My first car was a 1966 VW Bus- Yup, the hippie van. It only had 3 wheels when I bought it- it had hit a curb and tore up the transaxle. Thankfully, it came with a book "How to Fix a Volkswagen for the Complete Idiot". Paid $25 for it, towed it home, and 4 months later was crusin around in a 36 hp monster that did 0-60 in about an hour and a half. Complete with peace sign on the front.
Over the next few years I went through 13 V-Dubs, none of which I paid more than $125 for. When they broke, I'd take them to the junk yard and get my money back and buy another one.
I had 25 years of driving experience before I could afford a "real" car.
While I may have bought my SVXii inexpensively, I have since spent way too much on them, like everyone else on this forum.
And loved every minute of it!
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'92 LS-not-so-L: the "SVreX"- Saved from a crusher, an SVX racer built by home schooled students for less than $2000 (including purchase price). 13.8 second 1/4 mile. Autocrossing monster!!
'92 LS-L Claret: '01 RS 4:11 5-speed, Exedy organic, lightened flywheel, and Koni/ GC