17 Months....

[Raza]

The Malibu er....9-3

What year?  I mean, I'd want the Viggen, but it would be a 1999 and that's 9 years old on a car that could easily have 9 years of questionable history. 

I drove the 9-3 Aero in 2004, and I don't think I'd get it over the Passat.

[SaltyDog]

What year?  I mean, I'd want the Viggen, but it would be a 1999 and that's 9 years old on a car that could easily have 9 years of questionable history. 

I drove the 9-3 Aero in 2004, and I don't think I'd get it over the Passat.

Hmmm, well that settles that. 

[The Pirate]

Passat wagon all the way.

[TBR]

You never responded to the SVT Focus (which I believe does in fact come standard with a sunroof).

And, the Viggen was available after 1999.

[ro51092]

It does come with a sunroof.

I'd get an A4 GTI before an SVT Focus

[mazda6er]

In all honesty, I don't think you'd be satisfied with a Mazda6. It's too big for your tastes. It's too big for my tastes. :P I'd say you'd probably be happiest with a C-Class, 3-Series or WRX. Personally, if I already had a Boxter, I'd go WRX wagon.

[ro51092]

I think the 3er or the WRX would be best for him.

Hold on, by the time you are ready to buy, the A5 GTI will be in your range!

[TBR]

It does come with a sunroof.

I'd get an A4 GTI before an SVT Focus

The A4 GTI is an old man's car compared to the Focus.

[TBR]

Raza, what about a Z3 coupe?

[Raghavan]

Ok, since the SVT Focus does have a sunroof, what do you think about it? It'd be what, 5-6 years old, not too bad.

[The Pirate]

The SVT Focus comes with a sunroof standard.  I will be test driving some Foci (including an SVT one if available in the near future).

[sportyaccordy]

E46 325i PP friend... accept nothing less

[Raza]

You never responded to the SVT Focus (which I believe does in fact come standard with a sunroof).

And, the Viggen was available after 1999.

Yeah, but the Lightning Blue 3 door was only available in 1999.

And I don't think the Focus is for me, really.  A good car, but not a front runner.  I'll keep it on the list though.

[Raza]

Raza, what about a Z3 coupe?

That's possible.  Even the 240bhp M coupes are dropping into that range, but I don't think it's practical enough.  Having two two seaters is a little silly, isn't it?

[nickdrinkwater]

Why not an old shape Jetta (Bora)?  Or is that too small?

[Raza]

The A4 GTI is an old man's car compared to the Focus.

You're right.  The SVT Focus (I'd be looking at the 3 door) is a good car, and definitely more agile than the MkIV GTI.  I should give it some more serious consideration. 

Nice looking, cheap, reliable, unassuming.  It's a good commuter that can easily turn into a fun car for days when I take the long way home from work

"The SVT Focus is the only car here that would have its rear wheels coaxed into a slide. It rotates beautifully and can be set into a steady four-wheel drift at will. Only in extreme situations would this playfulness pose a problem for the injudicious driver. Our emergency-lane-change maneuver is one such situation. The SVT posted the best time through the gates?a significant 5.2 mph faster than the Civic?but it was also the only car that required some countersteer after the first gate to keep from spinning. Given this car's intent, we are not bothered in the least by this."

Hmmm...

[MX793]

Why not an old shape Jetta (Bora)?  Or is that too small?

Same reason he's opposed to a MkIV GTI:  Mexican-made VWs have questionable reliability.

[Raza]

Why not an old shape Jetta (Bora)?  Or is that too small?

Same possible reliability issues as the GTI and not as practical.

[JYODER240]

Possibly a used S60R or V70R?

[850CSi]

Possibly a used S60R or V70R?

If it would fall into his price range by then, the V70R is probably the best suggestion. But finding a manual may not be easy.

[VetteZ06]

The 3's not a bad idea. You might be able to find a used Mazdaspeed3 for about $17,000 by the time you're looking to buy, but you could also get a new one (non-Mazdaspeed) nicely loaded for about the same money. Heck, you could even just get a used GT wagon with lots of extras (leather, sunroof, navigation, manual, heated seats, etc.) for that kind of money, probably less. It's not going to be as fast as the 'Speed3, but C&D got something like 7.4 0-60 when they tested a wagon a few years ago. It's worth a shot, and it would appear to satisfy all of your requirements quite well. The only problem is that it doesn't hold as much cargo as some of the larger cars you've listed.

[JYODER240]

If it would fall into his price range by then, the V70R is probably the best suggestion. But finding a manual may not be easy.

Perhaps, but I figure that if someone is going for the top performance model there's a good chance they'll want a stick.

[MX793]

Perhaps, but I figure that if someone is going for the top performance model there's a good chance they'll want a stick.

You might be surprised.

[ro51092]

Have you seen the number of automatic Corvettes?

Oh, and it's still a Volvo. Sensible, boring, somewhat wealthy 40-year old men buy Volvos. That category does not give a shit about performance, only practicality, hence the automatic.

[JYODER240]

I'm going to have to disagree. The people who are going to buy the auto's are the one's going to buy the car for the image. Who buys a Volvo for the image? I think those people would go for the 3-series and c-classes.

[J86]

Who buys a Volvo for the image?

Come to New England, bro.

I like Volvos

[ro51092]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2004-VOLVO-V70-R-AWD-300hp-TURBO-ROOF-XM-XENON-BREMBO-6_W0QQitemZ280089387257QQihZ018QQcategoryZ6464QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

There's one with the Spaceball.

[SVT_Power]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2004-VOLVO-V70-R-AWD-300hp-TURBO-ROOF-XM-XENON-BREMBO-6_W0QQitemZ280089387257QQihZ018QQcategoryZ6464QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

There's one with the Spaceball.

mmmmmm those seats 

[J86]

Such a sweet car.

I love the gauges.

[ro51092]

I like it, but it's too soft. I'd take a 3er before it.