| Author | Message | ||
     Jeepinbueller |
Lots of gear heads herelots of Jeepers, too. After talking over the finances with the SO, I've decided that my beloved Jeep needs to be changed up to something with a little more space, more comfort, and better daily driving characteristics (like, not 15/18 mpg haha). Who would've thought a Wrangler on 37" tires would be anything but civilized! The plan was to get another beater car to commute in, but I tend to agree that I'm ready for a change... at 30 years old this past March, my '85 Cherokee, '99 TJ, and this '12 JK are the only vehicles I've owned. The point of posting was to gather opinions about sport wagons in the AWD variety: I have little knowledge, but I know the '07-'10 Subaru WRX wagon, Audi A/S 4/5/6 wagon, and VW are all super up my alley. My only "must haves" are AWD and manual transmission, under ~$20k. Any body fooled around with any of these type of vehiculars want to help steer me away from the grenades? The ole girl: http://www.badweatherbikers.com/cgibin/discus/show.cgi?tpc=4062&post=2443056#POST2443056 (Message edited by jeepinbueller on July 08, 2015) | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
Have you looked into the new little Diesel V6 that is offered in mopar/jeep? I hear that they are pretty good. | ||
| Aesquire |
My Subaru driving buddies all love theirs. The engine is excellent. Audi & VW don't have much room and repairs are very expensive. Work great though. My Sportwagen is a great handling car. Not awd or roomy though. | ||
| Airbozo |
I'll see your 15/18 mpg in your Jeep and lower you to 12/12 in my '75 FJ40... But the most fun I have ever had driving a vehicle. The SO loves her Outback Wagons. We have had 3 of them, all manual (got the only one on the lot last time). We tried the Outback sport (based on the same platform as the WRX chassis), but it sounded tinny and cheap, plus the first 2 sets of tires lasted only 2000 miles... We traded it in for the latest Outback wagon. A new one is not under $20k though, but a good used one can be had cheap especially if you want a stick. Seems most people who buy them want the lazy transmission (too hard to shift while you are chatting on the phone...). | ||
| Hootowl |
The only problem with a Subaru is that you'll be driving it forever.  | ||
| Pwnzor |
4.5 MPG  Not really a wagon, but it does hold stuff in the back. | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
4.5?! I think you need to patch the dime-sized hole in your tank! | ||
| Strokizator |
Foresters aren't as popular as the Outback and you may be able to pick up a lightly used one for under $20. My son-in-law owns a used car lot in Colorado and they pick up every Outback they can get their hands on at the auctions because there are so easy to resell for a good profit. | ||
| Fast1075 |
My Jeep Comanche on 38's with 5.13 gears and a 5.3 stroker motor got 11 MPG on the highway. But locked in in low range, it would pull down the gates of Hell, or spit parts trying. It tore the left side motor mount pad right out of the frame once playing on some rocks. | ||
| Kmbuell |
BMW X-Drive touring. Lots of fun, good mileage and with a little suspension tweaking is awesome in the twisties. My '01 325 (not x-drive) is pushing 300k, gets 26-31 mpg and scares my wife weekly! H&R springs and sway bars with Bilstien struts, 17" wheels with Michelin pilots and a ZHP bumper conversion. Great fun, and as it sits less than $5000 in it | ||
| Kgawdtsi |
I would look at a used Saab 9-2x aero. They are a rebadged WRX and can be had for for less than the WRX cause most people don't know about them | ||
| Mr_grumpy |
Dodge Magnum come in awd. That's a proper wagon. If you could get one in, I'd recommend an Alfa Romeo 159 sportwagon Q4, or crosswagon, with the 1.9 jtd multijet lump they tick all your boxes. You'll have to thank the California folk for their unavailability. | ||
| Newbuellertoo |
Had a Magnum with the Hemi. (RWD not AWD). 25 MPG on the highway, and long strips of rubber away from the stoplights whenever you wanted them!Loved that car! | ||
| Jeepinbueller |
I've seen the diesels used in the Liberty, Grand Cherokee, and Wrangler available stateside and in Europe up until now, and haven't been impressed. There's rumors of a Fiat diesel making its way into one of the upcoming generations of Wrangler, but it's going to be too new to fit in my budget. I've wanted a proper diesel in the JK for years. We just sold my girlfriend's '97 Civic for an '04 A4 Quattro which is super nice, and I'm learning the Euro maintenance quirks. Really like that car a lot. Some of you obviously have me well-beat in the MPG department... that is a sick International! I've never really thought of myself as owning a BMW, but those X-Drives are nice. If I can find an older 3xx or 5xx series with a stick, I could do that for sure. I didn't even know about the Saabura (9.2x Aero) until mentioned here and I gotta say that's a great alternative. Added it to the list. Not a huge fan of the Magnums... I worked at a MOPAR dealership and they just never really clicked for me. I don't think they're available in manual? The Hemi would be nice, though. I guess I wouldn't rule out the WRX hatchbacks, either. I just know I'd miss the vertical space if both my girlfriend and I had a sedan/hatch. Man this is hard. | ||
| 86129squids |
Matthew- LOVE the Scout! You and Vern should talk- he chased down one on a flatbed, en route to the crusher, and saved it! I had a hacked Travelall once... a real POS the way I got it, but hella fun to drive around. | ||
| Mr_grumpy |
From about 2012 the WK2 Grand Cherokee has the VM/FIAT diesel available. The WK up to 2011 has the Mercedes V6 diesel. The VM lump is reputed to be excellent, I've owned a number of vehicles with VM diesels & wouldn't hesitate to own another. Talking of MB, What about an E-Class Mercedes wagon with 4-matic? | ||
| Dwardo |
LT1 Buick Roadmaster. All you need if you want to haul a Cub Scout pack, some plywood, and tow a camper very fast. Lol.  | ||
| Fireboltwillie |
gotta say i love the look of the Cadillac CTS-sport wagon....  | ||
| Pwnzor |
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| Jeepinbueller |
Thanks for the diesel info, Grumpy. I've been following your updates, by the way: I like your writing. I think the thing steering me from the BMW of Merc route is the availability of a manual transmission with the AWD... seems a far fetch in my area. Drool for the S4/6, whatever it is. That is extremely delectable. | ||
| Jeepinbueller |
looky looky! still have to get my mechanic to give me the ok... '06 A4 Quattro wagon 2.0T 6-sp edit: forgot to add that if anybody knows what to look out for, let me know! 106k mi on the clock. I can tell the diverter valve needs to be replaced since it dumps boost at around 4-5k rpm under hard acceleration. Some vibes around 70 mph and a little flutter to the brake action, but I think all should be dealt with before the deal is done. The 2.0T is a strong motor--I like it over the 1.8T.  (Message edited by jeepinbueller on August 03, 2015) | ||
| Macbuell |
I had a Lexus IS300 Sportcross for many years. I loved that car ... until some things started breaking at over 150K miles. | ||
| Jeepinbueller |
Welp, I ended up with that Audi, thanks for the help guys! Got $21k for the JK, walked out the door with the A4 for $7500 and $3k cash. Edit: I should have thrown in that here that the lein on the JK had a $9700 buyout to begin with. Terms of purchase were the following work being done: New rear brake rotors & pads Replace timing chain/belt and water pump Replace key fob Replace camshaft seal and valve cover seal to keep oil consumption down (small seeps found) Oil/filter change, all air filters replace New diverter valve for turbo Check intercooler for turbo seal oil blow-by. Replace turbo seal if more than a tablespoon of oil is found. I feel good about that deal, this car is nice and a blast to drive! (Message edited by jeepinbueller on August 05, 2015) | ||
| Hootowl |
The timing belt/water pump job alone is worth $1600. You got a good deal. | ||
| Ratbuell |
...I'm partial to my old sport wagon....  Not exactly "nimble", but I've got a 5.7 EFI Hemi ready to go in, and DAMN it's cool! | ||
| Kwkride |
Nice project there Ratbuell. Here's my "sport" wagon.  | ||
| Uncle |
Coooool wagon Ratbuell. Are you doing some bodywork on the side? (removing some trim maybe)I seem to recall the sides being in paint before. | ||
| Newbuellertoo |
MOPAR or no car! | ||
| Ratbuell |
Trim was removed in the past. The gray is to mark the "pay attention" areas for a body guy. I'm the second owner, and I know every ding and every ounce of bondo on the car. Funny you post a Magnum, kwkride...that's where I sourced my hemi. Had an 05 R/T, i bought it new, got t-boned at about 30k miles and I bought it from the insurance just for this. | ||
| Buellish |
I had a '96 Volvo 850 wagon with a rare 5-speed manual and not quite as sporty as the Sweede,an '89 Mercedes 300TE estate that I lowered.Both were pretty cool wagons. |
