You all know the drill - I'm after a new car and whilst I have built a short list I want to make sure that a) I'm not overlooking something that would be ideal and b) I hear from anyone that's owned any of the cars I'm considering.

My wife and I have just had our first child. She drives a 2018 Mini Countryman Cooper S whilst I drive a 2007 Mk3 MX-5. It means that now, if we are to go out together, we'll always be in her car. It's OK, I don't mind it - I like the interior, the specification is more than I need and the build quality is good, but I don't want to have to drive it all the time really. I dislike the body roll, the brakes are under powered and frankly I think despite it's relatively modest figures it actually has too much power for the front axle alone.

Additionally, I have had my MX-5 for a decade/100k miles now and have always wanted to swap it for something a bit daft but continually find excuses not to do it. I see this as an opportunity to spend a few years in something powerful and exciting before I inevitably end up with something EV/hydrogen/whatever becomes defacto in the next ten years.

So the remit is 4-door performance/halo model, Isofix in rear, budget £30-35k. £40k if the car was the most perfect gem only. I might keep the MX-5 as it costs peanuts to run and I have access to my fathers Morgan Plus 4 so this does not need to be a lightweight drivers car, that job is covered. Of late I have been doing about 5-8k miles a year in my main car.

Currently considering, broadly in order of preference:

M6 Gran Coupe
Panamera S/4S/GTS (970)
M3 (F80)
CLA 45 AMG Shooting Brake (the CLS is a more obvious competitor against the rest of this list but I'm more fond of the CLA)
M5 (F10)

Any thoughts? My concern with the M6 is I hear about engine write offs a little more than I would like. I can just about get in to a warrantied car with my budget however.

I'm not ashamed to say that a halo model / something "exclusive" is attractive to me as this purchase will be a bit of a treat. On paper yes a 650i is a better choice than an M6, but it's not an M6. And I cannot stress this enough - I already have an MX-5!