Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

Could definitely see you with an espresso in had whilst stretching your legs mid journey in one of these:

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F383158015856

Is he an architect and / or dentist?

Meh, I’ve always loved classic shaped 900’s. Fast, comfortable, reliable and can also swallow bikes with ease.

Wind deflectors seem popular in Abarth 500 world too, Heko is the go to brand. Also popular are canards. And one set of these

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amazing. there was a pretty decent one on car and classic here for a while that I had half an eye on. timing wasn't right. and couldn't have a white car. my white bike disgraces me on a daily basis.

in my favourite colour too. but will probably have to go for something with four doors, or even five.

now I want another coffee too

Italian is it?

This one if you want to really look the part.

Haha, before I even clicked my brain said 164.
Yes.

What's the hivemind on fast auto estates... Lexus is300 Sportcross (62k miles @ £5,290) or BMW 330i touring (91k miles @ £6,000). Tempted by the Lexus being cheaper, less miles and local but the large amount of space dedicated to the speakers in the boot is slightly baffling

Prepare to be mocked by BRM if he can get more stuff in his Golf than you can in your estate- those are quite small cars in the scheme of things, my 850R was actually equivalent to a five series rather than a three in terms of space.

6 cylinders tho?

Aren’t those the suspension towers in the Lexus, rather than speaker pods?

They've got speaker pods in them, obvs, but their primary purpose is wheel wells and stock turrets. Hence why most estates don't have double wishbone rear suspension, I'd assume.

That's probably a more accurate description, either way it surprised me. Saying that any car will be an improvement over my MX5. Might stand in front of it and see what happens...

What dammit said about suspension towers. I assume the speakers are 8" subs to turn the boot into a sort of free-air sub.

Probably best to drive both. But if you're after internet advice... a Lexus is a Toyota, which to my bias means well made, well designed and runs forever. It's less common too which is nice.

Neither are massive in terms of space. So if you're after something an estate that will hold as much as a Golf I'd add a Alfa 159 into the mix.

I do like the quirkiness of the Sportcross, even visually the way it's more bread van than estate. I should probably drop this RWD estate thing, if it's an auto too it won't realistically do any track days. It reminds me of a car for people who want some practicality but can't admit they'd like a big Volvo.

Not really up on VWs although was looking at the Passat W8 estates last night. What shape/year Golf would one be looking at for around £5k?

Subaru impreza wrx/forester xt/legacy 3.0r?

Loving this: https://youtu.be/eZgClzYzMaU

legacy 3.0r

Great shout, definitely on my list although most I've seen have lots of miles. Will keep looking out for them and they seem like a proper estate size too.

Flat 6 legacy was such a great car. Real shame they were discontinued.

big Volvo

850 T5R?

Too old and probably out of my budget? Lovely though.

I don't think they've appreciated that much but they are rare

https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/volvo/850/volvo-850-t5-r-estate-low-miles-fvsh/10034694#/home

This one's an auto though.

To be fair about half that I knew about. The irritating thing is that the others were things the dealer had almost certainly reset codes for and impossible to spot on a visual inspection.
No real drama and should be good for a year or so now I hope!