I don't know how car prices work in the US but both our 1995 Canadian B13 Sentra Coupe's retail for around $4500 CDN or more. Most '95 Honda Civic's are prices around $5500 CDN or more. Import cars have excellent resell value. I've seen a '94 or '95 Mercury Topaz sell for only $2400 CDN.
Unless the car was already appraised for $1500 then that is a decent price. Again, it's your father's car so he's trying to give you a break. $3500 seems like a decent deal for a SE-R depending on the year but I've seen them cheaper. Just visit
SE-R.net and check out the classifieds.
It wouldn't hurt to check the blue book value I guess it's called and "The Lemonaid Guide to Cars 2003" for resell value.
Like the guys/gals mentioned, you can have lots of fun with the GA16DE engine with all the potential it has. You just have to work harder than Civic owners for example to get the parts you need (although you probably already know the right stuff to buy). Being different is part of the fun, showing people what you car has making them think twice about Nissan or the older econo box Sentra anyway.
As for Automatic vs. Manual, both are nice. I have an Automatic as well and love the launch I get from a stopped position. I can easily beat out many cars unintentionally. I was just taking off from a red light(turned green) one nite and a guy in a Celica thought I was dragging with him...LOL. Yeah, right...in a 1995 B13 Base Model Sentra w/94 whp, I don't think so; I was in the lead for a while though until he got pi$$ed and gave her the gas.
There is a 4 or 5 page thread on
Auto to Manual. In the end it's tied 50/50. If you have an Auto, I'd stick with it. Of course a 5 speed can be more fun, being in control of the car although an auto can be more relaxing or boring I suppose. Overall, they both go the same speed and both are good for racing.
Greg