I need a new daily commuter, choosing between these three

[evident]

Basically, our family's 20 yr old nissan stanza is on it's last legs, and my dad wants to take my 96 toy camry... so i need to buy a new car.

I drive about 80 miles a day highway, so i need a car decent on gas... i'm gonna test drive the civic, and accord. I test drove the camry i4 and v6, and the v6 is pretty sweet, but msrp is 25k but i'm sure it can get talked down to 22 or even 20...

I also think my car buying strategy also involves reselling within three years. I will be doing around 30k miles a year, so when i go to sell it will be a high milage vehicle, so i need to pick one that will retain the most value.

so attn 2007 accord camry and civic owners, tell me some pros and cons of your cars in terms of handling, gas, build quality etc.

i will post updates with my thoughts and experiences at the dealer, and my test drives.
i also ordered the fighting chance packages to try and negotiate the best price.

cliffs
need new commuter
will resell in 3 years
need to retain most value
need owners of 2007 civic accord or camrys to chime in on their experiences w/ their cars

 

[Sunrise089]

Civic will be cheapest and get slightly better fuel economy.

Camry will be boring, but has a great V6 and has just been redesigned.

Accord will be the best blend of practicality and somewhat fun driving, BUT will be getting redesigned this year, so you will have the "old model".

All will hold their value well compared to the market overall.

 

[theeedude]

Of those, go with the Civic, IMO.

 

[Gibson486]

Civic may be the ugliest of the bunch, but once you get past the looks, it is a pretty good car ( I do not own a Civic, but I know a few who do).

Civic
Accord
Camry


That is my order.

 

[dud]

Of the three cars the Civic will be your best overall value. I will be buying one in the next week and I've done a LOT of research. One of your requirements was to resell the car in three years. If that was not important I would have recommended against any of those vehicles ... I would have recommended something like a Mazda 3. You can get one pretty cheap right now.

trying to get a "good" deal onany of those cars is going to be a PITA.

 

[evident]

i heard lots of great things about the mazda3... it seems like everyone at ATOT has one! The reason why i didn't look at it though was its fuel economy for the class that it's in (civic gets like 36, 3 gets 32 according to fueleconomy.gov) , but maybe i should also take it for a test drive as well. How is the reliability? I know mazda is owned by ford, and i must admit that's another reason why i didn't think about mazda as well :\

 

[ognabor]

i can't comment on the reliability, since i haven't even owned it for a year, but i love my '07 3. haven't had any issues with it yet. it's a lot more fun to drive than the civic, i drove them both multiple times before i bought the 3. and... i know looks are a bit of a personal preference issue, but the 3 looks way better imo. gas mileage for me was a secondary concern, i get over 30 highway so i'm not complaining. I had a truck before this, so it's waaaay better.

just my 2 cents.

 

[thomsbrain]

see sig. It's just the best "compromise" all-arounder you can buy, in terms of being comfortable and well-built, but also fairly fun to drive. It is much more relaxing to drive normally than the Civic, but also quicker than even the Civic Si. I sometimes wish I had Civic fuel economy, though.

BTW, I also drive around 30K miles a year.

 

[dud]

Reliability you ask? I am replacing a 1999 Mazda protege that we've owned for 8 years. The car has been VERY reliable and given us very few problems (my son needs a car so we're giving it to him). If it were not for my wife's obcession with getting a Civic I would buy the '07 Mazda 3i for less than $14k OTD. See my thread to read more about it:

Compact Car Comparison

 

[evident]

at this point, i'm mainly concerned about the fuel economy, with the amount of miles i'm driving, but i do want a maneuverable ride (evasive and passing on hwy) and a comfy interior too. again i will test drive and see what's up

 

[jagec]

Originally posted by: evident
at this point, i'm mainly concerned about the fuel economy, with the amount of miles i'm driving, but i do want a maneuverable ride (evasive and passing on hwy) and a comfy interior too. again i will test drive and see what's up

Suzuki DL650:thumbsup:

But if you want to waste gas, fine, go for the Civic

 

[LOUISSSSS]

my order is Accord, then Civic, then Altima, then Maxima, then Sentra, then CR-V then a few others then Camry. i've driven the 06 civic, own a 2005 accord v6 and have driven the camry v6. Civic is fine for a daily driver and will get you great gas mileage on the highways but might feel a bit harsh a long roads.

i chose the accord first because it is very comfortable, at the same time quick and nimble when necessary. i'm not going to write a full review of the j30 accord, u can search for those online. Keep in mind the Camry is notorious for being boring as hell and it is. turns and drives like a daily minivan. accelerates without much zest and you'll want to slow to about 10-15 for a 90 degree turn (common in the city).

i also chose the altima over the camry because i am a driving enthusiast and love to drive. for those that love to drive and get a good 'feel' for their car, they'd understand if they drove the accord/altima with their sportier suspension and handling than the camry.

gl on your purchase

 

[rdp6]

I drive 100 miles per day until fall, then back to 90. I have a 2007 Passat 2.0T 6M. It gets at least 33mpg with 93 octane, and at least 31 mpg with the AC on. I have seen 27-37mpg, but usually 33. It is available in your price range, especially with discounts because they haven't been selling all that well here in the US.

Most importantly, it is a lot of fun to drive. Torque is always available at cruising speed. The car is nicely damped. Also, the interior is imo very nice (I have the vinyl seats with what was called package 1). I have driven it some 9300+ miles since late March (had a few weeks off between school and co-op), and still love it. No problems with it at all.

 

[Playmaker]

Are you buying new and planning to sell in 3 years? If so, look around for a good lease deal and run the numbers on depreciation, financing charges, etc. vs. the lease option. There's this general stigma about leases being a rip-off, but that's not necessarily the case if you want a new car every 3 years...

Edit: Almost forgot...I just bought a 2005 Honda Accord myself. In my current situation my prime concern was reliability, so I let statistics choose for me. Also, in that price range, the Accord is the obvious choice. However, if you are buying new/post-redesign, the Camry does compete quite well.

 

[theeedude]

If your commute is just plain straight highway, you won't really benefit from Mazda3's cornering and steering feel. I would generally recommend a Mazda3 to anyone, but long commute, maybe a Civic would be better. One thing about Mazda3s steering is that its very responsive, which does make it a lot of fun, but does require constant attention and input. Sometimes on a highway that may be a little tiring because the steering feel is heavy and there is no slack on it for you to move your hands around a little before car starts turning. On Mazda3, the steering is pretty much direct. You nudge the steering wheel and there is instant response, no slack, so you gotta pay attention. I personally love it, but my commute has a lot of turns, where I get rewarded for all that work. Just drive for yourself and see what you think would be my advise.

 

[evident]

Originally posted by: Playmaker
Are you buying new and planning to sell in 3 years? If so, look around for a good lease deal and run the numbers on depreciation, financing charges, etc. vs. the lease option. There's this general stigma about leases being a rip-off, but that's not necessarily the case if you want a new car every 3 years...

Edit: Almost forgot...I just bought a 2005 Honda Accord myself. In my current situation my prime concern was reliability, so I let statistics choose for me. Also, in that price range, the Accord is the obvious choice. However, if you are buying new/post-redesign, the Camry does compete quite well.

leasing is totally out of the question, unless i can find a lease that will let me put 30000 miles a year on the car!!! i don't think i'm going to want a new car every 3 years aside from this time, because in 3 years i'll probably be able to move alot closer to work.


as for the 2005 accord, i love that car! my mom has the 2005 accord w/ V6 and all options except nav, and it's a blast to drive! my mom gave me the option of taking her car and getting her a 4cyl accord or camry, but i'd rather not run it up in miles i feel, and i could really benefit from the additional 8mpg the civic gets ahead of the accord. what do you think?