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Which used car should I buy: Saab 9-3, Jaguar X-type, Audi A4?

Hi, my dodge neon that got me through college, grad school and several years of my first job is dying and has been running me very large $1000-$3000+ repair bills over the past two years. I've finally concluded what has been obvious to everyone else, I am not saving any money driving this neon any more. I am looking for a reliable used car that won't cost me a fortune in repairs, but as I am cruising the classified ads for cars I see really nice cars I always dreamed about in college like Saab 9-3, Jaguar x-type and audi A4s just five or six years used with 70-80k miles on them selling for what i'd pay for a used civic or even a used dodge intrepid/pt cruiser. I haven't had alot of luxury in life and have always just bought the cheapest things I could because that's all I could afford (if even that) but now that i'm working a little while, I would love to own a car like one of these. My family (who is very pro-american and pro-japanese car) says any of the european cars will cost a fortune to repair and i should stay away from them...is this really true? They claim the parts will be really expensive, but from my experience with the neon, the bulk of my repair bills is labor not parts, so i'm not sure i'd care if i were paying $50 more for a part that actually lasts compared to stuff that needs to be replaced just a little while later. I'd love to hear from people who have actually owned used, somewhat high mileage saab, jaguar or audi before and what their experiences have been. Unfortunately, due in part to this economy i'm just scraping by and any new or certified pre-owned car with a warranty is waaaay out of my budget so if I do buy it will be from the former owner directly through the classifieds...does anyone have any advice on that either? I woudn't know a clunker from a good car if i saw one so long as the paint and interior looked nice.

Public Comments

1. Things to consider with those cars. Insurance will be more. You will have to use high grade gas. Lots of those luxury cars make alot of power and don't do as good on fuel economy. And the biggest thing: They are cheap because they are out of warranty and cost a TON to fix. A headlight replacement for your neon would probably run you under 100 bucks. A headlight replacement on a Xenon sealed system which some luxury cars use can be 800 bucks. If a bulb burns out on your neon, 5 bucks. if a bulb burns out on one of those, it could be 100 or more. Expensive cars were expensive new because they are made with really expensive parts. They also have ALOT of stuff that can go wrong. A basic car has less things that can malfunction. Think of this, a new neon was around 20,000 dollars. So a neon transmission would only cost about 1,000 dollars. A new Jag, or Sab would run between 60,000 and 90,000 dollars depending on the model. They were built with 5 to 10 thousand dollar transmissions. And because they are more complex cars you need to take them to specialists which charge more than regular mechanics (usually) Don't buy outside your means. These cars will give you nighmares, expensive cars are ALWAYS expensive, it just changes from sticker price to maintenance costs. Find a civic, or something common if you want cheaper repair bills. Also for the money, i'm sure you could get into a newer civic or something domestic with less km on it and maybe even some warranty! Good luck. Additional: As the one answer below pointed out the firuges are not always that drastic, it really depends on the equipment of the car. Chevy Envoy trucks had a complete sealed system and when the light died you had to replace the entire housing which ran 800 bucks. If that or similar system was used in a luxery car then you would have the same problem. As for his insurance comparison, a supra isn't exactly cheap on insurance. A neon is. I speak from experience, we have many owners of saabs and other luxery cars come into our shop, they pay more for parts. Labour rates are not different but it can often take longer to do the same job as your neon. So the bill is more. The facts speak for themselves, luxery cars depreciate HUGE, and are very cheap once out of warranty, if they were so great, they would maintain better resale value. And that's just straight fact.
2. based on what i know, i would reccommend the saab or audi, the jag x-type was plagued with problems and quality control issues...
3. I disagree in part with the guy who was saying that the luxury European cars will cost A LOT MORE! I own an Audi a4. And changing a bulb wont cost you over $100 compared to the $5 for the neon. A bulb for an Audi will probably cost you $7-8 compared to the $5 for the neon. and a new set of lights wont cost you $800 compared to the $100 for the neon, that is just plain stupid. You can get a COMPLETE system for under $300. The difference in parts prices are not that big, believe me I would know since I do the work myself on the car and always buy the parts on my own. Even tho, there are some parts that are expensive, but not outrageous. Labor costs for an Audi at the dealership are just as high as the Toyota. Since I bought my A4, the only thing i had to do is change a wheel bearing. And insurance wont cost you a lot more, I used to own a Toyota supra from 1986, and was paying 146, now for the Audi I pay 166 and I am only 21yr old. Anyway, from my experience, they are solid, reliable cars, with good fuel mileage, the price you pay extra compared to a neon, gives you back a lot more than the neon. my 2 cents
4. Saab are unreliable. even Jags buy the Audi even the Jag inside isnt good. Audi A4 german cars are best in this case Jag X Saab 93 (Sweden makes Koenisegg
5. You should also consider that such a car may be expensive to insure. Check your insurance rates before buying one, for example here - carquotes.sinfree.net