Originally Posted By: MCompact
Originally Posted By: wag123
It sounds to me like you will be keeping the car until the "wheels fall off". After owning the Corolla for so long you will be disappointed with the long-term reliability/durability/longevity of most of the other cars recommended. Anything with a turbocharger will be problematic in the long run.
The turbo on my 2007 MS3 was still working fine at 8 years and 158,000 miles when I flipped it for the 2er- yeah, I sure wish I had bought a NA four instead.
Originally Posted By: wag123
...get a Camry V/6, with 301 HP they are FAST but will exceed your budget by a couple of grand.
I hate to burst your bubble, but in 2017 a car that runs the quarter in the mid-fourteens is not "FAST." At best I'd say that it is maybe a tiny bit quicker than average for its market segment. Today I'd say that a car has to run mid-twelves to be considered to be legitimately fast.
I will also be the first to point out that acceleration alone does not make a car entertaining to drive- see: Civic Si, Fiat Abarth, Fiesta ST- all of which are a riot to drive despite posting mid-pack acceleration numbers
Relative to the Corolla the OP is replacing, the 301 HP Camry V/6 IS fast! He should be more than satisfied with the performance. Even the new 203 HP 4-cyl Camry will offer the OP a noticeable (and maybe satisfactory) performance improvement over the car he has been driving. If he opts for the SE version, the car is even fairly entertaining to drive for a car in this market segment, and a 4-cyl SE can be purchased in the mid $20k price range and gets excellent "real world' gas mileage for a car this size. Also, to Toyota's credit, they have chosen to keep a gear-type automatic transmission with a torque converter in the Camry. My advice to the OP is to go to a Toyota dealer and test drive a Camry SE 4-cyl. The SE does ride a little rough, but it does handle better.
My advice about staying away from turbo-charged cars stands. For every person that says they have not had any problems, there is another person out there that HAS had problems. It is not really a matter of IF, it is a matter of WHEN.