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#12 of 14 the gamble... by harlequin1971

Mar 15, 2012 (6:22 pm)

One thing to think about is the general user profile of the car you are buying. Are they likely to have babied the car and kept all the maintenance in tip top shape? Might they have ignored things like oil changes along the way?
 
How many people have owned it, etc etc.
 
Here are my top cars that would be considered luxurious for their "as new" condition, have fallen into your price range and what you might expect to find...ymmv
 
03 Acura TL - 90-120k miles, sporting V6 that could pull 27 mpg highway. Was a top pick when new for many reasons...none of them any less relevant today.
 
03 Acura CL Coupe - 90-120k miles...same as above with many a touch more sporting look. Was last year for this style - but coupes are always a tough sell...the car is solid.
 
03-04 Audi A4 - hi mileage 04 to low mileage 03. Reliability is a question mark on 9 year old Audis...but if you get one that was not handled roughly and spent its evenings in a safe, warm garage and not the back parking lot at the 'chic condo' complex on the edge of the city - you should be able to keep up with maintenance...have a mechanic look.
 
02 BMW 328i - 100-130k miles, If you can find one that was sub-100k and has a similar ownership experience to the A4 above, you should be able to enjoy a great performance car that has delivered award after award for being just that much better than the competition.
 
04-05 Lincoln LS - lower miles, RWD, nice ride...not sporting so much as just handling its business. Not a 3-series, but then an 05 328 would run you $11-12,000
 
05 VW Passat - 70-100k miles, The Baby Audi was the cost-effective way to get a European sedan with a mix of luxury and sport. It is still a good way to gamble on the used car side. Younger car with lower miles reduces risk and has plenty of luxury touches. Reliability is hit and miss (think the same as the A4) but a well-loved and maintained car would hold up well...maybe almost as well as a 03 Acura.
 
04 Volvo S60 - 80 - 110k miles, if you have a quality mechanic that can handle this marque, then you can pick out some nice rides. Volvos are solid cars - but you have to stay on top of maintenance.
 
which one should you pick? what is your comfort level? If reliability is the primary concern, I might lean to the Acura, but it is hard to resist a 3-series if the car runs solid.
 
Good luck.

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• wwest (Mar 19, 2012 5:34 pm)

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#13 of 14 Re: the gamble... [harlequin1971] by wwest

Mar 19, 2012 (5:34 pm)

Replying to: harlequin1971 (Mar 15, 2012 6:22 pm)