What Car $20 000 - $25 000!

[Captiva Fan]

For a power comparo Liberty vs. VR, from my hazy memory a manual 2.5 Liberty would be pretty-much on-par with an auto 3.8 VR. That's straight-line stuff of course, I don't think a VR is in the same league in terms of road-feel & handling.

[itsnotagsr]

Ive driven the 20v and turbo A4 versions. The NA one is gutless and disappointing to drive. You might as well buy a 318i if you want to go slow. The turbo isnt quick in a wrx sense, but has enough torque to be nice to drive without having to thrash it. The interiors are actually quite nice with good leather trim and options. I wouldn't touch anything other than the rims (if thats your thing).

[EXWRX]

Would a mazda 6 squeeze into your budget? I havent checked the used market for a while.

Other possibilities in the used market, in no particular order:

206 gti
mazda 3
astra sri
prelude
liberty RX
alfa 156
mazda mx5

[old baggins]

cant stand the clio sport.

Have you driven one tho?

They are a fantastic little handling car, adequate power, looks aren't great but you are coming from a Rex anyway. Seating was a little high but I am sure it could be adjusted to suit, I didn't want to fuck with it too much. I was impressed. If you can get around the mindset of FWD then I think it would be a great option.

[Saru]

307s are nice enough, but would easily have less grunt that a 2.5 Liberty. Most Francophiles aren't that taken with them, either.

If you're thinking French, a v6 406 is in the price range. A v6 Citroen Xantia would tempt me, too, but I have weird taste.

Pretty hard to go past a Liberty RX Wagon, though.

[LINO28]

Ive driven the 20v and turbo A4 versions. The NA one is gutless and disappointing to drive. You might as well buy a 318i if you want to go slow. The turbo isnt quick in a wrx sense, but has enough torque to be nice to drive without having to thrash it. The interiors are actually quite nice with good leather trim and options. I wouldn't touch anything other than the rims (if thats your thing).

Thats exactly the info i wanted. The a4 did look a bit slow on paper (N/A) and that was concerning me.

baggins: never driven a Clio Sport but the uglyness is sticking in my mind, ill test drive one though.

the Mazda 6 did pop into my head but ill have to reasearch it a bit more.

With the commodore factor my biggest concern was the dramatic depreciation they have. a VX SS or SS ute may be different though.

I was also looking at a VW Golf - and opionions or experiences with them?

SO on my list i now have

Forester GT
Liberty Wagon 2.5L RX
Peugeot 307
VW GOlf
Mazda 6
SS ute or sedan.

thanks for all the replies guys.

Tye

[EXWRX]

Judging by the bloodbath out there in the used LS1 market at the moment, I would say you should be able to pick up a clean low kay VXSS within your budget. They are a very different animal to the others on your list though, so make sure you take one for an extended drive before deciding.

I reckon at 25K a VX has taken the biggest depreciation hit already. Utes seem to fare better than sedans, so if you dont need the extra cabin space, go for the ute.

[Steve Whitney]

dare i suggest a magna? i reckon you'd be able to pick up a KJ series Verada GTV within your budget, which should have a decent amount of luxury (leather, climate control, etc) whilst having VR-X power at the same time. insurance should be cool as well. sure the resale is pretty shite, but you can use it to your advantage and pick up one that's a coupla' years old. should look pimpin' dumped low on 18"s too.

sure its no hardcore performance item, but hey if that is what you want then just keep the rex.

VX SS starts at around $25K for a 100000km auto

bah!

almost a year ago, a workmate picked up a VX II commo SS sedan for 31K from a dealership, with only 15'000kms on board. sure it was white and auto, but at the time that was bloody good. now, for 25K i'd expect something with far less kms that 100'000.

[Captiva Fan]

baggins: never driven a Clio Sport but the uglyness is sticking in my mind, ill test drive one though.

Stick with your instincts. The primary issue is build quality, not appearances ... and don't take the generally-positive experiences of non-Sport owners as an example of the quality of the Sport.

the Mazda 6 did pop into my head but ill have to reasearch it a bit more.

Very nice car - probably. I've only driven an auto, and the engine is NOT suited to an auto. Doubt you'd get one with alloys for $25k, but the base model starts from $29k brand-new - and you don't want the skanky leather they use anyway. About all it lacks, for me, is the 17" alloys; and if you were going to change them anyway ...

I was also looking at a VW Golf - and opionions or experiences with them?

I've heard mostly that they're reliable but boring; depends on what you're after I guess, I doubt the boringness would bother me.

Oh, don't forget the Focus ST170!

And also don't forget that you could own a brand-new Fiesta Zetec.