Hard to consider American in this kind of environment. More than sure they will go belly up in a few months. Who will honor the warranty if they won't be around?
I will go these days to see an IS inside. Hopefully I can manage to fit 2 car seats. If not.....then daddy will be more than happy to drive an A4 whenever she doesn't use the car.

:iagree: We had a A4 1.8T..... very good car, but I would get the V6, in terms of handling in bad weather.... one of the best out there, the A4 actually is better in snow then my X5 or my Pilot, Audi's Quattro drivetrain is far advance then anyone out there:thumbup:........ I drove the IS250 AWD..... to me it felt like a Corolla on steroids......... not a big fan of Corolla... that's just me...... :yawn:

Stay with the BMW family.. I would choose the 535I Sedan... :thumbup:

Look into the TL, my fiance has one i love it almost as much as my x. good performance and very nice interior and comfort.

:iagree:

A new Accord or Passat should cost about $22,000 and will provide years of low cost ownership. The car makers are all hurting and you can get a great deal on new cars. Don't buy used left overs that will require more maintenance.

I'm looking at a 3.2L engine. As i said, I want to drive it too. I don't care too much about the Quattro option. In 4 months I will relocate to NC.

She's stubborn. She said no so I'll' buy whatever makes her happy.


Interesting. I completely forgot about Acura

I had an Accord that I bought brand new in 03. First of all was boring (maybe because was the 4 cylinder engine) not to mention that around 60 miles per our was shaking like crazy. I had to take that car 6 times (and I'm not kidding) in service. I was so pissed but the guys were so nice I was even ashamed to look and read anything about the lemon law. At one point they said leave it here for a week (gave me loaner for free) and will change discs, calipers and bearings. They did it and worked like a champ after. I would consider an Acura because of their service.
Regarding the maintenance: In the old days I used to change transmissions and rebuilt the engines on my cars. Of course not as complicated as today's cars but at least I have some knowledge. I'm not scared of touching an engine

if no bimmer, then get a lincoln MKS, ford's not going anywhere.

If you go Audi, the 1.8/2.0 turbo seems to be the enthusiasts choice. Lighter, better economy and more options for tuning. I would also go Quattro. Front wheel drive is boring and all wheel drive should be better in wet conditions as well, not just snow.

Audi have the new Q5 out, not sure of the pricing but looks better than
the X3.

I bet Q5 must be nice but is out of my price range.