New (to me) car soon

ryanjoachim

So, due to the general crappiness of my car, I'm going to be getting a different one once taxes come in.

What I'm curious of, is what cars hold up the best over time? I've heard tell that 200k+ miles on a Toyota isn't a big deal, but something like a Ford or other American car with that mileage is a bad idea.

What cars do you think I can expect to find on average in the price range of $2k-3k?

Sherardp

I would use that 2-3K and go certified used, so yourself the headache.

nooshinjohn

Another idea would be a 3k mustang or Camaro/firebird(older the better) and fix it up as you go. So long as it runs good and the body/interior are complete, the cars should be reliable, cheap to maintain/fix, and easy to work on by yourself. Depending on what you do to it, could be worth more than what you put in. If it were my money and I only had 3k to spend, this is exactly what I would do.

codyc1ark

Corolla all the way. I always tell my friends buy the best Toyota they can afford. Before John chimes in, I'd like to state that this is just my personal opinion! :razz:

nooshinjohn

codyc1ark wrote: »

Corolla all the way. I always tell my friends buy the best Toyota they can afford. Before John chimes in, I'd like to state that this is just my personal opinion! :razz:

Even though your opinion sucks, you are entitled to it.:twisted::cheesygrin:

codyc1ark

nooshinjohn wrote: »

Even though your opinion sucks, you are entitled to it.:twisted::cheesygrin:

No, your opinion sucks!! Wrong John though!

inspiredsports

ryanjoachim wrote: »

. . . I've heard tell that 200k+ miles on a Toyota isn't a big deal, but something like a Ford or other American car with that mileage is a bad idea . . .

It is true that most American made cars are depleted at 200K. Toyota's will need water pumps and timing belts if they haven't already been replaced, and may be losing a small, managable bit of oil from the main crank seal. A Volvo will just be breaking in.

I've driven lots of Toyota and Lexus autos to 250 with no major repairs and currently have 3 in the fleet that are over 100. My first Volvo was still nice at 300 when I sold it and my second is at 120 with zero repairs.

Tour2ma

^ Anecdotal info only gets you so far. While Volvo reliability has been on the climb in the past several years (including the time Ford owned them), model years in the OP's price range (2000 and earlier) consistently scored well below Toyota... among others.

Ryan (?), here's Consumer Reports' recommended under $4000 list, which is as low as the mag goes, but a few are prolly in your range.

More than a couple surprised me by being on the list...

Acura CL '01
Chevy Prism '01-'02 :eek:
Ford Crown Vic '01-02 :eek:
Honda Civic '01
Hyundai Sonata V6 '03-04
Infiniti G20 '02
Mazda Protege '01-02
Mercury Grand Marquis '01 :eek:
Mitsubishi Lancer '02 :eek:
Toyota Corolla '01-02
Toyota Echo '01-03
Toyota Prius '01

BeefJerky

Tour2ma wrote: »

^ Anecdotal info only gets you so far. While Volvo reliability has been on the climb in the past several years (including the time Ford owned them), model years in the OP's price range (2000 and earlier) consistently scored well below Toyota... among others.

Ryan (?), here's Consumer Reports' recommended under $4000 list, which is as low as the mag goes, but a few are prolly in your range.

More than a couple surprised me by being on the list...

Acura CL '01
Chevy Prism '01-'02 :eek:
Ford Crown Vic '01-02 :eek:
Honda Civic '01
Hyundai Sonata V6 '03-04
Infiniti G20 '02
Mazda Protege '01-02
Mercury Grand Marquis '01 :eek:
Mitsubishi Lancer '02 :eek:
Toyota Corolla '01-02
Toyota Echo '01-03
Toyota Prius '01

The Crown Vic doesn't surprise me at all. They have been one of the most popular police/sheriff/constable cars for many years. I don't think those organizations would have been happy if they were breaking down on them all the time.

sucks2beme

The real issue is finding any car in the $2-3 k range. That's a tough price bracket.
Around Dallas what you get off CL is a a guy with an accent telling you he's not
a dealer(but he really is) dealing cars lined up in front of K-mart with an iffy history
and a salvage tittle. Every Corolla I tried to look at all lead to one of these sleaze balls.
I even stopped by some dealerships. I ended up buying a car that a Ford used car salesman
picked up on trade and bought for his own use. He'd had it 6 months.
It's a loaded 1998 Toyata Avalon with 144k on it for $3k. It looks very good for a 1998.
I had to do a brake job and replace the rear struts. So far, drives pretty good.
Keep in mind there's not a spot of rust on it. So the real issues down here are mechanical.
It's all ugly stop and go driving. I'm hoping son #2 can get a few years out of it.

obieone

Once again, I'd recommend any GMC with the 4.3L vortec powertrain, Astro, Safari, S10/ Jimmie/ Blazer. I've personnally driven an Astro with 300k miles, and it was still running at least a year later.
The resaon for these PT's lasting so long, is because they were over sized for their application. Now, GM put's them in full size rigs, and they prolly won't last as long.

cnh

Depends on your weather conditions. Up North even Toyotas rust out in 15 years or less than 200 K. I had a Camry rust beyond repair (underneath) at 155K. Not much in repairs before total failure--or rather--not worth the repair costs.

My Impala, on the other hand, has less than 110K and is already showing signs that "rust" will bury it soon! Got to HATE New England road salt!

How close are you to the ocean? That's not good either!

cnh

ryanjoachim

I live around an hour away from the coast, in the Valley, and it rains 9-10 months out of the year. At this rate, it's looking like $2k is the highest I'll be able to go.

It has to be a 4-door, because I want to be able to take my kids for rides every now and then. I like the Sonata's a lot, but generally around here it's tough to find them in good condition under $3k.

Really though, as long as everything WORKS in the car (engine, electronics, etc) and it doesn't freaking fill with water everyday...I'll be pretty happy.

zingo

Honda Civic or Accord

sucks2beme

Any Honda in that price range will be junk.
Bet bet: little old lady Crown Vic.
I have seen those come up in that price range in pretty good shape.
Other than that it's going to need something major. Around here,
a car with a serious case of "hail pocks" would be a good choice.
You often see one that looks like it was parked at the batter's
cage. Runs good, looks like crap.

codyc1ark

What are you driving now? In that price range you may have to sink your cash into your current car...

JimKellyfan

What are your planned uses for the vehicle ? Do you need a truck, van or car ? I see you are in Oregon, but don't know the terrain. Do you get rough winters ? In the mountain area ? Many good cars out there if they were maintained. Hard to get that, but as long as when you are checking over (or take to a trusted mechanic for them to check over) make sure to start up cold and make sure no knocking noises, smoke, look underneath for leaks, and so on. Anyway, to steer towards what, would need to know planned use. What fuel mileage do you want ? Also, what weight to carry ? How many miles a day ? Have a boat to tow ? Toyota's are a great car/truck, as are many Honda's. Me, I have a Caprice wagon and a Yukon Denali (Chevy 5.7's are awesome drive trains), and after the Denali is paid off will be getting a (3rd car again) Toyota of some form, right now I am looking at Scion XB's 08 and newer.

ohskigod

obieone wrote: »

Once again, I'd recommend any GMC with the 4.3L vortec powertrain, Astro, Safari, S10/ Jimmie/ Blazer. I've personnally driven an Astro with 300k miles, and it was still running at least a year later.
The resaon for these PT's lasting so long, is because they were over sized for their application. Now, GM put's them in full size rigs, and they prolly won't last as long.

I'll vouch, the 4.3 isnt a powerhouse or anything, but it lasts. couldn't kill my 1991 gmc siera with this engine...it always ran....always. There is a reason why you can get that engine in a full size pick up to this day.....which this past July is precisely what I did. but anywho. a mid 90's chevy pick up is an option, parts are soooo cheap.

**** cars used are always a no brainer, but can go catastrophically if they were abused....timing chains are a big issue when they go not cheap.

use Volvo? dude.....just.....no!

ryanjoachim

I live in "the Valley" (that's what we call it here), which means we get a prodigious amount of rain and freezing, but that's about it. Rarely will we see hail or snow or anything exotic.

Right now I have a '95 Chevy Corsica with a v6. Car runs great, never has issues starting up, has a surprising amount of "git-up-'n-go" even when passing on the highway. Mileage isn't that great, but I haven't really done the math to figure it out.

I'm looking for a family-sized car that I can tote my kids around in. I would love to have a Toyota Tundra (personal preference), but in the end I have to make sure I can take my kids around if I need to. It needs to get good mileage, at least 25-30 city...if that's even possible.

Tour2ma

BeefJerky wrote: »

The Crown Vic doesn't surprise me at all. They have been one of the most popular police/sheriff/constable cars for many years. I don't think those organizations would have been happy if they were breaking down on them all the time.

True.. Ford is #1 in supplying domestic law enforcement...

DSkip wrote: »

That chevy prism is a rebadged Toyota corolla, also on the list. No surprise there.

Good call... Hit me later that the Prism was one of those split line cars with one of the Japanese companies. Didn't Toyota and Pontiac pair up on a model as well?

Not that they deserve consideration, but didn't Mazda pair up as well with Ford a while back? Want to say 323 and Escort...

ryanjoachim

I would love to get a Legend or 4-door Civic, as I like the body styles...but it's a tough market around here right now for some reason...

Tour2ma

Not surprising... For obvious reasons folks have been holding onto their existing rides pretty tight for a couple years now.

Hang in there. Should be loosening up a bit based on the latest Big 3 sales reports.

txcoastal1

ryan---some times in the used vehicle search you might want to make the drive to a better market to pick up a vehicle...down in the south through the Mississippi Valley area we are little more fortunate

good luck

JimKellyfan

I don't believe plenty of room and 25-30 city is possible as yet in the Tundra. Great trucks though. My 94 Caprice wagon gets 25 highway. For me, too, I saved money by shopping out in Danville, Va using auto trader (I checked cars.com and carsforsale.com as well), but it was running up to a market where everything was cheaper. When I bought the wagon, the prices in Charlotte for those were 1-1500 higher. When we bought the Denali, the market here was 2k higher minimum. Right now and for the past 10 months, the used car market is high. Take a look at NADA as well as KBB for actual values. Also take a look at Wikipedia for coveted model years and features. For mileage and kid toting, maybe a Sienna is in order (minivan). But, if you want a Tundra, just go get one. If money is a concern, get a used one or scale it back model wise. Budget ?

schwarcw

Go for the Crown Vic with a big V8!

ryanjoachim

Budget is $2k, maybe a little higher if I find something I really want.

There's no way I'm going to be able to find a truck that gets decent mileage AND can fit 2 kids for my budget though...not one that I like at least.

I'm leery about buying a car this cheap from a dealership though, as it feel like I'll end up getting shafted in the long run. Maybe that's just my paranoia though.