Def look at the Scion TC. My GF has one and when comparing to a similiar civic or corolla they dont compare. Scion (Toyota) has great reliability, TC has standard sunroof, ABS and 2.4l putting out 160 hp. Awesome car overall. Not to mention nationwide Scion's are no-haggle pricing.
suggestions for a car
- Thread starter Mcfly
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imported_krsjuan
New member
I would look into a slightly used nissan maxima. Around my area you can get a 4th gen (95-99) with around 45k-50k for less than $13,000. The motors in those cars easily last 200,000 miles with normal care.
Most people get about 23 city and 28 hwy.
Most people get about 23 city and 28 hwy.
GTScott
New member
Another vote for the Civic. My wife had a 93 Civic before we got married and it had 176K on it and ran like it was brand new. She had kept a less than ideal maitenance schedule as well. While they may not be the most entertaining cars to drive, they won't leave you stranded.
-GT
-GT
imported_KevinA
New member
Civics are very reliable cars, but (in my experience) are very noisy. I had a '99 I purchased new. It was very quiet until I got a couple thousand miles on it (like 2000). My wife thought I had done something to it to make it that loud (she still thinks this). She refused to ride in it.
When we had to bring our Odyssey in for service, they gave me a '02 Civic for the day. It had about 4000 miles on it and was very loud also.
I now drive a Scion xB - it's a very fun car to drive and modify.
When we had to bring our Odyssey in for service, they gave me a '02 Civic for the day. It had about 4000 miles on it and was very loud also.
I now drive a Scion xB - it's a very fun car to drive and modify.
before you decide to pick a car, do educate yourself as others have stated...edmunds.com is a good site IMO. they did a series of atricles about a year ago where they sent a reporter to be a car dealer for a few months. It was pretty enlightening the tricks they do.
also, believe what you read about the cars yourself, 75% of what most salemen say is crap in my experience. They either make it up because they don't know or becasue they want to make a sale - when looking to buy a used civic with no AC in AZ, "you can buy it and then put in an AC system for about $200". What?! A compressor alone would have costed me more then that. This guy either pulled a number out of his butt or figured I really didn't know what was going on
next, before you pick your cars, decide what you're going to be doing with them. If you're into mods then a scion or civic are pretty easy to work with. if you use this for utility and want to go on long road trips with friends, maybe a 4 door is more your style. if parking is an issue on campus, a smaller car may be better. point is, think about what you're using the car for before you buy it
similarly, think about how long you plan to have the car. most car's lose about 10-15% or more of their value in the first year so if you're only going to keep the car until you're out of school why should you eat that price. if you're going to keep the car until it dies, then maybe new isn't such a bad idea. all the cars you've listed have good reliability, so I wouldn't be concerned about that.
service - are the dealer you're planning on buying from close to your shcool or is there another dealer nearby. since the car may be under warrenty you want to make sure you can take it somewhere you don't need to pay to fix things.
i'd recomend going to some places like a saturn and ford dealer or places just to practice negotiating first. if you get marked for a "car virgin", they'll likely try to take you for a ride and not in a good way. test the waters with dealers you don't care about so you learn their tricks, style, and process, then go to your dealer of choice. if you can, have someone you trust go with you for an objective opinion
finally, if you ever feel like you're getting a level of pressure you don't want or a salesman that makes you feel uneasy. just walk away. you're not looking for some exotic beauty - there are plenty of cars and plenty of dealers
also, believe what you read about the cars yourself, 75% of what most salemen say is crap in my experience. They either make it up because they don't know or becasue they want to make a sale - when looking to buy a used civic with no AC in AZ, "you can buy it and then put in an AC system for about $200". What?! A compressor alone would have costed me more then that. This guy either pulled a number out of his butt or figured I really didn't know what was going on
next, before you pick your cars, decide what you're going to be doing with them. If you're into mods then a scion or civic are pretty easy to work with. if you use this for utility and want to go on long road trips with friends, maybe a 4 door is more your style. if parking is an issue on campus, a smaller car may be better. point is, think about what you're using the car for before you buy it
similarly, think about how long you plan to have the car. most car's lose about 10-15% or more of their value in the first year so if you're only going to keep the car until you're out of school why should you eat that price. if you're going to keep the car until it dies, then maybe new isn't such a bad idea. all the cars you've listed have good reliability, so I wouldn't be concerned about that.
service - are the dealer you're planning on buying from close to your shcool or is there another dealer nearby. since the car may be under warrenty you want to make sure you can take it somewhere you don't need to pay to fix things.
i'd recomend going to some places like a saturn and ford dealer or places just to practice negotiating first. if you get marked for a "car virgin", they'll likely try to take you for a ride and not in a good way. test the waters with dealers you don't care about so you learn their tricks, style, and process, then go to your dealer of choice. if you can, have someone you trust go with you for an objective opinion
finally, if you ever feel like you're getting a level of pressure you don't want or a salesman that makes you feel uneasy. just walk away. you're not looking for some exotic beauty - there are plenty of cars and plenty of dealers
imported_KevinA
New member
Scion xA or xB may be a good candidate for you also. New car warrenty, low price, good mileage and plenty of room inside.
These are extremely helpful, especially the websites. lots of information i need to read on. many thansk. i have a question i want to ask though. my dad wants me to buy a 6 cylinders instead of a 4 cylinders because he thinks 6 cylinders are more reliable. i might be traveling long distance, and he fears that 4 cylinders might die on me sooner than 6 cylinders. what about like in the cold weather, he thinks 6 cylinders cars are much safer. is there any truth to that?
thanks.
thanks.
bb00y said:
yea that really isn't true...4, 6, or 8 cylinder..all can be very reliable as long as you don't beat on them and maintain them..some car companies are known to be more reliable than others. i would look into a 4 cylinder because of the gas consumption...just today i put $30 of shell vpower 93 octante... jeez imagine if i had a 6 or 8 cylinder...also front wheel drives tend to be easier to handle in the snow due to better traction, as stated above the scions are a hell of a deal
I think I'd also go with the tC. I'm usually not a big fan of Toyota(I like Honda), but for the money it's a bargain. And I think it looks better than a Civic or Corolla.
I really like the Mazda3 too. Looks better than everything listed above and much sportier to boot. The interior looks upscale also. :xyxthumbs
I really like the Mazda3 too. Looks better than everything listed above and much sportier to boot. The interior looks upscale also. :xyxthumbs
4, 6 and 8 cyclinders.
These days, especially Honda, Toyota and Mazda are producing some excellent 4's. However, if a car comes in a 4-cylinder and 6-cylinder type model (i.e. Accord etc.), then I'm sort of in agreement that you should spring for the 6. However, if the model only comes in a 4-cylinder (Civic), I wouldn't fret over it one bit.
If your on a limited budget, a 4 really helps out as gas prices keep rising. You can easily save hundreds a year by going with a 4-cylinder over a 6 in gas and probably insurance as well. Don't forget to include insurance costs as well.
I'll never forget the site of a 19-yr guy at the Volks dealer who had just bought a GOLF was taking it back because his insurance quote was way too high and he couldn't afford the OVERALL cost of a new car (Gas, Maintenance, Insurance, Lease/Payment).
Personally, I prefer the Mazda 3 Sport over all the vehicles stated but the Scion is also very nice. My wife drives an EL (Acura's version of the Civic) and even though it's a nice car, the 1.7L just doesn't have the fun factor that I like. Fit and finish is nice and 2-years on, the reliablity has been excellent but it's just a bit blah for me.
My mom (and several other people I know) own the Mazda 3 and every one of them love the car. I definitely like the fun factor of it. It's just a nice car to drive. Interior finish isn't all that great though but the engine and exterior more then makes up for it.
I wish we had gotten the Acura TSX over the EL but so it goes.
Paco
These days, especially Honda, Toyota and Mazda are producing some excellent 4's. However, if a car comes in a 4-cylinder and 6-cylinder type model (i.e. Accord etc.), then I'm sort of in agreement that you should spring for the 6. However, if the model only comes in a 4-cylinder (Civic), I wouldn't fret over it one bit.
If your on a limited budget, a 4 really helps out as gas prices keep rising. You can easily save hundreds a year by going with a 4-cylinder over a 6 in gas and probably insurance as well. Don't forget to include insurance costs as well.
I'll never forget the site of a 19-yr guy at the Volks dealer who had just bought a GOLF was taking it back because his insurance quote was way too high and he couldn't afford the OVERALL cost of a new car (Gas, Maintenance, Insurance, Lease/Payment).
Personally, I prefer the Mazda 3 Sport over all the vehicles stated but the Scion is also very nice. My wife drives an EL (Acura's version of the Civic) and even though it's a nice car, the 1.7L just doesn't have the fun factor that I like. Fit and finish is nice and 2-years on, the reliablity has been excellent but it's just a bit blah for me.
My mom (and several other people I know) own the Mazda 3 and every one of them love the car. I definitely like the fun factor of it. It's just a nice car to drive. Interior finish isn't all that great though but the engine and exterior more then makes up for it.
I wish we had gotten the Acura TSX over the EL but so it goes.
Paco
awdirtdrifter
New member
paco said:
I would spring for the 6 too, but not for reliability reasons, which is what his dad claimed. That's just not true. It really depends on the engine. Honda fours are some of the THE most reliable engines you'll ever find.