Looking to buy a new car

[Draman]

Well, my commute is increasing significantly thanks to new responsibilities at work. As such I'm thinking about retiring my S5 as a daily driver due to the awful mpg. I'm looking for something reasonably practical with good mileage (25mpg+ preferably). Note that I prefer an enjoyable drive over absolute efficiency so please don't suggest something like a Prius! I haven't yet decided if I will sell the S5 or not (do I really need 3 cars all to myself?).

In the running right now are the Mini Cooper S and the VW GTI. The VW dealer near me also happens to have a low mileage '08 R32 available for a bit more than a new GTI would be. Between a Mini Cooper S, VW GTI 2.0T and an R32, all for roughly the same price, what do you guys recommend? I drove all 3 of these cars today and the R32 was by far the best driver of the bunch, but I have a feeling a lot of that had to do with the fact that the GTI and the Mini were riding on all seasons and the R32 had summer tires.

I should also add that part of my new responsibilities entail driving to, shall we say, less savory parts of town...so I would want a less expensive car than the ones I have now. Are there any other similar cars worth considering? Would prefer at least a bit of an upscale feel to the car so I'm not sure something like a Mazdaspeed3 would fit the bill. Give me some good opinions guys!

[MisterSkiMask]

something ending in TDI, or pick up a used MB E-Class diesel

[shipill]

-Audi A4 2.0T
-Mercedes C230

[WishBone33]

i know this is off topic but what do you do?

[Draman]

Originally Posted by WishBone33

i know this is off topic but what do you do?

Nothing exciting, commercial property management

[ben14142001]

I love the Mini S I drove, but the R32 is a very nice car as well. An STI or a WRX might be fun as well, but the gas mileage leaves more to be desired than the rest of the bunch. Same price, I would probably go with the R32.

[majin ssj eric]

S2000 or 370Z???