What Car?

YES it has maybe been two days since the last "what car" thred. I am looking for a new(er) car to replace the beetle. Some where in the $4k neiborhood. The car needs to be 4 door RWD and automatic. The first person to say P71 gets the duh! award (yes am looking at them too). I say auto becouse stick shifter make's me want to drive a car harder.

E36 318i or 325i.

E30, that seams to be one of the standard answers...

It depends on the character of car a little too. To go in a different direction, a Lincoln LS was recently mentioned.

Here's one for $3800.

http://gainesville.craigslist.org/cto/958846327.html

Lincoln LS = cool with the V8. When I was in Nova Scotia for a month back when I was 15, the rental company didn't have our autotragic neon for us. So, we got bumped up to the Lincoln LS V8. 160km/h cruising on those smooth highways with the windows down and the shades on

Not allowed to mention P71? Lincoln Town Car FTW

E30

Volvo 940 Turbo....but you'll want to turn up the boost once you see how easy it is!

What are RWD Lexus' going for these days? I'd say 9C1, but I'm biased.

Grand Marquis? Crown Victoria civilian (P73)? Fleet CV (P72)? Town Car? Mark VIII? Lincoln LS?

Oh the heck with it...

P71!!!!!!

E30 autos are the suck, and hard to find cheap replacement trans because they all break by 140k. Also, you need torque to make a torque converter work and only the ETA cars have any to speak of.

Basically the auto sucks out the reasons an E30 is attractive.

If you're looking for an automatic, I suggest either a P71 (sure, sure, but I have one), a big ol' LT1 Roadmaster (sure, I have a woodie wagon, too), a Volvo 960/940/760/740/850/V70/S70/S90 turbo (ok, ok, I have one of those, too). Of course each of these is well under $4,000.

I'd also throw in a Q45, LS400, XJ6. Next on my list whenever I get tired of something above is probably one of these three.

I say E30. The auto really isn't that bad in a 325i.

I really like my LS400. Hoonage when I want it, and comfort when I don't. It's quiet until you get into the throttle hard. Moves pretty well, too. Handling is much, much better than I would have ever expected out of the ~3700lbs. Using some fuel-saving tactics (nothing too crazy) on a recent roadtrip netted me 29MPG on the highway. I average 22ish on my mixed commute, and I'm not exactly a conservative driver.

So far I am leaning towards the P71. Go figure, I really have not seen eny Volvo's around here. I did find a E39 540i, but for 4k I am pretty sure it would not be worth it.

P71 all the way baby!

Gotta agree go Ford FTW, town cars are cool but softer heavier and like driving your loungeroom at 70 mph.I know I currently have 5, use them for business. Mechanically they are great, reliable, economical and RWD

i'm ready to quit promoting the P71 - i've been getting awful gas mileage by my standards and the guys on the crown vic forum think 20mpg highway is good and 14 in town is acceptable

patgizz wrote: 20mpg highway is good and 14 in town is acceptable

I agree!

I like the infinity also. I've heard they are nice cars.

I'd really like an audi A8 too, but that is likely out of budget.

Funny that the vic gets about the same mileage as my poor old car, although I get about 15 city always and btw 17-20 highway depending on driving style/tune, though my car has the smog tune. There is a reason most of the cop cars are vics, they are big and comfy with tons and tons of space. You could get at least 3 illegals in the trunk it is that big. I like the concept of the vic but the one I drove was pretty bad handling. It had way too much body roll and the steering is very light, but maybe the car I drove wasn't the best example though it had only 66k miles on it.

20? Something's wrong buddy! Change your fuel filter, run some injector cleaner through, and scan for codes. Anything less then 25 is cause for concern.

benzbaron wrote: I like the infinity also. I've heard they are nice cars. I'd really like an audi A8 too, but that is likely out of budget. Funny that the vic gets about the same mileage as my poor old car, although I get about 15 city always and btw 17-20 highway depending on driving style/tune, though my car has the smog tune. There is a reason most of the cop cars are vics, they are big and comfy with tons and tons of space. You could get at least 3 illegals in the trunk it is that big. I like the concept of the vic but the one I drove was pretty bad handling. It had way too much body roll and the steering is very light, but maybe the car I drove wasn't the best example though it had only 66k miles on it.

Probably the Civilian Vic.

I would never own a vic, I'm talkin about my poor old mercedes. My car is a bastard to smog so when I say smog tune I mean something, it has no EFI or computers just vacuum, mixture and idle to pass smog. I'd love a test in the P71, though not the back seat. I'm not trying to generalize, but the car I drove was borderline undrivable. It was a civi model, maybe the bushing were shot but hell, the thing handled like a pig. The only reason I bring it up is I drive a 30year old car that is more modern than some modern fords. No offense should be taken this is only my narrow minded observation.

What is the purpose of the car?

Daily Driver, Toy, parts hauler, tow vehicle ?

I ask because in my mind
RWD = Encourages Hoonage
Manual = Encourages Hoonage

and yet you said:

I say auto becouse stick shifter make's me want to drive a car harder.

Why limit yourself to RWD if you don't want to drive the car hard?

You could get a nice AWD subaru in that price range...

The wife's 5 door 5 speed focus, well its fine for her but not me( its like drivinf a pig or some thing). RWD I like the way they drive, Why I'm think'n P71 roomy, enough get up and go when I whant it. The car will be my winter DD/ back up car for the beetle. I also think it will be able to pull the bug to shop when need'd. So I am thinking roomy and relaxing, My bug is not. When you get in it you what to give her hell and enjoy(in the bug). I did think about the subi's but I want more room.

ummm.... has everyone forgotten that volvo exists?

900 series or ive heard the FWD ones do ok, but you want RWD sooooo....