You'll notice I'm just recommending the Japanese options in that space over the used European cars you're looking toward. :rofl2:

Basically buy anything but a Benz or BMW if you plan on keeping it beyond the warranty period.

I think it's funny how polarized people are over this issue. People either swear by European engineering or swear "at" it.

My 09 c300 has been good, in-laws 07 c270 or something and now their 11 e350 are all good.

I resent that.

I've been giving this a lot of thought over the recent weeks, and based on a number of factors I think I'm ditching the idea of owning a BMW.

I'm just about 99% sold on buying a new WRX base hatchback - much better fit for my lifestyle, relatively inexpensive, and solid as a rock.

it's completely impractical for my lifestyle..LoL
2013 model which I bought new in July..That’s a waste
in more or less perfect condition….LoL
Thoughts? Am I out of my mind or does this seem feasible?...Retarted

Well, that was useless. If you insist on calling names, at least spell retarded right.

my friend has that. makes good power with a downpipe and a tune. almost as fast as my z

Lol. I guess what they mean is what lifestyle changes happened in 5 mo that now the z is impractical?
On a side note why not keep the z and find a cheap daily? And I mean cheap as in under 3 grand.

For the sake of the discussion here on the Z forums, I excluded the details from a number of months of discussion, debate, argument, etc.

You asked, so here's my long answer. It goes pretty much like this:

I love the Z, I think it's an exceptional vehicle. It's a sports car, and it does its job well. I thought I wanted a sports car - to be more specific, I've spent most of my life dreaming about my "next, faster, cooler looking car." At the age of 34, I finally reached a point in my life where it was economically feasible, so I bought one.

The first two months were blissful, but as time went on I realized I had made a terrible financial mistake. This car does not match "me" - I never go to the track, I live in a town riddled with cops, speed traps, and heavy traffic. I have a dog which I travel with frequently. I love to spend time outdoors, which means I frequently drive on dirt, gravel, and snow. I love to camp, mountain bike, snowboard, etc, which means I'd like some storage and ideally the ability to hook up a tow hitch for my bike rack or a roof rack for the boards.

I love music and technology - I have a full system in the Z, but the road noise still makes it difficult to enjoy driving. Not to mention it's physically impossible to use my bluetooth speaker phone. I'd like a quieter car, and on a related note I'd like one that's more comfortable. At 6'4" I get a little cramped, and I hate the seats on longer drives.

I need a good car for my daily commute which also lets me do these things. I don't want two cars. I don't have the driveway/garage space for it, I don't want the extra insurance, I don't want the maintenance fees. Least of all, I don't want a shitty car to drive every day - I want a NICE car to drive every day.

A bit long winded, but perhaps that gives you a better perspective from inside my head.

Makes sense to me man. Lots of times we make decisions we think are right at the time but they turn out to be wrong after a while. Definitely better to change your mind about a car than it would be a marriage, that's for sure!

Amen to that. At least this is "just money" - it sucks, and I'm not happy about it, but it could certainly be worse.

I actually went from a 2009 370z, to a 2011 WRX hatchback. It was a great car, but in the end, I missed RWD and the feel of my Z.

Just to note, I had intake, DP and tune on the WRX and ran a 12.8 @ 106.5 mph. Pretty fun car and had enough room to move me from Massachusetts to Florida.

put some sound deadening in the trunk, and it sounds like you don't have the touring package? at 6'3 i'm extremely comfortable on long road trips.

Sound deadening won't do a thing for his other needs, though. Not to mention to be truly effective with deadening in a hatch-type vehicle you really need to do the entire hatch + cabin.