Reliability, which to me translates to a Jaoanese car. Sometimes I deviate from this for my husband, or because I think a car is just so cute like the Audi TT I had for a few years, and every time we have a non-japanese car there is some sort of problem with the car. Many times very small problems that the dealer will fix under warranty, but still have to bring it in to get it fixed, which I find annoying. I know one day I will buy a Japanese car that is a lemon just so I have to eat my words but I have owned, Hondas, Nissan’s, Audi’s, Porsche’s, Mazda’s, Saab, Acura, Dodge all purchased new from the dealer. I went to school in MI and they were not happy with my loyalty to Japanese cars :).
Many times I look for a convertable.
I hate wood trim, but have lived with it in the past.
If it is manual I make sure I can get the clutch all the way in without having to be ridiculously close to the steering wheel.
If it is a sedan I really like when the back seats can fold down to make the trunk space larger, it is annoying to me that some cars don’t have that. And, I prefer sedans.
I don’t like that one big button in the middle of the dash that I have seen on some cars lately.
My Maxima had a heated steering wheel, that was AWESOME. Better than heated seats.