I am getting a $10,000 check to go and buy a car for work. I drive a lot so my boss is helping me out, and helping me get something a little more economical then my baby...the Bronc.

This 10G needs to go pretty far, covering tax, title, warranty and almost 300 bucks in fees. My mechanic (whom I trust), has said not to go with a foreign model because they can be so $$$ to fix.

I need some honest opinions here on what to get. Maybe someone has some experiences with something..."do not buy a....", "My son/daughters so & so is great...", anything. Like I said, I trust my mechanic...but it'd be a little silly not to ask for the honest opinions of 218,000 automobile lovers.

Here are my considerations:

I can drive up to 50,000 miles a year.
I'm a college student....when it comes to money, I'm just the middle man for tuition, repairs, gas, etc.
Permanent residence is NJ, currently live in Philly...no manual trans. please.
A pretty solid warranty (love her, but Bronc got me tired of being under the hood for a bit).

I know about Ebay and Carfax and whatever else...not looking for other places to look, looking for personal experiences please.

Any help is appreciated, and I will certainly let everyone know when I decide.

 

I don't know about that, it seems like repairs on ANY new car is $$$ to fix. So then you start talking about reliability reports, and what typically has better track records. I'd love to say buy domestic, but its pretty tough to beat the reliability of something like a Toyota. Plus, if you buy from a dealer who sells "certified" used Toyota they have a pretty amazing warrenty, better than the one that comes from the factory. At least, thats the way it is out here.

 

How about a Ranger?

 

You might want to look at a Kia or maybe a mitsubishi. They both have I believe a 100,000 mile warranty. I am sure it is powertrain only after a certain amount but it may be worth checking out.

 

The 2005 Escape Hybrid.

EPA estimated mpg:
4x2 36 City / 31 Hwy***

Front Wheel Drive MSRP starting at $26,970**
Four Wheel Drive MSRP starting at $28,595**

Introducing the Ford Escape Hybrid, the first vehicle to combine SUV capability with the outstanding fuel economy and low environmental impact of a full hybrid.

The no compromise Escape Hybrid drives normally, performs superbly and offers all the features you'd expect from the SUV leader. Roomy, comfortable seating for five, a versatile cargo area, 1000-pound towing capacity, and an optional Intelligent 4WD System which offers the same all-weather traction and off-road capability available in traditional Escape models.

http://www.fordvehicles.com/escapehy...6&pfrm=Win2000

 

4 doors would be ideal, 2 are ok. However, a PU won't work. I'm in a sales position, and sometimes need to drive clients/co-workers to sites. Wouldn't mind it in any other time though.

I know $10,000 won't get me anything brand new...honestly, I don't think that I want a car that is that much off of the line. My problem is $$$ with insurance. I have a post in the mid-atlantic forum about NJ insurance (please look if you have advice on that issue)...I can't do payments AND insurance payments on a brand new car with full coverage. Going used might save me with the full coverage insurance battle. (not sure though, that's what I'm asking in the other forum).

 

Saturn- no question. They have a low resale value so you can get a very low mileage used one for cheap (you won't get a new car for 10k). They are great on gas (1.9's with automatics easily get over 30mpg on the highway- SOHC's do a little better than the DOHC's). and will last a long time. We have four of them in the family now, and had one that had over 200,000 miles. Only problem I have heard of is that on the earlier ones they tend to start burning oil prematurely because of valve seals, but that problem may be fixed now. None of our's have that problem.

I am not so sure that it's fair to say that foreign cars are more expensive to fix. Any newer model car is going to be expensive for parts and labor. Hondas are great on mileage and great cars in general, but the initial price is pretty high for a low mileager.

 

2002 Taurus with a A4XN transmission and the 3.0 Vulcan engine. One with 30K can be purchased for about $7800 with a little looking - leaves enough for all the taxes and registration & insurance for a year or two. New enough that it "can" be mistaken for a brand new car, and much cheaper then a Camry. Avoid the crappy A4XN (A4OD on pan) unless you like replacing transmissions every 90K. Good basic transportation that has a little room in the back seat for more then one customer and a 5 star crash rating.

 

Saturns are pretty good. A couple of my good friends are madly in love with them. Why, I have no idea. Not the safest things out there. But they get great gas mileage and are pretty reasonably priced. For 10k you should be able to get something like a 2002 with 30,000 miles on it.

 

I dunno, what about a crew cab deisel? My cousin bought a 97' f250 2wd crew cab long bed for 8K with 114K miles on it, he said it gets something like 14 mpg in city. Only problem is I dont know if you can find them with automatics. Just a thought.

 

yeah, what he said. This are really good cars. Back in 98, my wife picked up a 97 Sable for about 12k, drove it for 5 yrs and we started having those danged tranny problems. If it were not for that tranny I would be driving that car to work now and saving on gas. Just make sure you get the good tranny.

 

My vote is Taurus,I have a 95 with 130,000 on it and a 2002 that's up to 26,000.I don't have any complaints with them and recomend a Taurus for transportation.They don't have much resale but that is why you can pick up a low milage used one pretty reasonable.

 

How about a Volkswagon diesel? They get 50 MPG (1.8 L engine) and will last longer than a gas engine. Since you put about 50K miles on it a year, that might be an important consideration. Obviously Volkswagon also has an excellant reputation.

 

My 2004 Kia Rio came with a 100k bumper to bumper warranty with rental and all that crap. It hs more room than it looks from the outiside. Handles very well for a small car. The power to weight ratio is nice with an amazingly decent amount of pick up, even in passing.
Mitsubishi...nothing good to say about mechanical history.
I had a very bad experience with Saturns automatic transmission.
Anything Honda should make your wallet happy. Lotsa good history there.
I wish I could list as many good things about american made cars.....but with weak warranties and high costs..........
Having owned 2 1/2 Caveliers, I cant say anything bad. yea, 2 1/2....but I dont wanna go into that...

 

How about an early/mid-90s F150?