Oh and thank you for clearing the air nearwater4me. Excuse my ignorance.

This would be my only car so yes it would be my DD. Practicality is desired.

 

Personaly, i would get an sti or s4. 4 doors/ awd/ fun. I dont know where you are on the east coast, but here in nh i would not want to live with an s2k or e46 as a dd. Winter would be miserable.

 

Also, it's pretty fun to drive an AWD car and watch everybody else slide around while knowing you have grip to spare.

All of the following can be found on the used market in good shape for under 25k:
BMW 3 series xi
Audi A4/S4
Subaru Impreza/WRX/Legacy
Mitsubishi Evo

 

you might also look into the lexus is250 and is350...........you can get the rear wheel drive or all wheel drive option. excellent reliability and 4 doors for practicality and also some umpphhhhh

 

My buddy has a m35x and has had a great deal of performance modifications done, its quite quick and handles great.

Would this be an ideal awd sedan ?

Or is a g35x a better bargain ?

 

IS250's have no umph... if you are going to buy a base IS, might as well get the newest BMW 328's

 

looks like your more into the luxury. you should remember though, with that comes more maint. cost. I would get a Legacy GT if you were going to lean toward a G35x or M class. Not only is it cheaper to maintain, its AWD system is TONS better and IMO looks better. plus, you can mod it to go pretty darn fast.