Fun, good acceleration and handling, relatively quiet when cruising, reliable in compact or smaller mid size automobile

Thank you for Your input. Miata is too small and likely would not be a good choice in poor weather. I am 6foot two and tall broad in the upper body so I would be cramped in it. Nice sporty car for someone else.

Thank you for Your input. Unfortunately is too small and likely would not be a good choice in poor weather. I am 6foot two and tall broad in the upper body so I would be cramped in it. Nice sporty cars for someone else.

I appreciate the input on the altima. Altima is good car but they have dropped the manual and coupe in all trims.

Michael,


i appreciate your wisdom as always. I test drove the focus about 8 months ago. Fun to drive. Repair record not good, seat tightness and boy racer look a bit heavy for my taste. I sat very tight in it and had little room in the ricaro seats or shoulders.

Thanks for helping me eliminate Volkswagen. I went on repair pal. Service intervals are considerably more pricey for Volkswagen 4 cylinder turbo than turbos from Subaru. Ford, or Buick. VW reliability is not that good as a whole. My mechanics are not fond of their reliability. The VW Jetta SL is rated as less sporty than GTI than you were underwhelmed by.

Acura ILX 2.4 engine is not directed injected so it has less torque and a narrower power band than the direct injected 2.4 in the Accord. My opinion they should put the direct injected 2.4 in the Acura and try to tweak it to it to have a bit more top end horsepower than the version in the Accord to justify a more premium price for the engine.

I believe I have this down to four new autos unless I run into a fantastic deal used. Subaru WRX, Mazda 3 Kia forte, and Buick regal.

You stated on the regal: "But this is another car that technically handles well, but that isn't very engaging to drive." It what ways was it not engaging: steering, peaky engine, turbo lag?Buick regal may be a bit larger than needed. but very much worth checking out.


If I buy new I want a vehicle that I very likely enjoy for five years minimum. New car goofs sometime happen but they are expensive and saddening. Fortunately I have not had one.

Thanks,

Paul

Good suggestion, I will speak to may autobody man about this. One has to be careful and not void part of new car warrantee or to actual encourage rust by clogging drain holes or promoting rust in any way. My car budget is better by keeping my 2003 Honda accord coupe for 11+ years.

Mustang is rear wheel drive and thus not a good choice in bad weather. You are right it fits most of the other criteria.

I took the Subaru WRX out for a long test drive last night. Spirted fun to drive car. Interior improved and nice simple interior design. with much more soft touch materials. Major complaints: car is noisy at any speed. Six gear on the manual should be longer. Car is reving at 2500 arount 65 to 70 mph. I will test drive the Mazda 3s soon.

I have a question on engine noise. How much noisier are regular fours, direct injected fours and turbo fours than a typical six cylinder engine at cruising speed. I realize that engine revs in a four cylinder must go up to match the output of the six but wouldn't engine noise be more a function of total number of cylinder firings per minute and not whether they are coming from a four or six cylinder engine? Since a direct injected four produces more power over most of the rev range than a regular four, I would expect it to be quieter than a regular four. I have only drove two turbos in my life and they were both four cylinders a Volkswagen GTI and the WRX. If the six cylinder is normally quieter, why is it quieter. Thanks for your help. I could not find the answers on the internet.

I have not test drove Verano Turbo yet, Reviews indicate car is quick, quite, relatively heavy for it size, somewhat cramped front seating, and no fully independent rear suspension. Regal is larger than what I want.

Michael,

Thanks for the excellent knowledge.


Paul

Ordering a manual 2015 Suburu WRX premium today. Some of the increased road noise maybe the summer tires. I will try different tires with the vehicle. Thanks to everyone for their input and help.

Paul Sundell

A little over three weeks ago, I put an order in for a 2015 WRX manual premium trim level. I will receive it in a few weeks. Car has excellent handling, is quick, and fun to drive. Car offers better handling and power than four cylinder versions of most competing vehicles. Car has good room for a compact and interior is improved over previous versions. Major negative is that the car is noisy. Hopefully choosing quieter tires will help. Thanks everyone for the input. It helped.