Help me pick a car

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J-PaP

J-PaP

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J-PaP
I'm looking at later in the year picking up a new DD. Problem is I haven't a clue what to buy as there is so much to pick from. I'm also a bit in two minds as to what I want from the car. Anyhow here is a rundown of my two options.

Overall the car must be:
Car must cost less than $15k AUD Cheaper the better.
Less than 150k km or ideally less than 100k km
Nothing by holden or ford

www.carsales.com.au can show prices/availability of such a car as some cars cost a lot more than they do in the EU/US/JPN or are only available there.

Option 1: Practical cruiser
Something that is practical. 4 seats, decent boot space. Hatchback or sedan.
Manual preferred but maybe I'll deal with having an auto. Two options that come to mind would be a Honda Accord Euro or a Nissan Cube or Alfa Romeo 156

Option 2: Practical racer
Must be manual. Again needs to have some decent boot space. I can't afford to take the lotus to the track if anything was to go wrong so such a car would be something I would use daily but could also track occasionally. Nothing specific comes to mind that would fit this bill. Maybe a Nissan 200sx but that might not be practical enough.

Thanks
John
 
I'm in the same boat as option 1. I've mainly been looking at the 6 Luxury Sports, Accord Euro Luxury and the Volkswagen Bora V5 myself. The Bora I don't think is as practical as the other two though; not really that much rear leg-room and a bit of a small boot.

As for option 2, it's front-wheel-drive but maybe a Prelude VTi-R? Dunno what your situation is with insurance but maybe a WRX?
 
Thanks for the options so far. Yeah the 6/euro/liberty from the early 2000's are all fairly similar cars I think and fairly good options. To be honest regarding rear seats I more so only need them to put stuff on (eg. Ikea trips) rather than needing to fit people in the back. Maybe a hatch/wagon option would be better.

Murcie - Prelude is interesting but maybe something RWD ideally.
 
I'm impressed that there are nearly as many manuals available under $15K as autos. In the US, selecting manual on a site like that typically culls it from 15,000 cars to about 200. Anyway, I'd look for a Honda Euro Accord, Civic or well-maintained Prelude or Integra (although such a thing may not exist), Mazda 3, Subaru Liberty, Imprezza or WRX, or possibly a Nissan, although their manual transmissions can be kind of sloppy. I think any of those could be a practical but fun cruiser and occasional track day car.
 

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