I bought an IS300 sedan, sold to my brother, then decided I wanted the SportCross until I couldn’t find one with a manual shifter (I don’t think it was offered). A real shame; it’s an otherwise near-perfect car, imo.

I used google for capturing those specs, so not sure of that 12k number, but it’s over 5k lb according C&D (another source said 8k, another 12k). Guessing the very high aero downforce is required to balance those uneven exhaust pulses pushing the car down with each cylinder firing. Otherwise, a misfire would have…

An intriguing question!

Waste spark. My Buick 3800 V-6 engine has this, and I’m glad because 3 coils rather than 6. I’m still running on original factory coil packs at 279,000 miles.

In 2007, after a company dinner in Cranberry Township, PA, I took a wrong turn on the way to my hotel, and decided to explore the area. Drove maybe 5 miles east before finding myself in “the sticks”. Several miles later I won’t admit to being lost, but a bit off track trying to find the way back (this is not that far…

Can get an idea from its standing 1/4 mile time: 8.1 sec @ 181 mph!

Don’t see why not, but I live in OH...

Just get the GT version. Auto-only, but you still get LS V-8 power for around half the price. Unfortunately there’s no manual GT (why the GXP prices are high, imo).

G8 is a good answer - child seat will fit in middle rear. I squeezed one into the back of my GTO, but there’s no center mount option, so rear-facing it made contact with the front bucket. Also it’s a pain to load the kid in/out of a 2-door.

After racing a Honda Integra for a few years, I’ve gotten into the habit of sequential shifting for that very reason. You can skip gears while being kind to your syncros: throw the stick into each gear on the way up/down, then let the clutch out when you’re in the gear you want. Bonus: you always know what gear you’re…

2005 GTO owner, came here to say this. I think the VIper has the same T56 gearbox, maybe with a different set of gears. Getting these cars rolling requires only the clutch pedal. You can actually go through gears 1-6 without touching the gas, topping out around 30 mph with very little lugging.

Single exhaust is okay. The real problem is the faux diffuser. It’s the new rear spoiler; they’re appearing on minivans for goodness sake. If the diffuser trim were swapped for a clean piece of molding, the exhaust tip placement be optimally positioned and wouldn’t look so bad.

Absolutely, I understand. It’s difficult to explain why I feel the way I do. It’s like certain cars should only be offered with a stick. A friend of mine has a late ‘70s Fiat Spider. Saw it was auto and thought WTF? Really surprising. Miata is another example. Now a Roadmaster or Grand National, okay, I get it.…

Sure, but there weren’t too many RWD, V-8, manual cars from the mid-00's worth buying (for reasonable price), imo. The shifter makes the car for me.

Widely used term on elitist GTO message boards. If you find a good deal on a car, they instantly assume you are inferior to them, because they paid too much. As mentioned in a previous post, most GTO owners estimate their car is worth at least double the actual market price, lol.

I like the looks of the smooth ‘04 hood so much that I bought one and had it painted MBM to match my ‘05 car. Sold my ‘05 hood and made back most of the cost. In 2005 there was a BJZ option for the ‘04 hood; only 24 cars made, so mine’s a clone.

In the trunk’s defense, it holds more than it appears. I brought home 150 sq ft of floor paneling for my kitchen. The fork lift operator was shaking his head as I loaded them one bundle at a time, but they all fit and lid closed no problem.

Nice car. That’s what I’m talking about! Completely agree the color isn’t optimal.

GTO owner, came here to say this. The only sub $10k GTOs on the market are 2004 models with lower power, automatic transmission, with high miles. The GTOs to have (M6) are 2005-2006, T56 manual, 400HP LS2. Expect to pay $13-18k, even $20k for the unicorns.

“...the kind of people that take their kids to a cars and coffee then line the streets to watch the cars leave are almost certainly some level of enthusiast.”