Bimmer's (potential) Garage Shake-up Mega-Thread

[MrH]

Alright, here's a thought.  I pretty much would require a turbo engine at that altitude.  I was shocked when I drove a naturally aspirated car and how slow it felt.

The 2020 Legacy is going to offer a 2.4 liter turbo with 260 hp.  CVT only unfortunately, but they're saying it's almost a 19 gallon fuel tank and 32 mpg on the highway.  600 miles per tank is crazy.

Giant 11" tablet in the middle.  Looks pretty good.  This is inevitably going to be an Outback so you'll get the added ground clearance.

What I'd probably do?  Sell the S2000. Wait for the Outback to come out.  When it does, sell the Explorer, get a new turbo Outback.  Buy a cheap NA or NB miata if you want a small convertible for the summer.

[FoMoJo]

Bronco.

Sell the Explorer, keep the S2000.

[BimmerM3]

Crosstrek PHEV out of budget? Can't remember if we discussed

Not available in CO - only the states that follow CA emissions laws.

[BimmerM3]

Alright, here's a thought.  I pretty much would require a turbo engine at that altitude.  I was shocked when I drove a naturally aspirated car and how slow it felt.

The 2020 Legacy is going to offer a 2.4 liter turbo with 260 hp.  CVT only unfortunately, but they're saying it's almost a 19 gallon fuel tank and 32 mpg on the highway.  600 miles per tank is crazy.

Giant 11" tablet in the middle.  Looks pretty good.  This is inevitably going to be an Outback so you'll get the added ground clearance.

What I'd probably do?  Sell the S2000. Wait for the Outback to come out.  When it does, sell the Explorer, get a new turbo Outback.  Buy a cheap NA or NB miata if you want a small convertible for the summer.

This is a possibility, and fits into the temporary Explorer-only plan. 

But at least at this specific moment, if I'm going to bother with two cars, I'd rather have the fun car be drivable year round and have the SUV be my 2nd car. Basically I want something that's more fun to drive to my dad's mountain condo. The roads are plowed well enough through most of the winter that clearance isn't really necessary very often at all. My dad does just fine in his A4.

The Outback (or Forester or Crosstrek) is more likely as a compromise if I decide to stick with one car long term. I've even considered selling both cars now and getting a lightly-to-moderately used 3.6 Outback or Forester XT as a more budget friendly option.

[MrH]

Meh.

I used to try and do the one car that's both fun and drivable year round.  You end up getting such a compromise on both that I wasn't fulfilled on either front.  A turbo outback sounds perfect for you.  Seems kind of silly to have two vehicles with snow tires, one just for when you need slightly more ground clearance.  Just get an outback to drive year round, and then a fun car for when it's nice out.

If you get a Civic Si, it's not like it's going to be fun when you're driving through garbage weather.

[giant_mtb]

Lifted Subie.

[BimmerM3]

Meh.

I used to try and do the one car that's both fun and drivable year round.  You end up getting such a compromise on both that I wasn't fulfilled on either front.  A turbo outback sounds perfect for you.  Seems kind of silly to have two vehicles with snow tires, one just for when you need slightly more ground clearance.  Just get an outback to drive year round, and then a fun car for when it's nice out.

If you get a Civic Si, it's not like it's going to be fun when you're driving through garbage weather.

If I'm gonna own a dedicated summer car, the S2000 is that car.

The hard requirement for a higher clearance vehicle is for accessing trail heads in the summer, not for heavy snow. And there are plenty of instances in the winter where I drive up to the mountains on dry roads, but I still won't take the S2000 because it could snow while I'm up there, and there's no room for snowboard & gear. Plus even in garbage weather, the lighter weight and lower CoG of a WRX or Si will be a much better driving experience than the Explorer or even an Outback.

Even in the summer, I don't drive the S2000 hard all that often. I admittedly haven't actually driven either yet, but I think a WRX or Si would be an OK compromise.

[Laconian]

Not available in CO - only the states that follow CA emissions laws.

Get it shipped?

[BimmerM3]

Get it shipped?

I thought about it before I went and looked at a base model, but they're smaller than I'd like, the shipping makes it more expensive, range isn't great, and the PHEV loses even more trunk space to the battery packs.

I guess it's not totally out the question, but there are a few things I'd have to research beforehand to make sure it's even possible: make sure I could take delivery in CO without it being previously registered for the CO tax credit, make sure I could get it serviced locally, and make sure that I could charge it in my garage since it's in a separate building that's managed by the HOA (which would be relevant to any PHEV). I think all of these things are doable, but just extra layers of stuff that would be required to own a vehicle that I'm not super excited about anyway. Plus, after not liking the base model very much, I'd want to test drive it beforehand.

If it were a Forester PHEV with like twice the EV-only range, it'd be a more intriguing proposition.

[BimmerM3]

Well, I just spent a bunch of money fixing stuff on Explorer, so I guess I'm gonna keep it for awhile.

On a related note, getting the sway bar links replaced greatly improved how the thing drives.

[AutobahnSHO]

haha I've never replaced suspension on my beaters (my average car is 7-9yrs old when I buy it)..   I should do that.

[CaminoRacer]

Were the end links making clunking noises or just worn in general?

[BimmerM3]

Were the end links making clunking noises or just worn in general?

They were clunking a little over bigger bumps if I hit them too hard. I didn't realize that's what that was, or else I'd have probably gotten them replaced earlier. I haven't taken it on any twisty roads yet, but I'm pretty surprised at how big of a difference it makes during cornering even at normal intersections and whatnot.

I also got a free ball joint out of the deal. The left front lower ball joint needed replacing and the boot was torn on the right front lower ball joint, but I was gonna hold off on replacing the right one because this trip to the mechanic was already $Texas. But apparently the tech misread the paper work and started on both. By the time someone caught the mistake, he was too far into the job and they just didn't charge me at all for the right side.

Also new pads/rotors all around and new front diff/rear diff/transfer case fluids.

[FoMoJo]

They were clunking a little over bigger bumps if I hit them too hard. I didn't realize that's what that was, or else I'd have probably gotten them replaced earlier. I haven't taken it on any twisty roads yet, but I'm pretty surprised at how big of a difference it makes during cornering even at normal intersections and whatnot.

I also got a free ball joint out of the deal. The left front lower ball joint needed replacing and the boot was torn on the right front lower ball joint, but I was gonna hold off on replacing the right one because this trip to the mechanic was already $Texas. But apparently the tech misread the paper work and started on both. By the time someone caught the mistake, he was too far into the job and they just didn't charge me at all for the right side.

Also new pads/rotors all around and new front diff/rear diff/transfer case fluids.

Was the link completely detached or just loose?

[BimmerM3]

Was the link completely detached or just loose?

They did not provide details (and I didn't ask for the old parts back), but I think the joints on either end of the links were worn, so there was just a lot of play.

[12,000 RPM]

If it was affecting handling at least one side was completely gone. Glad you found a relatively cheap fix

[BimmerM3]

Wow, KBB thinks that my S2000 is worth $17-19k at trade in, even with only "Good" condition, which my car definitely qualifies as. "Very good" condition bumps it another $2k (not sure if my car would qualify as "very good" or not).

Private party estimate is only about $1k higher. Probably not worth the extra hassle.

(IF I were to sell it, of course. Which probably won't happen.)