i'm going to buy a car, but need help

[redshifter]

before i moved to seattle i used to drive a toyota cressida, a big luxury car that was nice to ride in but was a beast to handle. now i want to get a new car for commuting to work, etc., here in seattle. i'm thinking something smaller, under $30,000, that handles nicely and will be a "drive it until it dies" kind of car. i like the look of the new subarus with the round running lights, and i understand these subarus run forever. can anyone suggest a good relatively cheap car that has at least a small amount of cool factor?

 

[daycart1]

I'd say a Miata. I ended up with a less sensible convertible, but researched these--they're very nice! The Toyota is good too, but has hardly any trunk space.

 

[hawkman]

Convertible in Seattle? That's just ridiculous

My dad's owned a Miata here in Seattle since 1992, and I think the hard top has been securely fastened to it since 1993. The car is damn fun to drive though. Reminds me of racing go-karts

Under 30k, you might be able to pick up an Audi A4 1.8T. It's a slick car, fairly fast, and if it ever snows, Quattro should come in handy.

 

[andrzejpw]

I think you're talking about the wrx(subaru), right?

 

[dokebi]

My friend drives a WRX and annoying little ricers and their fart exhausts try to race him 24/7. Namely there is this little riced out Ford Focus that keeps finding him almost daily and tries to race. These loud annoying economy cars attract attention. I'm thinking one day my friend will be at the wrong place at the wrong time and get pulled over by a pmsing cop even though he didn't do anything.

 

[chillysalsa]

The Audi would be super nice, and for less $, you can get a VW Jetta with 1.8T engine. It drives great, and the fit & finish inside is lovely for the price. The engine in my '93 Jetta has over 120K miles so far, and is still purrin' like a kitten, but I'm not sure what the longevity of the 1.8T's will be - they're still new.

 

[N@Z]

Lasts forever! With regular maintenance of course.

I've owned 2 incarnations the Mk2 8V & the Mk3 VR6. Both fun cars to drive. A used Mk4 1.8T GTi should fit your needs right now if you don't mind stick shift & don't want to wait for the new Mk5. Longertivity of the 1.8T should not be a problem. The engine has been in all VAG variants (VW, AUDI, SEAT & SKODA) in Europe for several years now.

 

[wallijonn]

what was that car that was mainly made of plastic? the Fiero? Maybe a fiberglass Corvette would be nice. anyone make frames that won't rust out in Seattle's watery weather? are most Japanese cars still made with cheap steel that rusts away in 8 years? since convertibles are out, how about a Honda EV (the environmentally clean engine that gets 50 miles to the gallon)? something that works on batteries / gas. somehow i don't think hydrogen cars will ever be sold in Seattle.

time to pull out the consumer reports, and seek out the Seattle chamber of commerce (and see which car had the least amount of rust problems).

http://www.cnn.com/NATURE/9910/08/honda.mpg.enn/
http://www.arstechnica.com/reviews/3...insight-1.html

The Honda EV was all batteries. sorry. look at the above (the Honda Insight). 70 mpg.

IT HAS AN ALUMINIUM FRAME

 

[DanG]

Try a Nissan Maxima if you can get one for under $30,000 -- I think you can as long as you don't go absolutely crazy on options. My mom drives a '98 which gets pretty good mileage (I think around 25 mpg) and handles great. Also very reliable and I think it looks great! The new ones will likely have worse mileage (much higher horsepower) and need premium fuel. If you get a used car, the '98 Maxima probably goes for around $15,000 and so will save you a lot of cash.

Good luck!

 

[stuartr]

I have a passat that was less than 30K. They look like they are way more than that though...They drive incredibly well, and are definitely a luxury car type. I would get the 1.8 T. If you want, you can put a p-chip in it and get it up to 220 hp. Pretty sweet, the only problem is that you invalidate the warranty...which is why I have not done it. Still, even without it, it is an awesome car. Get the leather and the monsoon stereo, I think it sounds great for a car system. Better than a really expensive alpine system that was in my parents' car. I have a wagon...great functionality, and it really is zippy. VW's are really great cars, I would recommend one regardless of type.

edit: Oh, and the passat is built on the same chassis as the audi A6, and is a very similar car. The only real differences are the engine, the styling and the price. Of course the name. But after the president of VW took over audi, they really made VW's better at the expense of audis..4 motion is the exact same thing as quattro...

 

[NEO]

Hi redshifter,

There are lots of car with "fun&cool factor". I think you have to be more specific. What type of car are you looking for? How many passenger do you normally carry and what are your major concerns?

Since you have used a large passenger car before. Change into smaller sedan might make you feel a bid uncomfortable. Here are my primary opinions

Passenger Sedan

Japanese : Honda Accord,Toyota Camry ,Mazda 6 and Nissan new Maxima or Altima. These car are fresh,more safety,more responsive and morefun too drivethan the previous models. Honda has higher resell value and has good reliability. Camry is one of the best car in terms of safety and relaibillity but less fun to drive and has weird styling in my opinion. Mazda 6 is probably one of the most fun and responsive car but not as fast as Accord and Maxima/Altima and has lower resell value. Nissan has improved all their models to be more attractive for younger customer. Altima and Maxima should also be very inteeresting for those who don't want to drive Accord or Camry likes others. Styling depends on taste. I also like Subaru Legacy but do not recommend since it's old model and not sure about maintenance cost on Boxer engine and 4WD system. But it will be a goood choice on snow.

Not recommend new Subaru Legacy since it's smaller passenger car and maybe slighly noisy inside (it is made to drrive fun).
And also styling,though i like it, could be out of trends pretty soon.

German : BMW 3 series - base model ,Audi A4 and VW Passat VR6. With BMW is most fun. Audi has 4wd and is best organized and best assemble quality. Passat is a good choice if BMW/Audi are out of your budget.

American : Lincoln LS V6 and Cadillac Citera are good choices.
Their skidpad are impressive (oveer 0.80 g for sedan!). Too bad that LS looks too dumb and Citera could be too wild for someone's taste. Both are sharp handling though.

Also for the station wagon- Mazda MP5 is only smaller car under
20k that i would recommend due to the cargo use. (Which is why I havn't mentioned about Sentra SE-R ,MP3 or WRX).

For around 300 grands - goes for Maybach 57/62 or RR Silvercloud

NEO

PS. For me, i would go for A4 due to superb finishing qulity,4wd system,lifelong styling and unique feeling. (I also like Citera too)

 

[zoboomofo]

1) Mini Cooper S
2) Mini Cooper S!
3) Mini Cooper S!!

Lots of cool factor! A nimble package! BMW build should last a while! Price starts at $29,950CAN = 30cents US!

 

[Nick Dangerous]

Passat wagon 1.8T is killer, killer, KILLER for the money as a people/stuff mover that looks cool and is astonishingly fun to drive.

Otherwise, if you need 4WD, a Subaru is probably in your future.

 

[Mr.PD]

BMW 3 series
Volkswagen any model (I like the Beetle)
Mini Cooper S untested reliablity but built by BMW
Miata and add a hardtop. These seem to hold up well, and do good in the snow. (I used to have one)

 

[kentamcolin]

There is a lot available for $30K! I drove a Miata recently when seriously considering one on ebay, but it was just to cramped for me for an everyday car. I drive 35-40K miles/year. The Audi is really nice, class all the way and handles...like an Audi (good thing). That would probably be my first choice. I like the Mini Cooper a lot too. Probably a blast to drive and looks so cool. You could also look into used cars. $30K for something one or two years old can buy one helluva lot of car. As far as driving forever, I now drive a '94 Acura Integra. 223K miles and NEVER a problem. The car is tight, problem free and still looks good, and the dealer service dept. has been awesome. I like the new TL series, I think it's the 3.2TL-S. (BTW-I hate Toyotas).