Need a Different Car

I'm moving to either Houston or Los Angeles from San Diego and my car situation is fucked. I have a 2007 Subaru Forester I drive most everyday to work and a 2008 Porsche Boxster RS60 I drive on the weekends.

I bought the Porsche for $30 with only 11k miles on it so I'm still in the money if I sell it. It's easily my favorite car despite driving corvettes, 911s, a tuned Subaru STI and big SUVs.

What's a good car for L.A. that's still fun on the weekends but tolerable in ungodly traffic?

I've been thinking of the following:

  • Cadillac ATS-V (M)

  • Mercedes C63 AMG (A)

  • BMW 135i (M)

  • BMW M3 Sedan (M)

  • Keep the damn Porsche.

 
Htownrr:
The M2 completely fell off my radar. Thanks! The Golf R and GTIs are way overpriced in the used market. There are a million BMWs in L.A. you can pick up for a steal.

Yeah - Don't get a GTI. Get a Lamborghini/Pontiac GTO. You're welcome. lol

https://www.thedrive.com/news/32041/this-33750-mutant-lamborghini-avent…

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 

Keep the Porsche... you'll be in good company with all the other Porsches... just live somewhat close to where you work, and Uber places when you go out.

Are you familiar with LA in general? Where are you working / where are you thinking of living?

Be excellent to each other, and party on, dudes.
 

I've covered the L.A. market for sometime but I really don't know much about where to live. I'm thinking Silverlake or Los Feliz. Ideally Venice Beach or Santa Monica but I don't want to be driving 45 minutes everyday in traffic and paying $3,000 in rent.

The position is in DTLA so I'd need to grab a parking space. Any idea how much it is to park Downtown? I'm paying $220/mo now in SD and I'm assuming it would be $400/mo in L.A.

 

Your work is in DTLA... you may not want to live in Venice or SaMo unless you really hate yourself or you work very atypical hours, or don't need to be in the office on a daily basis. Before you settle on a place to live I recommend waking up early, driving to where you're thinking of living, waiting until rush hour / when you're realistically going to leave for work, and test driving the commute.

No idea how much it costs to park downtown, but Century City parking is around $300/mo

Be excellent to each other, and party on, dudes.
 

Parking in DTLA is around $250-$350 per month depending on location and quality of the structure. I'm surprised your employer isn't paying for it though. I know several people that work in RE in DTLA and they all have employer paid parking.

The commute from DTLA to Santa Monica is usually 35 to 45 minutes in the morning. If you get off work after 7pm, it's usually 20-30 minutes to get home. I do this commute and I just hit the gym after work. By 8pm when I'm done, I can typically make it back in 20 minutes or less.

Culver City is a good west side option for a better commute. From Culver City, it's about 30 minutes in the morning. Sometimes, the commute home by 7pm is only 15 minutes. Plus you can take the Expo line on certain days if you want.

If you have to pay for parking, I'd almost just consider living downtown. I've been working downtown for the past 3 years and it's getting noticeably better as a place to live. You can live in one of the new luxury apartments with all of the amenities and not be able to tell you're downtown once you step inside and not have to worry about traffic during the week and be able to hang out at a rooftop pool after work. The rent is pricier but you almost make up for it in the gas + maintenance + wear & tear to your nice car from sitting in traffic every day. I'm considering doing this soon, just not ready to leave the west side yet.

 

I personally like the BMW M3 but if you want something a little more "exotic" a comparative car that I test drove and really liked was the Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio. It's something like 510 HP and 3.8s 0-60. The interior is much nicer than the base Giulia and is actually pretty comfortable. The only downfall is that minus some upgrades externally and the 4 leaf clovers all over it, it resembles the $30k base model (could be good or bad depending on if you want understated) Definitely worth checking out though.

 
corpfincorpcredit:
I personally like the BMW M3 but if you want something a little more "exotic" a comparative car that I test drove and really liked was the Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio. It's something like 510 HP and 3.8s 0-60. The interior is much nicer than the base Giulia and is actually pretty comfortable. The only downfall is that minus some upgrades externally and the 4 leaf clovers all over it, it resembles the $30k base model (could be good or bad depending on if you want understated) Definitely worth checking out though.

Yeah I like the M3 too.

My exotic comparable would be the Lotus 400. I've heard they are a blast to drive and it is unique.

Also, for being a niche brand, the 400 has interior that is passable vs the main stream luxury brands. Their older interiors on Lotus models used to be bare, especially on their Lotus Elise. I've been a fan of the Evora for a couple of years. It would definitely be a cool car in LA.

Evora Pricing: https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/Lotus/Evora/Beverly+Hills+CA-9…

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 

I saw this comment coming :)

You can get a 911 for about a +30% price and it only has an extra 25 HP and weighs 300lbs more. The engines have more torque but they're not necessarily more fun to drive. Also, the 911s keep the really outdated interiors due to age and usually have more miles when sold used.

Fun fact, everything in front of the A pillar on a Boxster is interchangeable with the 911. The engine is 95% the exact same and the interior and entertainment system is the same. You also get a trunk which is actually very useful. Getting to the engine is a severe pain though. It took me 4 hours just to change my accessory belt and I had to take out one of the seats and a firewall to do it. You just don't look as cool which is a fact not lost on me.

I drove a 430 Scuderia on a race track a few years ago and then jumped into a 911 Turbo. The 911 Turbo is easily my favorite car but you're not getting into one of those things for less than $80,000.

If you really like to drive fast, it's tough to have a high HP car because by 3rd gear, you're in jail. For me, it's more fun to wring the engine out at 7,000 RPMs than it is to get to 120MPH and have to let off. To each their own.

 

I hear ya man. I had a coworker who drove a Cayman, and he was an enthusiast and had all kinds of expert under-the-hood reasons why the Cayman was a better drive than a 911. Or at least, equally good for less $. And he could afford a 911, so his claims were credible. Didn't stop a lot of our fellow coworkers from talking shit about how it aint a real Porsche and all that. More power to those who don't care what others think.

 

Definitely c63 I have a buddy getting one and I've been in them. *however, amg is building their next gen engine next year, which will be *objectively more reliable* (a 4 cylinder with an electric supplementary motor, which will likely put out way more hp and torque and be lighter weight, although the v8 def has a better exhaust note. Kicks bmw out of the water. So you could get a current c63 and have a v8 biturbo, or wait and have a 4 cylinder electric. Not to mention NVIDIA builds all of mercedes electronics/infotainment systems. That’s why they now have crazy stuff like augmented reality and arguably better autonomous than tesla. Def keep the Porsche because it’s def solid or get the c63, you won't be disappointed.

 
Most Helpful

Love this question. I’m a big car enthusiast and have grown up in LA.

Where to live: What type of lifestyle are you looking for? I personally hate Venice. I can’t stand being there and it’s disgusting. Maybe I’m overly sensitive to seeing homeless dudes piss in public thirty feet away from a two million dollar+ home. Santa Monica is a step up and good if you like going out. Culver City is cool and your commute won’t be bad. Near the Grove is also really nice and not overly expensive. 30 mins from the beach with traffic, 20 without. Your commute to DTLA won’t be awful (by LA standards). I live by Beverly Grove. I’m also a huge fan of Brentwood but I like the calmer and quieter pace of things.

Cars: don’t buy a Cadillac, why would you do that? I’m a huge Porsche fan. Although I’m a 911 snob, your comment above makes sense. The AMG sounds like a great option although be prepared to spend an Apple iPad a month on gasoline (weird way to look at it but keeps perspective). I’m in a Mercedes myself and love them. I had two different Jags with those 5.0L V8s and those were fun.

Honestly, I’d get something automatic. I’m gonna catch flak for this but it’s true. The fun of a manual transmission will be killed with dealing with it in traffic when you’re tired from work. If you really don’t mind it then keep the Porsche.

Here’s curveball (that’s very California)- consider a Tesla. You can pick up a Model 3 and they’re quick and fun. Just food for thought.

“The three most harmful addictions are heroin, carbohydrates, and a monthly salary.” - Nassim Taleb
 

Good Intel. I'm looking for some cool girls go are not too stuck up but have their shit together. I know, a unicorn. Would be nice to have a walkable neighborhood with reasonable bars and venues which is why I was thinking of Los Feliz.

I'm in DTLA right now and this LA hipster shit is real. I grew up in Austin and LA blows these hipsters out of the water.

The C63 AMG would be a great way to "have to" trade the manual for an auto. I hit my clutch 400+ times just on the way up here.

I can do a 45-1:00 commute before I start shooting.

 

That’s hard to find but not impossible. I met my fiancée in Orange County (but she lived in the suburbs of LA County).

I like Los Feliz. I think silver lake is overhyped. Check out the Melrose area by West Hollywood. It’s quiet so you can sleep but walking distance from sunset strip/ plaza. You’d be in your commute range and you’d be 1.5ish miles from rodeo drive. Nice area. Just be careful, too far north and expect to hear the nightlife right outside your window. Some people like that, I like my sleep.

C63s just sound great. Starting it up would make me happy every morning. I’m assuming you’re aiming for the traditional V8 one. I’ve not had luck with Jags but I think they’re often overlooked.

Check out Mulholland Drive out here. It’s so much fun. Just be careful. Stunt Road is very fun but make sure to drive it slowly first! There’s an odd stop sign. Don’t blow through it, the other side is a cliff. You have to turn right to continue. It’ll eventually take you to Malibu where you can cruise down PCH. It’s a nice drive. I need to do that again myself.

“The three most harmful addictions are heroin, carbohydrates, and a monthly salary.” - Nassim Taleb
 

Depends on where you want to live in LA.

Pasadena - NoHo/Burbank area: it makes sense to have a nice weekend car still because you can actually escape to the north or south to OC relatively easily. The 134 on weekends is also a blast to fly down going 120+. You can also sneak into the hollywood hills or mulholland easily from there, and its a sick drive and nice night date idea with the places you can stop.

If you end up thinking anywhere in the triangle between WeHo, SaMo, and DTLA...I hope you aren't driving a stick because the traffic will blow 90% of the time.

I might actually be copping an '87 Wrangler YJ to desert cruise and hit the mountains (plus I might move back to the beach if I leave consulting). It sounds like you have the type of disposable cash - Just make sure to buy whatever car out of state and register it out of state and you'll cut down another few grand there.

 

+1 for the Mulholland Drive advice. I gave it above and then read your comment. The views are awesome up there.

I love Pasadena. If I didn’t have to go to Venice and my fiancée didn’t have to go to Culver City I’d live there. More bang for your buck. Glendale is super nice too. The absolute best cakes ever are there. TeaPot Bakery & Cafe is my favorite dessert place.

“The three most harmful addictions are heroin, carbohydrates, and a monthly salary.” - Nassim Taleb
 

I would chose an M2 over the M3 if driving experience is important. Unless having four doors is important to you. If you're looking for more of a "normal" car that won't break the bank I would look into an Audi S4. You can buy programs to tune those for about $1k that add near 100 extra HP. Even though its a quattro, 400 HP+ makes it a thrilling daily driver.

 

In order to cap this off. I'm going with a C63 AMG and keeping the Porsche until I can do a drive through the central coast. I can basically trade the cars (no note) so it wont be that big of a deal.

To be perfectly honest, the idea of not owning a Porsche is tough. I've driven so many cars and Porsche just gets it. We'll see. I still may end up with a 911 and a car note.

 

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"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 

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