My first pistol was a Series 70, Mark IV in .45 ACP. I paid the full MSRP of $125 for it in 1971. I added a Colt .22/.45 conversion to it and that's how I learned to shoot handguns.
Of the six Series 70, Mark IV Colts I've owned, only one of the six has been what I consider a good shooter. In contrast, every Kimber and Les Baer I own is an excellent shooter.
In my experience, Colt repair service is terrible. I sent a new model Ace to them THREE TIMES because the slide stop was deforming the slide. Each time they kept the pistol for three months. After over nine months of dicking around, they were unable to fix the problem so I finally sold the pistol for parts. No more Colts for me. If you had a similar experience with repair service, would you buy another pistol from them?
The Colt AR15s are nothing special either. When I compare my Colt Match Target to my older Bushmasters, the Bushmasters have it beat in both workmanship and accuracy.
In my opinion, Colts are for collectors and other brands are for serious shooters.