Recommendation for a used car to get with 15k?

I'm moving from Chicago (where I didn't need a car) down to Fort Myers, Florida for work and it looks like I'm going to need to purchase a car. I'd like to buy it down there (33908 area code) and I'm hoping to spend not much more than 15k. Is there any chance you guys would be willing to offer some advice on what cars I should be looking at?

I'm not overly concerned with how fast/powerful the car is. However, it is important to me that the car is at least somewhat aesthetically pleasing. I really don't like the modern "Soap Bar" look of many modern cars. I've read through a few similar threads to this and I loved some of suggestions for the older BMW's or Mercedes that were still "boxy" like the e38 750 in my pic (or the E39 540i, E46 330, Mercedes w126/w123 etc.)

I would stop my search right there, but I'm very wary to buy a car that would have such expensive upkeep for someone with little knowledge of how to fix cars themselves (mine pretty much extends to changing oil/tires.) I know that BMW's, especially ones over 10 years old, are notoriously expensive to fix. So perhaps that wouldn't be the best idea for someone who doesn't have a ton of money.

Realistically I'm not super picky, but I would like a reliable, cheap car that is at least nice to look at.

Other than that, I have a few preferences that might help lower things down as well:

- Leather interior is nice but not absolutely necessary
- Must be at least a 4 seater
- 4WD capability would be awesome in case I ever make it back to Chicago (but I completely get that it might not happen for this price.)
- Bluetooth capability would be awesome, but an aux input at the very least would be great too.

Any suggestions?

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Also just to add one more thing:

- Automatic and Manual are both acceptable, but I would definitely prefer the latter if possible

Get the BMW of your dreams. The maintenance cost is exaggerated. Would you rather pay 800 bucks to replace the a/c compressor on a civic or 1000-1200 (guessing) to replace it on a BMW? The style and/or driving experience should be worth it.

Well that's certainly a pretty tempting option. But don't you think the 10-15 year old BMW would be much more likely to need expensive repairs than a 2-5 year old civic? Maybe not... I guess I have no idea if the build quality compensates for the BMW's age that much.

So buy one that has maintenance records and has already had the big stuff done.

>I know that BMW's, especially ones over 10 years old, are notoriously expensive to fix.

The problem isn't BMW, the problem is that you're aiming at massively complex european luxury monstrosities. There's no way in the universe you can fit the words cheap and reliable into that concept.

I'll definitely look into this option. What do you consider to be the "big stuff" that I should look for in the maintenance records?

Right, that's sort of what I was getting at in my original post. While I loved the look of those suggested cars, I realize they may very well be unrealistic for me because of the repairs. I guess I was just looking for insight on how unsustainable/expensive they actually would be compared to a newer car worth $15k. Plus, if people thought the old euro luxury cars were a dumb purchase for me, I figured they would at least provide a good example of what I meant by "aesthetically pleasing."

Get mint W126 for $7k and keep the other $8k for repairs as needed.

Timing chains, clutch if manual

If you're going to buy a 7 series be prepared for a fuck ton in maintenance bills.