Suggest a car for a mate..!

[splashalot]

If he want's something 'nice', he should look at Saab, Volvo or Alfa as they have lots of spec for the price compared to their German rivals.

£3k could get a half decent 9-3 Aero saloon. A piece of cake to remap too (the petrols are anyway).

Although for that money, he'll have to decide how nice he wants it compared to how much he doesn't want big repair bills... E.g. a 3k Toyota or a 3k Alfa are totally different ownership propositions.

They certainly are.  Alfa are very spendy on maintenance.  My old 147 2.0 T spark absolutely drank oil (even 10W60) which fouled up the expensive spark plugs (x8) regularly.  Cambelts are £500+ on them because of the balancer stuff.  If you need a spare key, that's another £500 through the dealer. Wasn't great on fuel, trim bits were flimsy, the gear shifter broke numerous times and the battery kept going flat.

It drove well though, and the engine was great, even if it was FIAT derived.  Much smoother and gruntier than it's German equivalent.

We had a 147 2.0 twinspark too!  I loved that thing, but boy was it flawed.  Exploding camshaft (plastic) variators, 3-year cambelt replacement intervals, excessive oil consumption.  But it did have character.  And that engine had a lovely warbly note.  But no way in hell would I recommend one.  Well, at least not to a friend ;-)

[pudding]

If he want's something 'nice', he should look at Saab, Volvo or Alfa as they have lots of spec for the price compared to their German rivals.

£3k could get a half decent 9-3 Aero saloon. A piece of cake to remap too (the petrols are anyway).

Although for that money, he'll have to decide how nice he wants it compared to how much he doesn't want big repair bills... E.g. a 3k Toyota or a 3k Alfa are totally different ownership propositions.

They certainly are.  Alfa are very spendy on maintenance.  My old 147 2.0 T spark absolutely drank oil (even 10W60) which fouled up the expensive spark plugs (x8) regularly.  Cambelts are £500+ on them because of the balancer stuff.  If you need a spare key, that's another £500 through the dealer. Wasn't great on fuel, trim bits were flimsy, the gear shifter broke numerous times and the battery kept going flat.

It drove well though, and the engine was great, even if it was FIAT derived.  Much smoother and gruntier than it's German equivalent.

We had a 147 2.0 twinspark too!  I loved that thing, but boy was it flawed.  Exploding camshaft (plastic) variators, 3-year cambelt replacement intervals, excessive oil consumption.  But it did have character.  And that engine had a lovely warbly note.  But no way in hell would I recommend one.  Well, at least not to a friend ;-)

Mine drank a litre a week.  Consuming that much oil would normally cause smoke and burning oil smells, but nope, not in Alfa land.  I guess the fact Alfa specify a 10W/60 says it all really.  No basic normally aspirated engine should need an oil that thick    I was a grunty thing though.  Felt a lot quicker than 150hp to me!

[colesey]

I once had an Alfa Sprint Cloverleaf. It consumed most of its body panels every couple of years. Revved to 7500 without finding any torque, not unlike my e30 M3.

[Mk5 GTian]

I'd go naturally aspirated as he's looking for reliability. 2 very nice cars I've owned that fit the bill have been the mk4 V6 4motion and the E46 BMW 330ci. Both sound lovely are well made and are capable of 30mpg on a long run.
I had the BMW for two years and it was an absolutely beautiful car with one of the strongest engines BMW have made. Quick enough too! I drove from Surrey to Cornwall a few times and remember getting out of the car feeling as fresh as a daisy. Supremely comfortable.
The Golf was lovely too, in deep pearlescent blue with cream leather and 4 wheel drive so perfect for our dreadful and long winters.