No fighting in my thread. I have spoken. SmileWavy

Paid three dealers a visit today.

BMW: "We have over 325 vehicles in stock. Not one has a manual transmission, not even our M3s." OK, so I can't even test drive a stick shift BMW. Thanks for playing. NEXT!
M-B: "Well, we can order you one of the C-series cars in a manual transmission....but no, not the AMG. Sorry." Sigh.
Audi: "We'll offer you this laughable amount on your vehicle for trade-in. I know your vehicle is in excellent condition but from our perspective, it's really 'rough'. Those low-mileage TDIs are a dime a dozen and nobody wants 'em. Frankly, we're not at all interested in your business." OK they didn't say that precisely but it's a fair translation.

Moving along....

I'd think it would be fairly easy to get rid of that TDI.... My dad had no problem getting rid of his with about 30k on the clock.... You will have a hard time finding a modern car that isn't a bargain bin or full blown sports car that is a stick I would think...

Finding ANYTHING in a stick is going to be a challenge. Get ready for a road trip if you're serious. What's your price range? New or used?

Isn't it pretty hard to find a used TDi? Put that baby on Craigslist! You're going to get raped on trade regardless of the dealer.

Sounds like a Mazda3 hatchback to me.

Blue - just for kicks, scrounge around the internet and see if you can locate a new Pontiac GTO. Not terrible mpg, as large as an M5, as fast as an M5, has a six speed, and IMO, looks better than an M5.

Oh, and let the Government Motors part slide a bit; the GTO is made in Oz, FWIW.

That is quite possibly the weirdest statement I have heard in a long time. :eek:

What is this world coming to?

Whatever the world comes to, it soon won't involve a clutch.

You mean a G8 GXP, right? 420 HP, 6 speed, RWD, $40k MSRP. They're probably pretty cheap right now with Pontiac's demise. It's actually a damn good call, they're supposed to be great cars. Not bad looking, but the OZ Holden version looks much better. There's a guy at work with a G8 that has converted it to Holden bodywork (mostly bumpers), it's a damn good looking car.

Enzo1, I'll post a report once I have my hands on the car. It's ordered, but looking at 8 weeks minimum for delivery - these are apparently rare as hen's teeth as configured - we ordered it with only the preferred and climate package. I think any that come into the US with the manual tranny are loaded to the hilt, and I'm not interested in satnav, or any of that crap.

Yes. The G8 GXP. Funny, though, even with Pontiac's demise, as the cars were so highly touted by the press, I wouldn't expect them to be all that cheap. Maybe I'll look them up and see...

Took the words out of my mouth.

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Just looked around, there are more than a few Holden GTOs ( ;) ) available in the immediate vicinity. Damned ugly cars, but I remember being passed by one on an on-ramp like I was standing still (I had it floored in my WRX).

Ugly. Interesting. I think they're very nice looking in a minimal way. Regardless, you can't fault the car's underpinnings. That's proven stuff from down under.

I always thought GM should have unloaded Buick instead of Pontiac as Pontiac seemed more on the cutting edge; i.e. the GTO.

But then again Buicks are what sell in China. :rolleyes:

Oh, hey Blue: what's the immediate vicinity. Can you throw up a link? I'd like to see what the Holden/GTOs are going for.

Thx. SmileWavy

I'm tellin' ya dudes 3.5L Altima has 270hp and 258 ft lbs of torque and still gets over 26 MPG and phun as ph-ck to drive AND room for the kiddies and groceries too.

not enough room in them for $hit, we drove one too and they are pretty fast but kinda slow off the line. And it was so small inside I could almost sit in the middle of the back seat and use the armrests on both the rear doors myself. felt like riding in the back seat of a .....well a 911

DD: I just searched for GTO on the Phx craigslist. They all seem to be in the high teens.

Lee: I dunno, nothing from Mazda has ever appealed to me in any way. I have a coworker who just unloaded his Mazda3 and kept his WRX. Right decision, IMHO.

vwbobd: If you're talking about the Altima with the CVT, not a chance. Zero interest in a car with two pedals.

The G8 GXP looks like a fun car to me... One of them thoroughly spanked me at autocross a few months back....

Mazda 3? Pffft.

E-V-O...E-V-O!!!

http://csusap.csu.edu.au/~yzhou14/evo9drift.jpg

Altima is/was available as a 3.5L V6 with the 6 speed manual trans.
Look for a '07-09 3.5 SE sedan
TONS of car for the money