[biotechee]

So, my trusty 2004 Honda Pilot now has over 175,700 miles and she's gettin' a wee bit tired.



Chances are that I will be looking to get into a new daily driver this spring.



So far, I am considering the following (in no particular order):



- BMW 328xi - possibly the Sport Wagon

- Lexus IS250AWD

- Audi A4 Quattro - possibly the Avant



I'm also interested in the Audi A3 Quattro - I think it is a sharp looking vehicle.



I'd probably either get new or no older than 2010 depending on what's available at the time. I'm interested in any opinions on the above vehicles anyone has....



Looks-wise, the Lexus is the tops for me of the three. it just looks really good to me. But I read the interior room is pretty cramped in the back. That could be bad as my oldest daughter is very tall and my youngest looks to be following in her footsteps! Definitely need AWD of some sorts. Overall preference would be for the Bimmer, but that would be the most expensive out of all of them. From a reliability standpoint, statistics point towards the Lexus. I've driven a 2010 A4 - liked it a lot. I am sure I would like the feel of the Bimmer. Supposedly the Lexus is nowhere near the level of handling and ride as the Bimmer or the Audi, but apparently things like upgraded sways help a ton.



Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

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[flash]

for a daily driver, i'd go for the bmw, just because of the bumper to bumper service that is covered with all bmws.

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[biotechee]

That's definitely a factor for me. Additionally, the nearby BMW place (which also sell Lexus and Audi - how convenient!) has a ton of perks if you buy from them. I'm guessing they don't deal a lot on price however...

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[Darth Vadar]

A friend had the MB SUV, and had bad luck with it when it went out of control and rolled on a slick Michigan highway... he went with the comparable BMW and loves it... so far no upside down experiencs!!!

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[Chris Vais]

I'm a huge fan of the Audi A-6 Avant. The first one we had went 279,000 miles before it was destroyed in accident. My wife was driving and came through the accident uninjured except for a contusion on her cheek from the airback depolyment. We replaced it with a 2000 A6 Avant that now has 170,000 on it and performs as new. We have used it to haul wine grapes, case goods, rocks and small boulders for a front yard landscaping project, two loaded wine fermentors that weighted about 500 pounds in total.



I equipt mine with Koni shocks and lower profile, slightly wider high performance all season tires. The car is fast, fun to drive and amazing comfortable on long trips. Two people can even sleep in it with the second seats folded down, a nice feature when the weather turns on you while on a camping trip.

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[flash]

just a thought.



daily driver requirement to me would be no headaches and no maintenance.



i would choose whatever car had the best fuel economy, with the creature comforts i needed every day, the best view of traffic, and had the best service plan, complete with a loaner car, pickup and delivery.

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[Ceenit]

Can't go wrong with any of those choices, but I would lean towards the BMW. Therear seating area is bigger than in the older 3 versions (but not sure how it compares to the Lexus or Audi). Generally just a fun car to drive, and styling seems to hold up well over time.



I am an old Audi fan, but their pricing has really taken a jump over time. Also, they tend to get hit w/depreciation worse than their peers. I don't think their styiling holds up as well over time, a bit too similar to the VW styling (good for VW though).



Lexus is great and is probably the most sensible choice given the reliability, but BMW screames more fun. And don't think Lexus styling holds up as well over time.



Also, having a dealership nearby is a nice convenience for any maintenance type issue. I'm sure all three have good loaner programs.

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[rxter]

Sounds like you are looking for a combo dd-commuter and family car. The wagon looks like a winner to me. Maybe an A-3?

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[Langley968]

Jeremy Clarkson recommends the Volvo XC90!

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[jg968]

BMW all the way. Take a look at Audi reliability reports. It was enough to convince me to stay away. Having a BMW dealer close by and owning a 530 with 128K miles and still trouble free convinced me to stay with BMW

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[Rap]

The Volvo xc90 has uncomfortable seats. Bought one and sold it to my brother in a week. He thought he liked it but sold it in 3 weeks!

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[bombfactory]

I'll concur on BMWs. My E36 M3 daily driver has been the most trouble-free car I've ever owned. At 189K miles now, it's still fast enough even by todays standards and handles great (has a few mods of course). And will get 24-25 mpg if I can keep it under 70 (yeah that hardly ever happens). I think you can pick them up fairly cheap these days too.

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[Rap]

What's cheap?

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[bombfactory]

autotrader.com



Yikes - looks like my car is worth about five grand. How depressing...

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[Cloud9...68]

[quote name='bombfactory' timestamp='1322612280' post='118614']

autotrader.com



Yikes - looks like my car is worth about five grand. How depressing...

[/quote]

Really? Only 5 grand for an E36 M3, one of my favorite (attainable) cars of all time? I've been toying with the idea of an E36 318i (thinking about the most economical rear-wheel drive car that has some tuning potential, and great handling) once I finish the 968 and sell the minivan, and they're not much under 5 grand.

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[biotechee]

Yes, the dealership which is nearby and sells BMW, Lexus (on the same lot, on the way to work) and Audi (down the road, closer to work) has a loaner program. When I first moved here, I had a 1998 318i that I bought in NJ. The dealership here (PA) serviced it for a few years and gave me loaners and treated me as if I bought it from them. They would give me specific loaners (3 series, not 5's or 7's) that I asked for (color, transmission, sedan/coupe, etc). They are by no means cheap, but their service and treatment is the tops. I believe their Lexus service center is even better.



The 318i I had was a phenomenal car. Great gas mileage, handled incredibly well, was very light (under 3000 lbs) and stopped on a dime. Wasn't fast at all, but get it on a familiar stretch of twisty road and it was perma-grin!! I wish I had kept it a little longer - over 160K miles on the engine/transmission and never missed a beat. Finding a clean, well-kept E36 318i is very hard to do. Since it was the cheapo Bimmer, many (close to most) ended up in the hands of "kids" who didn't treat them well to say the least. I tried to get a 318ti instead of a 318i, but I struck out and circumstances lead me to a sedan.



Yup- family hauler / dd is the goal. When I need to tow (which is what I use the Pilot for), I will use the wife's Acadia. When I am using the Acadia to tow snowmobiles in the winter, I want the wife to have a capable vehicle for carting around the fruit of our loins! AWD and four doors are therefore a must.



Definitely concerned about reliability. Lexus wins hands down there. Audi is the pits statistically, with BMW not far ahead of them currently. I think all the new electronic doodads and thingamajiggies can be a curse... The BMW 4yr/50K maintenance warranty deal is very nice, but to be honest, I'd prefer not to be taking a car in and out of service regardless if it is covered or not. My time, nowadays, is much more valuable to me than it ever has been. So the more trouble free a particular model is, the higher it will rank in my thinking.



BUT - the fun factor of the Bimmer is really swaying me. The 328xi sport wagon is talking to me! Now if I could only order it in a special color with the M technic cloth seating inserts....!!!



Keep the opinions coming!



P.S. The Audi A3 with the S-line package is a sweet looking car!

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[Cloud9...68]

Thanks for the info on the 318i. Yes, I've noticed they're very rare - the 968 is ubiquitous by comparison!



One small word of warning on the all-wheel drive 3-Series - their outer CV boots tend to wear out very frequently, and the repair is very labor-intensive. I replaced both fronts on our X5, and it is a truly miserable job. So if you look at one, take a close look at the CV boots, and knock at least $350 off the price for each one that is torn. Good luck.

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[jeff968]

We are big Audi fans. I currently drive an 06 A4 S-line 2.0T. 76K miles, never any issues, easy to work on, excellent performance and MPGs. So, last year we purchased a new 2011 Q5 2.0T for the wife. 18K miles and the same report. We are big fans of high performance 4 cylinders here at my house, other then that 70 Challenger with the 340 6pack <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/smile.png" class="smilie" alt="" />

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[Chris Vais]

You know I hear and read about Audi's poor reliability, but I've owned three of them in the past 25 years and there have been 4 others in the family. Our collective experience is that they are absolutely reliable. But as a family of motorheads we also adhere to the factory maintenance schedules which I believe is essential on any complex piece of machinery.

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[flash]

it's those schedules that bug me. those things are expensive. that's why i like bmw. you don't pay a dime for anything but tires. i don't know if other cars do that, but that would be a key point for me for a "daily driver".



remember this is a daily driver, not a pleasure car, or one that can sit in the shop. to me, this means that it must run daily, and if it has to go to the shop, it must not cost anything, and it must be replaced at no inconvenience with a loaner.



no matter what i might think of the car, i would eliminate any car that did not have free maintenance and a free loaner, and preferably delivery and pickup.

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