Looking for my next car, need suggestions on getting my first tuner.

Hey everybody,

    Just signed up for the site and I'm looking for some advice. Well I currently run a '96 Plymouth Neon. It's an automatic and a sedan. I put a lot of money into this thing and I'm done trying to make it look decent and defend it. So I'm looking into getting something new. Now I'm still trying to decide if I'm wanting a manual or not. I figure that if I am wanting to actually get a car that I can tune, I need to get a manual. The next thing is that I'm obviously gonna want a 4 cylinder. I need something cheap that is easy to work on and has a good amount of aftermarket options. I live in the midwest and have all the seasons, so a summer only car isn't gonna work. This will be my daily driver as well.
    Okay, one thing that I am pretty sure I don't want is a civic. I don't hate the cars, they are an excellent car! I have a couple friends that have them, its just that they litter the streets of my town. Now I'm a big fan of the RSX's, but they are becoming quite popular too. I'm not completely against them, but if I get enough support for them, I may have to investigate them a little more. I'm kinda looking into a coupe, but if you guys could give me suggestions on a sedan that would be great too. Oh, price point. Well I'm a college student living on my own, so I am on a budget. I mean lets try to keep it under $10K.
    Well I'm looking forward to getting some suggestions from you guys. Oh and one last question guys. Every car trim has a high end sport model, such as an RSX Type S or Civic Si. If I got a different trim model, like a base RSX or Civic, can that be tuned to as high an output as a high end sport model, or no? Thanks guys.  

Integra's are pretty solid and have a pretty good after market.  2G eclipses are 4 cylinder and have a great aftermarket.  I personally like honda preludes alot, they are kinda heavy but i like them alot.  I know live in the midwest so encounter snow, but a 240sx would be nice.  If you really wanted to you could go after a cobalt ss or a srt-4 even though it sounds like u already made ur neon something like that.  Hope that helps a little!  goodluck.