PilotKD

I've been leasing my '04 for the past 3 years with abit less than a year left on the contract. My dilemma is that the car is going to have significantly less mileage on it than I've been paying for because I haven't driven it as much as I thought I would. I went with a 48mo/60k mile lease and with less than a year left I've got 29,8xx miles. There is no way I'm going to put 30k miles on the car in less than a year (maybe another 12-15k), so I'm basically faced with giving the car back with less mileage than I payed for or buying the car ($17,500 or so).

Over the past few months I started to think that I was going keep the S2000 because I love the car and I'd just add a 3rd car to the family. Something used, better in inclement weather and with more cargo room. I have recently relocated, will be commuting longer distances to work and the wife and I have been talking about adding our first "little one" to the family, so the S2000 obviously isn't the best choice for a daily driver anymore. I had narrowed down my search to an '02-03 Subaru WRX Wagon for my 3rd car. I've never been a big fan of the Scooby styling, but my aesthetic standards for a more utilitarian vehicle are a bit lower. Unfortunately, it's hard to find these things unmolested with less than 60-70k milese without having to pay $14-15k for a 4-5 year old car. Besides that, insurance on these things is rediculous. I got a quote from USAA for $700 a year to add an '03 to my policy and my wife and I both have a clean record and will be 30 years old this in the next few months. Too many ricers cracking their 400hp WRX's up I guess.

I digress: A few days ago I saw one of the new VW GTI's. It was done up with mild exterior mods and who knows what under the hood. I must say I was very attracted to the car. I've always been cynical about VW's reliability and styling, but the new GTI is very nice IMO. Add to that, the fact that I could get one fully loaded for about $26-27k and with a simple $600 ECU remap, intake and exhaust can have about 250hp/300ft-lb tq, make this car even better. So now I've been thinking about just getting new car and forgetting about the Subaru. I may even try to sell the S2000 early.

Has anyone here driven a new GTI or own one? I'm not expecting this car to replace the S2000 because there's not much out there south of $50,000 that will, but if you had to get something that was still "sporty", but had more room, what would it be?

Saki GT

I have not driven the new GTI, but as far as Subarus are concerned, I'd take a Legacy GT over an STI. You can buy a used one and easily modify the engine for STI power, and the insurance is probably cheaper.

CKit

Maybe add the money you'd get for turning in the S2000 to the money you would have paid for a WRX and get an STi?

Chris S

I don't have any behind the wheel experience w/ a GTI, but my wife's '06 TDI Jetta has been surprisingly trouble-free. VW interiors blow away the competition in their price classes, and the DSG tranny is badass.

In that price range, I'd also checkout a Mazdaspeed 3 and a Civic Si.

It may be too late, but Saab is giving away the last Saabarus (re-badged WRX wagons) left in inventory. A friend just bought one...I forget the exact #'s, but IIRC it was discounted from around $29K to $22K, and it's really nice. Shouldn't have the insurance hit of the similar Subaru-badged original, either, since Saabs aren't exactly popular for street racers or ricers. If you're interested, you can view their remaining inventory online.

FrostyWinters

With VW, reliability is hit or miss. Like Chris S said, my previous car, an 05 Jetta GLI, had been amazingly trouble free save for some annoying rattles. However, my wife's 04 Golf TDI had experienced several electrical problems (moonroof motor, remote/power lock control module), malfunctioned door handles and numerous rattles.

With that said, there are two options for you on the S2000. 1. Sell your car yourself and pay Honda back whatever the buyout quote is. 2. Do an early turn in, and pay Honda the remaining payments. With your mileage on the car, selling the S yourself would be a better choice.

Now, WRX vs. GTI. Given my experience with VWs, I would go with WRX over GTI anytime. AWD, extensive mod parts, and reliability. WRX is a no-brainer, at least for me. Oh BTW, you can get a brand new WRX for 22k as well, with the new 2.5 motor.

DaveOnLI

I see you just moved to NJ - have you already changed over the insurance on the cars you moved with? NJ does have some of the highest rates in the country. Does the insurance quote on the WRX seem out of line compared to those cars? I dont think $700 a year is bad at all. I've got an '03 Camry that I'm paying $800/yr. I'm 38/Married/multi-line discount (home & life)/multi-car discount.

BBY2KS2K

I've driven the new GTI and from a driver's standpoint was very impressed. I test drove literally minutes after test driving the new Civic Si (the local Honda and VW dealer are next to each other) It's a nice balance between comfort and sport. It's a nice quiet car that has plenty of power (especially in the lower RPMs compared to the Civic) and the clutch/shifter and brakes were smooth, something the Civic was not.(to it's credit, the Civic had 3X miles on the odo while the GTI had several hundred so the Civic was not broken in) Also the road noise in the GTI is much, much better than the Civic Si was. The interior is nicely finished too but I thought the entry level GTi's with the "retro" interior looked cheezy. Still it was better than the Civic Si. The only thing that concerns me is VW's reliability. I've never had an unrelaible car, but I know it would drive me crazy.

NFRs2000NYC

Wouldnt a used R32 be a better buy? 4WD and all?

mstupp

If you have a 6 month time frame and you decide on a Subaru, joining the Mt.Washington observatory for $45 offers a chance to take advantage of their partnership with Subaru and supposedly get a big discount on a new car. I don't know if it is any better than negotiating on your own. I'm just passing on the information in case it is useful.

http://www.mountwashington.org/about...hip/subaru.php

j03chu

s2k to a gti? i'd think downgrade. no offense. but if you're growing into european cars + luxuary, i guess... get the "rabbit" edition gti's if you end up with gti's.

i'd personallygo for something else..