seriously though. forget all these fanboys ranting about integras and 240s and eclipses, etc. etc. if you are dead serious about an ALL AROUND car, listen to the guy telling you to get an E30 325is. or the guy who wanted to sell you his VW. I dont' own either of those, so you know i'm not just gassing them up. you said you didn't want to change every little part in the e30 right away, but you definitely wouldn't. it's 170 hp, PLUS a limited slip that's virtually bulletproof (like the motor). you'd be surprised at how it drives.

if you want to get into racing, on the track, it's great (SCCA and NASA have road racing programs for it, plus it's a GREAT autocross car w/ the right suspension upgrades). eventually, you could swap in an E30 M3 motor in there for cheap and MURDER any Civic you share a highway with. V6, 5-speed, limited slip (on is models). Stay way from anything that says 325es, 325e, or 325. those are the "eta" engines made for efficiency. they only rev up to about 5000rpm. not a good look on the track, lol. plus, they look killer on BBS basketweaves.