Practical sporty car

bigshurv said:
... Audi's are cock's cars ...

That some of them may be, but a S3 sportback might just fit the bill, or even a superchipped TDi 170 quattro if you need fuel economy... my AUDI's have certainly been free of some of the basic faults I've seen mentioned on here & small niggly things on the Zed.

Best advice is to try everything... even if you walk away afterwards from an AUDI saying nah, cock's car
 
I have a 535D - brilliant car, but does not handle as nimbly as 3 series. If a 3 is big enough, try the 335D - stonkingly fast, quicker than my Z4 (in a straight line at least).
 
Audi S3 5dr! ideal for all the family + the dog :) over 30mpg (combined) and will still get you to 62 in under 6 seconds!
 
I can recommend the VW Passatt Estate 20l tdi sport (lowered, tinted windows,sports wheels and seats all standard). Excellent all rounder for the family, the dog, the pram and all the other stuff that you lug about with babies. Plus its not to hard on yr pocket which will leave you plenty of cash to splash out on nappies etc :wink:
 
Been here and done it.

When baby 1 was planned 2 years ago I got out of my hot hatch habit and traded in for an E90. It was fine at first while he was in a rear facing seat but as soon as he went into a front facing seat it was a right pain. I'm not overly tall at 6ft but getting him in and out the seat in the back was a nightmare. The doors are pretty small, they don't open very wide and the roof line slopes down too much to be able to lean in holding baby to get him in the seat so I had to kind of chuck him in with my head out the car. My wife found the same and she's only 5ft 8. We also found the boot a pain as the rear seats didn't fold and the rear wheel drive means the boot isn't huge.

Traded it for an A3 sportback and it was much better. Sadly it wasn't an S3 and I needed some excitement in my life. Recently sold that and put the money towards one of those Honda 4x4 things which is great for family duties. The higher ride height, bigger doors and high roof line at the rear doors mean it's great for getting kids in to seats. We now have another baby so a 2 year old and a 2 month old. The only criticism is that the seatbelts aren't really long enough to easily get the younger ones rear facing seat in without some serious faff and the boot isn't huge although wide and tall enough to pack a double buggy and gear for a weekend away. It was an exercise in cheap and practical that left me enough money for the Z so an all round win.

I suppose I'm trying to say that you probably won't find a car that does everything to a satisfactory level, especially given what you are used to. Split the budget and get something family orientated and something impractical and fun. Even if it means 2 older cars it will prevent you from looking out at the compromise parked on your drive and wondering where your life went wrong :thumbsup:

For the family banger check out the last shape Honda civic 5 door. It looks small outside but it's massive inside. The magic seats are fantastic (you can put a bike in upright across the back without removing wheels :o ) the rear doors open to 90 degrees and the boot is nearly twice the size of a Focus. It'll also run forever and is safe since that worries your wife. You can get a 1.8 pretty cheap so could even leave you with almost enough to keep the ///M.
 
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