Toronto S5

Hi everyone, the search continues. One I forgot to mention on this list was the Acura TSX. Understand there's more leg room than the IS 250. It's less expensive than the IS 250 and the Germans also.

Anyone have any views on this?

pnamueller

I think the TSX is a great car when you get the 6mt, not so much when you get the auto trans. The TSX handles great, gets great mileage and the quality of matierials they use is very nice. In my opinion, the TSX is a great drivers car with the manual but is lacking in HP. The V6 option is cool but i think it upsets the balance of the car. The tsx feels bigger than the IS and handles well for a front driver, but the IS is RWD. If your GF dosent care about handling balance at the limit, the TSX is a great alternative because its about 5-7k cheaper. The A4 IMO is better over all not only because of the power, but the auto trans is not bad. I have a 6mt a4 and I love it.

gunsmoker

I hear MonzaA5 coming to defend the tiptronic
5.6s 0-60 and A4 without the sport suspension having a better handling than the new 328i - don't know what those folks from C&D have been smoking. Good transmission nonetheless.

gat821

I replaced a 2004 TSX with the A4, and have had the chance to drive up to the 2011 TSX with various loaners. Its a nice car, handles pretty good, though the steering is not as good in the 2nd gen TSX compared to the 1st. Not quite as precise and less feel. I would say interior materials are a step down from the German makes. Not that its bad, just not as good. Do note that though HP isn't far off from the A4 (201 vs 211), torque is another story (170 vs 258). So not nearly as strong in typical daily rpm range.

gman123

My wife has a G37 Coupe and loves it.
She will always keep it, even though we have 3x cars for 2x drivers.
She also loves my A4 Quattro.
For rainy/bad weather the Quattro is a win, just can't beat the AWD.
As for BMWs, my dad has had 3x of them, and swears they are the best cars made.

When I went w/ my 2012 A4, I was also heavily considering the following:
MB C250 Sports Sedan
Lexus IS 250
Subaru WRX Sti
Mitsubishi EVO

The EVO and WRX are nice, but a little more glitz than I was looking for.

My 2 cents, go with the A4, G37, Lexus IS.
None of these will disappoint.

For me, I would either take the Lexus IS or A4 Quattro.

gunsmoker

Your wife is a keeper

2012A4Q5Owner

I test drove a late model MB C300. To me that car was like a heavy, slow tank. I loved the exterior. As soon as I test drove the car, I am now glad I bought the A4. The A4 feels like such a light and nimble car. I never thought I'd like the interior in the Audi over something made by Mercedes Benz. Everyone who has rode in our Audi's has complimented how nice the interior is. A lot of Audi's seem to age well. Just for kicks and grins, I decided to go on Auto Trader and see how the 10+ year old Audi's held up. Many of them look really good after the test of time. The paint jobs on many still looked shiny and new. The only thing I've really read about Audi's was the earlier models with CVT. I saw a BOATLOAD of horror stories regarding $7,000 and up repair bills on low mileage Audi's just out of warranty. Just go to Google and type in "Audi CVT Problems" and read the horror stories on Edmunds.

I'm so glad mine has the new 8 speed. The main thing I've noticed is that it's not as aggressive and torquey without pushing the pedal down hard and putting it into "S" mode. I've also noticed that if I am doing about 65-70 MPH and floor it, once it hits about 4,000 RPM, it no longer continues to pull hard as when it goes from 30 MPH to 60 MPH. I had a 2007 BMW X3 that would pull hard all the way to 100. I am guessing that I am long overdue for an APR ECU update as well as many a cold air intake and exhaust change. I had the same problem with an LT1 Camaro. The fun factor was all up to 4,000 RPM. Once I changed the throttle body and put a new exhaust, the engine woke up and would pull hard all the way to 6,000 RPM's with no problem.

When I am scooting around in low speed traffic, the car does have its moments and is a lot of fun to drive.

perdido34

I test-drove the G37x in 2010. I thought the throttle response was very difficult to modulate in street traffic and sounded rough under acceleration. It handled well and was comfortable. The rear seat did not fold down, which is a feature that you will sorely miss on the day you need it!

I test-drove the 2010 3-series, which I liked in many ways. However, it was much more cramped than the A4 (the new model is roomier, from what I read), and it had those expensive and hard to find run-flat tires.

2012A4Q5Owner

Yeah, replacing those runflat tires gets old. I know my brother (who makes a healthy 6-figure income) had an SSR and he pissed and moaned when he had to shell out nearly $2000 for a set of tires. He promptly got rid of the car. He could easily afford the tires, but apparently, just because you can afford it doesn't mean you want to spend it.

I personally like the acceleration on the BMW more than my A4 (I am hoping an APR ECU update in the future will fix this issue! ). But then again, I am averaging mid 20's for MPG in mostly urban traffic. With my last fill-up costing $4.29/gallon, it makes me glad that I bought an Audi with a 2.0T instead of a BMW with a V6. My last long highway trip I was able to go 479 miles on 14 gallons of gas. Audi also gave us much lower interest rates where other car dealers wanted to give us rates in the teens. That's one of the things that turned me into getting an Audi. BMW was just too picky about your FICO score. On our Q5 we got 2.9% with not so perfect credit through Audi finance. We would have never gotten this vehicle without that.

I have not test drove the new BMW's coming out with the 4 cylinder turbo's, so I wonder how those compare. At least Audi has been making 4 cylinder turbo's for a very long time and has learned from previous problems.

ocean48

Glad someone look at a subaru. Sorry guy, you could of also look at the forester xt. If you didnt like sti. Evo are fast but not as reliability as subaru.

I got the quattro after i got the 09 subie.

AWD !!!!!!! FTW!!!!!!!!