What Car: I hate behaving like a responsible adult edition

My DD family hauler is the Mazdaspeed6, which is a 5-seater & fits my 3 kids (all under 12) just fine. Only my youngest requires a booster and my oldest kid buckle's him in so we don't have to bend over and wreck ourselves any more.

When I was shopping for a car, I just couldn't find a turbo wagon that I liked that wasn't beat or modded to crap.
My car was a clean, rust free ride with 68,000 miles for $8,500. The kids have since pigged it out a bit and its now modded to crap.
It's also fast as hell. Shockingly fast.
My kids will tell you it does amazing donuts in the winter.

MadScientistMatt wrote: Now that we have two kids, it's nearly impossible to fit the whole family in my '97 BMW 328 convertible. My wife's Camry usually does family hauling duties, but it would be nice if my next car also had that capability. But I don't want a completely boring, practical sedan - I'd like to get something that's still fun to drive. Here's my list of requirements. - Budget is $8000. - Needs plenty of back seat room: I'm 6'2", my wife is fairly tall too, so we'll want something that can still work without having to shove the seats far forward. - Accommodating a rear facing child seat is not required as we've made it about halfway through that one already, but it could be a plus. - Reliability needs to be at least comparable to what I have now. - Gas mileage is not a major concern now that I've moved closer to work. 20 mpg is OK. - I really want a stick shift. Would only consider an automatic if the car was not available any other way and the car otherwise seems to be a perfect fit (e.g. if I could convince myself it would be reliable, a Buick Grand National would be a car where I could overlook the slushbox...) - Fun to drive, although I don't need something that's able to win an autocross or any serious competition. - I'd consider some minor bolt ons like better springs or shocks to improve drivability, but for this one, I draw the line at anything that requires an engine or transmission swap, even if it's close to bolt in. - Spending time waiting for a unicorn factory combination to pop up, though, is fine. I'm not in a hurry. And... GO!

Other than the reliabilty being aboutt he same as your E36, and not being avaialbe FACTORY in teh US witha stick, this would be fun:

Mazda rx8 or a speed 6.

the E36 vert back seat is cramped from side to side, and it may be closer to the front seats due to the need to store the top when down.

If that doesn't fit your kids.. try an E39 fiver.. you can get them in small and big engines and with a honest to goodness 5 speed

Infiniti G35/G37 sedan V6, available in a stick, RWD, plenty of back seat room and

Accord sedan, should be able to find a V6 stick shift, plenty of back seat space

Mazda6/Mazdaspeed6 V6 fed or turbo-4 AWD both can be found in stick

irish44j wrote: 05(?) Legacy GT Wagon with 5MT. Plenty of go, easy handling upgrades, easy power upgrades, lots of room for kid gear, and the best looking Subaru of the 2000s. Looks better than the sedan. Should be in your price range.

Beautiful. Somewhat problematic. And there are about 12 of them. Autotrader currently lists one - count it, 1 - for sale in the US.

740I sport

MadScientistMatt wrote: Thanks to everyone who responded so far - looks like there's a lot of good ideas in here. One thing I've been wondering: Do E36 sedans have significantly more back seat room than the convertible?

a little roomier but can get cramped quickly if you two are tall.

I will make my usual SVT Focus recommendation. Find a real nice one with low miles in that budget.

I'm 6'5" and made it from Detroit to Memphis in the back of one.

Around here you can get a very decent WRX in that price range.

Honda Fit Sport, 5 speed! If you don't think so, it's because you haven't driven one. Fun and huge inside!

Damned few rides out there have as much actual usable inside room, except vans. And probably none of them also get, 35+mpg on Regular.

E46 sedan or wagon. E39 if you want more room.

In reply to MadScientistMatt: Test drive all of the suggestions, and tell us which car you like the most. IMO, a P71 isn't fun enough of a platform (I owned one), plus the packaging isn't the greatest. The back seat leg room is as bad as it gets for a large sedan with a P71. I have an E36 sedan, but I never test drove the droptop version. The sedan has among the largest amount of front seat adjustability of any car I have driven. I think the back seat room is about average. I'm 6'1" with long legs; I can't sit behind myself, but I can fit behind a shorter passenger. I think an E46 is the way to go for rear seat legroom, but you have to sit in both to know for sure.

I would suggest an 00s Caravan or Sienna, and a Miata.

Or, you can look for a Mazda 6, first gen CTS, and a MKV Jetta TDI.

I had one of the rare 2005 LGT wagons with 5mt. Great car but I'm 6'4" and could not drive it with a rear facing car seat behind me. I was eating my own knees sitting in the front passenger seat in front of the rear facing car seat. From what I remember of the E36 sedan I had before the Legacy (and before kids) the back seat of that car had less leg room than the Legacy.