It won’t be for a while and it’s still not 100% sure yet, but I may be getting a new car by the end of this year. Two things you should know about me is I won’t buy American and I won’t buy a truck or SUV.

I am guessing I will have a budget of $25,000 and want something nice. I currently have a beat up 1995 BMW which just went over 240,000 miles today and my previous car occasionally ran on 215,000 miles.

So far I have narrowed my options to this:

‘06 Lexus IS 350: Is faster than the 330i but slower than the M3, but looks the nicest. It has heated/cooled seats, rain-detecting wipers, HIDs, premium wheels, and maybe voice navigation, DVD, and bluetooth. It is definitely the most luxurious.

‘02 BMW M3: Fastest and looks the meanest. The bad thing is a newer model just came out but it still looks good. It has pretty much everything the Lexus does except the navigation. Oh yeah, would also be drop-top

‘04 BMW 330i: This would be the cheapest while the other two would be more expensive. It’s a really nice car and comes with almost all the options of the M3. It is however the slowest.

So please tell me…what kind of car should i get? If you know of any other cars that are similar please let me know!

So you’re in the market for a new car. You want it to be affordable, stylish and reliable. Looks like you can only get a Hyundai or Toyota right? Wrong! When it comes to cars, looks can be really deceiving.

Whenever you see a Mercedes or BMW you automatically think BALLER, but that is not typically the case: Both of those car makers can be relatively cheap. For instance…

How much do you think this Mercedes CLK500 is worth?

$19,000

Or this BMW 330i?

$19,900

Now this Hyundai Azera?

$22,100

The truth is, out of these three used cars the Hyundai costs the most. Sure the mileage on the Hyundai is definitely better than either the Mercedes or BMW, but Germans build quality cars. I have a 1992 BMW 318is and that car is built like a tank: Few months ago I was involved in a rear end hit and run and my car doesn’t even look like it got hit. The other car’s hood really busted and I’m surprised that he fled the scene. My roommate, the other writer of this blog, has a BMW over 200k miles; talk about running forever. The point is BMW/Mercedes mean business when it comes to quality.

When you’re looking to purchase a new car, you should really consider buying a used Mercedes or BMW. They are quality cars that will give you the image of prestige everywhere you drive, at an affordable price!

Next time you drive around town and see all those people driving BMWs and Mercedes, some of them might not be as rich as you think! So get out there and ball on a Budget.