I am the same as you, former fan boy, former owner, still a fan of E46 and older BMW's. New ones don't do anything for me but they will have far better resale value than the Caddy when it comes time to sell (read when the warranty runs out). At this point, I wouldn't buy any BMW other than the M235i and that's far too expensive for what you get out of it.

It is a good car, but there are others out there that perform just as well for the same or cheaper.

 

I need to figure out more about ATS, CTS and XTS and what are the differences.

 

The only difference is the first letter.

 

hmm...

 

Think of it like this, in terms of competition:

ATS---->3-series
CTS---->5-series
XTS---->7-series (kind of)

 

XTS starts at $44K which is way below a 7 series.

 

That's part of why I said "kind of." If you look at the buying guide on Card & Driver, you'll see the XTS lumped in with the A8, S-Class, 7-Series, etc., but closer inspection shows it's much less car than the others. Really, it's the size that makes it comparable to a 7.

 

That helps.

 

To me, CTS Sedan "V" (used maybe?) or even non V...winner. There's no way that car isn't amazing to drive and will have that wow factor you're looking for in a 4 door grocery getter.

 

Used V seems too expensive as well

 

XTS is FWD...not sure if there is an AWD (I'm guessing yes) Its like the ES300 luxe cruiser.

CTS is the 5 series fighter

ATS is the new 3 series fighter

 

I like the fact that I can build the ATS nicely under $48K

 

I bet you the 3.6 will be fun to drive...headlights are fantastic...tails too...interior felt like...well, a Cadillac. If it had not been the 2.5, I would have been in love.

Front brembo brakes had a cool look as a standard feature on a 4 door car...haven't seen that much since the 3G TL.

couple of shots i took
DSC_0851 by swimex37, on Flickr

DSC_0850 by swimex37, on Flickr

DSC_0849 by swimex37, on Flickr

DSC_0847 by swimex37, on Flickr

 

Cadillac and their wheels

Spend millions on the design of the body and $.85 on the design of the wheels.

 

No doubt. I just tried the "Build Your Own" on their site and loaded one up VERY nicely. After the $3k in incentives, it came in at $49k.

 

My dad opted to get the 20" V style wheels on my mom's SRX...I think those look pretty cool.

But yes, I agree with what you are saying overall.

 

Because they know that 60% of Cadillac Owners drive them skrait to the rim shop...

 

Don't forget the Landau fake convertible top.

 

nah bruh, I get the whip straight to the muffler shop down the street. Needa get me some whistle tips fo dat WOO WOO!!






Yeah, I have nothing useful to contribute.

 

So I need to limit the dealers and cars to around 4 or 5 due to time. Im thinking the BMW dealer, Audi, Hyundai, Mercedes and Volvo. What do you think?

 

Scratch Volvo...you'll be underwater the minute you'd buy and you've never be able to come up for air.


All this talk of Cadillac...what happened with them???

 

Good points. Maybe I'll do that.

 

Get a Subaru... only 28K for flat 6 model and they got some nice tech on the new legacy... 2015 flat 6 gets CVT so that out to be interesting...

I second the accord V6 option

 

BTW, one brand dealer might have recent used versions of another brand on the lot, so you can test an A4 or S60 while at the BMW or Cadillac dealership, for example. That might save you some time.

Have fun!

 

nah

 

Get an Acura! This is Acurazine!!!



Get a 5 series and call it a day

 

5 is out of price range...

 

I disagree with scratching Volvo. Have you considered the Polestar versions of the 60?

http://www.volvocars.com/us/top/about/default/pages/default.aspx

Also, I test drove an A4 earlier this year and had one for a rental in Spain. They are solid, quiet, and the shifting is superb (best 6MT I have ever driven). Plus the tactile feedback in the cabin with every knob, switch, etc. is excellent. And later on you can easily mod the engine for more power.

Just my

 

 

Looks great, but not ready till fall. Need a car sooner. Good info on an A4.

 

Going Thursday to start test driving. Down to 4 makes - Audi (A3 or A4), BMW 3 series (or CPO 5 series), Cadillac ATS or CTS and Hyundai Genesis.

 

Your comment got me thinking. So I checked it out on Edmunds. Compared the S60 R-Design with a 335i, a GS350, and a Genesis R-Spec (1st gen) because that's what Edmunds had TCO information for ...

You're right. The Volvo will lose about $27K in value over the first five years (on a $45K MSRP). The others were slightly more expensive but retained more value.

The interesting part is that everything for all the other cars was about the same. Maintenance, gas, etc ... But the Volvo's insurance rate was 65% of the BMW and Hyundai and 50% of the Lexus.

I don't know if that's accurate but what ended up happening was that it actually created a TCO where the S60 R-Design was no more expensive to own over 5 years or 75,000 miles than the other three cars.

And just so I'm not playing favorites, the 2014 Audi S4's TCO was horrific (if you believe their numbers).

 

"You're right. The Volvo will lose about $27K in value over the first five years (on a $45K MSRP)"

this is something I never understood why it should be a factor unless you like to flip cars every couple of years, otherwise, who cares?

 

A lot of us are serial car bigamists

If I bought a V60, I'd definitely keep it for as long as I could because $27K is a huge number to eat to not get any value after year five.

But with my luck, the car would probably be assembled by interns

 

I understand the bigamy thing-I used to buy a new car every 1.5-2 yrs. Then I finally woke the f*&k up and quit doing that. I will not buy a new car under any circumstances nearly now as I think it is the stupidest thing financially you can do.

 

We seem to flip cars here and there....

 

I agree...but not everyone keeps their cars all that long...and if you are buying new...especially a car that isn't known for long term reliability you want to know that you have some protection should you need to try and get out of it. You might only break even...but its better than having negative equity.

Case in point, your current bimmer that you are potentially dumping.

I know someone who bought a S60 and got stuck in it because the value dropped out right from under her and the car ended up needing tons of work and she had no way to get out of it without taking a giant hit.

 

How recently was that? I had heard the new ones were/are pretty good for a Euro.

 

fify

 

I don't think I have negative equity in my 530xi. I got it for $42,500 (sticker was $69,700) w/ 19K on the odo when it was a year old. I got the remainder of the factory warranty (3 yrs) plus 2 more years for CPO. I didn't start putting money into it until it surpassed the 100K mark which was just after I finished paying off the small loan I took. It's at 141K now and I have put $6000 total into it over the last 3 years

(unless I just misunderstood what you were saying Sarlacc)