New car question

Based on the OP requirements, find a 2 year old Audi A4 avant, that's the car you described.
 
How new does it have to be?

If fuel economy isn't the prime mover there is a whole world of cars out there.


I'm partial to the Magnum SRT8 myself
 
If you want the most utility for the least amount of money, then the Honda Fit wins hands down. They are only $17k new. Even room in the back seat for a 6' tall guy like me.
 
Last edited:
us AAirways said:
If you want the most utility for the least amount of money, then the Honda Fit wins hands down. They are only $17k new. Even room in the back seat for a 6' tall guy like me.
Click to expand...

No power sent to the right wheels, kills the "fun to drive" requirement.
 
Skylane81E said:
No power sent to the right wheels, kills the "fun to drive" requirement.
Click to expand...

You tried one? Sorry, my second ride is two-seater mid-engine sport convertible and I still enjoy driving the Fit. And it gets around well in the snow. And you can fit normal sized people in all the seats. And it's a Honda, which hasa well deserved reputation for not breaking. And we brought home a freezer in ours. We named it TARDIS for a reason.
 
JOhnH said:
Damn, you read my mind!:yes:
Unfortunately, you have not read my bank statement.:no:
Click to expand...

Well, ectually Lamborghini did build an SUV. Not many people know about it, but a few decades back they produced the LM-02. Rather brutish, noisy, very lot tech, uses a lot of fuel and only a handful were made. Perfect fit!
 
Too bad Honda doesn't make a Fit Si with a turbo engine or something like that.
 
steingar said:
You tried one? Sorry, my second ride is two-seater mid-engine sport convertible and I still enjoy driving the Fit. And it gets around well in the snow. And you can fit normal sized people in all the seats. And it's a Honda, which hasa well deserved reputation for not breaking. And we brought home a freezer in ours. We named it TARDIS for a reason.
Click to expand...

Nope, don't care, I am over FWD for anything other than A -> B transport

When my Saturn dies its inevitable dramatic death at the hands of an inexperienced driver and a tire wall if it is replaced requirement #1 will be >50% power to the rear wheels
 
Skylane81E said:
Nope, don't care, I am over FWD for anything other than A -> B transport
Click to expand...

Sorry, disagree. I'm doing both, and I've no problem at all with FWD and like it in the snow and other traction challenging conditions. That said, if I'm buying a hatchback and my main goal is transporting stuff, that's the goal that get priority. Note that my "fun" car doesn't even have a trunk.

There is little fun about utility hatchbacks compared to my convertible. I'll go for inexpensive and dependable every time.
 
If FWD doesn't kill the car it need more power.

There is a place for such cars, the Fit included but making Duncan smile isn't it.

But then again if I could I'd be DDing a Miata
 
Skylane81E said:
Now for the OP, what about a Mazdaspeed 3?
Click to expand...

There is a variant of the Mazda 3 that has a turbo, and it is quite fast (and also less than $30K). However, you get into the issue of torque steering, which can make it quite a handful.
 
Lots to look at from this thread. I am not ignoring anyone. I am reading and researching all of them. All the comments are not only helpful for me, but for exchanging ideas about different cars between all of us.

But if I could afford to buy the Maserati, I wouldn't need to be going to Sam's to buy C-Folds, disinfectant and toilet paper by the case.
 
JOhnH said:
Lots to look at from this thread. I am not ignoring anyone. I am reading and researching all of them. All the comments are not only helpful for me, but for exchanging ideas about different cars between all of us.

But if I could afford to buy the Maserati, I wouldn't need to be going to Sam's to buy C-Folds, disinfectant and toilet paper by the case.
Click to expand...

I've never owned one, but I would at least look at Subaru. Here's why:

http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2012/11/19/subaru-best-cars/
 
flightwriter said:
You may have confused it with the 2006-2007 Mazdaspeed 6, which offered the same engine as the Mazdaspeed 3 in the larger 6 sedan with AWD. Helluva lot of fun, too, but good luck finding one on the used market that hasn't been beaten to death.
Click to expand...

I test drove an 07 Mazda 6 and thought it was great fun to drive but it had been a rental and was pretty rough
 
I have two cars in the family. Just bought a new minivan..... I actually really like it... very roomy, I can take out all the seats except for the passenger seat. It will hold a piece of plywood with no problem. The other car is an Audi A8L. Very nice car. I have nothing bad to say about that car at all, except other people like to knick it up for me. Thus, I usually park away from people or valet park when going to the mall and such.

If it were just me, the Audi A8L is the way to go.... awesome car and fast. You can get a used one for close to what you want to spend.
 
Seanaldinho said:
I test drove an 07 Mazda 6 and thought it was great fun to drive but it had been a rental and was pretty rough
Click to expand...

My brother had one, it was OK. I don't really get my jollies out of stomping on the accelerator and going zoom in a straight line so I din't think that much of it. I drove a rental Mazda 2 not that long ago, a wonderfully tossable little car. Put a turbo up from of something like that and you'll really have something. But like I said, all that power in the front wheels is likely to get interesting in a hurry.
 
I personally won't buy FWD vehicles, but that's because of personal preference. Right now I have an all wheel drive car and enjoy it. When this car finally dies (hopefully a long ways away) I'll probably buy a rear drive.
 
Yep, that's the thing.

My Saturn is rather quick, and with the mods done to it dives in and out of corners like a dream.

But you can only do so much when you are asking half the rubber to do almost all the work.
 
I will never buy anything again with the nearest service possibility greater than 50 miles. We are 75 miles from the Bummer dealer and have been regretting it ever since we bought the car nearly 5 years ago.
 
Graueradler said:
I will never buy anything again with the nearest service possibility greater than 50 miles. We are 75 miles from the Bummer dealer and have been regretting it ever since we bought the car nearly 5 years ago.
Click to expand...

I agree, but I believe part of that has to do with the brand choice.

When we bought our last Mercedes I was ready to camp out in their parking lot. My perception of reliability got a lot better once I got used to the idea I would be driving my loaner Camry most of the time.
 
A competent service department would have gone a long way toward reducing our issues. On one issue, it recurred while my wife was driving the car home. The next time they tried to fix it, it recurred when they were bringing the car to turn it over to my wife. On another issue, they fixed the primary issue under warranty but created a second issue with oil leakage from not getting the valve cover gasket installed correctly. Every trip for service was a 150 mile round trip. Even with a loaner, it is still a lot of driving. Bummer was not a typo.
 
Alexb2000 said:
I agree, but I believe part of that has to do with the brand choice.

When we bought our last Mercedes I was ready to camp out in their parking lot. My perception of reliability got a lot better once I got used to the idea I would be driving my loaner Camry most of the time.
Click to expand...

One of my friends had a new Mini Turbo. In the shop so much he actually put more miles on the loaner cars than he put on his own. Finally lemon lawed it for a new one, that he also put more miles on the loaners!
 
Ted DuPuis said:
One of my friends had a new Mini Turbo. In the shop so much he actually put more miles on the loaner cars than he put on his own. Finally lemon lawed it for a new one, that he also put more miles on the loaners!
Click to expand...

I had a Countryman that was the same way. Traded it after a year for a Fusion.
 
us AAirways said:
I had a Countryman that was the same way. Traded it after a year for a Fusion.
Click to expand...
I had a Dodge Durango for 4 years and 48,000 miles. It was in the shop 23 times during that period, and the shop did not give loaners. There was not a single day during my ownership when the car did not have something wrong with it. Lovely experience.
 
Mini's are really,really fun to drive, but yikes what a pos to own.
 
Ken Ibold said:
I had a Dodge Durango for 4 years and 48,000 miles. It was in the shop 23 times during that period, and the shop did not give loaners. There was not a single day during my ownership when the car did not have something wrong with it. Lovely experience.
Click to expand...

Wow, that sucks. I only had the mini for a year. The biggest thing was the battery would be drained after like 3 days of non use. The dealer said of course "they all do that" and you need to drive every other day. I even checked with my fluke an found a .6 amp drain I think it was I don't remember exactly, but higher that it should be. Dealer says..nope, no drain. i am not a mechanic, but not totally ignorant about cars either. I was afraid to drive it very far so it had to go. My dealer was good about giving loaners though, but still with the price you pay for those, I would expect better, or at least fix the thing.
 
Alexb2000 said:
I've never owned one, but I would at least look at Subaru. Here's why:

http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2012/11/19/subaru-best-cars/
Click to expand...
That was interesting since the last two cars I've owned have been Subarus. I had a 2003 Outback and I traded it for a 2012 Forester. It seems like either would fit what the OP wants. They are hatchbacks with fold-down back seats. My Forester doesn't have a "techie panel" but I didn't buy, or even look at, the GPS/backup camera option which is on the top of the line models. Also, I don't know what is available for 2013.
 
I'm pretty happy with my Vibe (aka Toyota Matrix). 2004 AWD with about 103,000 on it. Only regular maintenance is a once a year oil change and a complete going through and all fluids changed at 60K. Replaced the battery and both headlight bulbs.

Not a sporty thing by any stretch, but its fairly comfy (albeit a bit noisy), the rear seats fold down flat, and it'll haul just about anything I put in it. Will also haul a 4x8 trailer with two 750cc bikes on it.

I'm hoping I can put at least another 10 years on it, or until VW comes out with an AWD version of the diesel Sport Wagon.
 
I have put about 150k on my Subaru so far, great car for the frozen north. I would not get one for the OPs stated location as they are not the best on fuel economy, the AWD requires frequent tire rotations and with the AWD you just have a lot of extra mechanical stuff that can fall off.

Mazda used to make a really neat wagon model of the 6, the last ones I can see are model year 2007 :( .

I now have an E-wagon, the only non-SUV with third row seating I could find. Not cheap to buy, not cheap to maintain and hasn't seen a gas station it didn't like. It is a joy to drive though.
 
It's funny this thread is exactly like a "What airplane" thread, everyone suggests the one the own as the answer to the OP's question. :D:D
 
N747JB said:
It's funny this thread is exactly like a "What airplane" thread, everyone suggests the one the own as the answer to the OP's question. :D:D
Click to expand...

nope. I own a Mercury Mariner Hybrid, which definitely doesn't meet the OP's stated criteria.
 
My Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4 is a terrible car. I only own it because it's fun. :)
 
ktup-flyer said:
Jeep Wrangler Sahara Unlimited
Click to expand...

Funny, we have a 1999 Wrangler Sport. My wife and I were just talking Saturday about what to get when we ultimately replace it. She has a great deal of trouble getting in/out of the Wranger (either side). At this point my only criteria are 4wd and good ground clearance. More comfortable than the Wrangler would be nice, too. At 47 when I bought it comfort wasn't the issue that it is now at 61. :rolleyes:

docmirror said:
Pfft. Old farts. What are ya gonna do? :D

They're thinking of that old Chevy commercial: "blah-blah, something, something apple pie and Chevrolet."
Click to expand...

"Baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and Chevrolet" :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top