Want a new daily

[CaptainHenreh]

What about a Leggy GT?

He had one, for a while.

[HAULN-SS]

Not sure if you are sold on the German cars for a daily so here are some Jap options. How about an IS300 like Rex's? If a 3 series is too small for you then the IS3 might be too though. You can't get more reliable than that car and it was actually a very fun car to drive...and I had the auto. 4 doors, 200hp but decent gearing (3rd gear omgz).
Another option is a 2004-2005 TL. I just did a search on Autotrader and there are 111 in a 200 mile radius of Purcellville in your price range all with around 100k miles. That car will be plenty big for you, good looking, very nice comfortable interior, 270hp, fun car to drive, decent gas mileage, 4 doors. The only thing you want to watch on the older auto versions is the pressure sensor switches in the transmission can go bad and bork the transmission. I replaced a few of them in my old 07 TL-S just as preventative maintenance and I think they were like $40 each.

Hadn't really thought about the TL..might be an option..I did always think those looked pretty good.

I had to google an IS300 to remember what it looks like because in my mind all lexi look the same, but luckily that's a pretty decent looking car.

[WRXtranceformed]

The old school IS300 is a great looking car and still has one of the best looking gauge clusters ever made:

[HAULN-SS]

Don't buy a VW. The only way I'll buy another VW is if I buy it new(ish) and sell it at 59,500 miles. Don't buy a 550i if you don't want to also drop a ton on repairs. What about a Leggy GT? MazdaSpeed6? I like the TL option too.

Ok, VWs ruled out. MS6 was on the table back when I bought my LGT but I had kind of forgotten about it...might try to refresh my memory on those.

[.RJ]

The TL is a pretty damn good choice, I think.

[Goodspeed]

Out of left field I'ma come runnin', but I'll throw the 3rd gen Avalon ('05-'12) into the mix:



Seriously, hear me out - 280hp V6, 5 or 6 speed auto, 0-60 in 6, 0.29 Cd. I KBB'ed a '08 XLS with 70k and came to about ~15k give or take.

My family and I rented one of these on a vacation a few years back and this car was truly fantastic for what we used it for - hauling 4 people and a bunch of stuff in huge comfort on and off the highway. If you put the hammer down, the thing had some serious balls. I honestly could have lived in the thing - these cars were and still are Lexus offerings without the badge after all. It might be for old people, but I'd call it under the radar - why not?

Edit: 4.5 out of 5 stars from Edmunds

Its price of entry may be higher than its rivals', but if you're looking for the most refined, best-built full-size sedan in the $30,000 price bracket, you need look no further than the 2009 Toyota Avalon.

Pros

Seats five adults in comfort, attractive cabin design with high-quality materials, composed and quiet ride, powerful and efficient V6, available upscale amenities, high crash-test scores.

Cons

Expensive for its class, refined nature leaves little room for personality, rear seats do not fold.

[WRXtranceformed]

The TL is a pretty damn good choice, I think.

Yea I mean I wouldn't bother looking at old busted German cars with 100k+ miles when you can get a newer jap car with the same miles for the same price...and you won't get nickled and dimed over the maintenance / they will run forever. My TL-S was absurdly cheap to maintain because it was all Accord parts.

And remember there is a reason why you can get BMWs super cheap on the very used market as was said before

[CaptainHenreh]

Agreed, if RWD isn't a requirement, I'd be looking real hard at a TL. Dave had one for a while, you could ask him what he thinks.

But if you were looking at a 550, why not an LS430? Or GS430? I couldn't be more pleased with my busted ole Lexus, as long as I accept it for what it is (A very nice 3 series) and try and forget what it is not (a 4 door Supra).

[BLINGMW]

I'll throw the 3rd gen Avalon ('05-'12) into the mix:

Con also includes handling like ass- I had one as a rental as well and I have to say even compared to other FWD, boring cars, it probably had the most trouble putting power down or turning with any authority. Even compared to a Camry. Horrible slow automatic too.
Not that that affects its highway cruising ability, and yes, great power.
Don't know how it compares to a TL, probably similarly bad? :dunno: It's one 3600lb FWD sled vs another. Though the TL prob has better suspension.

[WRXtranceformed]

Honestly if you are doing any kind of budget stretching, this is about the best I've got to offer for you before I quit beating the TL drum. 07 Type-S with 100k miles for $14k:
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=20132&endYear=2009&keywordPhrases=Type+S&modelCode1=TL&showcaseOwnerId=73380&startYear=2006&makeCode1=ACURA&listingType=used&listingTypes=used&firstRecord=26&searchRadius=200&mmt=%5BACURA%5BTL%5B%5D%5D%5B%5D%5D&listingId=353438549&listingIndex=4&Log=0">http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale ... ex=4&Log=0</a><!-- m -->

This one looks a little worn around the edges, maybe it had a carseat in the back or something? Even if it was completely beat on that motor and transmission are seriously beefy (Type-S came with transmission coolers), you can't go wrong for $12k:

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=20132&endYear=2009&keywordPhrases=Type+S&modelCode1=TL&showcaseOwnerId=73380&startYear=2006&makeCode1=ACURA&listingType=used&listingTypes=used&firstRecord=26&searchRadius=200&mmt=%5BACURA%5BTL%5B%5D%5D%5B%5D%5D&listingId=346933245&listingIndex=8&Log=0">http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale ... ex=8&Log=0</a><!-- m -->

It is absolutely still one of the best daily drivers I have ever owned. Great handling for a FWD car (was actually faster around the track in a Japanese comparo mag than the G35 and IS350), 286hp, Brembos, upgraded suspension / sway bars, heated leather, navigation, sunroof, Bluetooth and voice controls, got decent gas mileage. J-pipe and precat deletes nets another 25-30 hp. Sounds great, looks great. You could put another 150k miles on that car and not blink an eye.

[.RJ]

try and forget what it is not (a 4 door Supra).

UNTIL YOU INSTALL THE TURBOS YES?

[HAULN-SS]

hrmm good finds..maybe I will go test drive one. I've never driven a horsepower'd FWD car before.

[*insertusernamehere*]

Yo i just got sold on the TL. I thought those were alot more basic. Buy one!

[Evan]

couldnt you save a bunch of money and just buy an accord v6 instead of a TL and get the same car without the status badge?

[HAULN-SS]

I dont know if its exactly the same car or not, however, it appears that carmax (my sounding board for car prices) aint showing a whole hell of a lot of difference in price - 2 k maybe. I think buying a used car in a post cash for clunkers world is mor of a pain in the ass than I rememer from my college and before days

[HAULN-SS]

also i fucking hate silver/grey cars and that seems to be all there is i n the world anymore

[BLINGMW]

also i fucking hate silver/grey cars and that seems to be all there is i n the world anymore

:lol: I felt the same way, took me forever to find our E46. They're all silver on black or black on black, and auto of course.
I WANT IT TO BE A COLOR!

[Evan]

seriously. silver is the new beige, and driving a pavement colored car seems like a bad idea to me.

[Steve85]

We had a TL many years ago and it's part of my current search, loved it, would buy again. and yeah, it was silver. I found that even the blue TL is basically a black car, I'd have to get red this time.

[ScottyB]

ha...i hate my silver car. now that the paint is getting so beat i fantasize about doing a wrap or a repaint someday in something that actually has some character