What is the best car you've ever owned and a brief reason why?

Audi TT Mk1 3.2L V6 Automatic.
Twenty years old now and still got it, I dont drive it fast or push it, I just like the quality of the car.

Close runner up to the TT would be a BMW 330D, very nice engine I thought and nice drive.
 
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Hard to call.

In terms of a "head" decision my current v50, it thoroughly lacks personality but as a wagon that's cheap to run, comfortable enough to do a long hike and spacious enough for most tasks and not awful to drive, it's hard to argue with.

In terms of a heart decision, the grand vitara, had awful fuel economy, lacked style or refinement and legitimately struggled to do 70mph on a cold morning. I can't quite put my finger on exactly why i liked it so much but it just felt optimistic and cheerful. It's the first car i'd actually buy back given the chance.
 
I've owned such diverse cars that it's really hard to pick a "best" as they all fulfilled different needs in different ways.

Current Tesla Model Y - super economical, practical, maintenance free, quiet, comfortable, quick enough and easy to drive

2009 Porsche Cayenne GTS - over the top, loud, brash, ridiculous, very comfortable but my god the running cost. Proper penis extension :D

2008 Seat Leon Cupra - there were very few of these in South Africa, so it was something unusual, pretty damn quick for a FWD especially after it had been breathed on a bit. Proper pocket rocket.

2003 SLK AMG - top down motoring in glorious weather through scenic mountain passes - memories for a lifetime.
 
Probably the Golf R MK7.5 that I've currently got - does everything pretty well and the tech doesn't wind me up. I only bought it as a short-term run-around after I sold the Tesla Model 3 LR for a tidy profit when the market was completely mental for them, and decided to hold onto it ever since.
 
MK1 Octavia vRS.

At the time my son was a toddler and my daughter in Primary School.

It's the one car learned the most with and I documented everything with on the briskoda forums, it did everything I needed it to but I also had lots of fun with it too. Nurburgring trip being the most memorable.

Whenever my daughter (also a petrol head) asks about my favourite past car, this is the one.
 
P reg VW Passat in Indian Red 1.9L Diesel (Mk3?)
The engine only kicked out 90HP, but it seemed v quick off the line for pulling out (say from 0-20 mph), so great around town, and cruised beautifully
Had a strange feeling of enormous width inside the cabin that gave it a luxury feel. Boot was a bit shallow
Cambelt went on the Severn Bridge @ 163k miles. I was flooring it pulling away from the tolls. Gutted
The fuel economy was fantastic for a car of that size - regularly over 60 mpg
Once got 904 miles out of a single tank
 
I'm just thinking about this and peak car for me was 1993.

I've had both a Xantia and Volvo 940 from that year. Both super comfy but still had a bit of steering feel. Both had fairly lazy engines so not need to thrash. Despite being automatic the Volvo was actually more fun to hoon about then you'd imagine. It did however like a drink!

There's also a honourable mention for a 2002 Octavia that made it to 245,000 and actually didn't have anything major wrong with it. It's been replaced by a dismal Astra, the only good thing about the Astra is it doesn't have Alloy wheels.
 
I don't think I can pick a best car as they all meant different things at different times.

Collecting my first E46 M3 after a 9 month wait was pretty special in 2002. Seeing it waiting for me in the showroom of BMW Stafford at 8am on a sunny Saturday was a special memory as was driving it out of the showroom.

Having Porsche bring a GT3 to my house, buying it on the spot and collecting it the following day after it had been prepped fully was special as was getting my GT R delivered to me having not seen the car at all outside videos and pictures.

Best all round is the Merc but most special is probably the GT3 for what it meant at that time of life etc.
 
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Sensible head would say the Octavia estate I got rid of last year... There was nothing "wrong" with it as such, it did everything I wanted really well, it was just so... grey...

So instead I'm going to have to go with the 1996 Mitsubishi Legnum VR4 I had about 10 years ago

Spacious, practical, hilarious (but perfectly driveable) in the snow, roared like a tiger giving it some right foot, with performance to match, and we'll ignore the barely double figures fuel economy and the fact it was the most unreliable car I've ever owned :p

Also one of the best looking cars ever made (IMO of course).

Sadly my insurance premiums suddenly shot up to over £3k (with no improvement when shopping around), which at the time was simply unaffordable, so I had to swap it for something more sensible :(
 
I'll have to be subjective in the term "best" and pick the car that holds the fondest memories for me and that was my BMW Z4M. I'd just had to give up my Porsche as part of a divorce and while the Z4M is not objectively a better car, it symbolised some new found freedom for me and I used it fully doing a road trip around Europe. It was fast enough and the video footage I've got from around the Col de Turini, Route Napoleon, Tuscan countryside and Alpine passes means I can still remind myself of fun times. Was very sad when I had to sell it at what is probably going to turn out to be the bottom of the market for them.
 
Mazda 6 for the memories, First car my wife and I bought together and we brought our son home in that car after he was born, drove from one end of the country to the other in it, kept it way longer than I should have because I just couldn't part with it.
 
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