Help me pick a decent daily driver !
 

I am putting too many miles on the (2 seater) Porsche of late, and need a backseat for expanded kid duties ;-)

I need to find me a beater <$20K that satisfies the following:

- Rear wheel drive or AWD (i.e not a soul killer)
- decent reliability (not honda-like, but "decent") something without a bad reputation
- Reasonably fun and pretty, German preferred
- Stick shift or at least reliable Auto tranny

I'm stuck... The initial thought was of Bimmers (but I'm finding either high miles on E46s, and 2007+ are not something I'd want to own outside of warranty) was replaced with one of a 2006-2007 Audi A4 quattro, but they are also not super well regarded in terms of reliability. Not sure why, the 2.0T is a great motor... maybe the CVT is crap, I've heard that... but i'd want stick !

Honestly if VW made an 08-09 GTI RWD, I'd get that. But I am sick of FWD..

What am I forgetting ? The subies are decent cars but scream "flimsy" and not all that nice to look at... I need something that motivates me to get out of bed and commute.... I am back on the A4 quattro, even saw a used 2005 S4 (old body, 4.2 V8) for $17K, but high miles ! Ideas ?

S class?
They're big, comfy, filled with neat gizmos and crap, come with big engines and 4matic.
No manuals, but they're all basically tiptronic these days.

E39 530i Sport 5 speed. Plenty cheap and fun....24 mph average mpg on my 65 miles per day commute. Heated seats and all the modern features with room for my kids in the back and a big enough truck.

I can't find S classes in that price range, but that might be too bulky for me....
E39s ? Are those reliable-ish ? More or less than E42s ? Got anchors for baby seats ? The really modern ones scare me, too many electronic doo-dads to break out of warranty....

You should be able to find an E46 of some variety with low miles in that price bracket.... Or you could step back to an E36M.

I should, but locally I'm seeing them all >70-80K miles... Seems high for the money, when I can get an A4 with 1/2 the miles... anyone got bad stuff to say on an 06-07 manual quattro 2.0T ? that's the current leader, it's less old than the alternatives...

For god's sake avoid VW/Audi if you are buying used out of warranty! High mileage BMW's with manual trans do not scare me at all.... Wife's daily driver E46 '03 330i sport has somewhere around 125k on the clock with no issues and my 80 mile round trip daily driver E36 325i has 312k on the clock on it's original engine that has never been opened up.

How about a Golf R32?

****2004 VW R32 Extra Clean!!!!****

I also saw an Infinity G35 on the Florida CL
(No Affiliation)
Les

That's what everyone says/ I tend to listen when it's that unanimous, but I am curious as to why? I had a GTI and that 2.0T engine is a gem, pretty reliable too. Quattro and stick also avoids me the CVT issues...

I have had bimmers of that era (OK, one) and several friends do, and they are always replacing water pumps, radiator hoses or alternators, hence my worry about 2000-2006 models. But your point is well taken ! For giggles I looked on CARMAX for 3 series not too far under 60K miles and $20,000, I got 30 hits, ALL automatics ;-) F$%$ me !!! ;-)

Patience, I need patience ;-)

On the R32, that's not a bad thought (and I don't meant to shoot it down), but you can chip a base GTi to eat an R32 alive, it's kinda pricey... if I were gonna go that route I'd want the new Golf R, but it's not coming here yet (and when it does it'll be $35k). It's not a bad idea though, I was thinking 4 doors for kids, but....

Check out the Legacy GT if you're interested in the Subie, much nicer interior and an exterior for grown-ups compared to an STi, but basically the same drivetrain.

Other options: E39 M5, E39 530/540, E46 330i ZHP, W210 E55 AMG, C32 AMG, Infiniti G35, Lexus GS430, Lexus IS300, Lancer Evolution, Volvo S60R, Volvo V70R, Mazdaspeed 6, RX8, S4, that's a start. All are rear or all wheel drive and fun to drive cars with 4 doors that are under $20k.

E39 is very reliable, more than the later 5 series. It has baby seat anchors.

S-class will be a regret over an E39. My buddy has an S-class and the self leveling system is costing him a lot of grief and $$$. If you want a modern commuter with less electronics, go E39.

I bought mine used with 62k miles on it and it now has 99k+ and I've only had to do oil changes. The oil pan gasket needs replacing now, so I'll probably do that over Christmas break.

WRC rally winner and you call a subie flimsy?

of course you are from florida so unless you plan on doing any dirt road rallys why would you even think of needing AWD there?

Old BMW > old Audi. They are really easy to DIY. I don't really like working on my DD (2004 E46) in case I have issues so I do it on Friday nights in case I need to make a Sat morning parts run. I have completed two very easy projects on a Friday night with little struggle or effort: 1. Water Pump/Thermostat replacement and Valve cover gasket. I did the window regulator and shocks/struts/springs on a Saturday afternoon. Easy as well. I think the 6cyl bimmer is many times easier than the 911 to work on and that's saying something!!

I think the VW/Audis are cool, but the idea of taking 1/2 the car apart to do a waterpump? No thanks.


I'd stay away from S class and all that...more electronics (electronic suspension for example) = more breaky. Think 928, nice new, but $$$$ to fix later, that's why they are so cheap.

I don't quite mean it that way, I am a huge WRC fan and have lots of respect for Subies. And they are reliable... but, I've driven a few in anger, and the interior is "meh" at best, the feel when closing a door is kinda flimsy, I don't see the car aging well inside (the mechanicals are another story). Looks wise, I'm also not in love with the last 3 iterations of the WRX... ;-( But respect where it's due, they are good cars !

AWD in FL ? Ever driven in a FL rainstorm where you cannot see the road at 10 mph ??? No, really, I meant I don't want FWD, so RWD or AWD is OK.... for instance Audis would have to be AWD since there are no RWD. But I prefer RWD overall.

You guys are redressing the scales towards BMW, 330 or something. I've heard the same from my german car mechanic but I suspected him of being partial since he sends his kids to college based on my 1973 2002 repairs ! ;-) OK, I'll drop the Audi idea for now, nobody even tried to come to its rescue, and look for 330s. 325s might be a letdown... Thanks (and keep it going if you got something original)

WRC cars don't have interiors. The Subie is a nice car, but can't compare on interior quality. Of course, I also think BMWs are cheaply made, so maybe I'm just picky.

All I can tell you is that my experience with E36 and E46 3 series cars has been outstanding the E36 I bought with 140k on the clock and my wife's E46 330i had 70k on the clock. Both have been great cars with no MAJOR issues. The newer 330i has had zero issues thus far.

On the older E36 (312k miles), I replaced struts once, muffler once, water pump once, voltage regulator once (brushes wore out), throw out bearing at 288k (I put in a new clutch disk and pressure plate since I had it apart, but the original clutch still had lots of life left), radiator once, heater fan motor once (maybe 10,000 miles ago).

My A6 Audi twin turbo bought with 100k on the clock was a nightmare to work on even for what should be simple repairs/maintenance compared to the BMW's. The front suspensions arms/joints are a beotch to replace and they eventually go bad on all the high mileage (out of warranty) Audis and VW's with similar suspension arms. I had valve cover leaks (not easy to get to on the twin turbo Audis), coolant hose leaks (the whole front of the car had to come off to fix it), bad fuel pump, torn CV boot (suspension had to be torn apart to get at the boot), window regulator problems, center digital display went out, trans cooler went bad (need to have the vag com hooked up to car with all four tires in the air running in gear to properly re-fill the auto trans fluid).

My daughter's 2000 Beetle bought with w/ 100k on the clock a couple years ago has been nothing but trouble.... Water pump, coil pack, door lock regulator, upper strut mounts, clock memory, drive shaft oil leaks, plastic water flange leak, power steering pump leak.

My sister and BIL have an A4 and a Q7. BIL is a doctor and does not know how to work on the cars. Both vehicles are now off warranty and are costing him a small fortune in repairs/maintenance. Every couple of months I hear a sob story from him about a $1500+ repair bill from the Audi dealer. I warned him before buying the Q7 as I had just dumped my POS A6, but he fell in love with the Q7 and bought it. Now he wishes he had listened to me.

Well, I found a local dealer with nice prices on used 3 and 5 series... Even a 5 wagon with a stick !!! Gotta be rare, but it's 2.5L only... I may even stretch to a 5 then, 530 look very nice...
Thanks all, looks doable ! Tim, I'll make sure to email you when the damn thing explodes ;-) Thanks for the advice !

a 964.

rjp

;-) this is to replace a 911, actually, so no :D

Not a fan of the schumacher-chin front bumper anyway... I'm good, 3 or 5 series...

ok, how about a C43 Benz? AMG, Dead nuts reliable, and enough change left over to get a new tranny when it pukes.

I have a C36 and it's loads of fun.

rjp