new car... maybe?

abrcrombe

abrcrombe

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Hey guys,
Well I should have the lucky opportunity to get a new car soon. Definitely like sporty cars, and while I don't know how to drive stick yet (will start learning this week), I would consider a car with stick or auto or paddle shifters. Any ideas on what to get? I prefer no verts, and RWD if possible. Handling and acceleration are on top of my list, and safety, reliability and price are on top of my parents list. Some examples of things that intrigue me are acura tsx (used), bmw 3 series (used), infiniti g35 (used), mazdaspeed3 (new), and things sort of like that. Keep in mind that I am only 19 so I can't get a car with a huge engine because insurance would kill me. :) TIA
 
How about a nice Mercedes C-class? I like those... a lot! The BMW is always a good choice and those 3-series are great used as they don't hold their value whatsoever.

As I'm European myself, I'm not big on Jap cars. But I do really like the G35!!!
 
Are you sure you want a sporty car like that? If your parents have price at the top of their list, they may not like the service bills that a BMW or Infiniti have for even just the basics.
 
What about reliability on those germans? Mercedes is known for the questionable reliabilty, and BMW is not that much better. Yes they are built very well, but reliable?
 
Grimm said:
Are you sure you want a sporty car like that? If your parents have price at the top of their list, they may not like the service bills that a BMW or Infiniti have for even just the basics.
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If my parents could have their way they would get me any car in the world I wanted, but of course $$ doesn't grow on trees. Ideally, my dad would have me in a new hyundai of some sort because of the warranty and they are reliable and cheap. He knows I would rather have something a little more nicer and he is definitely willing to pay a little extra to get me something I want if and all possible. I mean yeah I could dream about a new m3 or something, but definitely not going to happen. A used 2001 or 2002 325 or 330 is something he would consider though if I REALLY REALLY wanted it.
 
To be honest with you, I'm not going to buy a car because of reliability. Sure, Toyota and Honda and all those cars will last you 5,000 years but that doesn't mean I'm going to buy one. Frankly, I think they're rather boring.

I'd much rather have a nice car and make sure it has a good warranty. If your BMW or Mercedes break down, you can bet they'll give you another one to drive around in in the meantime. Also, they will be certified so you'll have a 100,000 mile warranty. NICE!
 
the g35 has paddles! :D And looks sweet :)

For euros, I love the Benz C class, mercades really did them well with the recent remake. For a nice, reliable ride go for a the most recent benz you can get. Their service is top notch as well.
 
Those little Mazda Speed3's really blow my shorts...I recommend trying one of those before anything else if you like that for a new car. IMO having a new car is really nice and even if it's not your dream car you have the comfort of knowing you're not inheriting someone else's bad habits. That's always a risk even if they are certified. A good friend of mine got a 5-year old Mercedes something or other a while back and just after the warranty expired the dang thing started falling apart and of course it cost 3x more to fix it than if it were a more "American-type" car.

Also, consider that you can pretty much "primp" up any other "boring" car that you might get. I kind of had issues myself with getting a Camry, but the buzz of driving a brand-new vehicle, along with the security of Toyota, the comfort of the ride, and the much sportier body styling than years gone by have resolved my issues nicely. I can definitely say I'm not bored at all! Plus I was already able to parlay a nearly-invisible (as in, you can see it only in certain light from a certain angle when you're looking for it) flaw in the paint into a chrome grill package (since I'd rather have the grill than have them fix something no one can see), and I plan to get some nice after-market 18" rims in the next few months. My point being that in this day and age you can make your car as hot-looking as you want, even if it's not the Bimmer of your dreams.

Just my $.02.

Oh, and have fun learning to drive a manual trannie! It's the only way to go... :D
 
ryandamartini said:
the g35 has paddles! :D And looks sweet :)
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G35 has paddles? I think paddles are really cool because my favorite racing series is formula 1 and they use paddles. :p Plus I can shift when I want to, and put it in D when there is traffic. (Can get pretty bad in SD)
 
abrcrombe said:
G35 has paddles? I think paddles are really cool because my favorite racing series is formula 1 and they use paddles. :p Plus I can shift when I want to, and put it in D when there is traffic. (Can get pretty bad in SD)
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I hear ya man. Personally my dream is to have a 250whp Mini with the paddle automatic.. Can you just immagine the fun? :D
 
Well, I personally am a die hard mustang lover. Insurance isn't that large of a difference between the ones you listed and a GT. My 2001 GT is actually for sale though.

With the ones you listed though, I love the Mazda 3's. Sweet car for a good price.
 
ltoman said:
How in the heck do yuou use the paddles?
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they are on the steering column and left is a down shift and right is up. Awesome to use in autocross or drag with an auto on the street to manually downshift, upshift, etc..
 
Nothing beats a real stick-shift though...
 
i say pick yourself up a nice 94-97 camaro with an lt1 (350) and a 6 speed.....i fell in love with it and i was a die hard mopar man
 
Get a mustang if you want domestic, better quality imo. Maybe not better performance than GM's, but it's still good.
 
crap you're 19 and your parents are buying you a car? dang.. My parents have always made my buy my cars since I started driving. They were like "screw you, you make enough money, buy your own" ... but of course my mom said it had to be A. reliable, A.5, airbags B. under 30,000 miles, C. under 5 years old, D. a family sedan so that i won't effect their insurance policy. riiiiight...
/rant

I am a HUGE fan of the G35. great car, drives great, looks great. Okay reliablity (nissans have never been on the reliable car list) I would look heavily into a 2005 G35, or a 2002 BMW 3. :)
 
If you were do get a German car, - keep in mind that service bills are high. While on my 05 RL front brake job cost $250 at dealership, a job on BMW's brakes (they replace all four rotos, all brake pads, and brake wear sensors) cost $1200 is you are not on service contract. German cars also dusts like crazy. I really like 'em, but that is something for you to consider.
G35 is a nice one, do you want coupe or sedan? What you looked at Lexus IS?
 
How about a used Jaguar's x-type or s-type. As far as being reliable, they are top 10 on msn.
 
extremely expensive to fix according to a jag mechanic at a shop I used to work at... so thats annoying..

I would tend to go more towards thd status quo, a whole lot cheeper to upkeep... IS/G35/325/RSX something along those lines.
 
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