitting hairs, I know, and will prolly just go with a 90s accord or something. Was just wondering Wut other options were out there that I didn't think of.

Brand new car is out of the question, since I got no credit yet really. But a used caliber sounds alright if I can really get 30mpg with it

My dart has just way more issues that simple mileage. My suspensions falling apart, for instance haha. I have owned it about a year n a half an havnt really gotten much done on it.


Oh and I'm driving roughly 1500 miles a month. I've out almost 19000 on it since I bought it in sept 09. And if I am to get the job Im aiming for, my commute will be 50 miles round trip instead of 10
Click to expand...

360 and gas mileage ? Aint going to happen.
If you are looking for a commuter car that gets gas mileage,then go with a Honda or Toyota 4 cyl. Best 2 daily drivers made,period.This is what they are designed for. They get you from point A to point B,and are almost bullet proof. Gas and water. Thats all you need.
 
1970Duster said:
What about a dodge stealth? These were joint venture with Mitsubishi. I think their engines range from 4 bangers up to twin turbo v6 with awd
Click to expand...


The stealth is 100% garbage. You know why you don't see many on the road these days……… They fall apart and are hugely expensive to repair.


Others have made some very good points though.


You can buy a bunch of gas for what you will pay for another car + insurance so if you get a commuter think cheep.

My 4Runner only gets 17mpg but I don't have a car payment and the insurance is very low so even with the low mpgs it would be hard to justify buying a more fuel efficient vehicle.

Then we have the wife's 05 Kia Spectra (I know….. It's a Kia). It's paid for so no car payment and it gets 35mpg so it will be around until the time comes for it to go to the great scrap yard in the sky.
 
I miss my 318i. I could get close to 45 mpg in the right conditions. 5 speed and a 4 banger. Yeah I had to pull a hill in 3rd and went no where fast doing it, but on a road trip that car was great. The barracuda is what I drove during the gas crunch a few years back. I wouldn't have had it any other way.
 
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