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Luxury like cars under $18,000

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A G35 has no character and is like a Maxima?

Have you driven one? I owned an 05 G35S sedan and I loved that car. I own an 09 335i now and think the G35 is about 90% of the BMW. It definitely is not a characterless car.
 
G35 like a Maxima? I didn't know Maximas were RWD, for starters...

I'll add 2006+ Toyota Avalon. Same capabilities and power as the G35 aside from being FWD, but where the G35 focuses on attitude and sportiness, the Avalon is boring but more lush. The interior feels like a van without the middle seats; you feel like you're a mile away from the windshield in the front seat, and a mile away from the front seat when you're in the back seat. Has just about everything a loaded Lexus has for half the price.

The Avalon became it's own platform instead of just a marked up Camry, and is the highest end car to still carry the Toyota badge. In fact there was quite some controversy when the car came out, Toyota really pissed off a lot of Lexus owners.

Some might say it lacks character as typical of most Toyotas, but it's quite classy in a clean and understated way if you're not a label whore.
 
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halik said:
Also the Town Car is "american luxury" at best, definitely nowhere near world-class luxury. Cheap materials and fake wood everywhere.
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Most any luxury car short of something like a Bentley or Maybach is not going to have "real" wood interior. Lexus, Porsche, Mercedes, all simulated gloss plastic veneer inlays with sticky tape. You can find the OEM factory stick on trim packages just about anywhere, the same package they install when you purchase them as options for 1/10th the price.

Real wood requires tedious upkeep and is impractical in even an expensive luxury automobile. I don't recall ever seeing an ad for a used Mercedes where someone recently re-stained and wax sealed the real Rosewood interior per maintenance schedule.
 
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Caddy CTS or even STS v6


I have a 04 CTS and my BiL has a 05 STS (V6)

CTS is a little smaller and more sporty lux while the STS is a little bigger and more Lux.
 
bruceb said:
The Caddy is very nice and has lots of horsepower. Stay away from Jaguar as they will be expensive when repairs are needed (and they are now made by Ford) .. The Grand Maquis should be ok, if you like Ford / Mercury. If you go Chrysler, you may as well look for car with the Hemi as that would be fun to drive.
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Ford improved their reliability. However, they also sold them to Tata.
 
Some of the reasons the Lincolns are used for Livery and also police cars, are they are very roomy inside, have a huge trunk, handle decent for it's size, not too bad on economy and they don't seem to break down too much. Livery and police do not want cars that always need something fixed.
 
exdeath said:
G35 like a Maxima? I didn't know Maximas were RWD, for starters...

I'll add 2006+ Toyota Avalon. Same capabilities and power as the G35 aside from being FWD, but where the G35 focuses on attitude and sportiness, the Avalon is boring but more lush. The interior feels like a van without the middle seats; you feel like you're a mile away from the windshield in the front seat, and a mile away from the front seat when you're in the back seat. Has just about everything a loaded Lexus has for half the price.

The Avalon became it's own platform instead of just a marked up Camry, and is the highest end car to still carry the Toyota badge. In fact there was quite some controversy when the car came out, Toyota really pissed off a lot of Lexus owners.

Some might say it lacks character as typical of most Toyotas, but it's quite classy in a clean and understated way if you're not a label whore.
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elaborate plz
 
exdeath said:
Most any luxury car short of something like a Bentley or Maybach is not going to have "real" wood interior. Lexus, Porsche, Mercedes, all simulated gloss plastic veneer inlays with sticky tape. You can find the OEM factory stick on trim packages just about anywhere, the same package they install when you purchase them as options for 1/10th the price.

Real wood requires tedious upkeep and is impractical in even an expensive luxury automobile. I don't recall ever seeing an ad for a used Mercedes where someone recently re-stained and wax sealed the real Rosewood interior per maintenance schedule.
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my lexus IS has real wood trim.
 
exdeath said:
Real wood requires tedious upkeep and is impractical in even an expensive luxury automobile. I don't recall ever seeing an ad for a used Mercedes where someone recently re-stained and wax sealed the real Rosewood interior per maintenance schedule.
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calling BS right here, son. Real wood requires NO upkeep, as long as it's properly sealed. look at the decks on old sailboats. Those are exposed to about a million times more wear than any wood trim in a Rolls, and don't need to be sanded, stained, and sealed every freaking year.

Manufacturers use fake wood a lot because it's cheaper to produce, thats it. oh, and I know of at least a few bits on wood trim on Mercs that are, in fact, wood, such as the center console, iirc.
 
Can't shop this Segment without looking at an Audi A4. Going with the V6 gets you around a lot of the engine troubles that haunt the 1.8t/2.0t.

I've also seen some B6 Passats with the V6 in that price range. Very luxury oriented for a "non" luxury brand and that V6 is quick. Reliability isn't any where as bad as the VW nameplate suggests. V6 Passats are the best cars VW makes.
 
vi edit said:
Can't shop this Segment without looking at an Audi A4. Going with the V6 gets you around a lot of the engine troubles that haunt the 1.8t/2.0t.

I've also seen some B6 Passats with the V6 in that price range. Very luxury oriented for a "non" luxury brand and that V6 is quick. Reliability isn't any where as bad as the VW nameplate suggests. V6 Passats are the best cars VW makes.
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what engine issues have there been with the 1.8 and 2.0T? the only one i know of is engine sludge on the 1.8T, which is relatively easily cleaned.
 
exdeath said:
Most any luxury car short of something like a Bentley or Maybach is not going to have "real" wood interior. Lexus, Porsche, Mercedes, all simulated gloss plastic veneer inlays with sticky tape. You can find the OEM factory stick on trim packages just about anywhere, the same package they install when you purchase them as options for 1/10th the price.

Real wood requires tedious upkeep and is impractical in even an expensive luxury automobile. I don't recall ever seeing an ad for a used Mercedes where someone recently re-stained and wax sealed the real Rosewood interior per maintenance schedule.
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You're way wrong.

All real wood trim is wood veneer with gelcoat/epoxy on top of it (Bentley, Rolls etc included). Hop on you tube and look up the RR documentary, they have a spot on how they match the grain of the veneer etc. All the mbenzes and audis I've owned had the same wood veneer over gelcoat on their trim. The replacement piece for the doors of my CLK was $~250 at the dealer IIRC. Also none of them are sticky taped to anything, again you're confusing ebay wood trim kits with oem. The veneer on OEM application is bonded to a plastic or metal metal piece that holds the shape of the part and usually has stubs on the flip site to secure it into whatever.

Cheap / wanna be luxury marqes use simulated wood - basically plastic with some funky patterns. My parents' MKX has the fake wood as well... not bad looking, but one look is enough to realize it's fake.
 
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VinylxScratches, your list of cars varies so widely in focus and design. What exactly are you looking for? The Grand Marquis is a big bloaty boat. The Volvo S4 is the complete opposite - a compact FWD with a sportier ride.

You really need to narrow down what you are looking for in a car. Something floaty and comfortable, like an Avalon, Grand Marquis? Or something small and sportier like the G35, S40, or 9-3.
 
Bignate603 said:
Maybe you should do a little research before you talk about a brands reliability.

http://blogs.cars.com/kickingtires/...at-lexus-atop-jd-power-reliability-study.html

Jaguar beat out lexus for reliability
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This always blows my mind. GM is known to have a few quality issues, but their Buick division consistently has some of the most reliable cars. It's like GM has a bunch of independent teams that never talk to each other or share technology. One team can make reliable vehicles while some of the others make crap vehicles.

Some of the reasons the Lincolns are used for Livery and also police cars, are they are very roomy inside, have a huge trunk, handle decent for it's size, not too bad on economy and they don't seem to break down too much. Livery and police do not want cars that always need something fixed.
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Police departments get car companies to bid on contracts. The company with the lowest bid wins. When a horrible company like Chrysler wins the bid, cities like mine just keep the car whereas a more concerned department would actually test them and see what's up:
Chrysler fleet vehicles
Winning a contract does not mean the car works properly.
 
DVad3r said:
It's ok Ill pass. Where did they get those figures from? A small % of cars that were produced under Ford? What about the previous gen Jaguars or now the new ones?
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For that study they looked at issues cars had during their first 3 years of ownership, so the 2009 study I posted would be the results for cars from 2006. With the OP looking at used vehicles that's probably the age of vehicle that he'll be looking at.
 
help me buy a new accord said:
worse than a 750??
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i imagine the A8, 7series, and S class are all "equal" to some extent on the maintenance in that if you can afford the car you can afford the maintenance. the phaeton should be comparable to an A8.

a cool note about the phaeton - it has a dehumidifier built in so your windshield doesn't get fogged over. that's badass.
 
Fenixgoon said:
i imagine the A8, 7series, and S class are all "equal" to some extent on the maintenance in that if you can afford the car you can afford the maintenance. the phaeton should be comparable to an A8.

a cool note about the phaeton - it has a dehumidifier built in so your windshield doesn't get fogged over. that's badass.
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I really wish they would bring it back, its a sharp looking car thats incredibly competitive in the German home market. I remember when it first came out it sold more than the 7 or S class in Europe.
 
PhoKingGuy said:
I really wish they would bring it back, its a sharp looking car thats incredibly competitive in the German home market. I remember when it first came out it sold more than the 7 or S class in Europe.
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They showed it on Top Gear, I really want one but maintenance is gonna be a bitch.
 
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