Lexus IS300 vs Honda Civic Si vs BMW 325i sport vs Audi A4 1.8t?

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atc1093

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This will be my first car and it will be used. Here are the years:

06-08 Civic Si (Coupe most likely)
03-05 IS300
03-05 325i Sport
03-05 A4

I am looking for a combination of things in the car I would buy:

-Obviously, power and overall a fun to drive car that is exciting to drive
-Good gas mileage (although anything is better than 13mpg from my suv)
-Reliability - I do not want to spend thousands of dollars for repairs and/or maintenance. I do not want to have my car in the shop more than I drive it.
-Possibly mild customization ability, such as chipping the engine for more power, etc.

My budget is around 13-14k. I have seen most of these cars at this price. However like I said before, I do not want to have a car that costs a lot of money for maintenance.

Also, for each of your picks, can you recommend me which transmission to get? I live in Atlanta, and while I do not experience rush hour traffic, it is a big city with many stoplights, traffic, etc. So I am not sure whether a manual still makes sense, even if it would be more fun.
Please do not worry about being able to find these at the price I listed, I already have found at least one of each. The only prices I am concerned with are maintenance and repair prices pertaining to reliability.
 
The new SI is really fast compared to the previous Civics, but it's not going to give you the power you get from the 6 cylinder engines.

I have always been a fan of the IS300. Inline 6 is a really good engine.

The BMW, while it's a sweet car, is going to cost a ton for maintenance. My girlfriend has a 325 it's nice and it's smooth, but I don't think its anything spectacular.

I don't know anything about A4s.

I would say either the Civic SI which has proven reliability (and Hondas are usually not too expensive to repair) and better gas mileage with a I4...or the IS300. The Civic is obviously the more customizable of the two, although the IS300 is also pretty popular for tuning. The Lexus is a beautiful car and there's a big difference between driving a Lexus and a Honda.

As far as the tranny goes, just get whatever you want man. Manuals are usually faster with the way the ratios are set up...and they are better on gas if you drive it right. But auto is a lot easier to drive, especially in stop-and-go traffic.

Good luck buddy!
 
get the BMW 3 series, because i have one and i have experience with hondas and lexuses and audis. Honda is good, but the power aint that great, sucks cheeseballs compared to the bmws power, the bmw that you are looking for the 325 is really good in gas milage it has only a 2.5 v6 engine, and inside the car it has this gas milage indicator which actually tells you what your mpg at any given time is. it is really helpful and it has saved me a lot of gas. throw the audi away right now!!!! they constantly require repairs and can cost you a few thousand for basic repairs when you buy a used one. the lexus is good, good gas milage, good power, and most likely cheaper, so its your choice i narrowed it down for you between the bmw 325 and lexus, good luck
 
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