The cars and bikes thread!

[tribe125]

I don’t suppose they do a Michelin CrossClimate…

[Raza]

I got an email from CarGurus today with suggested car listings. It was all Volvo S60s (post-China, automatic only, blech) and Lotus Evoras. What a strange, strange combination of cars to be recommended together. They must thing I have schizophrenia or manic depression.

Actually, I might have manic depression. Lord knows a Volvo won’t cure that, though.

[Raza]

I posted this over at my old car forum, but I thought I’d post here too, since we have so many people interested in cars. Looking for some thoughts:

Hey guys, I'm planning on buying a new car in the next few months (hopefully January or February, March at the latest), so I'm looking to get some input and make sure I haven't missed anything.

Basically, this is what I'm looking for:
AWD preferred, but RWD is okay, FWD less so, but I'm open to it
Manual is a must
Four doors preferred, but two doors is okay if I can still stick someone back there for a short trip
Apple CarPlay (I never thought this would be a requirement, times have changed, but I've gotten so used to it) or easily upgradable to Apple CarPlay
A little get up and go, but it doesn't have to be crazy fast (eventually I'll be replacing my Z4 with something 911 shaped, most likely)
Sunroof greatly preferred
I'd like to keep it under $35,000

Right now, this is how I'd rank what I'm looking at:

Group 1 (most preferred):
F30 BMW 335i/340i or 335xi\340xi
B8.5 Audi S4
GR Subaru WRX STI (2013-2014 only)

These seem to fit the bill pretty well.

Group 2:
F32 BMW 435i/440i or 435xi\440xi
B8.5 Audi S5
Volkswagen Golf R Mk7
B9 Audi A4 2.0T

These seem to fit the bill, except for maybe one missing preference.

Group 3:
Mini Cooper S (recent, I don't know the generation codes, but FWD and reliability is a big question mark)
Mitsubishi Evo X (getting to be really old now, kind of boy racer, but I do really like the design)
Volkswagen Golf GTI (would be able to afford a much newer one, but it's FWD)
BMW M235i (bit small, perhaps redundant while I still have the Z4)
Honda Civic Type R (super boy racer looks, getting a little old for that)
Ford Focus RS (same as above)



Pragmatically, the Golf R and A4 2.0T are probably the best choices. But I've never been accused of being overly practical.

So, anyway, any thoughts? Am I missing anything? What would you do in the same situation? Any of these cars scream buy or don't buy particularly loudly?

[geoffbot]

Not gonna talk you out of a 340i. B58 is one of the modern greats. Fast, comfortable, all the car anyone ever needs.

Except of course that you *can* get an M4 drop top for the same dollar. Easily get 2 in the back, I've had 3 a few times.

[Raza]

Not gonna talk you out of a 340i. B58 is one of the modern greats. Fast, comfortable, all the car anyone ever needs.

Except of course that you *can* get an M4 drop top for the same dollar. Easily get 2 in the back, I've had 3 a few times.

Interesting…seems M series depreciation hit M4s hard.

But this is the United States, Geoffrey. Manual M3/M4 convertibles are all but a myth. 99% of the time, when searching, a car listed as a manual M convertible is actually an SMG because “it’s an automated manual, hardy har har”. Seems like people selling BMW M cars have never gotten the memo that DCTs/ACTs are just automatics.

But that also means I should look at F30 M3s…

EDIT: I just looked at 8 different F model M3s and M4s, all three body styles, all marked as manual, and all were automatic. Come on…

[happyscrappyheropup]

Not gonna talk you out of a 340i. B58 is one of the modern greats. Fast, comfortable, all the car anyone ever needs.

Except of course that you *can* get an M4 drop top for the same dollar. Easily get 2 in the back, I've had 3 a few times.

I'm surprised how roomy the back seat of my E93 is for passengers. My ZL1 was so much larger and had so much less room inside.

I'm selling my E93 next month @Raza '08 6spd 38k miles.

[geoffbot]

F yeah, buy that raza. I'd seriously consider a swap for a bit at least to test that glorious na v8.

[litlmn]

Win Win

[Raza]

I'm surprised how roomy the back seat of my E93 is for passengers. My ZL1 was so much larger and had so much less room inside.

I'm selling my E93 next month @Raza '08 6spd 38k miles.

That is tempting, but I’m not sure I’d want something that old for a daily driver. It is tempting, though. Super low miles. Let me know when you’re ready to list it, please.

[Raza]

Seriously, every M4 is an automatic. Why does the transmission filter even exist if no one knows what a transmission is?