I'm a junior in college, currently sharing an 03 Durango with my mother, but need my own car for graduate school. I'm looking for something not too outdated (I still have a cassette player in my truck), decent in the snow/rain (Long Island NY), unique/fun to drive, and reliable enough to last 4 years without any major repairs.
I did a bit of research and the 2nd generation RL and Lexus GS430 really stuck out to me. The RL has SH-AWD, which can maximize traction by moving torque to the wheel bearing the most load, which definitely will help on the few snowy/rainy days (given I have some decent tires). The GS430 is rear wheel drive (with a massive V8) and a bit lighter than the RL, so its performance in the snow/rain will probably suffer, even with a "snow/power mode."
I really like the interior/exterior styling and sound systems (Mark Levinson and Bose) on both cars. Furthermore, both cars seem to have good reviews in terms of reliability and decent maintenance costs. The Lexus GS430 is rare in my area, but I've also only seen 1 other RL at my school.
I'm looking at a few Acura RLs 05-07 for sale by owner with around 90-115k miles. Do you think this is a good idea for a first car? I've seen them in the 8-10k price range, and I don't think that value for what you get can be beat.
I did a bit of research and the 2nd generation RL and Lexus GS430 really stuck out to me. The RL has SH-AWD, which can maximize traction by moving torque to the wheel bearing the most load, which definitely will help on the few snowy/rainy days (given I have some decent tires). The GS430 is rear wheel drive (with a massive V8) and a bit lighter than the RL, so its performance in the snow/rain will probably suffer, even with a "snow/power mode."
I really like the interior/exterior styling and sound systems (Mark Levinson and Bose) on both cars. Furthermore, both cars seem to have good reviews in terms of reliability and decent maintenance costs. The Lexus GS430 is rare in my area, but I've also only seen 1 other RL at my school.
I'm looking at a few Acura RLs 05-07 for sale by owner with around 90-115k miles. Do you think this is a good idea for a first car? I've seen them in the 8-10k price range, and I don't think that value for what you get can be beat.