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A used Infiniti is your best choice for a firmer euro type driver with good reliability. If you want to stay under 30, you are looking at used which is a good choice. The worst thing about Infiniti is a good thing for a used car buyer. The do not hold their value like Lexus does other than the big SUV which holds value quiet well.
Go drive one and see what you think and drive the Nissan Altima too, the new one is under 30. Infiniti has some great safety features even on the 2 or 3 years old models. Altima has a ton of them too
though it is Korean and not Japanese.........the KIA OPTIMA
Buy the KIA OPTIMA as it outclasses anything from EUROPE or JAPAN and you'll save more than enough to also buy a USED 2001 Miata with low miles & hardtop so that you can have top-down fun on nice days or to drive to the tennis court or to the beach on sunny days. Getting the MIATA with hardtop will allow you to use the MIATA 365 days per year if you want.
If its just you and your sweetie, an old MIATA like a 13year old one will be extremely reliable and cheap to buy, cheap to insure(assuming you are an adult), fun, and doesn't use much gas, and you know its a blast to drive a stick-shift on days when you're not a slave to the phone and the office. Why would anyone ever consider an AUTOMATIC Miata? Miatas get labelled as a woman's car and according to some no normal red-blooded man would ever be seen driving one and that is a pity because all the guys I know that own Miatas are great guys...
KIA OPTIMA incredibly Nice, Inside & Outside, built to last.....and a Price that is UNBELIEVABLE compared to compareable peers. ----one of the best values today, so much car for the price that you will have enough left over to buy a USED fun 13yr old Miata/w hardtop
.............the important thing is that the KIA will be far more RELIABLE than the BMW, MERCEDES, AUDI that is comparable in size and features, and a huge amount less!!
The KIA OPTIMA is more car for the money than TOYOTA or HONDA and Kia is confident that they are approaching the GOLD standard of HONDA/TOYOTA quality.
Kia's factory warranty speaks for itself.
The fact that so many OPTIMAs have been sold in the past two years and KIA/Hyundai market share in USA growing almost exponentially means that car buyers must like more than just something about them.
The European makes lag far behind the Asians in quality products, although our European friends do make far better vehicles than nearly all of our Detroit neighbors who must have slept through Mechanical Engineering classes on importance of Quality Control and Mechanical Engineering courses on the importance of durability of materials/components and designing them accordingly. German makes do certainly produce better products in most cases than the Automakers based in Landuffjunk, Michigan USA. Pricewise, most are overpriced, sometimes to the point that some products made by domestic automakers based in Landuffjunk (DETROIT), are approximately the same level of quality at a much better price point.
I was impressed with the new Toyota Avalon. It has been redesigned. Not sure how it drives, but no doubt it's reliable.
Otherwise, I agree with the poster who suggested the Lexus GS.
The Avalon tends to be tuned for American tastes - namely a soft, quiet ride (it is built in Kentucky and probably designed out of Toyota's CALTY studio in California). It's been referred to as a Japanese Buick both in terms of its dynamics and driver profile, as it's traditionally popular with the more mature motorist. It's reliable, comfortable, roomy, and has good zip to it, but I'd hardly characterize it as a car with a European feel to it in terms of driving dynamics/lively handling.
Concur, though, I'd guess that the GS probably has a more sportier feel.
I have heard great things about Kia Optima also especially the turbo version and from what I heard people have traded in BMW's for them.
....
really???
I can see someone who overspent on BMW just for status and/or looks only.
In no way someone who really, really appreciates driving a BMW (and can afford it) will ever consider a Kia or similar class family sedans (Korean/Japanese/US). They feel like floating boats in comparison.
I rented an Optima and drove it for two thousand miles. While I think they look good, it is not even close on drivability/handling to a BMW...sorry, no comparison.
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though it is Korean and not Japanese.........the KIA OPTIMA
Buy the KIA OPTIMA as it outclasses anything from EUROPE or JAPAN and you'll save more than enough to also buy a USED 2001 Miata with low miles & hardtop so that you can have top-down fun on nice days or to drive to the tennis court or to the beach on 
sunny days. Getting the MIATA with hardtop will allow you to use the MIATA 365 days per year if you want.
