darcyw

I've heard this too often. "I can't buy a manual because my wife/cousin/girlfriend/boyfriend/dog can't drive one and can't/won't learn."

Poppycock! Don't compromise unless buying 3 pedals means you'll be paying alimony- but then, you're in a world of hurt otherwise before buying your next car if that's the case.

buy a manual shift that you can enjoy. She can drive whatever else you have or buy. Too bad already. A manual vehicle shows your customer base that you are an enthusiast. I respect that. Don't compromise. by taking the enjoyment out of your life, your wife will also lose a little about you as well.

That being said, here's my opinion which has no basis in anything other than my opinion.
1. the new lexus' look like shit- the front ends look stupid- you can take that too the bank.
2. golf R is godlike- you buy the manual version- see below
3. Chevy SS is wicked good and about to be cancelled because that's what GM does- makes a cool car available with a real transmission, then stops production.

So, I'd buy the GolfR with manual and the F150 for her (and you can borrow it from time to time).

darcy

ps. TommyDevito is my new hero,

Moddiction

Yeah I'll see what I do. I may just deal with 3 cars for now. I really have enjoyed this Mustang 5.0. Especially now that' it's modded quite a bit.

she would drive the truck but not thrilled if that was the only auto car. I guess 3 cars may be the only way to go about it right now.

I really want to drive a Golf R though. I've heard great things! I'd get a ton more use out of my fun car if it had 4 doors.

TommyDeVito

Same predicament as me. Coupe is no can do right now, not yet. I drove all the trucks last year. The EB 2.7 and 3.5 are nice, and 3.5 has balls, but they literally handle like shit and I couldn't stand to DD one. A WRX premium is 27-28k, awd, 4 doors, and manual. It's the best bang for the buck thing out there imo. Golf R or Focus RS, add 10k+. I am having a hell of a time picking a winner right now and I have to get something in April. WRX or STi leads the pack currently and I have a WRX on order. I just miss my diffs in bad weather, but the damn EJ scares me. The truck MPG ain't no good neither. WRX has the FA and solid mpg for a DD. I just like the boxer motor if 4 banging, love awd for dd, and Subaru along with Tesla make the safest chassis out there in a hard crash. If old Elon had my model 3 ready right now I wouldn't even have a decision to make. Early deposit of mine don't mean shit right now though.

Moddiction

What about Focus RS? I'd definitely rather one of those over WRX or sti.

Yeah the trucks definitely arent great handlers but there have been so many times I've wished I had a truck. The MDX with sh awd handles really well but 3rd row has been useless. No parts market for it as well so plan to get rid of it asap. No other SUV I can think of really has a big part market. Maybe a keep grand Cherokee srt8 or something. Not sure if there is much of a market there or not.

TommyDeVito

Focus RS has no spare/doughnut tire, and no place for one. You get a jack and a can of fix a flat. So a tire gets gets f'd up, especially the sidewall, it's toast and it is flatbed time. For me that means I cannot go on any trips with it. And it means if driving to work, instead of being 30 minutes late could be hours late. Being stranded is not my cup of tea. Plus dealers still wanting full sticker for one. I can get an Subaru for a little under invoice. The RDU likes to over heat during track sessions. and shits the rear axle down making it fwd only. It's also too stiff. And lastly boxer > inline 4 to me.
Even with all that I did try and buy one, 5k adm at the time. Now they can be had at sticker. Salesman called me last week they he had one where a guy backed out. Sticker was 42k and some change, to me that's overpriced. They jammed an awd setup in a car designed for fwd only. Drivetrain has compromises also. And if you look at circuit times, it's not any faster than a STI. Golf R is quite nice but they want full sticker, and the cheapest one you'll find is 40k. I had one VW and it was enough. I can get a STi for 34k, wrx for 28k. Golf R or Focus Rs gonna be 40k plus tax. And the RS has no camber adjustment. No spare tire. Golf R has a space for a spare, it doesn't come with one, but there is room. If you buy the spare on your own, amen want to mount it factory, like the European version, extra $500 on top of MSRP to handle all that. Subaru crash ratings are better, have much better resale value. and cost less.

white98ls

Not to dictate anyone else's relationship or anything, but if you're the one driving a manual 90%+ of the time, you deserve to have that IMO. My wife also doesn't drive MT (I did give her a lesson in the S2k, and she did quite well, but has shown no further interest). But she has her car and can drive whatever she wants. I'm not going to be dissatisfied and bored every day just so she can occasionally drive it if she wants. And we've lived together for almost 3 years without her ever having to drive one of my cars, which have all been manual (2 at once, in fact).

We even have an annoying tandem garage (one in front of the other, so one blocks the other car in) and I STILL disregarded the excellent DCT in the M3 and got one with a stick. I didn't even consider the DCT, although I did drive one to be sure of my conviction.

If she really has a problem with it, she should learn how to drive one. I'm sorry but I don't buy that she can't. The vast majority of Europe and other countries drive stick regularly, so much so that the rental cars there are even manual. Unless you're missing a limb, you're capable.

Don't mean to judge or offend. Just don't want you to end up spending a lot on a car you're not happy with,

mosesbotbol

We are starting to look at convertible model M3's to replace our S60 this year. Manual is a tough sell for my gf, but I guess an automatic would be fine. I'd prefer the V8 model and looks like there's plenty to choose from. Limited color selection.

freq

4 door and M3 is redundant at this point if you're talking F80.

They are beasts but can still be a fantastic everyday vehicle. DCT is brilliant.

s.hasan546

very stiff. i'd rather DD a golf r

CosmosMpower

Unreliable turd