All weather car for under 30 grand?

[writhen]

I'm in the market for an all weather car/truck for under 30 g's. The only catch is that it has to be standard. Any recommendations?

Off the top of my head comes the WRX, New Jeep, B5 A4/S4, forester, etc..

Any recommendations? Reliability and fun to drive are some pretty big attributes I want to have. Also, the cheaper the better; not sacrificing quality off course.

[adam c]

are u looking for new or used?

[writhen]

Either. I'm open to any opinions.

[Mitsu3000gt]

2000-2002 Audi S4 = $23-28k (approx)
Amazing set of coilovers = $1400 to your doorstep
Chip bringing HP from 250 to 307 and torque from 258 to 366 = $800 (approx).

You now have an AWD car with 5 seats good for all weather, 6 spd manual, and gobs of torque from 1800rpm - 4500RPM that is about as fast as a M3 except with about 20 times more usable power and more torque :D

They are as reliable as any other car if you take car of it.

[Isaiah]

Originally posted by Mitsu3000gt
2000-2002 Audi S4 = $23-28k (approx)
Amazing set of coilovers = $1400 to your doorstep
Chip bringing HP from 250 to 307 and torque from 258 to 366 = $800 (approx).

You now have an AWD car with 5 seats good for all weather, 6 spd manual, and gobs of torque from 1800rpm - 4500RPM that is about as fast as a M3 except with about 20 times more usable power and more torque :D

They are as reliable as any other car if you take car of it.

+1 :thumbsup:

Do a search for more info.

[writhen]

Exactly what I was thinking, except I'd be afraid of dirtying the interior lol. What with snow, dirt, and all that crap. How is insurance on the car anyway? I'm guessing you have one...

Also, I'd have to swap out the turbo's right (around 100k)? Around how much does that cost to get professionally done?

[Isaiah]

Depends on the turbo upgrade, if you're looking for the K04's, then you're going to be paying a premium but there are plenty of guys on the Audi forums who are way over the 100k mark and are still on original turbos. It's all in how you drive the car.

As far as dirtying the interior, a set of all weather floormats and you're good to go. The Quattro system is the best all season performance/traction combination in my opinion.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Originally posted by writhen
Exactly what I was thinking, except I'd be afraid of dirtying the interior lol. What with snow, dirt, and all that crap. How is insurance on the car anyway? I'm guessing you have one...

Also, I'd have to swap out the turbo's right (around 100k)? Around how much does that cost to get professionally done?

As above mentioned, there are people with 160,000 MILES on chipped turbos.

Use synthetic oil, don't get on the boost until you have oil temperature, and cool them down before you shut off your car. They will last a very long time unless you are extremely unlucky or the previous owner bagged the shit out of them.

If you want to spend about $12,000 you can have KO4 turbos, better inter coolers, and all supporting mods giving you about 400hp and 400 torque at the wheels, 480/480 or so at the crank. People with that setup claimed 0-60 times of 3.2 seconds, but I don't know how they measured.

[Isaiah]

Originally posted by writhen
How is insurance on the car anyway? I'm guessing you have one...


Forgot to mention...I pay about $120/month for full coverage with $500 deductible but I'm going to shop around because I think I can get a better deal. I went from a Maxima where I was paying $100, just for a reference point.

[writhen]

Thanks for all the info. I'm leaning towards the S4, but a 2004/2005 WRX seems like a pretty good bet too. A few supporting mods and its an easy 300 hp/ close to 300 tq. That's all I really want/need. The only thing is that the audi has more luxury and that european presence.

[finboy]

as per s4's, i noticed they aren't allowed across the border but a4's are, this related to the crash testing rules?

[Mitsu3000gt]

Originally posted by finboy
as per s4's, i noticed they aren't allowed across the border but a4's are, this related to the crash testing rules?


American S4's I believe have bumper mounted fog lights and apparently there is a safety issue with them in Canada due to where they are placed. If it's something else I'd be curious to know. They are safe cars, they have 8 air bags too.

[finboy]

Originally posted by Mitsu3000gt



American S4's I believe have bumper mounted fog lights and apparently there is a safety issue with them in Canada due to where they are placed. If it's something else I'd be curious to know. They are safe cars, they have 8 air bags too.

if that was the case, its too bad one couldn't just remove the fog lights and bring it up, american s4's can be had for cheap

[max_boost]

Impreza WRX! I have an absolute blast driving mine every day. Get stage2 for $2500 and it'll have plenty of decent daily driving power. There will be faster cars but you don't encounter them enough anyway haha

[max_boost]

WRX can be modded to look nice too. Lower it, get a chargespeed kit, slap on some wheels and it'll be one mean aggressive machine. It's so nice to have a sleeper looking car to catch unsuspecting motorists who think they can cut you off that I might just leave it completely stock looking. :rofl: :poosie: :burnout:

[Aleks]

Originally posted by writhen
Thanks for all the info. I'm leaning towards the S4, but a 2004/2005 WRX seems like a pretty good bet too. A few supporting mods and its an easy 300 hp/ close to 300 tq. That's all I really want/need. The only thing is that the audi has more luxury and that european presence.

For 30 grand you should be able to pick up an 06 WRX (comes with 2.5L instead of 2.0). It will have warranty, be fun to drive, you won't mind getting it dirty ;) and you won't have to worry about reliability. What it does not have though is nice interior. With a stage 2 upgrade you will be fairly close to a stock Sti (straight line performance) :burnout:

[Kona9]

I have an 06 X terra Off road for sale. 17,000 km. 6 speed, Locking diff, great stereo.
Awesome truck. Waiting on my buyout papers for the exact price. It's definately not an S4 or a WRX, but it is a great truck on and off the road.

Good luck in your choice!

[Mitsu3000gt]

Keep in mind the differences in the way the power is delivered between the WRX and the S4. The WRX is a 4cyl with one turbo, so you need some decent RPM before it spools up and then you can feel the turbo kick in. Besides having alot more torque (assuming you chip it), the S4 has 2 small turbos so they are spooled up completely at about 1800 RPM and you get 366lb/ft of torque all the way to about 4500RPM or so. In any gear, you just put your foot down and there is no lag, you just take off. It's ideal for city driving as well with very little effort.

The WRX is a great car too, I was actually going to buy one before I found my S4 but the 2 cars aren't in the same league at all. If warranty is important to you, the WRX may be an attractive option.

[khtm]

Yep, and if reliability is important to you, then Subaru is definitely the attractive option over Audi. :thumbsup:

[LilDrunkenSmurf]

Originally posted by Aleks


For 30 grand you should be able to pick up an 06 WRX (comes with 2.5L instead of 2.0). It will have warranty, be fun to drive, you won't mind getting it dirty ;) and you won't have to worry about reliability. What it does not have though is nice interior. With a stage 2 upgrade you will be fairly close to a stock Sti (straight line performance) :burnout:

I was looking into the same thing, but more along the lines of importing a 2007 from the states... doing the numbers (no taxes added yet) it comes to about 29k after exchange... if you can talk to dealership down at all, then you save some money, so you can more towards mods, or any other such things you want... I'm in the same boat, something I can drive year round for 30k, but I didn't want to start a new thread haha.

[Aleks]

Originally posted by LilDrunkenSmurf


I was looking into the same thing, but more along the lines of importing a 2007 from the states... doing the numbers (no taxes added yet) it comes to about 29k after exchange... if you can talk to dealership down at all, then you save some money, so you can more towards mods, or any other such things you want... I'm in the same boat, something I can drive year round for 30k, but I didn't want to start a new thread haha.

When I was deciding my numbers came to about 31 grand with taxes, (duty and GST) and transport etc. I didn't want the TR model. I chose to buy here because I didnt have that much in cash. Financing thru subaru here was cheaper and over 5 years I would have only saved 2 grand. To me I'd rather have a Canadian car (less hassle with dealers etc...)

If i was looking at the Sti though I would definatelly get it from US. (larger savings!)

[Killa_Kam]

i'd go with the s4, very smooth drive and powerful:bigpimp:

[writhen]

Thanks for all the input to everyone. I do like the performance of the s4 better, but like someone mentioned before..a WRX you don't mind getting dirty, an S4...I'd cry if I got it dirty. Plus I mountain bike a lot, go skiing, camping, etc..for all this the WRX just seems smarter. I couldnt imagine loading up my dirty mountain bike onto a roof rack carrier in an audi s4...that just sounds so wrong! lol.

[R-Audi]

Well if it is a toss up between power and inside comfort....

My 98 A4 is for sale... and can be had two different ways if you were to act soon:

1. Basically stock, 100,000km on engine $14,000

2. Stage 3+, fully loaded with parts. $18,000 This is faster then a stock Sti, or Stage 2 S4 with the lower price.

The body has 160,000km, but the compression was down and had sludge issues, so I am replacing the engine with one of 100,000km. I dropped it off at the shop today. I say act soon, because my plan is to leave the car stock once the new engine is in.. and sell off the extra parts. (So the new engine would only have been stock) BUT if someone were to offer me the right amount, I would get the 'fun parts' installed again.

[LilDrunkenSmurf]

Originally posted by Aleks


When I was deciding my numbers came to about 31 grand with taxes, (duty and GST) and transport etc. I didn't want the TR model. I chose to buy here because I didnt have that much in cash. Financing thru subaru here was cheaper and over 5 years I would have only saved 2 grand. To me I'd rather have a Canadian car (less hassle with dealers etc...)

If i was looking at the Sti though I would definatelly get it from US. (larger savings!)

See my mom and her fiance are sponsoring me on this, and anything over 30k, i have to come up with myself... and I don't know if it'll be straight cash, or financing... so... i'll have to see... but I think that may be the route for me is importing from the states... as I dont want the TR model either.