What wife wagon???

So the wife wants a wagon. She is CHEAP and likes decent MPGs. However, she also likes a "fun to drive" car and wants something reasonably lux. I am thinking E39 might be the choice but don't know what my other options are. Other options are E60(whatever) 5 series. newish 9-3 and 9-5. This is a DD so it also needs to not fall apart every other day. 15K max. Less would be nice. More might work, depending on what job I get (I have 3 in the works).

Swedish car company's are your friend here, Or just an old ford FTD.

Cheap wagon? Decent MPG's? Pseudo-lux? I'd look at the Mazda3 first. 1st gens are down under $10K now, and the fully loaded GT models can be quite nice inside (leather, lots of power stuff). If that's no luxury enough, you can move up to a Volvo (think V70R!!! ), but you'll definitely lose some mileage. A unicorn wagon (Mazda6) would be sweet, too. If she's looking for an auto, it will be way easier to find. Might be able to dive into a V40, too.

BMW had an E46 touring too

9-2x?

Loaded up GT package Mazda 3 FTW.

Preferred years , transmission choice, and definition of "wagon" would be helpful. The Mazda3 isn't a wagon to me, it's a 5 door/hatch.

The Volvo V50 is loosely based on the Mazda3 platform. It would also be worth a look.

Junkyard_Dog wrote: Preferred years , transmission choice, and definition of "wagon" would be helpful. The Mazda3 isn't a wagon to me, it's a 5 door/hatch.

Agreed, the 3 is a hatch.

My wife is looking for at least 5 series space or more from the last 6 years or so.

LT1 Impala wagon? Sound be able to get a nice one well under budget with left over cash for gas.

Yeah, she thinks those are very ugly, as well as, being too old.

I guess I didn't mention 7 years and 120k miles.

V50 too small? I wouldnt be surprised if the front row measured the same space as an old 5 series.

Volvo V50, Mazda6, Subaru Legacy Wagon all come to mind as cheaper/newer/more efficient than the 5er BMW.

Jaguar X-Type Wagon and the Audi A6 Avant are also worth a look.

Big-time dark horse: Dodge Magnum

A TSX would be too pricey...Legacy/Outback wagon?

Lexus SportCross?

We had a Volvo 850 and it was the best car I ever owned. We put 450000km on it and sold it for $1500.00. The new owner is a neighbor and has been driving it trouble free for about 5 years now. It still looks pretty current as well.

My old 2.7L Magnum averaged 23-24mpg. Not sure if that counts as good enough mpg. The other motors are worse.

We loved both our e39 and e34 wagons. A 525it will be fun, get 20+ mpg and reasonably reliable.

Only prolem, the newest is 10 years old.

Legacy GT is nice too.

I have an 02 Jetta Wagon that I love and I would recommend them. You can find 1.8 L turbo wagons out there but they are harder to find. Mine is actually a VR6 5 speed which is a somewhat rare combo for this car. These could be had for under $10K easily.

The 05-up jetta wagons are going to come with either a 2.5 L or a TDI motor though. The 2.5s that I have driving in base model jettas as rentals weren't "exciting" but they weren't "American Econo Box 4 cylinder gutless" either. I would say these will run you anywhere from about $7K for high mileage to $20K depending on mileage and age. FYI I was pricing out 2010 TDIs for around $14K with 70K mileage this spring.

An Avant would obviously be a welcome step up too.

Newer Saab 9-5 wagon?

This is hard. Everything that I can come up with has already been suggested or isn't a true wagon. 9-5 SportCombi and X-Type are really the only options I can think of at under 7 years old and under 120k miles. The first gen SRX is a little too crossover-y, and a little too Northstar.

I wonder if it's possible to put an ES300 suspension mounting points under an RX300 to drop it from crossover height, then use the VIP crowd's parts to get a nice, low wagon out of it? I mean, they're all Camry-based...right?

I was about to suggest Mazda5, but the trims available with a stick aren't exactly what I'd call "semi-lux". Perfect for a family with kids because there's not much to mess up, but semi lux it isn't.

Criteria may be a bit of a unicorn...6 years or newer, luxury, large wagon, reliable, fuel efficient and under $15k. There aren't a lot of true wagons out there anymore. And I'm sorry, you won't get me to believe the German options are reliable and/or don't cost a fortune to maintain.

Believe it or not, my first thought was Kia Forte SX hatch. My wife has a 2011, and it has plenty of psedo lux touches...leather, sunroof, heated seats, etc... Got it for $15k and it was nearly new. Gets 26-28mpg too. But it's a hatch, like the Mazda3.

A Kia Soul is a great option if she doesn't actually need a wagon. Chicks dig them. (At least mine does)

Passat Wagons with AWD and VR6 are pretty bitchin, and really nice inside. That would be my go-to, but not sure how many miles you are looking at in your budget.

The Ford Focus wagon is in your range. I would find a blue one and swap in a bunch of SVT stuff and add and "RS" to the hatch...but that's me.

Volvo XC wagons seem to be pretty cheap and available around here. Huge inside and pretty nice, no clue about reliability but it is a Volvo.

The Subaru Forester is a great option for a wagon, but it is a little bland inside. If your wife is a lesbian, she will love it, but you may have other issues there...

Or how about a 7-passenger Mercedes Diesel? Family Truckster

My brother has put some serious miles on these: Swears by them. I like them as well, but would get a non-Outback version and upgrade to full B-Spec...but that's me.

My Saab 9-5 wagon, 5spd gets 33mpg highway, 28 around town. Handles well, has a ton of space, leather, heated seats etc etc and moves out pretty good with a Stage 1 ECU reflash.

They are dirt cheap now too

I know that my criteria is not easy to fulfill .

I may have to look at the Volvo V50. If it has more room in the butt than the Mazda it could be a contender.

Honestly, this is mostly my wife's criteria. She is pretty set in her ways. My sister has a new focus hatch and she said that was too small. Same for my friends Mazda 3 hatch. She likes the v70 but seems to think she should be able to get 30 mpg out of something like that. Naturally, I laugh when she says this. The funny thing is that she follows this up with saying a crossover is ok...