[RYCeT]

Another vote for MDX. A friend of mine leased Acura MDX and bought X5. When the lease ended, He bought out the MDX and sold the X5. I drove both, I'll pick MDX any day over X5. My current DD is a e46 330i

 

[Anaxilus]

Quote:

Another vote for MDX. A friend of mine leased Acura MDX and bought X5. When the lease ended, He bought out the MDX and sold the X5. I drove both, I'll pick MDX any day over X5. My current DD is a e46 330i

If I had to buy a BMW the E46 would probably be it.  Too bad they went a different direction after everything got all Bangled up.  Its ok though, I have a Jag w/ twice as many cylinders.  

  Plus all the British quirks and issues.  

 

[fatcat28037]

Consumers Report, which I've always found to be accurate, says Lexus is the most reliable luxury SUV. Land Rover is way way down the list.

 

[revolink24]

Quote:

If I had to buy a BMW the E46 would probably be it.  Too bad they went a different direction after everything got all Bangled up.  Its ok though, I have a Jag w/ twice as many cylinders.  

  Plus all the British quirks and issues.  

XJS? If so then you have got one hell of a quirk master.

 

[Anaxilus]

Quote:

XJS? If so then you have got one hell of a quirk master.

Yes sir.  Thankfully a late model w/ the improved Magnetti Marelli electronics rather than the Lucas stuff.  Plus the latter revised cylinder heads.  Sadly the newer improved gear ratios, while better for street driving, take me out of the 200mph Bonneville runs.  

 

[RYCeT]

Quote:

If I had to buy a BMW the E46 would probably be it.  Too bad they went a different direction after everything got all Bangled up.  Its ok though, I have a Jag w/ twice as many cylinders.  

  Plus all the British quirks and issues.  

 
I don't like the e90s too. I guess my next car will be current Benz C350
 

 

[revolink24]

Quote:

Yes sir.  Thankfully a late model w/ the improved Magnetti Marelli electronics rather than the Lucas stuff.  Plus the latter revised cylinder heads.  Sadly the newer improved gear ratios, while better for street driving, take me out of the 200mph Bonneville runs.  

Well, I'll always be willing to take it off your hands for you if you find the gear ratios too much of a bother 

.
 
The billions of problems the E-Type has don't stop me from wanting one of them either.

 

[Uncle Erik]

Quote:

You're absolutely right. I just don't see the point in luxury cars. Not only repair costs but maintenance costs are unbelievable.

Neither do I.  Years ago, I took a friend to pick up a repaired car at a dealer.  I got to talking with one of the sales guys (it was a slow day) and asked him what he'd buy for himself.
 
He said that he special ordered one of the company's compact economy cars (one with good ratings) with a five speed and made sure it had no options other than AC and a radio.  He even specified that it had crank windows and no power door locks or mirrors.
 
The salesman was adamant about keeping things that could go wrong to an absolute minimum.
 
The salesman was right - I've bought two compacts with good reliability ratings and the least amount of features.  So far, I've had ten years and about 210,000 miles between the two.
 
Other than routine maintenance and wear items, I've only had one repair on the previous car.  For whatever reason, a wire melted and shorted in the ignition.  The cost of the wire was $5 and they charged me another $40 for labor in locating the short.
 
That said, I've been tempted to pick up an older Ducati... might as well have something fussy and temperamental around for a little fun. 

  But I sure wouldn't depend on it as a daily ride.

 

[salannelson]

 
Quote:

Neither do I.  Years ago, I took a friend to pick up a repaired car at a dealer.  I got to talking with one of the sales guys (it was a slow day) and asked him what he'd buy for himself.
 
He said that he special ordered one of the company's compact economy cars (one with good ratings) with a five speed and made sure it had no options other than AC and a radio.  He even specified that it had crank windows and no power door locks or mirrors.
 
The salesman was adamant about keeping things that could go wrong to an absolute minimum.
 
The salesman was right - I've bought two compacts with good reliability ratings and the least amount of features.  So far, I've had ten years and about 210,000 miles between the two.
 
Other than routine maintenance and wear items, I've only had one repair on the previous car.  For whatever reason, a wire melted and shorted in the ignition.  The cost of the wire was $5 and they charged me another $40 for labor in locating the short.
 
That said, I've been tempted to pick up an older Ducati... might as well have something fussy and temperamental around for a little fun. 

  But I sure wouldn't depend on it as a daily ride.

Yes, I recently bought an older Honda Civic EX. If I had a choice I would have got a bare bones car with nothing but AC, but for the price I had to get it. It's not so much the features, it's just the all around reliability, so it didn't bother me too much. It has power locks, windows, AC, and an auto transmission. (I was open to both auto and manual when looking for a car)
 
Although having a BMW M3 would be loads of fun, it would be nice if they had "Honda Reliability".
 
What kind of car do you drive?

 

[Anaxilus]

Quote:

 
I don't like the e90s too. I guess my next car will be current Benz C350
 

The e90+ is fatter and slower though compared to the e46.  That's the drivers car.  The e90 is the pick the kids up from school car.  I'd suggest steering clear of the C-class.  Save up a bit more and grab an S5.  
 
Quote:

Well, I'll always be willing to take it off your hands for you if you find the gear ratios too much of a bother 

.
 
The billions of problems the E-Type has don't stop me from wanting one of them either.

Grats on the E-type!  Thx for the offer.  I think I'll pass, lol.  I'm kind of over the whole 200mph thing since everybody and their mother can do it now.  Have you seen the XK120 coupe?  Saw one in person for the first time about a year ago and almost passed out.
 

 
W/ respect to the whole luxury thing.  I used to drive a '92 Corolla w/ 200k miles.  Now my daily driver is an 05 Subaru Legacy.  I wanted the Lexus quiet, leather interior, smooth ride, Turbo boxer engine and AWD w/ a hint of meanness to its look.  I won't go back to cloth seats and noisy interiors unless it's one of my 'fun' cars.  

 

[Orpheus]

all these cars would probably be "money pits".  sorry.  that's why in general you want to lease luxury vehicles, especially european ones.  if you want to buy a luxury car, i'd stick with japanese or american versions which are in general cheaper and easier to maintain.  but buying a luxury car is almost paradoxical since cars that are old are no longer luxurious--again, lease, not buy.

 

[XxATOLxX]

Quote:

If I had to buy a BMW the E46 would probably be it.  Too bad they went a different direction after everything got all Bangled up.  Its ok though, I have a Jag w/ twice as many cylinders.  

  Plus all the British quirks and issues.  

 
The 02-04 E46 330i's and the ZHP coupe look amazing. They're right up there with the 5 series for the best looking BMWs.
 
The prices on the 330i's are starting to hover around $10k for one with around 100,000 miles, the engines are pretty solid and should run forever. I've been considering buying one and running it into the ground. My only worry being the auto transmission that usually fails at around 150,000.

 

[ivanrocks321]

Thanks this is all great info guys, I'll keep all this advice in mind. Another option i was thinking of was getting extended warenty on purchased cars. Was about leasing for these "luxuary" cars but in general Im not sure if it would be worth it since I only put less than 6K per year. 
 
Anyway its a long shot but does any one know the location of the 38 pin diagnostic port is on the 2001 ML320? Im trying to DIY and reset the computer so I can stop the ABS from turning on while driving! Been looking everywhere on the net and asked a friend that works on MB's and even he does not know were it is. 

 

[XxATOLxX]

Quote:

Thanks this is all great info guys, I'll keep all this advice in mind. Another option i was thinking of was getting extended warenty on purchased cars. Was about leasing for these "luxuary" cars but in general Im not sure if it would be worth it since I only put less than 6K per year. 
 
Anyway its a long shot but does any one know the location of the 38 pin diagnostic port is on the 2001 ML320? Im trying to DIY and reset the computer so I can stop the ABS from turning on while driving! Been looking everywhere on the net and asked a friend that works on MB's and even he does not know were it is. 

Usually it's right here.
 

 

[Anaxilus]

A lot of cars, especially German, have OBDII ports hidden behind the bumpers.  Look for covers or outlines around the body work.