seriously. it's ridiculous how some of you think G37 is the poor man's 3 series.

 

^ Probaby a better way of wording it.

 

You think a car you can option out to over 50 grand is a poor mans BMW? Must be nice.

 

If I had to choose a car that was a poor man's 3 series, it would be the VW GTI.

 

How about a Accord coupe v6 6 speed? I think you can bargain it to 28k, they are rare so not easy to do. And the VW GTI is the shit, man I love that thing.

 

Accord coupe V6 as a poor man's 3 series?

 

 

If I were you I'd just get a Mazda3, but if you're willing to spend $28K you have WAY more options, like the TSX and CC for instance.

EDIT: or you can get a GLI from VW. Btw is reliability a concern for you?

 

I should've said a G37 is a "poor" man's 335i

335i sedan - $51,300
G37 sedan - $38,690

(Canadian $)

 

One of my friends has a 08 Mazda 3S GT. It's an alright car, but I would't call it a poor mans BMW. Its a really nice car compared to Corolla, Civic, Impreza, etc. The only thing I remember that stood out about it was the engine noise. It wasn't a good noise either. The 2.3L motor was extremely buzzy. Turns me off completely.

The only poor man's BMW is a used BMW. 02-05ish BMW 330i with performance package is probably the only cheaper car that comes close to the 06-09 BMW 3-Series. The model mentioned doesn't really have good straight-line performance though...

 

This topic would have gone better if we left out this silly "poor mans bmw" crap. Just saying.

 

I owned 6 Mazda before. I always thought that they were the most German-like Asians, specially in the way they drive.

However with the ugly Mazda3 2010 styling, I think that they are more French, now.

 

we love our 2008 3 hatch...great car!

 

Gti?

 

Unless I win the lottery I dont know how you guys can send so much on cars. 30k,40k. Its an unbeliveable amount of money for something to be left on the street for anyone to touch. I spent 26k on my car and swear to never do it again. Thats why I started this thread, to start some talk on what car to get for 16k to 22k that I can have serious fun in.

So far I think the GTI, Speed3 are the winners. I've seen new speed3 go for 20-21k in Seattle, thats a screaming deal to me. It was advertised in the Friday car ads, 2009 models.

 

my friend has a 328i loaded except for AWD.

that car moves and handles great.

but now you are going over 40k

 

I hear you man. Some people don't understand that concept but, some of us do and get the jist of what you meant in your original post.

 

I guess some people are just willing to pay more for cars. You gotta pay to play. Besides, most people buying $30k+ cars have garages to put those cars in so they don't have to worry about random people touching them. And if you really want a good deal on cars, don't buy new. Let someone else take the depreciation.

 

Between the GTI and the Speed3 I think I would get the Speed3 because it's more reliable, especially if you're shopping the used market. make sure you get a CPO with warranty

 

I used to call 318ti the poor-man's bimmer .... lol ...

 

That's some good advice there.

 

CPOs at the level Mazda plays at are pretty much useless except for the powertrain protection they give:

# A manufacturer-backed 7 year/100,000 mile Limited Powertrain Warranty*
# A manufacturer-backed 3 month/3,000 mile Additional Limited Warranty** (which I assume is bumper-to-bumper)

I think finding a good used Speed3 from a private party and then getting a warranty through someone is a better value.

Audi's CPO program is actually worth getting. Paying CPO prices for a 3 month B2B warranty seems a waste of money to me.

 

Ah, good points, but at least the CPO's get an inspection done and are refurbished to near factory levels, even though the CPO warranty is crappy.

 

Awesome little car! Just wish they gave it a little bit more power.

Nothing wrong with an V6 Accord coupe It may not be a poor man's BMW, but it's a great car! Couple mods and your looking at a car that could run circles around a BMW. Oh and you still have like thousands of $$$ in your pocket vs buying a BMW.

 

GTI: It's relatively cheap to bring up its power. The stock numbers should not stop someone from buying GTIs. It really is a fantastic vehicle.

V6 Accord coupe: again, at your post man. I know it's a great car. I had it before. No, it will never run circles around a BMW with couple mods. (not to mention, it's a FWD car. you can't drift it. )

You need to drive a sport-packaged 328i. You'll change your mind then.

 

Ok I may have gone a little over board about the Accord running circles around a BMW lol anyways it's a great car! I did drive the 335i manual and I fell in love with it! The power was awesome! That car just kept pulling in every gear at any RPM. I don't think I would like a 328i, not enough power, especially for the money you pay.

Honestly after the TL I wanna switch to a RWD vehicle

 

Hard to compare a FWD upper-econo car to a RWD entry-lux car...apples to oranges...as prev stated, the only poor man BMW is a 1-series or used 3-series...

That being said, I think the 1st and 2nd gen Mazda 3s are "poor man's" TSXs (especially 1st gen TSX). I've spent extensive time in a 2007 3s and a 2010 3s hatchback and I can say it's hard to match the Mazda 3 for driving dynamics at its MSRP (talking new cars here). My 08 TSX was a superior car for sure, but anyone asking me for a car below the TSX's price-range, I recommend starting with the Mazda 3.

 

MODERATOR'S NOTE: This is not the first time it's been missed but the thread topic is 'Poor man's 3-series'....as opposed to 'Poor man's BMW', of which the 1-series clearly is.

 

I'm not talking about the power.. BMW is all about handling.

 

lol too funny

 

I'm 100% certain my '03 Accord 6mt can run circles around a '10 BMW 328. Performance and handling.

 

03 got manual trans? or u 4cyl?

 

Your accord with mods looks comparable to what i had on my 02 TL-S, minus the manual trans.

So no, you wont run circles around a 328i. You will edge out ahead in a drag race but thats about it. 328i is a mid 14 second car. Its no slow poke.

The thing is, the 328i can handle extremely well without sacrificing ride quality. Which is what I think the point of this thread was really about.

 

The 2003+ Accord V6 coupe has an optional 6 speed manual transmission....which makes it quite a different car vs. the automatic version when it comes to performance.

Trooper: Don't take the 328i for granted; it can give the 7G AV6 6MT all it can handle in a run off.

 

so 03+ auto trans in accord and tl are ok they corrected problems or still issues?

 

The tranny in my 07 AV6 never had any issues nor did it show any signs of any future problems.

 

^ I was just trying to come to the defense of the Accord since it was mentioned and snickered at. After looking at the 328s numbers more, I agree, I probably wouldn't run circles around it. In fact, it would be a relatively close match up interestingly enough. I thought they weighed a lot more than they do. But I do have to say that it's nice knowing that the car I invested less than $20k in can compete with a $40k car.

To be quite honest though, I think my Accord is twice the car a Mazda 3 is, and I can comfortably say that since I've driven a 3 and my boss owns one that I've been a passenger in at least once a week for the past 3 years. It's a great car, it just shouldn't be mentioned in the same breath as a 3 series.

 

semantics.


I'm talking about "historically" the 3 series has been known as the "poor man's BMW." And yes... I am getting totally off topic here.

 

My buddy owns an '08 328i, and my 3G TL is noticeably faster & handles better. We've taken a few roadtrips with both & he doesn't even bother playing around anymore. It could definitely be a driver's race but with comparable drivers the J32 wins.

Now if we're talking about the 8G Accord J35 w/ MT.. I think the 335i & M3 would have a match at the track. The TL-S recorded a faster lap time at Willow against the M3 (e92) & M5 (e60). The TL-S was slower than the M5 (e60) by 2.5s at the Streets of Willow though.

Willow Springs

Willow Springs - Streets of Willow



Regarding the "poor man's M3" My soon to be brother-in-law's gf drives a mazda 3s and I drove it the last time I visited them in LV. I was very impressed by it overall. It's inexpensive but it's still sporty, not anything anyone would take seriously but it's fun little car and it feels pretty roomy for being a small car. I definitely feel like there's more room in the mazda 3 than the 328i.. I've never driven a mazdaspeed3 but I'd definitely buy it over the 3 series value wise.. BMW M3 not included.. lol.

 

Guess that settles that.