The first rule of buying a car is that buying a new car is not an investment. They depreciate like crazy! I mean, when you drive that brand spankin’ new whip off the lot, it’ll lose 15% to 20% of its value almost immediately! For a $50,000 car, that’s up to $10,000 you just flushed away! As much as a used Nissan 350Z!
Here at Ideal, we love saving money. So, today we’re going to show you some cars that youb won’t lose a dime on! Buying a car that doesn’t lose money, or even makes you money, well, that’s a smart move! Almost as smart as subscribing to Ideal Media on YouTube! Grab your piggy banks, and let’s go!
Toyota Supra – 2JZ Dreams
The Supra is arguably one of the best JDM cars ever made. Why? Because of the engine, a tuner’s wet dream, the 2JZ, baby! While the notorious 3.0-liter twin-turbo inline-six only made about 300 horsepower stock, it’s easy to push it to hundreds more. With a tune, intake, and some turbo upgrades, you’ll be well over 500 horsepower, and that engine is ready for more!
The song the 2JZ sings is just too good to be true. The Supra is a JDM fanboy’s dream car, cracking necks, roasting tires, and having everyone on the street asking, “Is that a Supra?”
Yeah, they’re sick, and their prices reflect that, with pristine examples catching well over six figures at auctions. For the last 6 years, the Supra has been climbing in value thanks to the hype generated by The Fast and The Furious.
You might think that a Supra could totally knock out anything else on this list. Well, sure, if you can afford one! Which, with the way these are going up in value, you almost can’t afford to not buy one! So, if you’re ready to dance with the 2JZ, I found a pretty clean silver Mark IV for just $48,000. It’s a decent price, and in five years, it might be worth twice that!
But, if you ask me, there might be better cars for the money, like the long-nosed drop-top S2000.
Honda S2000 – 2000 Reasons Why
The Honda S2000 has received a lot of love from the enthusiasts for being the standard for fun, sleek, and minimalistic cars. It’s a JDM superstar that everyone wants! A super stripped-back, track-focused monster!
The first time I saw one of these, it looked a little feminine to me. But I was wrong! The S2000 is so hardcore that when it first came out in 1999, it didn’t have traction control at all, which made the car more raw. If you take a corner too fast and oversteer, you’d better pray! And with the rear wheels being mated to a VTEC-powered 4-cylinder that revs to 9,000 RPM, pushing an S2000 to its very limits is super fun.
And the best news? S2000’s are actually going up in value now! Over the last 5 years, we can see that the S2000’s value has slowly climbed, pushing upwards of $20,000 and climbing fast. Luckily for you, if you look around, you can find some well below that, like the drop-top beauty we found for just $16,000!
A quick tip: S2000’s are marked up around the summertime. My recommendation is to buy them in the winter months of the year so you can get the ideal price.
Since we’re in the ballpark of JDM superstars you won’t lose money on, it would be foolish not to mention the FD Mazda RX-7!
Mazda RX-7 – Dorito!
The RX-7 is a beautiful Japanese sports car that has obtained a cult following mainly from the popular anime series Initial D. But this beauty also made several iconic appearances in Formula Drift. And, I mean, just look at those curves! It would be foolish to think this thing doesn’t look good! And it even has what every 90’s Japanese car should have: pop-ups!
The perfect JDM car. And to complete this legendary package, the RX-7 is gifted with a distinctive twin-turbo rotary engine. Yeah, the holy Dorito engine that sounds nuts! Sheesh!
While the engine is powerful, it is pretty unreliable. So, if you dont keep up with maintenance, it can go boom and leave you stranded at the coffee shop. That does not sound fun, which is the opposite of how I would describe everything else about this car. It’s light, powerful, rear-wheel drive, and iconic. What more could you ask for?
So, because of the lucrative demand for good quality FD RX-7’s, they’re becoming more and more valuable everyday. You could grab a triangle-powered monster like the one we found for $26,000 and enjoy it for years without losing a dime! You heard that right! A 30-year-old car for new Camry money. I know which one I’d rather have!
Now, we can’t talk Mazda without talking about the Mazda Miata!
Mazda Miata – Always the Answer
I mean, it’s always the answer. Why? Everyone absolutely loves them! From hardcore enthusiasts to hairdressers, anyone can dig one. With a cute and nimble body, a reliable naturally-aspirated 4-cylinder, and a super lightweight build, this little roadster creates a really fun and rewarding driving experience.
And unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably seen one of these. They are everywhere. I go to the grocery store, there’s a Miata. I go to a car meet, there’s a Miata. In my dreams, there’s a Miata.
But, you know what’s not a nightmare? Their value! Check out this 5-year price charts for the Miata show that prices haven’t changed much at all over five years! Miatas can be found for a very stable price of around $6,000, and they even start appreciating after a while if you have a clean one.
We found a hot red NB Miata for $4,000. That’s well under the market value. So, if you were to buy that onbe, you could flip it to $6,000 easily. But, if you dont want to flip it and actually enjoy it for a few years instead, you could sell it for the same amount as you got it for. And if you get a couple mods, you could maybe even sell it for a bit more.
Now, which generation Miata should you get? Well, for that, you’re going to want to check out our Ideal video about the differences between the generations.
Now, you know me, I love me some German engineering. So, this next car might just be my favorite on this list, the original Porsche Boxster S.
Porsche Boxster S – Box of Cash
Yeah, another convertible! Being a Porsche owner myself, I have to admit, buying one new is like shooting yourself in the foot with how much you’ll lose to depreciation. But if you get yourself a new-to-you Boxster S, then you’re in for a treat.
You get top-down fun in the sun in a once-expensive mid-engine Porsche with plush leather and a powerplant that ain’t too shabby. With a 250-horsepower 3.2-liter inline-6 paired with the needed manual transmission, this becomes the perfect driver’s car. The Boxster S has great gear ratios and arguably some of the best handling of any car ever!
If you want to buy one, now is the best time to do it, because these once-expensive German coupes are now at the end of their long deprecation. Over the last 3 years, the value has stayed pretty much the same. So, you can pick one of these up for less than $10,000, drive it a few years, and sell it for more!
If you really want to protect your investment, get one in speed yellow. They hold value really well. We found a yellow beauty with low miles for $12,500. That’s an awesome first Porsche to hop into.
Now, if you’re a little more hot dog than bratwurst, you should go get a Pontiac GTO.
Pontiac GTO – The Money Muscle
The Pontiac GTO is a small coupe with a big V8 engine that makes big power! What kind of power? All-American Corvette power, baby! I’m talking about big power to the rear wheels! That gets me fired up!
Alright, let’s get down to it. The Pontiac GTO, also known as the Holden Monaro in the Land Down Under, is a super fun ride if you want to get into cheap speed. It shared the Corvette 5.8-liter LS1 and the kingpin 6.0-liter LS2. And hearing these suckers is like a listening to a symphony. Yeah, that mean V8 growl will make smiles wherever you go, even in the driver’s seat.
With 400 horsepower stock on these badboys, straight-line speed is no question. However, one place where the GTO falls short is the handling. Yeah, when you whip it around corners, there’s more body roll than a preschool class learning what to do in a fire. Stop, drop, and roll!
Anyway, the GTO’s value has been pretty stable over the past couple years. And if you want to buy one that will probably keep its value the best, I found a yellow manual transmission GTO for $12,400. So, once your done shredding tires with this thing, you can list it and you wont lose a dime.
This car is a really great value for the speed your getting. And if you want to supercharge it, you can get upwards of 700 horsepower and really make the GTO GT-go!
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