Future wagon waffling continues - Why not a 540iAT?

[FC]

The more I think about it, the more I'm liking the thought of a 540iAT to replace the Saabaru when the time comes. A set of narrow WS-50's might do the trick in the winters - even in Canada. Thoughts?

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What I was originally going to post:


I know I'm still 6-12 months away, but I've been thinking about possibilities for the family wagon... again. (Yes, I know I've had similar threads before).

You know the requirements by now:

-Automatic
-Roomy enough to fit a full-sized male lab and luggage in the way back
-A solid performance vehicle (power, torque, braking, handling). The more the merrier
-Must get through snowy weather fine (AWD preferable - required?)
-Must have high marks in comfort/luxury/amenities.
-I must trust it to not leave me stranded.
-Fuel economy/consumables are not a big deal due to low usage (under 10K miles a year).

The contenders are the usual suspects:

1) '06-'07 V70R - Price in '07: ~$30-40K.

-PROS: Newish, available long warranty, great brakes, good power/torque, good tranny, roomy, safe, AWD, decent handling, great interior/features.
-CONS: Low ground clearance/long front overhang, lag, only 2.5L, unreliable(?), FWD-biased AWD.

2) '05-'07 Outback 3.0R LL Bean - Price in '07: ~$25-30K.

-PROS: Newish, great AWD, "cheap," good ground clearance, reliable, decent power/torque, good range per tank.
-CONS: Not so upsacale, smallish, mediocre brakes and tranny, mediocre handling.

3) '02-'03 540iAT - Price in '07 ~$25-30K

-PROS: V8 torque, good power, good handling/brakes, great interior/features, good tranny, unliekly to strand me, roomy enough, RWD, "cheap."
-CONS: RWD-only, thirsty, not new (maintenance/repairs), just roomy enough.

4) '02-'03 E320W 4-Matic - Price in '07: ~$25K

PROS: Cheap, very roomy, AWD, Great interior features.
CONS: Unreliable(?), weak power/torque, maintenance/repairs.

-Late model E-wagons are too expensive and/or unreliable to consider.
-I should probably look ata used allroad V8 or A6 Avant just for kicks, but.

[TD]

I would never get it unless I could also afford a tranny swap.

[dan]

why not? because it will be old

[FC]

Originally Posted by TD

I would never get it unless I could also afford a tranny swap.

I know. But I more likely to sell my wife on the idea of a RWD, slushy wagon than an AWD-MT wagon.

[lemming]

is it easy to take a dog from the US into Canada and back into the US again?

[JST]

No stick, old, expensive to maintain, thirsty on gas, not that big inside, not really that fast by contemporary standards. If you are going to get a slushie, why not a Magnum? Those come in AWD, too.

Frankly, if you are going to get a slushie, the thing that probably makes the most sense is a used Acura MDX. Those things (while disturbingly boring and something I would never buy) are almost perfect transportation appliances, and an '02 can be yours for less than $20K.

[Rob]

I know you have heard me say this over and over again, but the Magnum has very little useable cargo room for it's size. The cargo numbers are deceiving b/c the design team went out of their way to make sure as little of it was useable as possible.

Still a neat car though. And it has a Hemi.

[clyde]

Originally Posted by rwg

I know you have heard me say this over and over again, but the Magnum has very little useable cargo room for it's size. The cargo numbers are deceiving b/c the design team went out of their way to make sure as little of it was useable as possible.

Still a neat car though. And it has a Hemi.

Not entirely true. It's kind of oddly shaped which does limit the shape of the cargo you can take, but if you don't need a big basic square (think 32" tube TV box), it will work most of the time. I can only think of one thing I've ever taken in the xiT that wouldn't have fit in the Magnum.

[FC]

Originally Posted by clyde

Not entirely true. It's kind of oddly shaped which does limit the shape of the cargo you can take, but if you don't need a big basic square (think 32" tube TV box), it will work most of the time. I can only think of one thing I've ever taken in the xiT that wouldn't have fit in the Magnum.

I can't expect my dog to not stand in the 5-hour trip to Montreal. The Magnum is to shallow in the back, and I cannot stack things very high.

lemming: Under 3 months, apparently all I need to do is show I own him an dthat he has had his basic shots. After 3 months, you need something from your vet. So for now, we're good.

The MDX-route, which opens a whole set of possibilities, is a more realistic scenario than a Magnum because: 1) My wife hates how it looks ("retarded" was how she described it, I beleive), 2) it is not "upscale," and 3) as I've mentioned before, it is not that roomy.

And if we go the SUV route, I would almost certainly go the whole way and get a used Land Cruiser.

[FC]

Originally Posted by JST

old, expensive to maintain, thirsty on gas, not that big inside, not really that fast by contemporary standards.

Yes, those are all bad. The thirsty part not for the $$$ (again, it wont be driven enough to make a huge difference), but for the relatively short range.

Ok, well, thanks for bringing me back to reality.