Sports car for wife...any ideas?

[UH-60Pilot]

So I asked my wife what kind of car she would like other than the mini van. She said she liked the look of the Audi TT, 2007 and newer. I think she would like a Porsche Boxster, but unsure of reliability. She said "NO" to a Mini Cooper S, so that's not an option. Price has to be under $20K. Here's a list of cars I can think of:
1. Audi TT
2. Porsche Boxster base or S
3. 350Z
4. Mercedes SLK 350
5. Mazda Miata
6. Porsche 996/911 (02-04)

I know theres more, but she wants something so a ford mustang is out of the question. Corvettes are off the list too.
I drove an 2009 Audi TTQuattro S-tronic transmission. It was a nice car, but im concerned about the reliability of the DSG transmission. Any input guys?

[mattster03]

I would prefer a G35 over a 350Z personally.  Maybe add an S2000 to the list?  How about a BMW M3?

[digitalsolo]

Stay away from those Porsches unless you want to deal with IMS bearings.

The Audis will likely be maintenance whores as well unless you get one with LOW miles.   The Merc would be okay, as would the Nissan.   BMW are maintenance whores also, but cheaper and easier generally.

[UH-60Pilot]

I would prefer a G35 over a 350Z personally.  Maybe add an S2000 to the list?  How about a BMW M3?

yeah G35/37 would be good. She does not like S2000's, and I already owned a E46 M3...great car though. Might get another one.

[UH-60Pilot]

Stay away from those Porsches unless you want to deal with IMS bearings.

The Audis will likely be maintenance whores as well unless you get one with LOW miles.   The Merc would be okay, as would the Nissan.   BMW are maintenance whores also, but cheaper and easier generally.

I heard the bearing issue was only certain years. I'm not a boxster fan, and My wife sort of like them. I have not looked into many of the BMWs. I cant find one she really likes, although she did like my 05' M3 

[cholmes]

I've talked to a few people with the Audi TT, as I was looking at them for a wife car, too. Everybody said they break often and expensively, that they'd never buy another.

So I bought her a Chrysler Crossfire. Nice car, but also a maintenance whore (what German car isn't?), and an orphan: Chrysler dealerships won't touch them because they're basically a Mercedes, and Mercedes dealerships don't like them because they're a lowly Chrysler. I ended up solving a recurring ABS problem on my own, and the FSM was almost no help.

If you're set on a German car, make sure it's well under 100k miles, IMHO. Otherwise the constant repairs will drive you crazy.

[UH-60Pilot]

Thanks for the info. what year Audi's are you referring to? I thought the MKII TT was more reliable.

I've also looked into the crossfire, but my wife does not care too much for it.

[largeorangefont]

another G35 vote.

You can get a c5 vette in your price range though.

[cholmes]

I don't know what years the TTs were. I just walked up to people getting out of them, mostly at gas stations and stores, and asked about them. This was about 2 years ago. As long as the cars were virtually new, they liked them. Over 2 or 3 years old, they were looking to get rid of them because of problems.

[priceless]

Im pretty sure the bearing in the Porsche's were a problem until 08.

The SLK would be nice.  If you could find and 03-04 AMG SLK32 that would be badass.  Supercharged V6. They are pretty rare though.Different body style than the 350.

[gnx7]

All European cars around 80-100K mile need the front suspension bushings replaced.  It's normally cheaper to just get the entire arm.
Window regulators go bad.... $400-600.  '99-08 Porsches have crankshaft issues... unless it was the Turbo version.
350Z and G35 are good cars... they didn't hold their value well because there are a zillion of them for sale.
Mazda Miata will handle great and probably be the most reliable.  They did make a hardtop automatic convertible which she may prefer.  Adds some weight.

1. Audi TT   prepare for some serious maintenance as noted  They are really fun though with a tune to make the turbos sing better
2. Porsche Boxster base or S
3. 350Z
4. Mercedes SLK 350
5. Mazda Miata
6. Porsche 996/911 (02-04)

[Mik3ymomo]

I will throw my vote behind the Boxster S. The car is a blast to drive. The S has adequate power for most. The open air car is nice and it's a classic design that she will enjoy driving and feel special like she is wearing a new designer pair of Clogs or whatever they wear these days...

IMS failures are few but if it worries you pick up a certified car with warranty.

Also check out the BMW leases. BMW heavily subsidizes their leases and all new cars come with free maintinence (everything but tires) and you can get her a Z4 or M235 etc for a similar payment as buying what you are looking at. Also no surprises with a warranty and free maint.

[jparker7]

Id get an Audi S4 or a CTSV.  If it had to be one of the cars on your list a 350z or g35 is your best bet but I've always wanted a 911 turbo.   

[digitalsolo]

FWIW, my research on IMS failures put them at around 6-8%.    That's actually kind of a lot for something that will trash an engine that costs 30-40% of the price of the car.    That said, there are options to fix the issue and that issue is why that generation of Porsche is relatively cheap.   If you're comfortable spending 1000-1500 bucks and some labor to resolve it, they are pretty damn reliable afterwards.    I spent a while looking at that generation of Porsche (though I'm not a Boxster fan) a little while back.

EVERY Audi is a maintenance whore though.   Generally with nasty, engine shit that sucks to work on.    Every BMW I've owned (with a BMW engine, my MINI being a whore doesn't count, it's French) has only ever had suspension and stupid electronic issues.   Annoying, but generally cheap and pretty easy to work on.   Same with most Merc' stuff, though engine electronics are $$$ if they die.   Mercs are generally pretty good about that unless you get something high zoot (AMG) though.

Japanese stuff is generally less problem prone, though my G35X started to have some transmission misbehavior right at 100k miles.    The Miata would basically NEVER die and likely never break anything costing more than 500 bucks.

[UH-60Pilot]

I will throw my vote behind the Boxster S. The car is a blast to drive. The S has adequate power for most. The open air car is nice and it's a classic design that she will enjoy driving and feel special like she is wearing a new designer pair of Clogs or whatever they wear these days...

IMS failures are few but if it worries you pick up a certified car with warranty.

Also check out the BMW leases. BMW heavily subsidizes their leases and all new cars come with free maintinence (everything but tires) and you can get her a Z4 or M235 etc for a similar payment as buying what you are looking at. Also no surprises with a warranty and free maint.

Yeah i'm leaning towards the Porsche Cayman base, although I would prefer the "S" model. My wife wont really notice the difference. I test drove one today. It was a fun car to drive. I have never driven a Porsche, now I can see why they get such reviews.

I'm trying to stay away from leasing. $3,500 due at signing and 330 buck a months for 39 months= over $16K. Just does not seem worth it.