Mitsu lancer ralliart!!! Uhhh......

I had an 08 Legacy GT spec B. It was an extremely fun car, especially in Buffalo winters. I have yet to drive a car in snow I feel more planted/stable/safer in than that car. Wrx performance but at a fraction of the insurance cost. Put over 50,000 miles (40k of those on a stage 2 tune) on it in the two and a half years I had it and not one problem. Sold it with just under 100k miles on it. Awesome in the snow here in Buffalo (I woke up one morning to 13" of snow and it had no problem getting out of the driveway. I'll try to find the picture I took because it really was amazing) Plus with the Cobb stage 2 ots tune it was getting 27mpg with pretty good power. Can't say enough good things about that car.

I sold it only because I figured if I had a daily, I wanted something more relaxing (auto), wanted full leather (having a dog gets to be a pain with alcantara), was going to have to spend some decent money on it (timing belt and turbo) and more importantly, mod bug hit that car hard. I'm one that if I'm replacing an OEM part, I'm going to upgrade it. If I'm changing out the turbo, might was well put in a 16g turbo. But that then requires more fuel. More power requires a better clutch...You get my drift;) My g35x I replaced it with I don't touch whereas the Legacy I was always throwing money into modding it. And that was a problem when I already had a weekend car I loved to modify.

So with that, I would look into a Legacy GT. If you can find a Spec B under 20 which you should be able to, go for it. But the 5 speed in the GT would be better for DD because of the gearing/less shifting.

I'd say WRX but used ones are severely overpriced and for $20k you're not going to find a good one. Plus "sporty" isn't really their thing... fast, yes. But those plastic tubs will never be true sports cars.:stirthepot:

It sounds like what you really want is "fun" but not necessarily "sporty." If you already have a Z why not go a different direction for a daily driver? I gotta say my lifted/modded Grand Cherokee is (unexpectedly) tons of fun on mountain trails and will do things no Z could ever dream of. Plus I can actually drive it in 6" of snow and not worry about becoming a new hood ornament for a Peterbuilt.

My father drives a Focus ST, and says it's the easiest, fun car to drive. FWD, but it's almost as quick as a Z, much cargo and seat room too. If price is much of a worry, i'd suggest waiting for the Focus RS, which is an AWD turbo making 350 hp :P

Get a used > 2010 WRX. You have 4 doors, decent daily performance and AWD. Definitely less than 40k miles, not for under $20 but maybe $23k

My ideal daily would be a 2006-2012 Civic SI or an Acura TSX. Manual, peppy, four door, sunroof.

Are you looking used or new?

My good friend just got an MK7 golf R DSG 4door. Traded his MK6 gti coupe 6mt. Roomy cars and definitely fun to drive. As a daily of recommend auto since you still have the Z. But that's just my opinion. Good luck! Congrats on the new baby, I recently had one as well. Still have the Z but we'll see it's fate after this season

CPO Ford Fusion is a good option too. I have had a lot of different business rentals and as far as the dd 4dr sedans go, it is my favorite and roomy enough for a kid and all the kid crap that goes with it. Looks are decent too.

You are right, "fun" is a better word to describe what I want. I am currently looking for those slightly used or certified used. After being a dad, I want to have more modern safety features around my baby (btw, few years ago, I was still enjoying my 1989 MR2 Supercharged with barely working seatbelts and no airbags. A baby can really change someone's life). Also, as you said, WRXs are too pricey. Someone also mentioned about the Juke. Is that a SUV?

can't speak about the latest model Si, but haven't really heard anything good. i had an 07 Si coupe and, granted it's almost 10 years old, it was a decent car. it wasn't fast, it wasn't a POS. it was a good starter car (1st car I bought straight out of college).

the new Si and TSX share the same engine (someone correct me if im wrong). my only complaint with my 07 Si is rev-hang.

it's advice, not advise. Lancer Evolution

It's a crossover which is a perfect balance of maneuverability with cargo space. I'd recommend at least test driving the Nismo version, it really surprised me.

Apologize for the mistake. Evo is a good option. Are they reliable and easy to maintain？

Evos are broken every 5 seconds.

Hi there. On the list you have, Mazdaspeed3. It really is a short list of fun and sporty 4 doors at 20k. VW is not as reliable. For me the Focus will count but only if it is an RS.