What to look for.......

So, in another, hey what would you do for a car thread I bring this.

We have a 7 month old. The Corolla lease is coming up and we would like to get a no payment replacement. This would mean sub 5k. Other requirements.... Comfortable this is the wifes call really. liked her 06 impala, and Saab 9000 25mpg 4 door decent trunk Like it to be enjoyable to drive Daily driver duty Manual preferred.

From what I have on the short list:

Saab 9000 turbo 5spd

E39 6cylinder 5spd

Mercedes 300SDL

Anything else to consider? Should I reconsider the list shown? The MPG can be moved, but we have a '12 cummins which is big and comfy, just the cost of the fuel is why we do not really want to consider anything in the Tahoe/Expedition route.

$5k should get you the world's nicest Saab 9000 Turbo.

Or a nice Mazda Protege 5. They have great trunks.

5k could probably get you a mazda 6 wagon too.

Have a kid? You want an auto.

I suggest the nicest Toyota Avalon you can find and pocket the maintenance money your short list would run up.

Mercury Grand Marquis? Should find a really nice old lady only owned for that.

Mazda6 wagon or 5-door hatch.
I think the BMW X5 3.0 came with a manual trans as well, but it might be a bit out of your price range.

DaveEstey wrote: Have a kid? You want an auto.

Curious on the thought process with that. I think I follow, but just want to see.

So.. While I want to shout SAAB 9000 from the roof tops. I can't, unless your wife is willing to carry and swap out a DI Cassette when it eventually fails at the most inopportune time. I say Toyota Matrix or Pontiac Vibe. 36mpg, plenty of cargo space, manual trans, and well, it's a Toyota. The Vibe will be cheaper due to the Pontiac name.

Thinkkker wrote:

DaveEstey wrote: Have a kid? You want an auto.

Curious on the thought process with that. I think I follow, but just want to see.

You have enough going on in the car when the kid has a meltdown, drops a binky etc.

In reply to DaveEstey:

Yes. And when you're parked sitting in your car wait for whatever and letting your kid sit in the passenger seat to explore the wonders of the dashboard and she tries to jam the shifter in 5th...

You might want to take a look at a Pontiac Grand Prix GTP. I have a 2004 myself with a little over 160K (road warrior), the car is fun to drive (for a big car)and handles well over all, big trunk and the front passengers seat folds flat for bringing long item home. The car get's about 25 - 28 MPG on the open road and I have for the most part only done regular maintenance on the car such as tires, brakes (buy the NAPA adaptive one pads and good rotors), battery (factory battery died in December of 2013), coolant tubes (seem to be common and cheap), the "odd ball" repair was replacing the factory wheels. The car has some oil leaks but they are not that bad but I will need to fix them at some point.

Yes even from the factory this is easy.

I have seen a few nice GTP cars for around 5-6K$ in nice condition.

Paul B