OT: Informal Survey....

[George Mann]

in this day of escalating fuel costs although moderating of late a bit, would like to poll the audience. What are opinions on the best commuter car for the buck that gets good economy? This hypothetical car would be an elusive balance between Sport, Style, Economy, Initial cost, Comfort and Performance....of relatively equal weighting in importance. What do you guys think?...what is the best overall commuter car out there that gets decent mileage? I am logging about 3/4's to a full hour commute one-way in literal stop and go traffic no matter which route I go and am considering trading my Saturn SC2 5 speed which is a great little car but I feel like I literally am rowing the dam thing through traffic all the way there which I am....will probably get a slushbox car with a hint more performance...not critical...but a bit more luxury. Any bimmer with a M-30 is too thirsty and too old and would require more wrenching.
Opinions?...not necessarily a BMW....as they tend to be a bit pricey if close to new.
Thanks,
George

[Kamil]

You can't go wrong w/ a Honda.... however, I commute from northern NJ to Brooklyn (when I cant take mass transit, i.e. nights) in a '83 Mercedes 300SD (turbo diesel).

No worries of theft, no worries about driving on crappy NYC roads, 30+MPG @ 1.80/gallon, $500 insunace per year.
Heated seats, huge sunroof, and auto tranny are nice to have too.

[KurtM]

ago for somewhat the same reason. The other being putting too many miles on BMW. My commute is 30 miles that takes 35 minutes on a 2 lane highway. I wanted something that would get decent mileage (so far it has averaged 24 mpg) which is what I was hoping for. I was looking at Mazdas, Toys, Mitsubishis and Nissan, nothing American. Wanted low maintenace, easy and inexpensive to repair. Plan to fix it up real nice and give to my daughter in 3 years when she starts to drive.

Kurt
95 525ia
88 Toyota 4x4

[Hector]

you can't go wrong with a hybrid but seems like every dealer has a waiting list. This is something I'm seriously considering as a daily driver (will still keep the m30.) The only problem is that there is not much history on their reliability. If you're a tree-hugger, then you come out winning in that aspect as well.

[Dick Schneiders]

I really like the Chrysler PT Turbo, or GT Cruiser (I have heard it called both). It is about 215 horses and even more torque. It has been out for a couple of years or so and there might be a used one available if you live in a populated area. I drove one and it is very quick and fun, but it had a manual tranny. As I recall, it gets about 24 mpg city and over 30 on the highway. It was really priced reasonably as a new car. Some people don't like the looks of these at all, though.

There is another car that I drove that I liked even more (and it uses the same basic engine that the PT Turbo does). That is the Dodge SRT-4. Really fast, with even more hp than the PT Turbo. It rivals the Subaru WRX for a lot less money. It gets a bit less in mpg, at 22 city 30 highway and I don't know if it comes with an automatic. However, it is probably not very likely to find a used one as they haven't sold a lot of them, I would guess. They were around $20 grand new when they first came out last year.

I know nothing about the reliability or ease of repair on these cars, but they are a lot of fun to drive and quite economical.

Dick Schneiders

in this day of escalating fuel costs although moderating of late a bit, would like to poll the audience. What are opinions on the best commuter car for the buck that gets good economy? This hypothetical car would be an elusive balance between Sport, Style, Economy, Initial cost, Comfort and Performance....of relatively equal weighting in importance. What do you guys think?...what is the best overall commuter car out there that gets decent mileage? I am logging about 3/4's to a full hour commute one-way in literal stop and go traffic no matter which route I go and am considering trading my Saturn SC2 5 speed which is a great little car but I feel like I literally am rowing the dam thing through traffic all the way there which I am....will probably get a slushbox car with a hint more performance...not critical...but a bit more luxury. Any bimmer with a M-30 is too thirsty and too old and would require more wrenching.
Opinions?...not necessarily a BMW....as they tend to be a bit pricey if close to new.
Thanks,
George

[Brian C.]

...by the way that my PT Cruiser drives as much as I'm surprised by how much I like the damn little thing. Now right off the bat, it's no "Ultimate Driving Machine" when it come to handling and power. I didn't expect it to be. And the FWD vs RWD thing took a little getting used to, but it's not a deal breaker by any means. For what I needed my vehicle to do for me, it does it pretty darn nicely.

Econony....a solid 20mpg in MY hour or so, each way, daily commute. I haven't done an extended highway trip yet, but I'll get 25-29mpg for an hour at 65mph. The ~16gal tank is kinda small.

Interior space....4 large adults are very comfortable, with some decent luggage space too. The power really decreases with all that weight though. With the rear seats removed, I hauled a boxed, compact washer and dryer from the store to a friends apartment last weekend. With the hatch closed. Not too shabby there. And getting my parents in and out is quite easy.

Power....well, not exactly a rocket, but my I4 2.4L turbo isn't a snail either. With just me in it, it will pull me up an entrance ramp with a good kick. The turbo does lag a bit. Passing at 70 is fun too. My max speed so far has been about 95mph. Probably not too much more after that.

Maintenence....not an issue yet thank you very much. Time will tell I guess. That warranty thing is nice to have though.

Most importantly.....the chicks dig it! Too bad...or maybe not ...most of them are of the younger crowd though. But I have been kind enough as to give the ocassional ride to young, cute, female co-workers, the nice guy that I am.

Give it a look....$20-$25k max ain't bad. I have to get a few photos and post them soon.

Brian C.

[Dick Schneiders]

drive the one I was testing at very fast speeds, but it must have a limiter on it if it is petering out at around 100mph.

The Dodge SRT-4, which uses the same engine but not the same turbo and other stuff, will go to about 150 mph (per the reports - I didn't drive it that fast) and do 0-60 in about 5.6 seconds. Also, it didn't have much turbo lag at all, and the reports on it say this is much better than what the Subaru WRX and Focus SVT turbo's have. The SRT-4 is also fairly roomy, just a bit smaller than a Camary or Accord, but certainly not as roomy as the PT. I really liked the SRT-4, as a fun and fast car, but it doesn't have much in the way of luxury. Also, as I said, I don't know if this car comes with an automatic.

Dick Schneiders

...by the way that my PT Cruiser drives as much as I'm surprised by how much I like the damn little thing. Now right off the bat, it's no "Ultimate Driving Machine" when it come to handling and power. I didn't expect it to be. And the FWD vs RWD thing took a little getting used to, but it's not a deal breaker by any means. For what I needed my vehicle to do for me, it does it pretty darn nicely.

Econony....a solid 20mpg in MY hour or so, each way, daily commute. I haven't done an extended highway trip yet, but I'll get 25-29mpg for an hour at 65mph. The ~16gal tank is kinda small.

Interior space....4 large adults are very comfortable, with some decent luggage space too. The power really decreases with all that weight though. With the rear seats removed, I hauled a boxed, compact washer and dryer from the store to a friends apartment last weekend. With the hatch closed. Not too shabby there. And getting my parents in and out is quite easy.

Power....well, not exactly a rocket, but my I4 2.4L turbo isn't a snail either. With just me in it, it will pull me up an entrance ramp with a good kick. The turbo does lag a bit. Passing at 70 is fun too. My max speed so far has been about 95mph. Probably not too much more after that.

Maintenence....not an issue yet thank you very much. Time will tell I guess. That warranty thing is nice to have though.

Most importantly.....the chicks dig it! Too bad...or maybe not ...most of them are of the younger crowd though. But I have been kind enough as to give the ocassional ride to young, cute, female co-workers, the nice guy that I am.

Give it a look....$20-$25k max ain't bad. I have to get a few photos and post them soon.

Brian C.

[winfred]

how bout a tdi vw, theres something to say about 50 mpg and cheeper fuel, diesel is $1,589-1.689 here vs $1.979-2.079 for 93, and it's a sporty little turd too, with some mods it could be real fun, i saw a thing in euro car about one that put 150 hp to the ground and still got stock mileage while stomping on most everything in it's class of car

[sbcncsu]

how bout a tdi vw, theres something to say about 50 mpg and cheeper fuel, diesel is $1,589-1.689 here vs $1.979-2.079 for 93, and it's a sporty little turd too, with some mods it could be real fun, i saw a thing in euro car about one that put 150 hp to the ground and still got stock mileage while stomping on most everything in it's class of car

I second that one. The TDI is an awesome machine. Get a Jetta TDI, heck, you can even get a wagon. Good thing is, it will get out of its own way, will haul stuff, is NICE inside and you can get a competent auto tranny in them.

My wife and I test drove one last fall. We really liked it. It was an '04 jetta wagon auto with leather. Sticker was $24k.

[Elekta]

1. I would set a mileage criteria first.

Below 25 mpg, you could still live with your e34. Just keep driving it; quit unecessary mods, do O2 sensors and tune to maximize efficiency and drive it economically when you need to. The effort expended to sell, research, and buy a new car could be the difference in the higher fuel costs when you think about it.

If you are serious about above 25mpg, pick a high mpg deisel, like the VW rabbit or the older mercedes. There are older cars that can maintain >30 mpgs with little upkeep. If it's truly a commuter car, than don't look for other benefits, plus consider a third car, and write the whole thing off. (My dad had a corvair to go to the train, and that's all he ever used it for, back in the 60's). My pick would be a 2 door 300d. My grandfather had one, and it was mint and he replaced his 70's opec deisel dasher (52mpg) with one in the early 80's. I bet there are near mint versions of this car out there that are really cheap to own, drive and maintain.

Above 30mpg, you really have to do your research, because there are claims that aren't really panning out of some of the hybrids and other hi-mileage cars. Consider tax benefits in your financial analysis.


2. Do the math. It makes absolutely no sense to get a car that becomes a project if what you are trying to do is save money. The spread on fuel is a tight margin to beat and you could easily end up worse financially.

hth

my plan is to drive both my e34's and put as many miles on them as possible between maintenance. We own them outright and insurance is cheap-er (and getting cheaper if you remain aggressive with your provider.) I save money every day by not financing a newer car, and every tank of 93 is justified when I have no interest to pay...or a car payment for that matter. I save even more when I borrow a friend's truck everytime I threaten to buy a little pickup to go huntin/fishin/towin in.

Hell, you could pay down your credit card debt with a credit union debt take out, and make up the fuel price difference in an interest swap alone.

I'm saving for 05-06 Touring, hopefully there will be a 4.4ix version with integrated westphalia towing package for me.