OT - Wife wants a "new" car - what would you get?, Help me spend some money ... Options

[cha914]

My wife is a good driver ... however she is a timid driver. She defin needs a car that she doesn't have to worry about and one that is confidence inspiring.

I had forgotten about the acura legands, I know my aunt has one and loves it, will have to add those to the list. Definately have to check out the toyota corolla/camery, although they are about as bland as you can get.

Saturn, sorry, they may be great cars, but I have never liked any of the saturns I have ever gotten in.

I will add the impreza TS and outback sport to the list to look at, her current car has definately sold me on subaru.

And here we still get the conflicting reports on the newer vw's ... some like them, some say to stay very far away. Anybody got info on GOOD years for these cars? I like the looks of the jetta / golf / maybe a passat (but I have heard more horror stories about those than any other vw).

[boxstr]

2004 Mini 32 MPG and only $18500. Heated seats, 5 speed, dual sunroofs,two owner car.
CCLINCOMESEEMETOADY

[adamd1514]

If you loved the subby stay with it. I've put 25k on my 05' wrx and its been nothing but good to me. No problems. Go with a little older legacy or any of the imprezza base models. They'll last forever

[Cap'n Krusty]

QUOTE (rick 918-S @ Oct 10 2005, 07:22 PM)

My friend has an auto 325I S and pounds the snot out of the car on a regular basis. No worries.. The guys on car talk mentioned the reliability of the newer VW's. Not a good thing.

"The guys at car talk"? The ignorant Bozos who ragged on Audi climate control and asked why it couldn't be as good as GM's, when it IS GM's? At best, they're poor (and cheap) entertainment for clueless liberal enviroweenies, at worst they dish out dangerously bad advice that can end up misleading people and ruining their cars. They're living proof that a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. They routinely misdiagnose nearly every problem, and their naive listeners believe them because they're on NPR, which would NEVER lead you wrong ........ The Cap'n

[SGB]

3 series, like Rick sez, only I'm lookin fer a nice 318.
For Subies, don't forget the Forester.

edit-
also, the Audi 1.8 is nice, esp the Quattro version.

[914GT]

QUOTE (Gint @ Oct 10 2005, 08:40 PM)

Oh, and although I get loads of crap for this, my $6k 93 Acura Legend is an awesome car. You could find a low mile 95/96 for your budget with money to spare. And they'll go 200k with no problem.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/agree.gif) We just bought our third Acura. These have been great cars, very reliable and low maintenance. My son has our old 87 Legend and daughter has the 01 CL Type S. The 87 is still going strong.

[Katmanken]

Gasp!

Media leading us wrong! i cant believe it...


I likes the Toyota products- Corolla and Camry. My wife drives my Geo Prizm (a rebadged Corolla). With a 1600 and a 5 speed, it zips pretty good. Wifey took it and won't give it back Adding an automatic would probably remove the performance and worsen the mileage.

FYI GEO Prizm's are perceived by the unwashed masses as a GM and as a consequence, go for a couple of thousands less than the Corrolla. They are both built on the same assembly line and use the same mechanicals. Prizms look a little different.

Got a 5 year old Prizm/Corolla with 26,000 miles for 8K. 28 mpg in stop and go, 40 mpg on highway.

Ken

[Nick]

Lexus IS 300

[jd74914]

QUOTE (SGB @ Oct 11 2005, 10:17 AM)

3 series, like Rick sez, only I'm lookin fer a nice 318. For Subies, don't forget the Forester. edit- also, the Audi 1.8 is nice, esp the Quattro version.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/agree.gif) 3 series or a 2000 (of that model bracket) Audi A4 quatro

[BMartin914]

Sounds to me like a newer BMW or Audi is going to be out of his price range at a max of 10 grand.

If you want relaibility - go Japanese. They may be a little dull, but a used Honda (be it an accord or civic) a Toyota (camry or corolla) or a Nissan (I'd go Maxima but maybe an Altima) is going to give her a car that always starts, runs, gets good gas mileage and has a decent amount of room.

Most women don't seem to be consumed with German heritage, handling and prestige if it starts and runs like they want.

[cha914]

Craig ... you got a car for everyone eh? ... come down about 8K and i will be on the next plane (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/laugh.gif)


B - very good points, she could care less about the german heritage, as much as I try to impress it on her. Looks like its time to go drive some cars...

Tony

[JmuRiz]

I'm in the same boat, my GF wants to get the new VW GTI (made in Germany now), but it's not avail till ~Feb...so I don't know what to do.
I'd love to have a DSG GTI for fun on the weekends too, hmmm

[johnmhudson111]

Go look at the Scion xB, my wife has one and is a pretty cool little car, loads of room on the inside. I think they go for something like $14k new so a used one should be in that price range. I like th xB enough that I am seriously thinking about trading the GMC in on a new Tc, they are pretty fun little car too.

[IronHillRestorations]

QUOTE (Nick @ Oct 11 2005, 07:33 AM)

Lexus IS 300

I gotta go with Nick on this.

I've always been a German car fan, but have you seen the frequency of repair ratings? (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/icon8.gif) The newer the Beemer the less reliable and more expensive it is to maintain.

One of my best friends put 350,000 miles on a Camry wagon, with no major repairs!

Get the lowest mileage garage queen Lexus you can find. Reliability of a Toyota with german luxury car appointments.

[jhadler]

My first thought would be an E30 or E36 3-Series Bimmer. You can get a whole lot of car if you look for something that's not an M3. Like a 325 or a 328...

-Josh2

[buck toenges]

I just bought my wife a '94 318 i convertible off of e bay for 6k. It has 129k on it. It is a 1.8 l. auto. I had to put in about 1 k to get it right. Wife loves it. She can still get all the groceries in and haul part of the family in it and she doesn't have to drive the fricken suburban around all the time! Its red and she is happy and I am saving gas!

[Eddie914]

How about a Mini for less than $10K?

I performed a search on AutoTrader. 15 cars located Under $10K! Unfortunately none within 300 miles of Seattle ... what gives?

Can these prices be real?
2004 Mini S

I'm tempted to sell the M5 daily driver!

Eddie

[horizontally-opposed]

Subies and Minis...best cars in this price range for driving fun, reliability, some actual character, and a good ownership experience. New Miata is quite good, if that's your bag.

I like VWs, was raised on VWs, and have a family that still buys VWs -- but can't recommend them for two reasons: Spotty reliability and piss-poor handling dynamics and steering. You can fix the former (Hello...Neuspeed?) but the latter is a tougher thing.

Nothing else stands out in this category, unless you go used. And then it gets REAL interesting...

My 0.2 cents.

pete

[boxstr]

If you are looking for a 1991 325 BMW convertible. You won't find a nicer one than the one here on craigslist. I sold to a friend of mine, who put his Midas touch on this car. It is perfect beyond a doubt. It has a factory hardtop which makes the car feel exactly like a coupe.
It has all options. Automatic trans. Heated seats, Leather interior.
http://portland.craigslist.org/car/99974646.html
CCLINBMWTANNINGMACHINE

[nebreitling]

dang Cap't, tell us how you "really" feel about car talk.... i share the sentiment though -- they once told a women that the interior vapor buildup in her 912 was a leaky heater core.


i helped the gf pick up a '99 Z3 2.8 auto a year ago with 60k on the clock for like 11k. just a few little electrical problems so far, but it's been very solid overall. more importantly, she loves the damn thing.