p_hp_fan

brag.

Actuaries have a really high burn-out rate because it's dead boring.

Mercedes is hot.

Calcruzer

Good luck to you kotchian123--both with the new career and the new/old car choice.

P.S. Personally, p_hp_fan, this may seem a bit of a "brag" thread, but kotchian123 did provide helpful information to the others of us--so I think a bit of congratulations (especially here at Easter) is probably in-line.

tetrishead

If by hot you mean they produce awful cars under $50,000, then yes, they're hot.

kotchian123

tetris I just found a website with BMW 2002 M3 convertible on Sale for $31,500

- But it's a tad bit old. What do you think about this:

Used BMW, BMW Classifieds. New, Certified Pre-Owned, Used BMWs For Sale

I'm worried about the age of the car.

wolfpack12

If you're going to pay that much, I would just get a new car. But this one is good. Personally I prefer 5-speed. The mileage is not too bad. If you like it you should request some more photos.

In that case, yea they're hot, but not as hot as Lexus.

wolfpack12

And I agree with tetrishead about the saturn sky but only if you get the redline. I think the turbo helps a lot in that car because it has suprising power for a 4 cylinder 2 liter engine. IMO it looks a little bit better than the Solstice, but if you want to save money then the Pontiac Solstice GXP is cheaper for the same car. Sky just as better aesthetics.

p_hp_fan

lol. nice, wolfpack. I dunno, I just like mercedes.

Ugh, I hate the solstice...it's such a poser car.

wolfpack12

I don't like the Solstice either. I do actually like the Sky. They are the same car except for styling differences. The Solstice is ugly, and to my knowledge it is automatic only. Sky is probably the only Saturn I've ever liked.

tetrishead

I wouldn't be overly worried about age with some specific cars, in general older American cars are solid and European cars in the last decade hold together well.

The issue with the E46 was that there was engine failure with the S54's, I'm not sure if it was all of them, from 01->03. It's impossible to know how the car was broken in, and people had warranties extended to six years and I forget how many miles. This is a private seller, so it's not "certified preowned," and because of that I have no idea how a warranty will apply itself. As with anything car related, have a mechanic you trust take a look at it. Every car has issues, I wouldn't be worried, but if you have an issue with cars that are 6 years old I'd start looking only at certified cars from a dealership. Not because they'll be better, but because it's easier to sue a car dealership.

How good are you with cars, mechanically? I don't expect you to be a master mechanic, but if you have some understanding of what noises a car should and should not make, and you can do basic maintenance (brake rotors, oil, brake fluid, etc) I'd be less worried about buying a car from a private seller.
Yes and no. The LS used to be a Camry ripoff. Today it's a Camry ripoff with some nice added features (and major suspension modifications), making it a solid car. It's pedestrian, but that's what it's supposed to be, and it does it well. As far as major manufacturers go I'm a fan of Audi.
The Sky is infinitely better looking, it's not close. The Redline is a very nice small car for the price.
Mercedes makes wonderful vehicles, just at the high-end only. They're more responsible for the HP wars than BMW or Audi or anyone else. Anything they make below $50,000 is something I'd be comfortable calling garbage, though.

Mr Payne

Mercedes doesn't not make wonderful vehicles. They have mystique, but that's about it. Reliability is in the trash.

p_hp_fan

tetrishead: I concur.

wolfpack12

Exactly.

I have never been a lexus fan. I would prefer Mercedes to Lexus any day, but BMW is my favorite of the three. The LS used to be a Campry ripoff even when camrys sucked. Todays toyotas are very nice (even the corolla, imagine that.) and I can't see paying the extra money for Lexus. I can park my own car.

tetrishead

I could not disagree more, and Mercedes is my least favorite of the four major Germans (Porsche, VW->Audi, BMW). Generally, yes, they are overrated. Audi is underrated, BMW and Porsche are about right (although I consider the only true Porsches to be the GT2, GT3 RS and Carrera GT). The S Class does what it does incredibly well, and AMG is amazing. They do what anyone car enthusiast would do if he had money and a Merc: take big cars that can't handle, make suspension adjustments, biturbo and retune engines so the thing practically has more torque than heavy trucks.

And, despite my love for the R8 and certain Aston Martin offerings, if I had a choice to only have one car for everything and price was not a concern I'd get a C65 AMG. If that car was a woman I'd marry it. And you're right about reliability, the last decade has been horrible for Mercedes. They're doing better with newer models, but as you would expect, the sub-50k area cars are still pieces of junk.
I've never been a Lexus fan because they are antithetical to everything I believe: stick is the only way to drive anything other than a minivan or truck, handling and weight matter, room for engine modifications matter, a strong aftermarket matters. Lexus cars are boring, completely pedestrian, and as a result of their suspension tuning they are completely devoid of any road feedback. But they've gotten very, very good at being boring and completely pedestrian, and the changes in ride between the LS and the Camry are significant--as are the differences in the interior.

ish718

The part that confused me is when you said " the work is interesting"
How so?o0

VectorWega

Is it? I don't know. I got mine below cost due to family connections, so you don't want to know how much I paid for it. Regardless though, I wouldn't call a v6 mustang a "beast."

Really? I don't get this mindset at all. You just like throwing money down the tubes? Why not purchase a slightly used Mustang and save a lot of money? Just about everything would be identical including the body style and engine.

It seems that most of the reason to spend this money is for "prestige" but most people don't know the differences between various cars anyways. One of my buddies recently bought a used Lexus suv with low miles. It is very nice, and you can't even tell it is used.

BTW, you mentioned you will be making 75k..what part of the country will you be living in?