Long story short, my commute to work is going to be 22 miles each way when the lockdown ends hopefully later this year. My original office was only 7 miles away but it was consolidated with our larger office in DC. The main issue isn't necessarily the additional distance, but the amount of time sitting in and navigating through rush hour traffic. Simply, my commute will go from 20 mins (avg) to 1hr+ each way as I sit in traffic and drive on traffic light-infested backroads to avoid the crazy tolls of I-66.
I currently drive a 2014 550i, which is the furthest of what you'd call a good commuter car. I bought it 4 years ago knowing I'd be with my company for a long time and OK with my 20min commute in a V8. That has changed (#thxcovid), and I don't plan on leaving my company just because of the commute. I also don't want to drive my pampered 550i to DC and back everyday either, especially considering the N63tu engine. I keep it well maintained and plan to keep it for a long time because I genuinely love everything about it, especially after all of the extras I've put into it.
So, my plan is to start looking for a cheap commuter car, reserving my 550i for the weekend. My logical side is obviously telling me to look for some Japanese small car that will be reliable, but that's just never going to happen. Never.
My criteria is simple:
- German
- Small
- Manual Gearbox
- 4 or 6 Cylinders
- Preferabbly all-wheel drive, but not necessary
- Relatively cheap to fix (parts at least)
Beings that I already own a BMW (and always will) and my wife will always own a Mercedes, I am obviously familiar with working on both brands and have the tools to do it. An e46 seems like a good option, cheap and easy to work on, but I don't know much else about them.
Any other recommendations?