/me tosses his name into the fuck fords/mustangs hat.
I have respect for the late '60's 'stangs. But Corvettes've just always looked and performed that much better.
Anyway, as for the OP's dilemma, I personally HATE the third gen eclipse. 2nd Gen was the best eclipse and the latest gen looks pretty slick despite lackluster performance options. I'd have to agree with Sanjay's suggestion that you opt for a cheaper car now. You should consider which car is going to give you the deepest reduction in yearly insurance costs. The money you'll save will add up over the course of your first car's lifespan (undoubtedly shorter... even if you're a good driver inexperience will still take a larger toll on the working parts). Once you've passed 21 you can look into getting something decent.
My first car was an '89 Volvo 244DL with 249,000. It lasted me through my first four years of driving, and I had to share it with my brother for 3. I was a good driver in terms of skill of operation, but I absolutely beat the fuck out of that car. Loved doing all that stupid shit in the car, like racing other people, speeding constantly, flooring it everywhere, taking it on shitty roads, etc. Now I'm driving a '96 Volvo 854 GLT with another assload of miles on it. Since I'll be running my own business this summer, I'm hoping I'll have enough in the way of profits to sell the thing to someone (hopefully my brother, otherwise I'll have to detail the shit out of it and fix a bunch of minor annoyances) and finally get myself something enjoyable. I'm sick of driving hand-me-down sedans.
