TDI replacement=Herding cats

First and foremost I love my girlfriend more then anything, in saying this in my experience over my years of life have shown car shopping with most females is just plain hateful.

So we are going to be turning in her TDI in about 3 weeks and this is what has been established so far for vehicles that she would want.

4runner

Most volvos especially a C30

First gen bronco

350\70 z

Mk5+ GTI

Kia Koup

MZ3 wagon (wants something other then a mazda because of my obsession with them but still likes them)

Now the hard part is she can drive a Manual but refuses to own one, she wants sporty but more daily usability but it can't be boring, she is 6'0 of mostly legs so that has to be taken note of, needless to say I'm pulling my hair out trying to help her as of now, any suggestions to help out would be greatly helpful GRM!

Edit: Price point max of $10k

Montero Sport

I don't get it. She knows what she wants. Let her go buy it. She's (presumably) an adult; she can make her own decisions.

My SWMBO buys whatever she wants with no input from me.

In reply to EvanR:

Credit issues with her is the problem, though we will get a good chunk from VW, a loan would still be likely needed for something she would want.

Correction to the title "SWMBO car shopping=Herding cats"

I'd suggest BMW 3-series. But yeah, let her buy it. Don't try to influence her decision in any way, or you will come to regret it.

I was in the same boat until a "close enough" came around from a buddy's dealership. Only things I got that I didn't really want were 4wd and sub 36k miles.

Oh well. I have wheels to get back and forth to work.

JtspellS wrote: she is 6'0 of mostly legs

Yeah, we're going to need pics.

I'll add having known your swmbo, not in that way, she knows cars and what she'd likely be interested in. Check the local carmax inventory online and make a list of things that she'd be interested in test driving.

JtspellS wrote: In reply to EvanR: Credit issues with her is the problem, though we will get a good chunk from VW, a loan would still be likely needed for something she would want.

You're combining "choosing a car" with "financing a car". Many people do, but it's bad practice.

When SWMBO picked out her most recent purchase, it was only after that she asked me for financing help.

In reply to captdownshift:

I agree 1000% she is extremely knowledgeable with cars (she is a collision estimator) and I trust her completely with her choice, just the complete seeming randomness of her choices is confusing me in what direction she wants to go, guess we will be stopping at carmax this weekend.

Any chance she belonged to a sorority?

In reply to stroker:

Not a chance, she would've kicked half of the sisters asses if she had been and been kicked out of the house and possibly the school

JtspellS wrote: 4runner Most volvos especially a C30 First gen bronco 350\70 z Mk5+ GTI Kia Koup MZ3 wagon (wants something other then a mazda because of my obsession with them but still likes them) Now the hard part is she can drive a Manual but refuses to own one, she wants sporty but more daily usability but it can't be boring, she is 6'0 of mostly legs so that has to be taken note of, needless to say I'm pulling my hair out trying to help her as of now, any suggestions to help out would be greatly helpful GRM!

Let me take a shot at translating:
She's got a soft spot for VW's, and GTI's are sporty/practical (i.e. can't buy another TDI, and sedans/wagons are lame)

If not that, she's looking for something aggressive looking, and tight/sporty feeling... and not real common; but not expensive euro-trash. (volvo, 350/70, Kia, MZ3).

Barring that, she wants something beefy that will take a load, and get through anything... but isn't a pickup 'cause she's not that kind of person. (4runner, Bronco)

part of love is about understanding enough, and accepting the rest.

I'll let you know if I ever figure out the other parts.

captdownshift wrote: In reply to stroker: Not a chance, she would've kicked half of the sisters asses if she had been and been kicked out of the house and possibly the school

This is 1000000000% true, always have to keep bail money ready just in case

In reply to sleepyhead:

This is helpful, thank you!

FWIW, the 370Z's automatic gearbox is pretty damn good, and it helps get the 0-60 time under 5 seconds.

I'm still puzzled by anybody on this forum being confused by someone having interest in a bunch of seemingly random and unrelated vehicles. I thought that's just what we do here.

In reply to Ransom:

Her list seems as random as my mine. My next replacement car desire depends on what day of the week it is.

We've replaced our '14 TDI Sportwagen with an '05 Mercury Grand Marquis. Only on GRM would someone cross shop a TDI anything and a Grand Marquis.

The Grand Marquis is really a stop gap to decrease the miles we put on our TDI awaiting buy-back, got our approval and quote day before yesterday, just have to get it signed, notarized, and submitted.

We (I) want a 4 door Mk7 GTI, but we'll probably wind up in a '14+ Mazda 6 or 3, since they make more "sense" for us. I want a 3 hatch, but need to test drive both the 6 and 3, I think we'll prefer the size of the 6 over the 3.

FX37 (QX something or other) 370z engine (370z upgrades...), semi-interesting chassis, looks good, ground clearance, and luxury interior.

Who says you can't blend those cars?

The0retical wrote: FX37 (QX something or other) 370z engine (370z upgrades...), semi-interesting chassis, looks good, ground clearance, and luxury interior. Who says you can't blend those cars?

The FX37 rides terribly, IMO. How about a G35/37?

In reply to The0retical:

She does find those interesting but none worth a damn within the price cap of what she wants so far.

In reply to szeis4cookie:

I have suggested them myself but she does not like the body style, though she absolutely loves everything drivetrain wise.

In reply to bigdaddylee82:

I wish we had a stop gap as well but unfortunately nothing extremely cheap came up in time so likely we will be out of the bracket we originally were in. At first she was all gungho on a MK7 GTI even test-drove a few but she realized that she did not want much of any payment on a car anymore and that has us where we are at now.

In regards to the 3 vs 6 its really how much room you need as they are both quite fun in their own right (with the 6 absolutely get the 2012+, 08-12 was a sad attempt of a vehicle imho.)

I found the car