[NatlCitySentra]

I dont know if its just me but looking back since I was 16, it seems like so much has changed, I mean I know I am only 22 now, so I am sure there are people who can go back even farther....but I remember in high school right after I got my drivers license and I started to drive my dads 97 Altima SE 5spd, which was when I really started getting into cars, especially sport compacts, and the baddest mass production import sport compact car was probably the Mitsu GSX/GST and the Integra GSR...I mean there were Integra Type-Rs, Celica All Tracs, and others...but they were so few and far in between, that other than reading about them in a magazines they were hardly ever seen. So at the time having a car with around 150hp average was nothing to complain about....

..Now, you have Sentra Spec V, Celica GTS, Civic SI, RSX Type-S, Eclipse GTS, WRX, Lancer RalliArt, Mazdaspeed Miata, Mazdaspeed Protege , and SRT-4... and while obviously the hp numbers along with the prices all vary, look at how much larger this market is now. Even the Spec V's 175hp is just average in this market now where most every top of the line Sport Compact has between 170hp-230hp.

This thread really has no POINT, I just wondered if you ever really looked back at where this market was and where it is now...makes me wonder what it will be like say another 6 years from now....pretty exciting I think...

 

[samuria]

i have been into cars since i was a kid. I still have my collection of f1 toy cars from back in the day. Im only 21 but i feel the same way as you do. My first car was my dads 88 bmw m3 that was in terrible shape that my dad and i spent hours fixing so i could have it. I realized that back then the scene was more undercover and it was actually rare to have a car with work done on it. Especially an import. I remember that it was fun, the cops were nice, there were no graphics etc. I feel like the cars from the factory are getting better but a certain few # of kids buying them are not) Everyone knows who im talking about. That kid that drives through the mall parking lot reving , doing burnouts in front of the movie theater, giving you dirty looks bcs he sees that you have work done to your car and he has something to prove lol.

I hope to see the scene go back to were it was 5yrs ago, thats when it was fun. Now a movie comes out and the whole car world goes to sh*t and the people who were there before all of the hype is left with the cops getting meaner and their hobby turned into a mainstream image.

 

[mrknowitall]

It's not only imports that are getting more powerful. Every car class is. And it's not the compacts that lead the charge. They deveop new technology for their high-end cars (with more markup) and then the fun trickles down to cheap @ss cars like ours.

I dont know if its just me but looking back since I was 16, it seems like so much has changed, I mean I know I am only 22 now, so I am sure there are people who can go back even farther....but I remember in high school right after I got my drivers license and I started to drive my dads 97 Altima SE 5spd, which was when I really started getting into cars, especially sport compacts, and the baddest mass production import sport compact car was probably the Mitsu GSX/GST and the Integra GSR...I mean there were Integra Type-Rs, Celica All Tracs, and others...but they were so few and far in between, that other than reading about them in a magazines they were hardly ever seen. So at the time having a car with around 150hp average was nothing to complain about....

..Now, you have Sentra Spec V, Celica GTS, Civic SI, RSX Type-S, Eclipse GTS, WRX, Lancer RalliArt, Mazdaspeed Miata, Mazdaspeed Protege , and SRT-4... and while obviously the hp numbers along with the prices all vary, look at how much larger this market is now. Even the Spec V's 175hp is just average in this market now where most every top of the line Sport Compact has between 170hp-230hp.

This thread really has no POINT, I just wondered if you ever really looked back at where this market was and where it is now...makes me wonder what it will be like say another 6 years from now....pretty exciting I think...

 

[ReGGiE01SE]

yea man, i feel the same way, and im only 19. i got my se when i was 17, and i already feel like my car is behind, and its only 3 years old. i mean, when i got it, the price was around 17g's (but we got it for 14g's). but just 3 months later, for 17g's you could get an ser which has more hp, better suspension, etc. and now theres cars like the tC and newer and better cars coming out in the future. my car is still pretty new in terms of years, but it already feels old. im glad however that the sport compact market is getting a lot more performance oriented, because that means we can get some pretty nice cars at some pretty cheap prices

 

[b0mberman]

Yeah, I know what u mean Reggie. I got my car around the same time as u and it's only been 3 years! Damn, now I live in Newport Beach which is where "THE O.C." is filmed..which basically means there are a lot of stuck up, rich ***cs that drive around like they own the road with all of their fast bimmers, mercedes, ferrari's, bentleys, etc...but it seems like now that everything is getting faster, some people become careless and think that their car can pull off miracles...haha im just ranting because ppl here drive like **** and they cut me off everyday like no other. But neways, I'm pretty excited about the future and what it has in store for the market of imports/domestics

 

[JMotorsprt]

Sorry. It will never go back. Just move on. I remember the Van phase, the Mini-truck phase, lowrider phase, sport trucks, now the import phase and SUV's will soon be on their way out. Everything comes and goes. Some people will remain loyal to their current interests (my brother and his body dropped Chevy). Other's will grow up (most of my friends). More will move on to the next fad (other friends). That's life. To want what is new.

Grow up? Not me. I love car/trucks. I am on my own path. Once the weather cools down and I get my weekends back, I will work on my Spec. Just picked up a 1984 Yamaha FJ1100 to hop up. Now my wife gets a bigger house. Then I get a Jeep. I think that is enougg to keep me busy, until my boys are old enough to talk mom into some new toys. Maybe a 71 Split bumper Camarro with an LT-1 engine to match Grandpa's.

Have fun
Jason

 

[NatlCitySentra]

I just hope Nissan brings out a more top end competitive sport compact in the future...not to say the Spec V isnt, but maybe closer or above the 200hp mark...and pray for RWD

 

[SuperAkuma]

Im 22, and sometimes I look back at HS and think of all the stupid ideas that I had about cars. My first car was a 87 maxima. It ran very good for a car that didnt had an oil change for a year, I only added oil never drained it. I was stupid back than but now I know a lot more about cars. When I was a freshmen I though that if you had i/h/e your car would be hella fast and you would gain 50hp from them mods.
I also remember that I wanted to be in a racing team. I finally got in one but left because I realized how wack it was.

I remember back when
-lowering your car ment your car was fixed up and was a race car
-body kits where only seen at the car show
-Car show was fun back than
-Rice was something that you eat.

 

[NatlCitySentra]

hahaha funny sheet...

I remember when I got my first car. It was my moms 95 Dodge Neon SOHC 5spd. I put an Iceman CAI, Pacesetter Header, and Pacesetter Monza dual-tip exhaust with some 17" Enkei RS-7s I think they were called... and at the time it was a pretty quick litter car...I mean I know what everybody says about neons but it was my first car and I was only paying like 195 a month and had the ability to put some mods on it and it actually was kinda quick... it was 132hp stock and with those mods I was able to keep up with quite a few cars of the time, but boy I never thought I would see a 230hp Neon SRT-4.... and dont anybody give me any of that, "its not a neon its an SRT-4" crap...its a damn neon with a big engine in it...

 

[pherschel]

My first car was a 1967 malibu. It had regular (non radial) tires. It actually drove great -- it had a two speed auto tranny (fast and very fast).

Still, I'm an older dad who needs a fun daily driver that's inexpensive (thus the spec).

I'm the exception to the rule. Old fart saving on gas, love the 6 speed. Love the light weight stroker outout

 

[1SentraNotEnuff]

Man, when i was in school. everyone had integras, escorts and civics with 13 inch rims that protruded about a foot out the sides of the car.

They had horrible suspension setups, crazy bass and underbody neon.... I wanted one so bad. but by the time i was old enough to drive my parents bought me a new bimmer.

Oh well, nothing to complain about since i smoked all their azzes and got all the girls too...

Suckers.

 

[SuperAkuma]

And I hated them rich kids at high school that thought they where better because there parents bought them a car while the poor kid like me had to work day and night to keep a beat up car running.

Nothing against you 1SentraNotEnuff

 

[02SoFloSE-R]

im not old enuff to have memories like this. But ever since i was a smaller kid i liked cars. In the caribbean (where im from ), they had different cars than in America, so the cars i wanted never existed in the U.S. We had all the lancer evolutions (at the time i liked the older ones that look like a rally mitsubishi Mirage in the US). And also, there were toyota corollas w/ factory dual exhaust and AWD, i dunno what kinda engines they had, they were also completely different cars than the U.S corolla. All the cars came from japan, so we got all the JDM vehicles (right hand drive) and some european cars like Peugeot, Citroen, Opel, etc blah blah. Cars over there are badged differently, our "altima" was called a bluebird, Sentra was Sunny for a little while, Nissan Primera is a Infiniti G20, US mitsubishi Mirage was always a Lancer etc etc. So yeah, my experience was a lil bit different that ppl in the U.S. Cars here are a lot different, and way bigger.

 

[JMotorsprt]

My first automobile was a 1988 Chev Sportside. Lowered with all chrome gone. 15x10 Daytons, all Chrome. So many people stereotyped me because of that truck. Very few people knew me because I was not what they presumed. A quite loner.

 

[fuje]

Ok you guys, without telling you how old I am...here goes the list of cars I have driven (mine or friends`). The import scene has been alive for a very long time. BTW, all the cars were driven in the year of production with no modifications.

1984 Mitsu Colt Turbo (cousin, candy apple paint job, white mags, straight pipe which IMO eventually killed his engine)
1985 BMW 323 i (Europ version) (friend)
1986 BMW 635 CSI (a friend`s auto but niiiice)
1974 240Z (driven 1984 also friend`s, no modification)
1985 2.8 Skyline GT (friend)
1985 1.8Turbo Bluebird (Nissan for those who do not know, almost mine before my grades slipped )

Then there was a period of time when I had to go back to school-college-university and then,

1993 Civic Si hb
1994 Integra
2000 Accord (2.3 VTEC)
2001 BMW M3 (definitely a friend`s)
and now I own a 2K2 SPECV - no mods yet....don`t want any trouble with warranty but planning on major stuff...we`ll se