All right guys, I've moved and my commute distance drastically increased. I'm now doing about 130 miles a day. So, I'm getting rid of the G8 GT, for obvious reasons. Here's the list of cars I'm looking at: Hyundai Genesis Coupe 2.0T, Mini Cooper S, Honda Civic (yeah I know), and VW Jetta TDI. My preferences are: no more than $25K, good gas mileage (at least 25 mpg combined), not a hatchback (Mini is an exception), new. I've never owned a vehicle from any of these brands, so any of them is new to me. I also want something fun to drive.

 

Mazda 3?

 

Dude, for $25000 you can get the WRX, the Cobalt SS and for a hair more the Mustang GT or the Ralliart and that will be a different league.

Carlos

 

VW Golf GTi?

Nice car and has some power.

I'm not sure if you can get one for $25,000 though.

 

if youre ok with buying used, look for a 6 speed Acura TSX. I had a 2004 that i loved and still miss. I averaged 32 mpg highway and 25 city, and it was extremely comfortable and reliable, and its definately in your budget. The stick in that car is really slick and fun to drive.

 

+1 on used, and also on the TL or TSX for that price. I assume this will be a personal car so why would you want to buy it new only to put a ton of miles on it, further driving the price down?

Look into CPO setups for popular cars and you will find a lot in your price range, as long as you don't mind used.

 

our 04 mini cooper s jcw is awesome around town. better than the evo actually because theres no lag lol.

its very small though we are actually considering replacing it with a mk.v golf gti

 

IMO, I would go with either the Civic or the VW. The Civic EX has a bunch of nice creature comforts and features that make it a great DD, especially for distances, and the VW has the killer mileage going for it.

 

If you can avoid modding it, go for the hyundai, it's got the best warranty which is good for a car you're going to be putting 30k miles on / year.

Or better idea, if you're going to be driving 30k miles/yr in this thing why don't you go and test drive them to see which car your *** and back like best

 

gen coupe had my vote...you can still mod it, get good mileage and have some fun with rwd...plus a lot of companies are making parts for it now, search the country and see if you can find a used one for cheaper than brand new.

 

Jetta TDI is not fun, at all. I've driven it and while the DSG is fancy the engine is a total turd and lacks passing power.

 

This is one of the reasons I'm looking at the Hyundai. I've driven it and plan to drive the others next week.

 

hyundai gets my vote too. make sure you get the track package.

 

Mini Cooper = Inexpensive BMW that is SERIOUSLY fun to drive and GREAT on gas mileage!

Just my 2 cents.

 

I would say go for the Genesis Coupe. Nice looking car, great warranty, and soon enough Cobb Tuning will come out with something that will boost performance nicely and be totally reversible