What car should I buy for $4-5k?! (my first!)

[Dark4ng3l]

Just save some money and get a good 92 sentra.. thats what I did!

 

[vi edit]

I'd say look for an early to mid 90's GM 4 door sedan with the 3.8L engine. Cheap as hell insurance. The engine is bullet proof. It'll pull 30MPG on the highway. You have plent of room to haul friends around. Oh, and it'll absolutely stomp on them wimpy little civics and accords

I think the Buick Regals came with the 3.8L. Also, maybe the Oldsmobile Cutless Supremes.

 

[imhotepmp]

another vote for honda, although i would look for an accord ex. little more style and better engine. for 6-7000 you may be able to get a 93 or 94. I just bought a 92 accord for $4400. good luck
make sure you get a carfax report!

Imhotep MP

 

[AaronP]

get a 5-6 year old Taurus. For the price, they can't be beat. 2 months ago I bought a 97 Taurus with 80,000 miles for $5800 and it has run great.

 

[FLandivar]

I just bought a 1992 Honda Civic DX (Hatchback) for 3500$, it has 62k miles, have to go pick it up tomorrow .

 

[DaiShan]

I suggest an accord, 4th gens should be in that range, and I have seen plenty of them with 250k plus still runnin strong, so reliability won't be an issue!

 

[cwjefferys]

<Jerboy>
Only 5k? you should go on welfare or something, im only 17 and i drive this crappy 10k car i hate my parents and my car i wanted a BMW but my parents are so cheap they didnt wanna buy me one because of some stupid marks, i think you should save up and buy a Mercedes or BMW because anything else is crap.
<jerboy>

 

[notfred]

get one of these.

 

[ScottyB]

Get a pontiac sunbird LE. They rock, mine laid 12' marks on dry pavement. on went pavement I could squeel them for like 1 and a half. I got a 1992 with 132,000 for $3,000 so you could get a newer one with less miles for $4-5000.

 

[Ladies Man]

<< get one of these. >>

 

[HappyFace]

 

[Thegonagle]

Grab the paper and look for Honda, Toyota, Subaru, Nissan, and Mazda. Condition is more important than miles. Make sure is has been well maintained. That probably means taking it to a mechanic who will give you his general impression of whether it's a good deal, and what things may be about to break. To any experienced mechanic (and savvy car guys, for that matter), it is very obvious if a car has been severely neglected upon inspection and test driving.

 

[HappyFace]

Thanks for the ideas, and keep the coming!

 

[HappyFace]

 

[HappyFace]

Anyone else?

 

[Thegonagle]

I forgot one: The Geo/Chevy Prizm. It's a Toyota under the shell, but it's got horrendous resale value. Look in the paper and compare it to Corollas of the same year and similar mileage, and you'll see what I'm talking about. They're a great used car value.

 

[psteng19]

I found a 1995 Nissan Sentra GXE with 45,000 miles for $4,650 (although I suspect the mileage was rolled back some).
You may or may not be as lucky and find what IMO is a good deal.
Great car so far, a few minor problems (cv boot, thermostat, o2 sensor went bad), but no complaints here.

Nissan ~ Driven

 

[Desturel]

Not exactly what you are looking for, but I just picked up a 1986 Monte Carlo SS for $800. All I have to do is replace the exhaust and it's street legal. Sweetest buy I could ever hope for. Of course I'm not sure how much I want to call this a "new" car since I'm 'upgrading' from a 1988 Chevy Cavalier Station Wagon which was an upgrade from a 1992 Ford Escort. One of these days I will upgrade my car to a newer model.

 

[HappyFace]

Thanks for all the infos. I might check out some cars today. Keep it coming!

 

[teg]

look at the integras especially the 90-93 second generation
i just bought a 90 integra last year for 4500 canadian. Runs excellent and gets good gas milage

the 94+ are a little more because of the new style but they are both very good cars and reliable.

the integra still has the original clutch, starter, and battery from 90 and has 250,000km on it.

the only thing thats broken is the rear defroster (not a big deal) and i had to fix the exhaust. not bad for a 12 year old car.

 

[Eli]

Honda or Toyota, definately.

 

[LongCoolMother]

a civic or corolla for him

 

[gwlam12]

camry

 

[littlezipp]

Toyota for sure.

 

[RagingWind]

I would recomand the earily model of Nissan Sentra SE-R... reliable and fast... or maybe a earily 90s Toyota Celica... they are pretty decent....