This is a popular, mid-sized luxury SUV made by Audi. It's designed for families who want a comfortable, upscale vehicle with all-wheel drive for bad weather.
This means the car was in a major accident or damaged so badly that the insurance company declared it a total loss. Someone then fixed it up and got permission from the government to sell and drive it again.
This is a luxury family SUV made by the Italian company Alfa Romeo. It is designed to look sporty and handle corners much more like a sports car than a typical SUV.
This is a famous vintage sports car made by Audi in the 1980s that became legendary in racing. It was the first major rally car to use all-wheel drive, a technology that Audi now uses on many of its modern cars.
This is a sleek, low-slung luxury electric car made by Audi. It shares its mechanical parts with Porsche's electric car, meaning it is very fast and handles beautifully.
This is a high-end, fully electric four-door sports car made by Porsche. It is designed to go very fast and handle corners like a traditional sports car while running entirely on battery power.
This is an all-electric family car made by Kia. It has a sleek, futuristic design and is built to charge very quickly while offering a sporty driving feel.
This is an all-electric family SUV made by Hyundai that has a unique, pixel-inspired design. It can charge its battery very quickly and has a spacious, modern interior.
This is a large, sporty Porsche SUV that can be plugged in to charge. It can drive a short distance on pure electricity before the gas engine kicks in.
This is a midsize family SUV made by Mazda. It is designed to be practical, comfortable, and reliable for daily use, while looking and feeling more expensive than it actually is.
This is a popular online store that sells high-quality replacement parts for European cars. They are famous because they let you return worn-out parts (even old oil or brakes) for a free replacement.
This is a wider, all-wheel-drive version of the iconic Porsche 911 sports car. It has a turbocharged engine in the back and is designed to be fast and safe to drive in any weather.
This is a legendary, rally-inspired sports sedan with all-wheel drive. The 'MR' version comes with a fast-shifting automatic transmission instead of a manual.
This is a station wagon version of the Audi A4 that sits slightly higher off the ground and has plastic trim around the wheels to protect it from rocks and dirt.
This is a larger, more luxurious version of Audi's rugged station wagon. It has an adjustable suspension that can raise the car up for driving through deep snow.
This is an extremely fast, high-end station wagon made by Audi. It has a very powerful engine and all-wheel drive, allowing it to carry a lot of luggage while driving as fast as a supercar.
This is an exotic, luxury two-door sports car made by the British company Aston Martin. It is famous for its beautiful design and loud, powerful engine.
This is a special version of the Porsche 911 built specifically for people who love the pure experience of driving. It strips out some heavy parts to save weight and focuses on manual shifting and sharp handling.
This is a midsize luxury car made by Mercedes-Benz that comes in several shapes, including a spacious station wagon. It is designed to be very comfortable and quiet.
This is a premium four-door sedan made by Audi. It is designed to be comfortable, quiet, and safe, often featuring all-wheel drive for better grip in bad weather.
This is a large, comfortable station wagon made by Volvo. It sits a bit higher off the ground to handle rough dirt roads and snow, and has incredibly comfortable seats.
This is a classic, spacious station wagon made by Volvo. It is designed to be extremely safe, practical, and comfortable for families and their luggage.
This is the third-generation version of the famous two-seat convertible Miata. It's slightly wider and heavier than other versions, but it is still incredibly fun to drive and very reliable.
This is an older way of helping drivers turn the steering wheel using fluid pressure. Car enthusiasts love it because it lets you feel the road through the steering wheel much better than modern electric systems.
This is a small, affordable two-door sports car made by Subaru. It is designed to be lightweight and fun to drive, focusing on handling and steering feel rather than raw speed.
This is a vintage luxury sports car made by Porsche from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s. Unlike the famous Porsche 911, it has its engine in the front and is designed for comfortable, long-distance road trips.
This is a sporty four-door sedan made by Subaru. It uses all-wheel drive and a turbocharged engine to provide excellent grip and speed, even in rain or snow.
This is a fast, high-performance version of the Mazda 3 hatchback. It is designed to be a practical family hatchback that is also very quick and exciting to drive.
This is a sporty station wagon sold by the Swedish brand Saab, but it was actually built by Subaru. It combines the mechanical parts of a Subaru WRX with Saab's styling and interior.
This is a small, inexpensive Ford hatchback that has been modified with a turbo engine, sport suspension, and manual transmission to make it incredibly fun and fast on twisty roads.
LIVE
Well, look at that.
That's not, that's again, that's not studio.
It's not AI.
It's not a canvas backdrop.
True.
It's actually real.
Uh-huh.
We're in Lauterbrunnen.
Yes, we are.
Switzerland.
Deep, deep in the Switzerland, the best parts of Switzerland, and you can see from behind
us, you can't see all of the killer waterfalls, but we still figured that was a decent backdrop.
And here's the funny part.
We joked about not doing podcasts from a hotel room.
This is actually the balcony of one of our hotel rooms.
That's how crazy it is.
So, so we've accomplished it.
We've done exactly what we set out to do.
We figured out hotel room without it being a back wall.
So that's, that's excellent.
I think we've done something special.
We're wrapping up our trip.
Hey guys, welcome back.
Thanks for watching.
Really appreciate it.
We're wrapping up our giant three week trip to Europe.
We've driven some amazing roads.
I think my counts up to six incredible driving roads.
It's yes.
Are we at six or seven?
I think so.
I mean, we find stretches.
We find unbelievable scenery and we're going to share our top three.
Driving roads, our top three experiences as well.
And we encourage you to watch these films.
There's probably going to be what, four, maybe five films.
I'm aiming for four.
It may be more than that.
We're just going to depend on how much footage we got.
And the short answer is we have tons of footage.
I just am not sure what the story is going to be yet.
So I'm expecting about four films.
And thanks to British Dine and also FCP Euro because they were the really anchor sponsors
for this.
All of our sponsors came alongside us for this, but those two specifically said this
trip sounds amazing and wanted to be a part of it.
So we're really grateful to them, but I cannot believe the amount of ground we've covered
figuratively and literally and to tell you some about these roads, I just can't wait.
There's stuff about these roads that we have learned every single time we've done them.
Even the roads we've heard a lot about, we still learn stuff, but I've never heard and
I can't wait to share it.
We've had incredible food experiences.
We've been through a lot.
We're wrapping the trip up and we figured we'd be here, do a couple of car debates and give
you some trip updates as well and yeah, let's dive right in.
It's going to be incredible.
So we've got two car debates.
First off, we're going to start off with Levi who's right again.
He has an Audi performance shop in Washington state.
He and his wife share a 2016 Audi Q5 two-liter turbo.
It has 115,000 miles.
They bought it well about half of its life ago, 88,000 miles ago.
So rebuilt title.
It's a great vehicle for us.
The key thing is he has this Audi performance shop.
So he could do all the work on this car himself indefinitely, but it's the family car and it's
the last thing he works on.
Levi, thank you for writing.
We've seen a ton of Audis and in Eastern Europe, I didn't realize how many Audis are everywhere.
I mean, it sounds profound and I realize Audi is a worldwide brand and they're everywhere,
but I just, it struck me.
I can't believe how many Audis we've seen.
I can't believe how many performance Audis we've seen.
So be encouraged.
It is not just the U.S.
It is all of Europe.
I'm sure worldwide, but it was just, we're constantly, our heads are turning.
We're seeing RS6s.
We're seeing all the performance Audis going, oh, that looks great.
Oh, that would be perfect here.
You know, it's really cool.
I saw an Audi RS3 hatchback and I was like, where is that car in the U.S.?
That was actually on Stelvio.
So I was like, that car would be amazing in the U.S.
Oh man, Audi says he's got a one car household.
They keep one primary vehicle and usually has a project car.
His commute is 50 feet and his wife does not work.
Okay.
It doesn't drive every day.
His current project is a manual swapped A4 with a twin turbo four liter V8 from an S6
that will retain Quattro all wheel drive and make 600 plus horsepower.
Okay.
All right.
Good.
That'll be onkers.
On Euro rally, one of the cars that was Circus Peanut Orange, I was told had about a thousand
horsepower is an S6 making a thousand horsepower.
I did get passed.
He was angry.
Yes.
Not a necessary amount of power for that trip, but it was very impressive for sure.
Q five Penelope is primarily his wife's vehicle.
She's very attached to it.
She likes functionality and the size of SUVs, but she's open to sport back.
She's didn't like the wagons or hatchbacks so much and they regularly drive on 300 plus
mile road trips over mountain passes.
Sounds familiar.
And the thing to do, they put over 10,000 miles a year on the primary vehicle and they're
expecting kids in the future.
So reliability and practicality are a factor, but Levi, you own a performance shop.
So even if it's not a factor, you can fix it.
You can do all the work and keep it reliable.
We can.
The difficulty of course, the fact that that is that being the last thing on the list.
And I'm worried about that A4 project car because that's going to be a showcase car
for your business and clearly that needs to run.
But this, so we really are shopping for the family car.
He's owned more than 20 cars over the last decade, essentially.
And the highlights have been a Jeep Gladiator and an all-wheel drive charger
pursuit with a Hemi.
I'm bringing up those two specifically, not only because he does, but because this is
not a guy who only buys Audi's.
He's got a performance shop.
He's a little bit concerned about the fact that the Audi that they drive as a family
car, this Q5 needs to represent the shop.
But I'm not sure that's right.
I'm not sure that it has to represent the shop because he's going to have his
showcase car in this A4 anyway.
Yeah.
And that feels like that's the car that's going to represent the shop.
But anyway, they've had all of these cars.
He had an Audi S6 at one point, which spoiled him with all kinds of latest tech.
The budget for the new family car, though, is only 15 to 20 grand.
And I say only, but you can get a lot of good stuff for that.
But it's not like we're blowing out the budget with a huge number here.
$15,000 to $20,000.
They could go EV.
They don't want to own a Tesla.
His wife refuses to have one.
But again, we've got to go family car.
We've got to go hatchback or SUV.
He likes having it as an Audi.
But then there's a weird twist here that I'm struggling with.
And that is this Q5 that they have, 115,000 miles.
He said, there's another option and that is let's just refresh it.
Let's just do all the stuff it might ever need and keep it going long term.
But he says it's boring and they don't really like it.
He'd like something with more personality.
You have the ability to charge an EV at home and you're open to EVs.
That caught my eye because I've been talking for a long time now.
Well, at least a few podcast episodes about the e-tron, the e-tron GT.
And how inexpensive they are now.
They're not quite 20 grand yet.
And one of our listeners viewers straightened me out said, do not go down that road.
Do not do that.
You're still intrigued, though.
I know you are.
I mean, I'm intrigued for Levi because of his performance shop
and because of Audi still going with the RS models that are gas powered
and very high performance.
And obviously that is his shop.
That is his focus.
But also we've noticed that Audi is leaning into EVs pretty heavily, too.
We've seen EV models that I didn't even I hadn't even seen the brand.
There it is on the road and, you know, really intriguing looking.
So I'm asking is a balance of both worth considering?
Just proposing that.
I'm just thinking ahead, just simply because you say the Q5 has served you well.
But after several years of ownership, yeah, you're finding it boring.
Long term maintenance, you could refresh it, you could keep it going.
So the question Levi is asking is, does he keep the perfectly good Q5
and invest in it, making more enjoyable or place it with something
that feels more special while serving as their only one vehicle
for road trips, future family duty, everyday life.
And Levi is up in Prosser, Washington,
Vermont Motor Company and Levi.
I'm really excited for the future of your business.
By the way, did you catch that Levi is 25 years old
and he's had nine or 10 cars since he started driving?
Yes. I mean, he's gone through a lot
and I'm sure you go through a lot at your shop.
Initially, I was thinking, oh, all your cars have to be performance
outies and they have to represent your shop.
And, you know, any time you talk about them, you say, well,
here it is and people will strike up conversations, they'll notice your car
and you'll say, by the way, I've got an Audi performance shop.
And I'm still kind of leaning that way.
But I'm just wondering about both EV and gas simply because that's
kind of what Audi is leaning into.
Could you do you even touch E-tron GT performance?
Do you even go down that road?
Do you need to?
Or is just having one and say, look, I bought this for cheap.
And, you know, maybe the the fact that they, you know,
one of our viewers, the car bricked itself because of some electrical problems.
Can you figure out the solve for that?
Can you offer a workaround?
Can you make it worth owning?
Because I sure like them.
I think they're great looking.
They make great noises. They dry.
I think they're the better deal than a used Taycan.
So asking what if you had an E-tron GT EV and your performance A4
and you kind of offered both.
And you said, because you're you're putting that out there to the world.
You're you're saying, hey, I touch everything that Audi's performance line up
or are you just going down the gas powered route?
But also if you don't have if your wife does not have an Audi product
and strikes up a conversation and you're not there, oh, my husband does this.
And, you know, well, why aren't you driving an Audi?
If if you're, you know, if this is your business and this is your livelihood,
how come you guys don't drive an Audi?
What what image does that project possibly?
Yeah, now it could save you a lot of money
because you could just get something it'll run, it'll be just fine.
Maybe it's still in the Volkswagen family.
Maybe it's some sort of, you know, smaller SUV from Volkswagen.
You say, hey, it's still in the family.
But I'm just wondering about the image projecting that it projects
simply because of the business that you're in.
So I'm really trying to weigh that.
Levi, I think only you can answer that.
Initially, I was thinking that 2017 RS3 apologies for the siren in the background.
Siren in the background. There it is.
For real.
Maybe it's going siren.
Hopefully nothing bad is going down in luck.
Well, they just turned it off.
So apparently it's not that bad.
Anyway, so I was thinking about this 2017 Audi RS3 launch edition,
which is pretty cool.
It's a rare modern Audi performance sedan.
And I'm wondering if these are, I didn't have a moment to look,
but could you find one of these for about 20 K somewhere in that neighborhood?
And you're saying, all right, I'm going for the rarest of the rare.
Look at this launch edition and look at what I can do for performance for enthusiasts.
And that really speaks to your business rather than, you know,
yeah, you've got a crazy build going on.
Are most of your customers doing builds to that level?
Or are they just doing some slight modifications?
And then, you know, what about an e-tron?
I know I keep harping on them. I'm still intrigued by them.
I'm more intrigued by the price versus what you get.
But if EVs are completely out, I'm struggling with this.
Yeah, the A4 sounds like it's going to stick around.
But how reliable will it be to your point, Levi?
And is that something you're going to drive all the time?
Or is it going to be so finicky?
Maybe maybe a little bit run great.
But I was looking at this 2017 RS3, the launch edition, just really great styling.
It's just classic Audi.
It's, you know, the image that it projects, saying, you know,
you can own this kind of niche car and keep it running with my shop.
You know, with your shop.
So that's, you know, I'm playing with with these ideas.
Otherwise, your wife could go down the route of getting some SUV.
Pick what you like in the 15 to $20,000 range.
And all the performance cars are, you know, for your shop.
Maybe they're all gas powered and that just stays over here on the sun.
Well, I'm debating a lot of this, Levi, and I'm really wondering
you've got a good list of stuff that you've considered already.
And I want to walk through those.
And I want to give you a couple of alts.
You said on your list, again, keep the Q5 and refresh it.
The problem is you you've already said this is a rebuilt title.
So not only am I concerned about you spending quite a bit of money
and you said you don't normally work on your wife's car
because you're doing stuff for the business,
I'm concerned about the time and cost benefit
of you refreshing a rebuilt title Q5.
You already said it's boring.
You don't like it that much.
You'd like to replace it.
Don't spend more money on it trying to make it something you like,
especially considering it's a rebuilt title.
You have none of that money out of it.
I think the Q5 goes.
Now, you also mentioned you could get an updated SQ5 or an updated Q5,
but you don't fundamentally like the car enough as a vehicle to drive.
I don't think getting a newer one is going to solve it.
You brought up the Audi e-tron on your list,
but I think the Audi e-tron you're talking about is essentially the electric Q5.
And those are in the price.
Yeah, the Macan, but exactly.
But the problem is you don't like the way the gas-powered one you have drives.
The electric Q5, while it's going to have newer tech in it,
I don't think you're going to like that anymore and be glad you spent the money.
So that's out as well.
You mentioned an A7 TDI because you're a fan of diesels.
I love that idea, Levi, but my question is, have you driven the A7?
Do you like it enough as a driver's vehicle?
I think it works for your family.
It's got the hatchback.
It's got a good amount of room to get them in your budget.
I think all of that's cool.
The TDI, because you have the diesel that really leans into Audi to Paul's point,
it really shows off your business.
Well, if you like that enough, I think it's a real contender
because your wife likes SUVs, because you have a Q5,
because you want a more engaging Q5 in many ways.
I think the Porsche Macan, which you brought up, Levi,
is an excellent possibility here because it's Audi adjacent.
I got my wife something in the family, but it's different.
That's my take on the ones you listed.
But I want to give you some other ones because I think I think you said a couple
of interesting things.
One is that and I do understand this, your wife's car is the last thing
you're going to work on because it doesn't actually directly benefit the shop.
It benefits your life, but it doesn't benefit the shop.
I think that is the answer to the question of why your wife doesn't drive an Audi.
If she drives anything else on the planet, the answer, if you're around
or if she's around, is just, well, this is the family car
and he doesn't have time to work on it or if I don't have time to work on it.
You're working on Audi's.
So you have something else that someone else works on that you can take to whoever.
You see what I'm saying?
So I think you are a candidate for an EV.
And I think there's two you should look at.
The Mustang Machi, why not?
Because the other thing about EVs is I think EVs is also a break in the market.
If your wife drives an EV, but it's not related at all to your business,
that means internal combustion engine cars, you are about Audi.
EV, we're about whatever.
I got her this one.
We like it.
It has the tech.
It doesn't matter what brand it is because in many ways,
the technology is pretty interchangeable anyway.
So Mustang Machi, you can find for a deal.
They're excellent.
They're easy to transition into if you haven't had an EV before.
I think that's a great candidate.
The other one is kind of a two in one.
The EV6 Kia, Hyundai IONIQ 5, which one do you prefer the styling of?
They're both out there.
They're inexpensive.
You can get them.
Look, EVs are this kind of EV we're talking about.
They're not fundamentally great to drive.
But this is your family vehicle that needs to run and you're open to an EV.
I don't see a single reason why these don't work.
And I think because they're an EV, they're enough tangential of what you do as a business
that I don't think it affects the business at all.
It's not like you work on Audi's, but you only drive Corvette.
So to be like, well, wait a minute, I don't understand what I mean.
It's an EV.
It's an EV family hauler.
I don't think it matters.
So my two big pushes for you are Mustang Machi, EV6 or IONIQ 5 in.
I think you should go for the EV SUV and that will solve all of the family needs.
And you can focus on that Audi shop, which actually sounds pretty cool.
Sounds very cool.
I keep rereading this Levi and I keep thinking Cayenne.
You brought up the Macan.
You brought up the Q5.
Sure. You blend those together.
And what do you get?
And I keep thinking about your 2017 Cayenne and it's the E hybrid,
which has served them very well.
It's done great. Multiple road trips.
It's been great. You've put, what, 100 and almost 120,000 on it now.
We have we've put about a 60,000 or 60,000, 80,000 on it.
Something like that. Yeah. It's been great.
Yeah, it's been really good. Yeah.
And, you know, I know I know you could refresh the Q5,
but I'm going to say no to that.
I agree. Because then you're going to be putting a lot of money
and really keeping the Q5 going.
If you were to do that with a Cayenne, I weirdly, I have less of a problem
putting money into a Cayenne to refresh it, but that's not your business.
But I also think the rebuilt title is a real problem.
What's spending money on that?
Yeah, that's a problem.
So what about a Cayenne?
Because then you you keep going.
Road trips, future family duty and everyday life.
Yeah. Yeah.
Cayenne is really high on my list now.
But you're going to have to blow the budget a little bit,
but you're also looking at it very long term and it's related.
So I'm really struggling with your focused on Audi is your business.
And it should be every car in your life should be German.
It should be European almost.
But I see your point that if you're going to break,
make it such a break that it's OK, it's Korean, it's American.
It's such a different flavor that it makes a very clear divide.
I have business.
I have the performance shop.
And then whatever else we drive is is just something completely different.
And I like your suggestions about those, the Hyundai and the Kia.
Those are right in the sweet spot.
I don't know that the GB 60 is down quite that far yet.
I don't think so.
It was the more expensive of the three anyway.
And 25 maybe somewhere in there, 30.
Yeah, for sure.
A little bit more luxury, a little bit, you know, higher in materials,
that kind of thing, but the EV6 and the and the I5 are really great too.
Those are excellent choices.
Yeah, McCann, I think all of these could work.
And I think what you're going to have to do is really decide,
first of all, what image are you going to project?
Is it all business?
Is it every word that comes out of your mouth is Audi and German
and performance and tuning and doesn't matter what Audi has.
It's I can do everything from, you know, beginning to end all of Audi's products
and, you know, a little Porsche over here and a little bit of Volkswagen over here.
And, you know, we do it all over here.
Or is it just you are niche, you are super tuned.
And this is very high performance and it's only particular Audi models.
And then over here, you've got some nice, some nice all choices
because we can recommend all the Mazda CX-5s
and you know, all those kinds of things that will do everything.
But it's it's not compelling.
It's it'll work.
Those those will be fine.
But I don't think that'll work for you.
I don't think that's who you are.
So it's good. That's good choices.
Levi, you've got some work to do here.
You've got some driving homework to do and thank you for writing.
That's really cool to hear from you.
Yes, but definitely do not refresh the Q5.
I know that I totally agree with that.
This is July 4th week in the US.
It's the 250th anniversary of the country.
We hope you're going to celebrate in some way, shape or form that is coming up this weekend.
But one of the ways to celebrate is to actually get out and drive
and hooked on driving has a ton of events, kind of nationwide this weekend,
starting off with July 2nd.
That is this Thursday couple of days from now at Sonoma Raceway.
We have hooked on driving. That's a pretty big event.
It's actually I think it's almost sold out,
but you may still have space depending on your run group.
That's an option.
The same day Pacific Northwest region is doing something at Ridge Motorsports Park.
So the same Thursday, July 2nd, that's Ridge Motorsports Park at Pacific Northwest
are Mid-Atlantic.
I've jumped across the country.
Mid-Atlantic is going on the weekend as well.
July 4th and Sunday, July 5th at NC Car is happening there.
And then we've talked about it before Watkins Glen for a three day weekend.
That is third, fourth and fifth.
Stars Stripes and Speed with Santi and Cody up in our northeast region.
They are having a huge blowout event.
It's a track day. It's a drift competition.
There's stuff for the kids. There's food. There's music.
It is a huge three day event.
And I don't know if there's space, but you should go look because it's going to be massive.
If you're in the area of Watkins Glen, Watkins is gorgeous.
The whole area is gorgeous.
It's fantastic.
It's one of those places you can bring the family even if they don't come to the track,
but there's going to be tons of stuff at the track.
So that's an option as well.
If you don't already have your July 4th weekend planned.
Hooked on driving.com.
Find an event nationwide near you.
And of course, events continue on after July 4th weekend.
But yeah, we hope you're out celebrating with family and yeah, find a track day near you.
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James writes to us ever since our Evo 10 review videos.
Long time ago.
It's a long time.
James, thank you for listening.
Thank you for watching.
He's watched them several times, especially the Performance All Wheel Drive comparison from way back then.
He and his wife live in the Denver Metro area and they're in the financial position to comfortably upgrade or add to their garage.
The budget is 80 to 130,000-ish.
All of their current vehicles are paid off.
His wife is not a car enthusiast, but James very much is and they currently own a 991.2 911 Carrera 4S in manual, 20,000 miles on it.
It is the weekend nice weather car.
He drives about 2,000 to 3,000 miles a year.
He does own an Evo 10 MR, 30,000 miles on it.
Lightly modded, lowered, stays in storage.
He only drives about 300 miles a year.
That's a tragedy.
We'll get back to it.
The through line to this debate, Levi, are you listening?
James drives a B9A4 All Road Audi 70,000 miles on it.
That's their weekend ski trip car.
His wife's commuter and his mountain biking car with a roof rack.
He works from home so he doesn't need the commuter car, so he's thinking.
He's got a long list of particular things that he's looking in this next car.
Wow, including street presence and cred.
Turn some heads, enthusiast credibility.
He doesn't care if it's a firm ride.
He needs more passenger and cargo space than the A4 All Road.
He wants a good exhaust note.
He wants to install a charger at home if he decides on an EV because they're not averse to that.
He doesn't care about value retention.
Insurance needs to be moderate.
Gas efficiency doesn't matter also since it could be a fourth car.
The range doesn't matter since it's an EV.
They've got a ski trip car already.
He would drive the 911.
He would drive it if the 911 is not drivable given the destination or weather.
Not needed for heavy snow and the A4 is not drivable.
Street park most places without issue and worry.
He wants head turning, enthusiast street cred, but wants to be able to park it without worry.
It's difficult.
He might want to use it for mountain biking.
He needs to drive on gravel roads to park at the trail heads.
No need to track this vehicle because he used to autocross track the EVO quite a bit.
Did a little bit with 911, but the wear and tear and maintenance on that got pricey to regularly track it.
Now he does about one to two track events on either vehicle.
He's debating a lot.
Here's the thing that struck me when I was reading this, James.
And thank God you saved me because I was reading through this, noting exactly what you've already noted.
Want to turn heads, want to not be noticed, want to take it down a gravel dirt road, want to have fun with it.
There's counter things going on here and I'm sitting here scratching my head through a lot of this email going,
I don't know how to solve this, but then near the bottom, and I know you're getting there,
but near the bottom he opens up the reality of the fact that his budget is a lot of money here.
He's got 80 to 130 grand and he is actually willing to solve this with two cars.
Yeah.
And that was the thing that saved me because I was like, I don't know what to do here,
but the possibility of selling the A4 because it's not quite big enough
and buying a something to replace the A4 and a different fun thing.
I was like, okay, now we're getting somewhere because it was so much in contrast.
So much of the requirements are two things at once.
And I think it comes from the fact, James, that you like this A4, but you realize you've outgrown it.
But that does a certain duty in your life.
In fact, it's the one that gets driven the most.
So you still need to have that driven the most wagon in your life.
But you're also shopping for a new fun car.
These are two different cars, James.
They're two different cars.
The minute that it tries to be one car, my brain hurts and it falls apart.
James is debating about trading this A4 all-road to get a lightly used A6 all-road,
especially can find one with night sight.
That's something Levi really liked as well on his S6.
Gives them more passenger and cargo space for ski trips.
He suggests an Audi RS6, maybe the performance trip trim,
but he wouldn't drive this to skiing due to the wheels and tires.
Yes, you would have to tiptoe or take a different car.
Yeah, for sure.
2022 to 2024, Taycan or Crossport Turismo for us, GTS.
That could be a good fit because again, they're open to an EV.
He has test driven a lot of other EVs, including Lucid's, Rivian's, Tesla's,
Mini's, Hyundai's.
None of them really stuck with him because they lacked chassis handling,
dynamics, and steering feel.
Trade in the 991.2 C4S to get a GT3.
He said the GT3 is the grail car, but he feel like he's limited already
in when and where he can drive his 911 as it is.
A GT3 would be even more limiting, except we see a lot in Europe
and they're thrashed in an inch of their lives.
It depends on the demeanor toward it, yeah.
Wild card number one, add a new Lexus LC500 or used Aston Martin V8 Vantage.
He prefers the look of the pre-facelift Vantage.
Got it.
Wild card number two, upgrade the A4 to the A6 all-road
and get an ND Miata Club in manual, put winners on it, drive it around, beat on it.
Thank you for sending photos.
Thank you, James, I might surprise you here.
Okay.
Because you're already starting with a great garage and a healthy budget to add a fourth car.
You said you drive the Evo 10 MR about 300 miles a year.
It's time to sell it.
Agreed.
Agreed.
You say you have a 991.2 Carrera 4S, 4S.
That's the all-wheel drive and it's the fair weather car.
I'm not disagreeing with you.
What are you doing?
Yeah, I hear you.
I hear you.
That needs to get sold immediately.
Interesting.
I think you didn't see that coming, but you have 20,000 miles on it.
You put two to 3,000 miles on a year and it's the weekend nice weather car.
You own the 911 that is designed for great driving fun, but with the all-wheel drive,
it's dead steering and it doesn't handle quite as well.
Interesting.
Okay.
All right.
You don't need the GT3 because yeah, street cred, but then you park it, you'll chirp, chirp
and lock away and be freaked out the entire lunch.
You're totally right.
Like is somebody going to do something to my car?
And then this A4 all-road, 70,000 miles, but you want more space.
Everything gets sold, James.
Look at you.
All three get sold.
Good for you.
I did not do all three, but I'm impressed.
Keep going.
Hands down.
The 911 needs to go because you have-
Look at you.
I drive it in fair weather.
The dead steering, dead handling comparatively-
Understand, yeah.
All-wheel drive car in nice weather.
The all-wheel drive only kicks in when it senses wheel slippage.
If it never slips because you're driving in fine, nice weather all the time, you don't need
all-wheel drive.
You've got all the extra tech that you don't need.
It's heavier in the front end.
The steering is lighter and a lot more engaging on the two-wheel drive models.
Interesting.
Okay.
So I think you should sell that 4S by a Carrera T. That's the driver's car.
Less money, even if it's the 991.
That is the sweet spot because there are about 115, 120 for a really nice one and less for
a little bit more miles on that.
You're not going to worry about it parked because, yeah, 911, but it's not the GT3 with
the wing and all the craziness.
Absolutely.
Go get yourself a Carrera T. The steering is delightful.
It's very different.
The noise is better.
It's a little bit lighter.
That's the driver's car.
You will drive it more.
You'll worry about it the same as you do with your current 911.
I think that's fair.
The worry factor is kind of like this.
It's equivalent, yeah.
And, you know, 911 cool, but it's not, not again the GT3.
Absolutely.
So then you sell the Evo 10 MR, wave goodbye to it, let it go to a home where it will be
driven and enjoyed.
It will be driven.
Yes.
And you upgrade to the A6 all-road.
So you've already been eyeballing it.
You brought up the suggestion.
So go get that for more space.
Go find yourself.
You're selling us, I feel like, in the email.
I really want this.
I want this.
You know, I want night side.
I want a little bit more passenger and cargo space for friends.
He has looked at the E-Class wagon, but he doesn't like the screens.
So, and you don't want the RS6.
So absolutely.
A6 all-road.
Add the ND Miata Club because you want one because you wrote in here and you said, I'm
thinking about it, which means you're going to go buy one.
And the Carrera T and that is your new garage.
Okay.
Done.
Well done.
And you'll have money left over.
Well done.
Oh, wow.
Okay.
All right.
You've actually influenced what I was thinking.
I'm very impressed.
The 4S.
You don't need a 4S.
And fine.
I totally do.
Heavier?
More weight?
No.
Okay.
So James, here's the place I'm going to steal from Paul.
And then I'm going to go my own way.
The place I'm going to steal from Paul is the trajectory of what happens with your 911.
Maybe what I think I may be aligned with you, meaning it might need to become a Carrera
T.
Okay.
I because I actually totally agree with all of Paul's reasons on that.
But I'm going to leave it alone for now.
But I'm going to speak about the 4S and the Evo because I've gleaned something here.
Okay.
James, you have a good amount of budget, 80 to 130 grand.
So the whole Carrera T thing could happen.
You've got plenty of budget to do, whatever.
You could stretch into a GT3.
But what I read here is this.
You have a 991.2 911 Carrera 4S in manual.
Now that's a nice 911, but that is not a special 911.
That is not a, oh, you have one of those.
It's a very nice car.
Please don't get me wrong.
But it's just, yeah.
Okay.
That's a very nice 911.
But it's not a special 911.
And then you have an Evo 10 MR, which gets 300 miles a year and doesn't get tracked anymore.
So you sell it to him.
You say it as well.
It basically stays in storage.
You say that.
And the 911 is 20,000 miles total on it, maybe two to three grand a year, which is the floor
of what I say you should keep a car for.
And it's weekend, nice weather only.
So what I hear is the last thing you're going to do is buy an 80 to $130,000 new fun car
and drive it at all.
We got to get you away from expensive cars into something where you're just like, I should
just take that.
Yes.
That should just be driven.
Yes.
Because you've shown me here with two different cars.
Look, I like both the cars you have, but they're already too precious.
We get you another fun, nice.
I can't imagine how much the Aston Martin's not going to get driven.
Seriously.
The level at which it will not be driven seriously is high.
This is the tough love part of this, James, because I think you've got to look lower so
you drive it more.
And I would hope that by driving something more, you might want to drive this 911 more.
I also agree you need to sell the Evo.
What I also read here is the Evo has history.
It does.
But you're paying for it to sit in storage.
And I love these cars.
You've seen our reviews on it many times.
I love these cars.
They're great.
Sell the Evo.
It's sitting in storage.
300 miles a year is not enough to keep a car.
The 911's on the bubble.
To possibly go the trajectory, you're talking about the Crera 4S.
But I mean the Crera 4T, the Crera T to get rid of the 4S.
Anyway.
4T is a new model.
That's a new model from Porsche.
It's coming.
You know it's coming.
The 4T.
So I've got to solve your Audi A4 problem, which is I want a little bigger and I want
to be careful how the tech operates.
But clearly it's mountain biking, skiing, it's a little bit of, you know, fire road
off road.
Yeah.
I've got two cars for you, James, and I'm going to go probably where you don't expect
I'm not going to get close to spending all your budget, which gives the Crera T option
a possibility.
Okay.
It's not spending close to all your budget.
You need to get rid of the A4 all road.
Yes.
And you need to get either a Volvo V70 or V90 cross country.
Those are great.
We had a V90 cross country not that long ago as a press car.
It is there slightly lifted, plastic fendered.
It's essentially the all road by Volvo.
Yeah.
But the V70 has much more space, V70 and V90 both have much more space than the Audi
A4.
They have very minimal tech that got that vertical screen that tech is not overwhelming.
Yes.
Some of the best seats in the business, some of the best comfort in the business, all the
technology you're looking for in that Volvo V70 or V90 cross country.
So the A4 goes, it's replaced by that Volvo, wagon is solved, we're done.
We don't have anything flashy like the Mercedes, it's not all screens, you've gone totally
different but it's going to be brilliant and those things fly so under the radar and you
are one of the most comfortable people on the road.
That's perfect.
That's all that.
That's great.
Now, by a cheap fun car and the most expensive one I'm going with is a brand new GR86 or BRZ.
That's the most expensive I'm going with because you said you had an ND and you didn't like
the steering, an ND Miata.
So NC Miata, my friend, get the nicest NC Miata out there, maybe get a power-attractable
hardtop, spend 20 grand on the high side for the nicest one out there.
Get an NC because it still has hydraulic steering, it's a little bit bigger car.
15 grand.
The dynamics are brilliant.
So NC Miata, possibly an early Z4 and if you want to splurge and I kind of don't want
you to because I don't think you're going to drive it enough, a 987 Boxster because it
still has the hydraulic steering.
That's good.
It could be the 987 Boxster and I'm only going there because you already like Porsche products
and that has hydraulic steering still, but here is the tough love hard part, James.
You have to buy a car and I want a minimum of 5,000 miles a year put on this car.
I want this to be a fun car where the conversation is not all the reasons you can't take it.
You've got to come up with, there need to be almost no reasons to not take it.
It's because you're going skiing and you need all the gear or you're taking the mountain
bike or you're physically going to be on a fire road.
Those are pretty much the reasons to not take the fun car I'm talking about.
I want you to buy it, embrace the steering feel, embrace the manual.
The worst of the ones for steering feel I just mentioned is actually the 86 BRZ and
that's still fun.
Get something light, chuckable, because here's the thing.
Everything I just mentioned has enthusiast cred.
You go to your local cars and copy, they're like, cool car man, but it didn't cost you
much.
But if somebody dings it, does it suck?
It sucks.
But you know what you do?
You go, it's not your 911 or your MR, I only take it out 300 miles a year and look what
somebody did to it.
It's the Porsche and I went to lunch to your point, what if somebody breathes on it?
It's an 86 or it's an NC Miata and it's just like, I'm going to park it there and I'm
going to go there and later I'm going to come back and drive it down a mountain road and
guess what?
It got sprayed by gravel and that sucks, but it's an NC Miata or it's a BRZ.
Drive it James, I want you to buy a cheaper, actual enthusiast car that you will actually
go, I can't think of a single reason not to take it.
In fact, we know people that have taken the BRZ and lifted it for winter use and put knobbies
on it and I kind of want one back just for that.
I want to be that guy.
Just for that.
So this is my real challenge for you, James, because I'm concerned.
It's clear in your email that the two fun cars you have, which are very fun and I like
them both, you are too precious, so we can't buy something more precious.
I want you to go downgrade and drive it all the time.
James, I like this idea, you know, you must be this tall to go on this ride.
You must put this many miles on your car to be eligible to keep it.
Now, I say that pointing fingers directly at me because, but, you know, the 928, you
know the story.
I did put a lot of miles on it when we did our four films.
So I feel like I'm still writing that as a little bit as a crunch.
It's running out a little bit, but I will say I like your ideas.
The I like the Carrera T thing.
I do like that because my concern for you is that the 911's still not going to get
driven enough.
So to your point, maybe it becomes a different 911.
I think that's a very viable option.
But for now, I'm leaving you the 911, James.
The A4 goes, the Evo goes, we're going Volvo wagon and cheap, affordable sports car
that's a little older for steering feel.
Yeah, drive it constantly.
So I'm thinking up I 70 to the ski resorts, that concrete is really nasty.
So you're going to want the Volvo nice ride.
I like that.
And that's a fantastic car to go anywhere in.
Those Volvos are brilliant.
They're great. So nice.
Come west to Utah Motorsports campus.
Go east to our Midwest region.
Go drive something out to Hedgehalla Raceway.
You're perfectly placed because I don't know how many track days you get at high
planes. That's probably the best one out there.
We don't unfortunately have an HOD venue, a HOD region there.
But you could go in either direction.
Come out to Utah, come to one of our track days there.
I will give you a sneak preview.
September 28th is a Monday.
Come on out to Utah Motorsports campus for a full day, full track at Utah Motorsports
campus. That is happening.
We're excited to host it.
We will be there.
It's going to be in conjunction with Lotus Golden Gate and Lotus National Club.
It's a huge event that we can be cool.
You could bring it to that, James.
Yeah, go east, go to something.
But if you had a career T, I think you'd be more inclined to drive
on track because it's track worthy or, you know, depending on the track that you go
to or bring the $15,000 really nice, you know, Miata NC, that could be great.
And you'll have money left over.
But don't start eyeballing vantages.
Or GT3 is new.
GT3 won't get driven.
You won't drive any Carrera up I-70 to go skiing.
It'll sit in the garage.
Yeah, these are good.
It's tough love, James.
I'm aware of that.
But I'm just I'm trying to challenge you because I want you.
What's also clear from email is you love to drive.
Yeah, I want you to drive something fun all the time.
Yes, all we do here at Everyday Driver.
That's our focus, whatever you're buying.
And honestly, if I had to travel cross country with a bunch of gear,
be hard pressed to beat the Volvo wagon.
Yeah, give yourself permission to put those miles on for a drive because you won't regret it.
Yeah, thank you for writing Everyday Driver TV at gmail.com.
Topic Tuesdays, car conclusions, car debates.
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Preston writes to us from episode 999.
He is the lacrosse coach who thought that he would be moving into that career full time.
Unfortunately, that opportunity fell through,
but he's been able to coach the club team at his favorite university that is also local.
So good things all around.
We recommended Mazda Speed 3, sign FRS WRX of 92X.
Sounds like us, yeah.
He ended up buying Preston, bought a 2019 Fiesta ST for right at the top of his budget cap for $10,000.
Good for you.
He says not everyone breaks the budget, Paul.
But that's a good, hey, that's fantastic car.
2019 ST for 10 million.
I bet it was pretty good looking.
I bet it was pretty clean.
Yeah.
That's great.
He picked it up in January.
He's been loving it and will even be taking it to the NC car event with the Mid-Atlantic region
for the July 4th event for this weekend.
I love that.
That's great.
Say hey to Devon and Ryan from us and just say that that car came as a result of a car debate.
They would love to hear that.
I love, thank you for taking it to the track day.
That's awesome.
Yes.
He's also asking for quick recommendations for things to do to make his track day,
his first track day easier, more comfortable, more enjoyable.
The first thing you want to do is talk to everyone.
Talk to people.
Introduce yourself.
Hey, I'm running this.
Hey, how many track days have you done?
Tell me about the track.
Have you been to this track before?
I'm guessing you will be coached.
So you'll have great coaching in your car to help you understand what to do with your hands,
what to do with your eyes.
Bring a torque wrench.
You want to re-torque your wheels before you go on track.
Make sure that you monitor your tire pressures throughout the day
and ask Devon and Ryan, ask people around you.
Hey, what do you think I should be running for the heat of the day and how many laps I've got in?
And you look at the marker on your tires so you'll know if they're overinflated,
if you're a little bit greasy, or if you're underinflated and grinding and understeering
into corners.
And yeah, talk to people.
I'm going to say sunscreen, a water bottle, maybe a sun hat if it's hot.
Just think about the fact that you're going to be up in the heat.
There should be plenty of air-conditioned places to hang out in to embrace those.
I would also say this to you just as a possibility.
Bring a big plastic tub.
And I say that because you need to get everything out of your car.
Floor mats, random stuff rolling around.
You get everything out of your car.
Now, every track day on the planet, unless somebody brings a trailer,
it's totally normal that you see everybody's gear dumped in the front of their parking space.
But it's just kind of nice to have a tub.
So bring a tub, put everything in the tub, put the tub there.
If you're a pop-up person, some people bring pop-ups.
You don't need to go that far.
Again, there's air-conditioned places to hang out.
All of that's fine.
But sun hat, sunscreen, water bottle, please drink a lot of water.
It's middle of the summer.
You're probably going to get more dehydrated than you realize.
Paul's point, talk to your coach.
Talk to others around you.
You'll find out so much information.
Don't stress the tire pressure thing.
I mean, Paul's absolutely right.
Monitoring it is great.
You can learn some stuff there.
But you don't need to find the perfect, it doesn't matter.
Just go out and enjoy and really ask your coach questions.
And if for whatever reason, your coach and you have different communication styles,
tell the guys that are running the event.
Devin and Ryan, they can probably swap out coaches for you.
Because it's just one of those things where communication in the car at high speed is so
important.
And sometimes people communicate differently and they just get cross wires.
So think about that as well.
Yep.
And make sure your chin strap.
When people do this to you, they're asking, is your chin strap on?
Have you remembered your chin strap?
So we hope you have a great time.
Preston, congratulations on your great car.
We love those things.
They're such fun cars and they're so affordable.
I love that you found one of those.
That's really great.
Thank you guys for writing in.
Car conclusions, the car debates, all of it.
We've got some more topic Tuesdays coming.
We'll be back in studio for the next podcast after this monster event.
And we will be coming with some huge films in the near future.
Also, just so you know, some of our older films are actually going to come to YouTube
for the first time.
Stuff that has been exclusive away from YouTube up until this time.
All that stuff is actually starting to come out later over the summer as we work
feverishly on the edits to get these new films out.
Some of our older films, the 50 Years of 9-11, the Icon BMW film, Pilgrimage,
and American Original are all coming to YouTube for the first time
later in this year, actually working their way through the summer.
We are going to be at Monterey.
We're pretty sure this year.
So if you're going to be at Monterey and you think you saw us, you did see us.
That's going to happen.
We may be podcasting from there.
It's a little bit TBD, but we're hoping to podcast from Monterey as well.
So that's happening.
So much stuff happening through the back half of the year.
We can't wait to share more with you guys.
Signing off from Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland.
Look at this.
It's just, it's crazy.
It's crazy.
I can't believe it.
There's a waterfall around the corner.
I know it's mind boggling.
Glacier up high.
Yeah.
Can't believe we get to do this.
Thank you for listening.
Thank you for writing.
Cheers, everyone.
About this episode
Recording from a stunning balcony in Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland, the hosts wrap up their epic three-week European road trip by sharing highlights of the continent's best driving roads. They dive into a compelling car debate for Levi, a 25-year-old Audi performance shop owner. Levi needs to decide whether to refresh his family's reliable but boring Audi Q5 or replace it with a more exciting vehicle that represents his business, all within a $15,000 to $20,000 budget. The hosts weigh the merits of rare Audis, EVs, and practical family haulers.
The guys podcast while still on their 2026 European Adventure, and discuss debates from Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland! The first debate is for Levi in WA, who owns an Audi performance shop and is looking ahead to starting a family. Then, James in Denver already has a great garage and is considering adding a fourth car - what should he get with a high budget? The car conclusion is from Preston, who finds driving satisfaction at a low budget.
Big thanks to @fcpeuro and @vredestein for their primary sponsorship of this driving adventure! #fcpeuro #vredestein
Audio-only MP3 is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and 10 other platforms.
Look for us on Tuesdays if you’d like to watch us debate, disagree and then go drive again!
00:00 - Intro From Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland
2:02 - Car Debate #1: Performance Shop Perception
21:20 - Car Debate #2: Complete Garage Re-Think
40:09 - Car Conclusion #1: Not Everyone Breaks The Budget
Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, and subscribe to our two YouTube channels. Write to us your Topic Tuesdays, Car Conclusions and those great Car Debates at [email protected] or everydaydriver.com
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