petes99 Posted May 9, 2014 Share Posted May 9, 2014 I'm sitting on a fence - to sell or keep my LGT. Its not a fun place to be, but logic and finances have brought me here. That aside - What can replace this car? Today's wagon market simply does not exist - its absurdly upsetting to me. And this guy - . I want a car that's affordable, fun to drive, manual, has the utility to haul family, dog and gear. Its not a terribly long list of needs.. but it seems like nothing can fit this bill (aside from an BMW/Audi which I cannot afford). I'm almost willing to forego things like heated seats and my awesome sunroof.. and even AWD. GTI? TSX Wagon? Mazda3? (and yes, the real answer is a new Mazda 6 wagon, which does not exist in the states, so that's out!) Has anyone replaced their LGT wagon with something with just the "right blend" of features like this car has? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted May 9, 2014 Share Posted May 9, 2014 Your only option in a reasonable price range for a new car is the VW Jetta wagon if you're looking for an actual wagon and not a hatch back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grocery getter Posted May 11, 2014 Share Posted May 11, 2014 what is your budget Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robinlsb Posted May 11, 2014 Share Posted May 11, 2014 Your only option in a reasonable price range for a new car is the VW Jetta wagon if you're looking for an actual wagon and not a hatch back. 0-60 8 plus seconds:mad: "Belief does not make truth. Evidence makes truth. And belief does not make evidence." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lingling1337 Posted May 11, 2014 Share Posted May 11, 2014 May I suggest a swapped 02 bugeye wrx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robinlsb Posted May 12, 2014 Share Posted May 12, 2014 The current price of a 2005 LGT wagon manual should give you an idea. A car that sells for almost the 50% of the retail price in 2005. (almost 10 years old) gives you an idea of just how unique these cars are:) "Belief does not make truth. Evidence makes truth. And belief does not make evidence." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators BarManBean Posted May 12, 2014 Moderators Share Posted May 12, 2014 Every time I've really thought seriously about replacing my outback (05, but only 7x,000 miles so no real need to replace) I've come to the conclusion that the only real option to "replace" it is to split it into two vehicles--a daily driver and a "sports car" of some sort--miata, s2000, whatever, something that just isn't really practical. "Bullet-proof" your OEM TMIC! <<Buy your kit here>> Not currently in stock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rice_rocket Posted May 12, 2014 Share Posted May 12, 2014 Yes.. why are you trying to sell it... and what is your new budget? My friend has a diesel VW wagon.. loves the gas mileage etc.. but it's FWD and slow.. but it's for the wife with the kid.. so it's acceptable. Why not look into crossover SUV etc? If you're in MA and you can't settle on the speed portion, don't give up the AWD part.. FXT? I guess we're back to your budget again.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petes99 Posted May 12, 2014 Author Share Posted May 12, 2014 Budget isn't steep, but it does depend on what's available. Paying for the wife's 2013 Outback 3.6R right now - and I've been in no-payment land for years with the LGT (which.. is.. awesome). I'm pondering selling mainly due to its age - simply put, its getting old, and as such repairs are getting both longer and more expensive. My schedule can't handle 2+ day visits to my mechanic very often. Its been a solid car - literally the best I have ever owned.. and can fetch a good price still. That is another reason I may move it - it has been a great investment, and sometimes you just need to move on. But of course, I can't sell it if I can't replace it first. I've considered the JSW.. test drove one before going with the 3.6R.. but god, its just so boring. That's leading me towards the 4dr GTI (which impressively has more rear legroom than the LGT). I could sacrifice some space and AWD for the fun (and snow tires). Crossovers/SUVs have been considered.. but its really hard to give up a speed, manual, AND good decent handling. I may have to go back to that idea, but I'm trying not to.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robinlsb Posted May 13, 2014 Share Posted May 13, 2014 Get a Miata and a family mover:) "Belief does not make truth. Evidence makes truth. And belief does not make evidence." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spartan Posted May 13, 2014 Share Posted May 13, 2014 Volvo V60R? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petes99 Posted May 14, 2014 Author Share Posted May 14, 2014 Volvo V60R? cool car.. price is likely out of my reach. and auto only huh? why does this keep happening to "sport wagons" somewhat considering the Focus ST now too. . . kinda concerned on the backseat though. we had an '11 Impreza (OBS) before the 3.6R and the passenger seat was literally tilted forward with the "baby bucket" in the back. I can't deal with that silliness again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StoplightAssassin Posted May 15, 2014 Share Posted May 15, 2014 A lowered Forester XT sounds like your best bet for now if you value utility over ultimate performance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
05GT Guru Posted May 15, 2014 Share Posted May 15, 2014 Get an old caprice classic estate wagon. Drop a big block in it with a t56 trans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petes99 Posted May 16, 2014 Author Share Posted May 16, 2014 Heh - i like that idea Guru. There's an 06 Outback 3.0r LLBean locally with low miles.. I might check it out. I don't find the auto in our 3.6R (even with the "paddles" - ha) particularly thrilling - does the previous generation have a little more spunk? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
05GT Guru Posted May 16, 2014 Share Posted May 16, 2014 Heh - i like that idea Guru. There's an 06 Outback 3.0r LLBean locally with low miles.. I might check it out. I don't find the auto in our 3.6R (even with the "paddles" - ha) particularly thrilling - does the previous generation have a little more spunk? No Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
05GT Guru Posted May 16, 2014 Share Posted May 16, 2014 Didn't they make outback XT with a manual until like 2009? I know it's still 5 years old but it's an option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stm25rs Posted May 16, 2014 Share Posted May 16, 2014 Didn't they make outback XT with a manual until like 2009? I know it's still 5 years old but it's an option. Yes, they're pretty rare though. Only 12 Manual OBXTs on autotrader right now in the whole country, and only 4 of those are under 60k miles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
05GT Guru Posted May 16, 2014 Share Posted May 16, 2014 Not as rare as a LGT wagon 5 speed MT and he has one of those. Just have to be patient. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petes99 Posted June 17, 2014 Author Share Posted June 17, 2014 Today's plan: give up my apparently crazy desire to own a wagon.. and get a Mazda CX-5 GT as the daily. It has all the toys and utility, handles fairly well, but loses the manual transmission. Maybe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rice_rocket Posted June 17, 2014 Share Posted June 17, 2014 They are nice cars.. the Mazdas. My wife's CX9 has a lot of bells and whistles. We got the "regular" version. They only have a "sport" which is stripped down... a regular one.. and the GT. When we were looking the GT cost about 6K more, it did add a lot of other cool things, but we didn't want to do the 6K more. I'm not 100% sure on the CX5. But on the CX9 it was: sunroof, chrome trim, bigger wheels, fog lights, led DRL, power lift gate, navigation (it still has a backup camera even if you don't get this..) HID lights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rice_rocket Posted June 17, 2014 Share Posted June 17, 2014 I got bored myself.. and went with a 2008 BMW 535xi sedan. really really.. sweet There was a 535xi wagon MT for sale, but it disappeared in a day or so.. I think it's more rare than the LGT wagon 5mt. But.. mileage wise you'll have to deal with higher mileage... and possibly higher price... getting a brand new cx5 is pretty nice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petes99 Posted June 17, 2014 Author Share Posted June 17, 2014 Yep - I'm trying to avoid a sedan, but these days, its practically the only solution for the "fun+toys".. and dropping "utility". Now we have baby #2 coming, which further demands a hatch in my book. I just noticed yesterday that even Audi stopped selling wagons in the states altogether. Everything's a "crossover" now. This is like the twilight zone or something. CX9 is definitely an attractive option - have lightly considered that to replace the wife's 3.6R - but that doesn't solve MY problem.. heh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rice_rocket Posted June 18, 2014 Share Posted June 18, 2014 cx9 is really nice.. BUT... gas mileage is poop on the big motor.. average is 16-18ish for us with mixed highway etc. Extra row is SUPER handy hence we got the cx9 vs the other 3rd row equipped vehicles. Technically only 2 on the last row, but you can squeeze more if you need. Back trunk gets really really small obviously. Biggest thing is the width of the second row is wide.. wide enough that we can put 2 baby seats and have a person sitting in between. With the larger seats it's still a problem.. but our 4 year old can now use the booster seats which is awesome. Just an FYI, my bmw 535 is also "pretty wide" that you can also fit the two seats in the back and have a middle row.. the LGT.. forget it, that extra few inches really does matter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Picky1 Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 My vote would be for an Acura TSX Sport Wagon...I think they come with manual trans, but might be on the expensive side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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