More cars that we are considering purchasing (328i, Accord, Z-3, Miata)

[MrsBugi]

After test driving several cars that I received some excellent feedback on in a previous thread, my husband and I have decided to also consider the option of buying a used car from a private party. I have not had much luck with this in the past, but he is more confident we can get a good deal if he helps to look.

Here are several that caught my eye while browsing craigslist:

2000 BMW 328i for $12,800

2003 Honda Accord V6 Coupe for $14,500

2003 BMW 323ci Coupe for $14,900

Z-3 BMW Roadster for $9,800

1999 Mazda Miata for $8750

Do any of these strike you as a particularly good/bad deal?

 

[Blazin Trav]

Definately the 2003 BMW.

 

[MrsBugi]

Originally posted by: Blazin Trav
Definately the 2003 BMW.

It's a beautiful car, but I've heard that they are somewhat unreliable and expensive to fix. I've also heard that people aren't too happy with them after 50k miles, but it is the prettiest of all the other ones. Seems to be an awesome price, too.

 

[torpid]

What year is the Z-3? They were actually not that bad for reliability from 99-02

The miata is generally fairly reliable.

03 was the year of the accord redesign. I would avoid it for that reason. All years before and after have better realiability.

00-03 were not too bad for BMW reliability, but not great. Avoid an 04.

Reliability aside, I don't really like any of those cars as a used car option personally, but I do love the way BMWs drive.

 

[MrsBugi]

Originally posted by: torpid
What year is the Z-3? They were actually not that bad for reliability from 99-02

The miata is generally fairly reliable.

03 was the year of the accord redesign. I would avoid it for that reason. All years before and after have better realiability.

00-03 were not too bad for BMW reliability, but not great. Avoid an 04.

Reliability aside, I don't really like any of those cars as a used car option personally, but I do love the way BMWs drive.

Really excellent feedback, very helpful... thank you, torpid. :thumbsup: I'll e-mail the seller to see what year the Z-3 is.

 

[sniperruff]

Originally posted by: MrsBugi

Here are several that caught my eye while browsing craigslist:

2000 BMW 328i for $12,800-milage is a bit high, and repair costs will pile up soon

2003 Honda Accord V6 Coupe for $14,500- it's priced a bit high, and yes it is the first year of that model. although so far no major recalls (actually, IIRC there WAS a major recall. one of my ex-coworkers had to get it fixed under warranty. ) new model for 2008 will lower resale value even further next year. avoid.

2003 BMW 323ci Coupe for $14,900- looks ok.

Z-3 BMW Roadster for $9,800- no milage stated, my bet is over 100k. avoid.

1999 Mazda Miata for $8750- looks riced up. most likely driven hard by previous owner. this would be the worst car of the bunch.

Do any of these strike you as a particularly good/bad deal?

honestly none are really that hot.

this is pretty ok. if you can get that down to $13500 or so, it'd be a nice deal.

 

[MrsBugi]

Originally posted by: sniperruff

Originally posted by: MrsBugi

Here are several that caught my eye while browsing craigslist:

2000 BMW 328i for $12,800-milage is a bit high, and repair costs will pile up soon

2003 Honda Accord V6 Coupe for $14,500- it's priced a bit high, and yes it is the first year of that model. although so far no major recalls. new model for 2008 will lower resale value even further next year. avoid.

2003 BMW 323ci Coupe for $14,900- looks ok.

Z-3 BMW Roadster for $9,800- no milage stated, my bet is over 100k. avoid.

1999 Mazda Miata for $8750- looks riced up. most likely driven hard by previous owner. this would be the worst car of the bunch.

Do any of these strike you as a particularly good/bad deal?

honestly none are really that hot.

this is pretty ok. if you can get that down to $13500 or so, it'd be a nice deal.

Interesting, we weren't even considering Nissans. Is it better than the BMW, which is nearly the same price?

 

[Blazin Trav]

Originally posted by: MrsBugi

Originally posted by: Blazin Trav
Definately the 2003 BMW.

It's a beautiful car, but I've heard that they are somewhat unreliable and expensive to fix. I've also heard that people aren't too happy with them after 50k miles, but it is the prettiest of all the other ones. Seems to be an awesome price, too.

Hmm that's odd I haven't really heard of BMW reliability issues, but honestly I wouldn't go with a Z3... the Mazda looks okay.

 

[akubi]

the 323 is a 2000, not 2003.
there is no 323/328 past 2000 in the USA.

edit: wow i'm finally unbanned! :lips:

 

[neutralizer]

2003 BMW

 

[Baked]

They are both 2000 BMWs. The Coupe looks much nicer.

 

[Strk]

Why not first decide on whether or not you need four seats?

 

[OS]

if you buy an 03+ accord, i can tell you everything you might want to know about the engineering, parts, maintenance and mods.

a V6 might be overkill for you though, the difference in power is most apparent mid range rpms and up. You likely won't notice the difference if you are an easy driver and the V6 has some disadvantages compared to I4.

 

[sniperruff]

Originally posted by: MrsBugi

Originally posted by: sniperruff

Originally posted by: MrsBugi

Here are several that caught my eye while browsing craigslist:

2000 BMW 328i for $12,800-milage is a bit high, and repair costs will pile up soon

2003 Honda Accord V6 Coupe for $14,500- it's priced a bit high, and yes it is the first year of that model. although so far no major recalls. new model for 2008 will lower resale value even further next year. avoid.

2003 BMW 323ci Coupe for $14,900- looks ok.

Z-3 BMW Roadster for $9,800- no milage stated, my bet is over 100k. avoid.

1999 Mazda Miata for $8750- looks riced up. most likely driven hard by previous owner. this would be the worst car of the bunch.

Do any of these strike you as a particularly good/bad deal?

honestly none are really that hot.

this is pretty ok. if you can get that down to $13500 or so, it'd be a nice deal.

Interesting, we weren't even considering Nissans. Is it better than the BMW, which is nearly the same price?

the maxima is known to be pretty reliable. its interior is definitely not as good as a bmw... but it is powerful and is a solid car. $14500 is a dealer price that you can get any day. you can bargain a little.

you should just go test drive some cars. just because a car gets praises left and right doesn't mean you'll definitely like it.

in other news, this eclipse is pretty cheap too if the title is clean and the clutch is decent.

 

[ponyo]

Used BMWs are money pit. I wouldn't consider one unless you plan on doing all the maintence yourself.

 

[MrsBugi]

Originally posted by: sniperruff

Originally posted by: MrsBugi

Originally posted by: sniperruff

Originally posted by: MrsBugi

Here are several that caught my eye while browsing craigslist:

2000 BMW 328i for $12,800-milage is a bit high, and repair costs will pile up soon

2003 Honda Accord V6 Coupe for $14,500- it's priced a bit high, and yes it is the first year of that model. although so far no major recalls. new model for 2008 will lower resale value even further next year. avoid.

2003 BMW 323ci Coupe for $14,900- looks ok.

Z-3 BMW Roadster for $9,800- no milage stated, my bet is over 100k. avoid.

1999 Mazda Miata for $8750- looks riced up. most likely driven hard by previous owner. this would be the worst car of the bunch.

Do any of these strike you as a particularly good/bad deal?

honestly none are really that hot.

this is pretty ok. if you can get that down to $13500 or so, it'd be a nice deal.

Interesting, we weren't even considering Nissans. Is it better than the BMW, which is nearly the same price?

the maxima is known to be pretty reliable. its interior is definitely not as good as a bmw... but it is powerful and is a solid car. $14500 is a dealer price that you can get any day. you can bargain a little.

you should just go test drive some cars. just because a car gets praises left and right doesn't mean you'll definitely like it.

Very true, we'll be doing more test driving this weekend. We're hoping to make a final decision by the end of this month or the next, at the latest.

Thank you for all the reviews/input, ATOT. :wine:

 

[slycat]

i like the Mercedes c230 kompressor sedan.

 

[MrsBugi]

Originally posted by: Naustica
Used BMWs are money pit. I wouldn't consider one unless you plan on doing all the maintence yourself.

Ouch. That echoes what we've heard from others (and ConsumerReports), which is disappointing but probably explains the relatively low resale values/prices of the cars.

 

[torpid]

I can tell you that an 02 maxima is definitely worth considering. I considered it 4 years ago before I got my Audi A4, and again last week before I traded the Audi for a Lexus GS 300. My only complaints were that the interior was a little stale and cheap and that the car was just a bit bland.

I would definitely consider it at least. If practicality is of importance to you, it should be a major contender. Unfortunately, coming from an A4, I couldn't place practicality that high and decided to opt for the far more expensive 02 GS 300.

 

[tfinch2]

Well the Miata is riced, so you know it was driven into the ground.

The Z-3 doesn't have a mileage listing, so you know it's high.

I would touch a 6 year old 3-series for what they are asking. Sure they look nice, but they are too expensive to maintain.

And if I was going to spend 14k on an Accord, it sure as hell isn't going to have wheel covers.

 

[torpid]

Heh, I love the post, "I need a reliable car - $1500"

 

[tfinch2]

Originally posted by: torpid
Heh, I love the post, "I need a reliable car - $1500"

Link?

 

[Dunbar]

I wouldn't buy a BMW older than about 3 years old. I personally don't like Miatas, plus it's 7 years old and I hate driving old cars. The Accord is your best bet, I own the same car (except EX V6) and it's been very reliable and good on gas. Just make sure to test drive it and make sure it doesn't have any annoying rattles (mine doesn't, but I drove new ones that did.)

 

[thedarkwolf]

I love when people call 7 year old cars old.

 

[CraigRT]

Originally posted by: MrsBugi

Originally posted by: sniperruff

Originally posted by: MrsBugi

Here are several that caught my eye while browsing craigslist:

2000 BMW 328i for $12,800-milage is a bit high, and repair costs will pile up soon

2003 Honda Accord V6 Coupe for $14,500- it's priced a bit high, and yes it is the first year of that model. although so far no major recalls. new model for 2008 will lower resale value even further next year. avoid.

2003 BMW 323ci Coupe for $14,900- looks ok.

Z-3 BMW Roadster for $9,800- no milage stated, my bet is over 100k. avoid.

1999 Mazda Miata for $8750- looks riced up. most likely driven hard by previous owner. this would be the worst car of the bunch.

Do any of these strike you as a particularly good/bad deal?

honestly none are really that hot.

this is pretty ok. if you can get that down to $13500 or so, it'd be a nice deal.

Interesting, we weren't even considering Nissans. Is it better than the BMW, which is nearly the same price?

I would buy that car in a second. I wanted a 2002-2003 SE 6spd maxima, but I ended up with SE Altima with a manual trans cause there were no 6spd maximas around at the time. The 3.5 is a wicked engine, powerful yet decent on gas. I love the Altima and the max is only even a little better. Great car.