So I am fortunate enough to be getting handed a wad of money in a month or so for re-enlisting in the military and I am seriously questioning what to do car wise. I have been looking at FI for a year or so, and the only thing stopping me from pulling the trigger is I guess I am scared. I would love to just drop a ton of money on a great kit and built block and have it done by someone like Forged or GTM but im worried I will end up with a car Im scared to drive more than a couple hundred miles from home. It seems that so many people have great running FI cars, but there are also some with never ending problems, despite spending quite a bit of money. The responsible side of me is saying trade in the G and get an S4 or 335i, leave it stock and call it a day. But the car guy inside me is saying order a JWT kit and get a built engine and brakes and clutch and some nice seats and a ton of other awesome stuff I always wanted but could never afford.

Any advice or knowledge from experience you could give me would be appreciated. I want so badly to turbo charge my G, just so scared im gonna end up with an unreliable garage queen and an irate wife. Thanks

 

I would invest it instead of wasting it. It's not like you'll be getting this every year.

 

^what he said im military and ive also been on the highpeformance end part of me wishes i didnt waste all that money on car stuff.

 

Ship the Car to Chicago and have Sound Performance build it....it will cost less that $30k and have bout 1000hp

 

What do you plan to do once you get out of the military?

 

I get 50k up front and another 50 over 5 years, paid every october. Part of the deal was that if I spend say 20 or 25k on new car or FI, the rest goes into mutual fund. Same with my yearly installments, all go to our shared account and from there to our mutual funds. My wife is basically allowing me one irresponsible use of the money, because she knows how hard I take it in the *** to get it. After this one shot the money all goes towards retirement. Good advice though, you couldnt be more right.

 

Buy a used 2002 Z06 Vette in great condition for about $25,000 and put a supercharger on it. There are many shops selling supercharger turn key kits for those cars and you can EASILY have about 600whp for about $7000 and put the rest of the money in the bank. To dump $50K all into to a 6-1000whp Z is at best a 50/50 chance of being a good experience. Corvette's interiors and fit and finish suck, but they are very easy to make Faaaaaaast!

 

I will probably end up as a contractor for lockheed martin or similar company working on the same platform I work now now. I am a very technical oriented rate in the navy, and have experience with very unique gear that makes it somewhat easier to get a job on civilian side. There are only so many people who have worked with the stuff I use daily, so civilian contractors always on the hunt for manning. I can name 3 dudes off the top of my head who left the navy but I still see them on the pier every day were in port

 

yeah a z06 isnt a bad option. im very impressed with them on and off the track thats fo sho

 

Personally, trade in the car for something faster and nicer you won't mind cruising in all year long. The G might be simple and common to modify, but you'll regret spending money on it with little to no added value. There are faster and nicer rides out there.

You would be smart to invest most of it, and your thought process seems justified.

 

Huh never thought about that. I have never had an american car. I will look into this. There are a couple guys I know with c5 and c6 vettes, I will talk to them. Thanks

 

better bet would be just to buy one of these fully built Z's that are gettin dumped for bottom dollar.

they seem to only go for mid 20s with motor, TT, brakes, etc. plus the guys gettin rid of them are in a pinch so they often will take even less.

I have more money in my motor and TT than some of those full cars were going for. needless to say the car will not be a daily driver

 

Don’t know what you should do with your wad-o-money.

 

Wise words.

 

trade me my car for yours and give me caaaash

 

Find a good Financial Advisor. When the economy gets a better hold, you'll be thanking him.


Then, you can buy any car you want, and still have some cash.

 

Sell the Z, buy a slightly used GTR for about $65K.

 

Screw the new GT-R... yuck unless you have loads of money to blow. No top end power because it's AWD... and it's to heavy for small tracks, what's the point? R34/33 Skyline or Porsche IMO. Or just build some small car like a Mazda Rx7, Nissan 240sx, Mercedes 190e for ~15k and have a fun play toy!

I say 350z built block turbo with a true sequential manual gear transmission... oh and a Bee*R limiter just for ***** and giggles! That **** will turn heads like no other hahaha!

 

I do know that as a reasonable person, I would be much better off putting the 20 or 30k away somewhere earning interest. There are tons of ways to do it, I prefer mutual funds, I find them less risky. As far as the economy, I am fortunate not to be affected by the swings too much. My choice 8 years ago to volunteer for submarines has paid off in that my rating has been chronically undermanned the entire time I have been in. I have been promoted insanely fast and really the only way I could lose my job would be drugs or some sort of random submarine disqualifying injury. My job security is very high because the Navy just doesn't have people to replace me. Although to be honest a chimpanzee could do my job. My wife is a nurse and she really never has problems finding work either. Blind luck I guess.

Thanks for all the help so far. I am investing some of the money, but I am definitely buying myself a toy as well. The way I look at it is that twice a year I fall off the face of the earth and have to work in a tube surrounded by cold liquid that spends 24 hours a day trying to find a way to kill me. I think I owe myself the satisfaction of a FI vq or similarly fun ride. Who knows what could happen to me in 5 years, the USS Hartford got ran over a few months ago by another Navy ship and from what I have seen and the training we got on it that entire crew is only alive due to complete random chance. If that collision had happened 30 or 40 feet farther back they would have all been dead on bottom of ocean. We had to listen to the open mic recording from the control room when that collision happened, and it's probably the worst thing I have ever heard. So I guess that is one of the reasons I am acting irresponsibly with a chunk of this money.

 

Are you a navy nuke?