all I can suggest is German, since its practically all I like. You seem like you want a nice car, but it has to have some pickup. How abou the VW Passat W8? The 5 series is great, and so long as you dont have to have a BRAND new car, used M5's are awesome cars (one of my faves) with not-so-killer 2nd hand prices. I'm waiting around on picking up an M3 or a Porsche 944S2, or a 928S4 wouldn't be bad (neither are ungodly pricey like 911's and 969s) either. But I still wouldn't sell my VW :-D
p.s. the new M5 is projected to come out next year, and you could always wait to check out the M6, which is unreal. Anyhow, look up some statistics on the newly outfitted M5, which has an engine to blow away all previous year models. Definately more than the old "400 ponies" :twisted:
And the new S4 convertables seem nice, but I think they are priced a little higher than the 4 door S4, which still isn't enough for your money. They went from a twin turbo V6 at a good price, to a naturally aspirated weaker V6 at a high price. Crazy.