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YACT: Going to be needing a new car soon

Supermercado

Supermercado

Diamond Member
I've got a 1989 Cavalier that's seen far better days. Mileage-wise, it's not too bad, just shy of 140K. But the AC is gone (and according to my dad, if the compressor fails, the defroster is gone, as well? Is that right?), it's not super-sound mechanically.

About 5 months ago, I got my first real job out of college and I think it's about time to start considering an upgrade, but I want ATOT's thoughts on what models of cars I should be looking at. I definitely don't intend to buy new. Nor do I want to spend more than about $13,000, less if I can.

I'm a pretty big guy, 6'5", so whatever I get has to have lots of legroom and lots of headroom. I want something that gets good gas mileage, so I would like to steer clear of Crown Vics and the like if possible. I'm not really partial to any particular style, so I could drive a coupe, sedan, truck, SUV, although I know those last two probably aren't going to help me much in the gas mileage department. My Cavalier doesn't even have 100 horsepower so I would like something with some more power. The Cavalier is also a manual, but there's a good bit of traffic around here, so I'd like to find something with an automatic, as well. I know very little about cars, so it has to be mechanically sound.

With the basic requirements laid out, I see it as having 3 main options.

1. buy something like a 2000-2001 Maxima. I've done a little research and it looks like those could be had for about $12,000-$13,000 for one with around 60,000 miles on it. If I were to buy something like this, I'd wait as long as I could so I could put more down on it. I'd like to be able to put down half if I bought something like this.

2. My dad just bought a 1995 Sable with 19,000 miles on it for $3000. There's definitely that route: buy something older if it's in good condition, not a lot of miles, and is cheap. I could pay for a $3000 outright and have no payments at all to worry about, not to mention property taxes and insurance would be lower than buying a newer car.

3. somewhere in between. I don't see any real reason why I couldn't find a middle ground and buy something for $6000 to $8000. I'd be able to put half the cost down (or more, depending) and still have a decent monthly payment. Tax and insurance would be a bit higher, but the car would be newer, etc.


So at the end of the day, I guess my question really is two-fold:

1. Which of those options is best for my scenario? I'm 23, have a flawless driving record, but I only make $30,000/year in a fairly expensive area, so I can't (nor do I want to) afford a monthly payment of $300+.

2. With the route for choosing a price range figured out, what years and models should I be looking at? Taking into consideration the basic requirements laid out above, I need to determine what to get.


I know that was really long, but if you've read this far, thanks for reading and I look forward to any replies. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
 
Maxima is a very good choice. I'd also look at a 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix. The 3.8L in them is very durable and gets great milage for a fairly large V6. Good get up and go for passing and in town accelleration. They also are very accomidating to tall drivers.

Value wise both the Maxima and the Grand Prix are very good. An Altima is also a good choice if you can find a bit older 3.5SE in that range.

Everyone rags on GM vehicles, but for the money it's hard to go wrong with a low milage used one for half the price as new. The Grand Prix is one of the better sedans they put out.
 
Have you compared the $12-$13k cars w/ 60k miles to the $6-$9k cars w/ 60k miles? You can get a lot for your money -- you don't have to spend $12-$13k. One way of narrowing things down is to go to AutoTrader.com and plug in how much you want to spend, acceptable milage, and options.
 
Thanks for the suggestions. Wouldn't a 2004 probably be out of the price range, though? I just did a super-quick look through at AutoTrader and they look like they're close to $20,000. I think realistically, I could spend roughly $13,000 without hurting my wallet too much, but $20,000 is probably double or maybe triple what I'd like to spend.

What about an Accord? Like I said, I don't know much about cars but I know that Hondas hold their value: should I be looking at 6 to 8 year-old Accords as well? I've never ridden in one that I can remember so I don't know how they are for tall people.

cmv: Yes, I definitely intend to do that at some point. For now, though, I'm just trying to get some opinions and a little direction from people who know way more about cars than me.
 
Honda Accords are nice. A 98-99 Honda sells around 9-11k with 40k and below mileage and it will last you a long time. Just make sure you get it at a reputable dealership and the car was leased before hand. Old trade-in cars are usually beaten up but even so it's hard to beat up a Honda.
 
A Honda Accord would be a good choice. Extremely reliable. My friends accord has 160k on it and only wear items have been replaced.
 
If want cheap and good gas milage look at the Cobalt. If you want more room and power look at the Impala. Get one that is 2-3 years old it will be cheap since the new ones had som many rebates. So good car but cheap. 🙂
 
www.edmunds.com
www.intellichoice.com
www.carsurvey.org

Everyone is different, but my list would go something like this in order: Accord, Vibe/Matrix, Camry, Altima. I'm only 5'11"... and a 1/2 though. I will also admit to a pro japanese anti american bias, although it comes from 22 years of family owning nothing but GM/Ford, and me driving GM and Nissan - and a lot of reading
 
Save your money and buy something with cash. You're just starting out in real life. Why start out at the bottom of a debt hole?

Besides, by the time you save some money, you'll be looking at that bundle of cash and saying to yourself, why do I need to spend $13k on a car when I could spend $3k and use the rest for a downpayment on a house, something that will likely GAIN in value.

Mark
 
Sorry... I didn't realize what time it was when I started this thread last night and ended up in bed before I was really able to get much going.

I think it's probably best now that I look at it, to buy something cheaper than $13,000. I'd guess that $6000 to $8000 is more likely.

I've got a lot more research to do, I know, but what other cars outside of the Impala should I be looking at? I did some very quick looking earlier today and saw a 2002 I think Impala LS for about $6000. I think it had close to or just over 100,000 miles, which I don't know that I'm all that crazy about. I know that if I buy something cheaper, it's going to have more miles on it, but where should my cutoff point be? I'm sure it has some to do with the car, but should I try to keep it under 70,000? 80?
 
Shens!!! No American car will run to 140K. Unless you buy a Toyota or Honda, your car will fall apart when the odometer hits 30K.

Buy a Civic and the car will bury you. </fanboi>

Seriously, buy an early 2000's or 1999ish Cavalier... it'll be dirt cheap, get good gas mileage, and if it does break down, it'll be dirt cheap to fix and parts are everywhere.
 
Don't buy a sable/taurus... my 1999 sable has had three transmissions, nearly four within 75,000 miles. The first one died at 65,000 the next one died while the mechanics were driving it after they put it in, the third and current one is about to die... luckily everything is underwarranty, and has been. (No $$$ out of my pocket)
 
A truck gives you the room, but fuel mileage is mediocre and initial cost is high, because they hold their value. Impala gets about the same mileage as a Town Car without as much room, or the rugged, cheap to fix, RWD platform. No better bang for the buck...

Don't buy a sable/taurus...

I can vouch for that. My father-in-law has a '94, and it's a money pit. Pouring money into that FWD, econobox seems like a total waste!
 
Originally posted by: Ornery
A truck gives you the room, but fuel mileage is mediocre and initial cost is high, because they hold their value. Impala gets about the same mileage as a Town Car without as much room, or the rugged, cheap to fix, RWD platform. No better bang for the buck...

Don't buy a sable/taurus...

I can vouch for that. My father-in-law has a '94, and it's a money pit. Pouring money into that FWD, econobox seems like a total waste!
Click to expand...


The impala gets 4mpg more, how is that "about the same mileage"?
Also many cop fleets are switching over to the Impala from the CrownVic (same as town car). Cheaper to maintain and easier to fix.

 
I think a Civic is going to be too small, so if I was to go the Honda route, I think it would have to be an Accord (or something like an older Passport or an Xterra) simply out of consideration for the fact that I'm 6'5".

I don't think I intend to buy a Sable or Taurus. My best friend had a Sable as his first car and he had several problems with it. I guess we'll have some first-hand experience with the platform since my dad just bought a '95 (but it might as well be new since it only has 19,000 miles on it and was owned by an elderly woman), but I still don't have any plans to buy either a Sable or a Taurus.

I'm sort of beginning to think that an Impala might really be the way to go if I can find a decent one. A Town Car is a possibility, but if I can, I'd like to avoid the typical grandparent cars. I'm 23 so I'd like to have something somewhat in line with my age bracket. 🙂
 
It's 17MPG VS 19MPG, which is virtually the same compared to the four-bangers of the preferred econoboxes.


I'd like to avoid the typical grandparent cars.

Oh, it would help to know ahead of time you put form before function. BTW, grandparents don't beat on their cars, so buying used from them isn't as risky.
 
I'm ready to get flamed for this, but here we go:

I am also 6'5". I do not recommend any small cars such as the Saturn S series or the Ion. Those cars are just uncomfortable for someone tall on a long trip. My wife has a Saturn L100, and it is just barely big enough to be comfortable on a long trip. That car has been absolutely remarkable though. It has 56,000 miles now (we bought it new) and the only thing that we have had it in the dealership for was to update the rear alignment so it wouldn't tear up tires.

I have a Chrysler Sebring convertible, and it bothers my knee after a while even though it is a big comfortable car.

The most comfortable car that I've ever had is my 93 Dodge Dakota. I don't recommend buying one of the older Dakotas unless you need a hobby, but I would check out some other trucks if you think that you might be able to utilize a truck. (I do a lot of hauling, towing the boat, pulling bushes, etc.) My Dakota has 193,000 miles and everything still works, including that A/C.

 
used midsizes from late 90's- early 00's

camry, accord, galant, altima, etc. the maxima drinks premium and lots of it (~20mpg)

or a used 4-cyl pickup. used toyo taco? ford ranger?

or more money for a relatively new subaru forrester or toyota matrix/pontiac vibe. those are pretty roomy.
 
I don't need a truck, but I wouldn't be opposed to one at all, if for no other reasons than they sit higher and are easier to get in and out of and it would be nice to have the ability to carry larger things than my current situation allows. Admittedly, that need isn't very great, but if the cost and gas mileage figures aren't too different, I'd like a truck or midsize SUV over a car.

I definitely don't want anything that will need regular fixing. I don't know anything about cars so I couldn't do it myself and I don't care to pay for it.

My Cavalier now is pretty comfortable but that's because a few years ago, my dad and I unbolted the seat, drilled new holes in the floor of the car, and bolted the seat 3 or 4 inches further back, but I don't want to have to do that again 🙂

Edit: Ornery: It's not so much that I value form over function. If I had the option, I'd like to stick with something more in line with my age, but that's not a necessity. And yes, grandparents definitely don't drive their cars like the younger folks. That's where my dad got the Sable he just bought.
 
Originally posted by: Ornery
It's 17MPG VS 19MPG, which is virtually the same compared to the four-bangers of the preferred econoboxes.


I'd like to avoid the typical grandparent cars.

Oh, it would help to know ahead of time you put form before function. BTW, grandparents don't beat on their cars, so buying used from them isn't as risky.
Click to expand...


I get 24-26 in my A4... virtually same size as the impala + awd
 
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