Well yes, having a 200% tax on new cars kind of forces the issue...

Yep. If you haven't gone through an angle gear yet, you will...

It's a fun segment, but there's no question Jeremy is, as always, a bit inconsistent in his criteria. Also, there's a serious lack of Saab 900S Turbo here.

Honestly I'm fine with this. It's bad enough that there are all the hands-off distractions while driving, at least use a mount so you can keep your hands on the wheel. Oh, and kind of funny that the picture is of a phone never released in the US (the GSM version of the HTC Hero—a great little device), showing a map…

I'd say I've got it in my Saab 9-3 (OG) SE 5-door. Practical enough to work as a daily driver, both in fuel economy and carrying capacity, but fast and light enough to be an awful lot of fun. All in a package that looks a bit different than anything else on the road, without being in-your-face flashy.

They started off the same platform, yes, but the Saabs were a lot beefier by the end of it. Also, beyond the obvious styling differences, the Alfa has that so-sweet beautiful V6.

Sorry to hear about your 9-3. Interesting thought re: the Subaru as a replacement. If I had to replace my '01 9-3 five door with something other than a Saab, I'd been figuring it'd be a Mazda3 hatch...

But I'm told it's totally nonfunctional on the US-spec models...

It looks like a bloated B5 A4. The looks are questionable, and without a third pedal, what's the point?

Sigh, I wish that had survived to production. I don't see anything in sight to replace my OG 9-3...

Well again, I have no interest in the CLA, but that's due to the transmission, not the drivetrain.

I have no interest in the CLA, but FWD alone isn't a good enough reason to dismiss a car.

Bingo. A reskinned/less practical A class is probably a nice car, but probably not much of a sport sedan. And the whole point of getting a small BMW is to have a lovely I6.

Ouch, that's too bad. Is that on all the non-hatchback ones ('03 and up)? I loved how quick and easy it was to get rid of my headlight bulb-killing DRLs in my '01. Confused the hell out of me before I read the manual though—Off: headlights are on. Middle position: no change...Right position: no change...Clearly a…

Yeah, the NG900 is a great car too—especially if you want to tune it, since the Trionic5 is far more tune friendly than the T7 in the 9-3.

No shit given here...I have the Viggen's more sensible brother (a black SE 5-door) and I love it. The 3-door is sexier, the blue is gorgeous, and it's obviously faster...though honestly I'm happier with the utility of the back doors and slightly more ground clearance. Wish it could have gotten that lovely color…

Lancia, for selling a Sebring as a "Flavia". My dad's first car was a white w/red Flavia Vignale cabrio like the one pictured. THAT is a real Flavia.

Judging by the headlights and wheels, that's a year 2000 Z3, most likely the 2.5L that BMW badged as a "2.3" ('99 and '00; '01 brought the 3.0, so they started labeling the 2.5 properly then) to make the difference between it and the 2.8L seem bigger. Those are the stock "base" wheels for the '00 "2.3". The revised…