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An old Fiat is a nice project car/weekender. It is not great as someone's daily driver. It's going to need lots of TLC to keep running. Also worth remembering that, compared to any car made in the last ten or twenty years, a car that old is a deathtrap. This is another reason to drive cars like that as weekenders/cruise around town fun cars.
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Apr 22, 2013 08:19
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Proposed Budget: Under $10,000 total ($7k ideal) New or Used: Used Body Style: 4 door midsize??? I've never bought a car before and haven't even owned one for the past 7 years. I live in Chicago and use public transportation to get to work, so any car I buy will be driven maybe once a week within the city limits with the occasional 70 mile trip to my parents place. Short of some massive road trip, I'd be shocked if I put more than a couple thousand miles on the car in a year. It is a luxury, not a necessity. Ideally, I'd like something that will be totally stress free and last me 5+ years while still being relatively fun/fashionable (a nice 4-door luxury sedan is my idea of fashionable). If it holds its value over that time period, all the better. It is, however, going to sit outside during the winter. I'm open to alternative suggestions – buy a beater, buy something nicer that will hold value, whatever. I'd even be willing to pay more now if it made financial sense in the long run, but since it is a luxury I would like to keep it under 10k and the closer to 6 or 7, the better. I have a ton of questions: 1. Where do I even start looking? Autotrader.com, Cars.com, Craigslist, used car lots? 2. Is there a sweat-spot in terms of mileage/year that I should shoot for? 3. What are good resources/websites to read regarding buying used cars? 4. I'm going to have to haggle, right? Any advice? 5. Will I get a better deal if I pay cash? I have $10k+ sitting in the bank ready to go. 6. Since I don't need to finance, would I be better off trying to buy directly from an owner? 7. Are there specific makes and models that I should keep an eye out for good or bad? 8. Is it worth seeking out a “certified pre-owned” car in my situation? I'm really lost, so I truly appreciate thoughts on ANY of the above questions or just your general advice.
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Apr 23, 2013 05:40
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Here's some advice: Don't buy a car.
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Apr 23, 2013 13:37
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MayakovskyMarmite posted:Proposed Budget: Under $10,000 total ($7k ideal) Well alternatively, you can try and make it a cheap and fun hobby that can also take you places. There are certain cars that are hobbyist favourites with a big base of enthusiasts, parts suppliers and general base of knowledge that can give you a fun and rewarding ownership experience for not a whole lot of money. I would say - Mazda Miata - Jeep Wrangler - Ford Mustang Obviously the Miata is a zippy sports car and the Wrangler is an off-road specialist, I'll leave it to you as to which kind of fun is more your speed but there are substantial followings for both kinds of shenanigans in AI. All these cars are relatively simple mechanically and don't have a huge amount of poo poo that can't be fixed in your driveway. You can pick up any of these used in very good condition for about as much money as you want to spend, there are huge amounts of online resources for you to look at and get acquainted with them, they are relatively common with lots of parts availability, and they have pretty timeless style that doesn't age at all and still looks cool and chic (well, maybe not the Mustang). That's what puts them ahead of stuff like old luxury cars in my opinion. Buy a $10k BMW and everyone will know immediately it's a $10k BMW and that you're the kind of guy who wants a BMW but only has $10k, and on top of that you're in for some expensive maintenance. A Miata or a Wrangler will always be what they are, and hell for the most part they haven't changed that much over the years anyway. So go ahead and read everything you can find on them, go on the enthusiast forums, maybe even buy a car off there, and have it around accepting that it might need some maintenance and downtime throughout the year. What you will have is a neat, stylish vehicle that is cheap to own and operate, a nice place to learn some wrenching, won't throw off the douche vibe like a used luxury car would, and fun and rewarding to drive too. There are worse ways you could spend $10k. TL;DR Buy a Miata Throatwarbler fucked around with this message at 14:15 on Apr 23, 2013 |
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Apr 23, 2013 14:01
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MayakovskyMarmite posted:I'm really lost, so I truly appreciate thoughts on ANY of the above questions or just your general advice. The depreciation in value of your luxurious $10k used car that sits outside through Chicago winters, added on to the costs of taxes, maintenance, and insurance, may exceed what you'd pay just to rent a car when you need one. You might look into Zipcar and other similar companies if all you need is a couple of hours around town occasionally, and then rent something when you have your occasional 70-mile out of town trips. That said: 1. Where do I even start looking? Autotrader.com, Cars.com, Craigslist, used car lots? All of these. Especially if you're not in some crazy hurry (and you shouldn't be), the more time you put into shopping across all possible outlets, the more likely you'll find a great deal on a car that is just right for you. 2. Is there a sweat-spot in terms of mileage/year that I should shoot for? Not really. Or rather, it depends on what car you want, how much you're OK with losing on depreciation, and how much you want features and quality available from newer cars. Given your budget, you can afford anything from a fairly new budget car down to a very old luxury automobile, with thousands of choices in between the two. 3. What are good resources/websites to read regarding buying used cars? Reading this thread is a good place to start. Edmunds and Kelly Blue Book are good for finding a rough idea of what a given used car might be worth in your area; Edmunds also has reviews specific to make/model/year. 4. I'm going to have to haggle, right? Any advice? Click the ? under my name and look for the ultralong effortposts. I've probably posted my speil about how to haggle for cars at used car dealerships three or four times now. Haggling with private parties is both simpler and more complicated, in that some will simply refuse to haggle at all (simpler), and some are idiots/retards/assholes you will have a hard time dealing with. My advice is to be patient, don't waste your time with people who have unrealistic expectations of what their car is worth or refuse to engage with you, and eventually you'll find the diamonds in the rough. Maybe. 5. Will I get a better deal if I pay cash? I have $10k+ sitting in the bank ready to go. No. See my effortposts. Private sellers will expect cash regardless, but dealers actually prefer to finance a car. But you won't discuss terms until you've settled on a price anyway, if you follow my guidelines. 6. Since I don't need to finance, would I be better off trying to buy directly from an owner? You are almost always going to get a better price private-party than from a dealer, because dealers are middlemen who take profits. This is irrespective of your financing options. However, many private party sellers are unrealistic, so you must still exercise caution. There are exceptions: very rare unicorn cars desired by collectors may be more expensive in private-party, if you are forced to deal exclusively with "enthusiasts" who won't let their precious babies go for a reasonable price. 7. Are there specific makes and models that I should keep an eye out for good or bad? Yes, but there are too many to mention here, especially since your requirements (a nice sedan or something? "relatively fashionable"? Will last 5 years?) are so vague. There are dozens of make/models made since maybe 1980 or so that could fit those criteria. Keep in mind that cars which hold their value best are those which have fully depreciated; that is, old beaters. But cars which are relatively fashionable are probably newer cars which are still depreciating more quickly. So that's a contradiction. 8. Is it worth seeking out a “certified pre-owned” car in my situation? Depends on the car, and your needs. I don't think CPO is really worth the price premium, for most cars, but that's more of an opinion and it presumes you'll get a thorough inspection of any car prior to purchase anyway. Obviously CPO is dealership-only so that adds to the cost too. Overall I think you need to try and clarify more exactly what you want in your car, understand that cars these days (that is, cars made in the last decade in particular) are all far more reliable than they used to be, that newer cars lose value faster than older cars, and the more luxurious the car the more rapidly it tends to depreciate (luxury car buyers can afford to constantly upgrade to new models, so the market for older luxury cars drops off more rapidly). "Totally stress free" is a very subjective thing, it depends on what causes you stress. Do you stress about getting nicks and dings on your precious car? Do you stress about the likelihood of theft? Do you stress about the odds you might need to do some regular maintenance on your car? Do you stress about how much your car is costing you? Nobody can guess.
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Apr 23, 2013 19:37
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Proposed Budget: Ideally < $10k? (Maybe 8k? Although if it's highly recommended I guess I could squeeze a little over 10k) New or Used: Used (I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to go used if I want something recent anyways) Body Style: 4 door sedan, not sure about this compact vs midsize vs full How will you be using the car?: I'm mainly picking up a car for myself because I got a job about 15-20 miles away from home, and the public transit here in LA takes too long to get around for some reason. I looked around briefly today and I do like the way Honda Civics and Mazda 3s look aesthetically, plus I think it's possible to find them in my price range? My parents are helping with the down payment and I'll be paying them back half of the cost in monthly installments. Hopefully I can get something a little more recent (maybe within the last 5 years?) but I'm not terribly savvy with cars. (Up until now I've been driving our family's only 04 Honda Odyssey) Not really looking for luxury features although I wouldn't complain if they had gizmos like parking sensors or what have you (otherwise I have a phone I can use for GPS and music to plug in) Outside of work, I might just drive it around an equal distance to go hang out with friends scattered over LA, but I'm not a really fast driver so as long as I don't feel like a slug it should be alright (I mean I imagine there is no recent sedan that goes too slow these days but what do I know) What aspects are most important to you? Reliability is pretty important. I want to be able to use this car for a long time. My family's 2004 Honda Odyssey has been trucking for almost 10 years now. I'd be pretty happy to have a car that can go at least almost that far. My job is going to be low pay, so ideally I get something with good MPG. My commute is about 16 miles each way. I don't know too much about cars at the moment, so something that's easy to maintain and deal with over the long haul will be good. Aesthetically I do like the way the recent Civic and Mazda looks, and the Honda Fit looked interesting too. Also I like fabric seats. I mentioned Honda Civics and Mazda 3s, but am I missing any other good options? Also, I live in Los Angeles and have a garage. Um, if there are any other important details I'm missing, let me know. edit: oooh yeah, my cousin had just bought a brand new Nissan Sentra late last year for like 17k. That car seemed pretty decent and felt pretty comfortable to sit in. I imagine that a 2011 or something might meet my budget? Revitalized fucked around with this message at 05:09 on Apr 24, 2013 |
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Apr 24, 2013 04:11
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Leperflesh posted:The depreciation in value of your luxurious $10k used car that sits outside through Chicago winters, added on to the costs of taxes, maintenance, and insurance, may exceed what you'd pay just to rent a car when you need one. You might look into Zipcar and other similar companies if all you need is a couple of hours around town occasionally, and then rent something when you have your occasional 70-mile out of town trips. Thanks. Really appreciate the comments. I already have a Zipcar membership which works great, but it is sometimes hard to justify the $10 an hour for minor trips. Kind of silly considering how much a month I'd waste on buying a car. I should probably just use the Zipcar more liberally and be done with it, but I've gotten to the point where I have the money to spare (I just want to make sure I get the most bang for my buck) and the convenience factor is starting to make me think seriously about just buying a car. Maybe not the most flattering admission, but there is also some ego/self-image issues tied up in the whole decision as well. It'd be one thing If I still lived in NYC, but Chicago is still a car city and it feels weird sometimes to be a successful professional in my 30s without a car.
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Apr 24, 2013 04:34
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MayakovskyMarmite posted:the convenience factor Leperflesh posted:$10k used car that sits outside through Chicago winters, added on to the costs of taxes, maintenance, and insurance If you own a car that you use once every other week, and you are not an enthusiast, two things will happen: - you take care of it adequately and you find maintaining it a chore - you don't take care of it and it goes to poo poo long before 5 years is up I totally get it -- to me, owning a car is integral to the American dream. But unless you find yourself thinking about cars and your car at least a few times a day, I don't think any car can meet the stress free mark.
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Apr 24, 2013 04:51
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Revitalized posted:Proposed Budget: Ideally < $10k? (Maybe 8k? Although if it's highly recommended I guess I could squeeze a little over 10k) I would not discount the Ford Focus. A 2006-2007 Focus (If you go older, make sure it has the "Zetec" or PZEV motor, the base motor in the other ones is a POS) will leave you with a ton of change and is better than the 2008-2010 focus. So I'm going to say buy a $6-7k 2007 Ford Focus and send me $3k. The Nissan cheap cars are a joke and only trade on being the cheapest. They're the new Koreans in that category.
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Apr 24, 2013 06:02
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MayakovskyMarmite posted:Maybe not the most flattering admission, but there is also some ego/self-image issues tied up in the whole decision as well. It'd be one thing If I still lived in NYC, but Chicago is still a car city and it feels weird sometimes to be a successful professional in my 30s without a car. That's an OK thing. This is AI meets BFC. The BFC advice is oriented towards the most prudent financial decisions, and I think that's been given as well as it can, with the details you've provided. The AI perspective, of course, is the car enthusiast one; and there's nothing wrong with buying something you can afford just because you want it, with no further justification. A lot of us love cars, or love specific cars anyway, and if you think there's a car out there you'll love to own, by all means go for it. But you haven't expressed much in the way of preference, and the terms you've used to describe what you do prefer are vague. Perhaps you should try renting a bunch of different cars, just to get a feel for what kinds of things you like. Try out some compacts and some mid-size and some full-size cars. Maybe go wander around a few used car lots, take some notes on things that catch your eye, even do some test drives (but don't buy). If you're interested in a car for fun, or to enhance your lifestyle, it's a very personal choice that is based more on your gut feelings than on objective criteria. Just be careful. A car you love can be heartbreaking, too. There's plenty of threads in AI that illustrate this very, very well. Scratches, niggling gremlins, outright vandalism and theft, spiraling expenses, all of these things can really wear you down. Cars by their nature are not really "stress free" unless you literally don't give a poo poo about your car or what happens to it... and if that's the case, sounds like you'd still be better off not owning a car.
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Apr 24, 2013 06:26
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So I'm browsing AutoTraders and I come upon some relatively cheap prices on newer model cars and notice that they have salvage titles. From what I gather, this means that they're basically cars that originally suffered some big damage, then got fixed up for the purpose of reselling? Are these worth a look or should be generally avoided? nm posted:You're in 2004-5ish Prius territory. That said, you're talking low mileage (Though the Prius is verging on the most reliable car made at this point). A Mazda 3 or if you want smaller, a Honda fit, are in that price. Yikes. The Nissan Sentra's interior was really nice though. I'll look into the Ford Focus I guess. Is it true the Mazda 3's got kinda crappy space for the backseats, or is that sort of exaggerated?
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Apr 24, 2013 10:16
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MayakovskyMarmite posted:Thanks. Really appreciate the comments. I already have a Zipcar membership which works great, but it is sometimes hard to justify the $10 an hour for minor trips. Kind of silly considering how much a month I'd waste on buying a car. I should probably just use the Zipcar more liberally and be done with it, but I've gotten to the point where I have the money to spare (I just want to make sure I get the most bang for my buck) and the convenience factor is starting to make me think seriously about just buying a car. Maybe not the most flattering admission, but there is also some ego/self-image issues tied up in the whole decision as well. It'd be one thing If I still lived in NYC, but Chicago is still a car city and it feels weird sometimes to be a successful professional in my 30s without a car. Think about it this way: if you spend ten grand on a car that lasts you five years, PLUS insurance, PLUS maintenance and repair, you will be spending a poo poo load more than ten bucks an hour on your minor trips. Also, street parking in a major city makes me want to kill myself. If you don't have DOT4 running in your veins, you are in an incredibly public-transit friendly city with easy access to Zipcars. You can come up with a way better way to spend ten grand. poo poo, just drop it in your 401K or IRA. If you don't love cars, and you don't require one to get around, they're an awful, awful investment. If you came in here saying "I am a successful 30 year old and I have ten grand to spend on a car and ever since I was a kid I wanted a Lincoln Mk. VII/Cadillac DeVille/E30/300ZX," I'd tell you to do it in a heartbeat. But just spending 10K, plus fuel, maintenance, repairs and insurance, on a status symbol seems silly. I also think that the 10K amount is not in "I am buying a car because of a status symbol" price range. If you said "I can spend 35K on a car and I want a nice small luxury car as a status symbol" I'd probably be more favorable. Right now, I'm concerned about your actual ability to pay for the car. gently caress it, if you want a status symbol as a successful professional, drop your 10K on made-to-measure suits.
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Apr 24, 2013 17:21
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Revitalized posted:So I'm browsing AutoTraders and I come upon some relatively cheap prices on newer model cars and notice that they have salvage titles. From what I gather, this means that they're basically cars that originally suffered some big damage, then got fixed up for the purpose of reselling? Avoid avoid avoid. Rebuilt/salvage titles are problematic in several ways. -The car may be difficult or impossible to insure. -Insurance will estimate its replacement value as being very low. -The car may be difficult or impossible to resell. -The car may be structurally compromised in a way you cannot see. It may be significantly more likely to kill you in (another) accident as a result. -The car may have mechanical issues that will emerge soon. You usually have no way to know these exists. Things like damage to the internal parts of a transmission can be invisible to a post-accident inspector but greatly reduce the life of the transmission. -As a result of the above, the car is almost always overpriced, even at the discount you see. Unless you really, really know what you're doing, do not buy a salvage title car. Keep this in mind: the reason the car was written off in the first place is because an insurance adjuster determined it was not economically viable to repair (that is, repair cost was too close to or surpassed the car's replacement value). So why is it now for sale? The most likely answer is that the repairs were done cheaply, incompletely, or both. This is not a good thing. KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:gently caress it, if you want a status symbol as a successful professional, drop your 10K on made-to-measure suits. When you want to impress someone when you pick them up to go out to dinner, hire a chauffeured town car or limo. It's surprisingly affordable, in comparison to buying a car, especially if you only do it once or twice a month. Leperflesh fucked around with this message at 19:25 on Apr 24, 2013 |
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Apr 24, 2013 19:20
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I need some financial advice. I currently drive a 1999 Honda Accord. It has 138k miles on it and the transmission is completely shot. I have 13k in the bank with no debt. I just have typical expenses such as rent, utilities, phone, internet, insurance. I am working a contract job that pays pretty well. But as far as I know that job could end in a month or 2 years from now. I work remotely from home so I do not have to worry about commuting at the moment. But it would be nice to have something reliable to drive to go visit friends, run errands, and do other stuff during the weekends as I am sure my girlfriend is sick of carting my rear end around (though she does not show it). I have worked hard these last few years to make myself debt free and I do not want to go back down that hole if it does not make sense to do so. It would be nice to keep most of that money in my account in case my job situation turns to poo poo but I realize I am going to have to spend some of it. So should I fix my current car? It would need a new transmission plus I would probably replace the timing belt as well. Should I buy used? Or should I make a sizable down payment on a new car? I've been driving this thing for the past 11+ years so I've not had to go through this before.
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Apr 24, 2013 20:27
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I'm guessing it's a V6 automatic Accord, as that era Accord/TL has well-known transmission issues. It's a lot cheaper to fix an otherwise reliable car than to buy a new one. $2000 can fix a lot of broken stuff, but is a small fraction of the price of a new car. If the car is otherwise in pretty good shape and well-maintained I say get it fixed. Find a reputable transmission specialty shop to rebuild the transmission and it should be good to go for another 100k+. The timing belt is also a good idea if it is due/overdue, as well as any other scheduled/preventative maintenance. For a couple thousand bucks you could have the Accord all fixed up and up-to-date on scheduled maintenance and ready to take on another 138k miles. All that said, if you just really want to replace the car for something new and think you can afford it then by all means go for it. You don't need anymore justification than "I want to and I can afford it". Just don't rationalize it as the financially-prudent decision. 
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Apr 24, 2013 20:57
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TheJudge posted:So should I fix my current car? It would need a new transmission plus I would probably replace the timing belt as well. Should I buy used? Or should I make a sizable down payment on a new car? I've been driving this thing for the past 11+ years so I've not had to go through this before. It's going to almost definitely be cheaper in absolute terms to fix that thing and keep driving it for another 100k miles. However, because people tend to overpay for used Hondas and you don't seem to want a status car, it might be worth considering a new Honda Fit. At least locally, a '99 Accord would sell for much more than it should private-party because people think every Honda is perfect.
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Apr 24, 2013 21:04
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Man this car searching business is confusing. People telling me conflicting reports about every make and model (Nissan Sentras, and Mazda3 in particular). The only one that I don't hear anything particularly negative at this point is the Honda Civic and Honda Fit. Also how are Subaru's cheap end? (Impreza I think they're called?) edit: err blue book lists Impreza's gas mileage as kind of on the lower end. Maybe not then. Revitalized fucked around with this message at 04:24 on Apr 25, 2013 |
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Apr 25, 2013 04:22
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Thats what a test drive is for, see what you like since a lot comes down to preference rather than actual superiority. For what its worth, I haven't heard anything negative about a Fit and many people seem to love theirs with a passion bordering on illogical. The Subaru probably gets worse gas mileage due to the extra weight of the four wheel drive. If you don't care about that, I wouldn't go with that option.
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Apr 25, 2013 15:44
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The Sentra sucks though, don't buy the Sentra.
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Apr 25, 2013 16:06
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I'm going to jump in here, if it's okay, since I see the Fit mentioned. I'm going to have to be buying a car in the next couple of years and really gravitated toward the Fit. I kind of wanted to buy new, since then I could just keep it for ~10 years and perform routine maintenance and not have much drama. However, I know I'd be eating that "off the lot" depreciation. Would I be better off searching around for a used Fit, one that was only a couple of years old? My worry is, frankly, why would anyone want to sell a car that was 2 or 3 years old and in perfect condition?
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Apr 25, 2013 23:25
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internetstuff posted:My worry is, frankly, why would anyone want to sell a car that was 2 or 3 years old and in perfect condition? Changing financial needs, changing vehicular needs, automotive ADD, "I always buy new cars", or most commonly, off-lease cars.
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Apr 25, 2013 23:29
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internetstuff posted:My worry is, frankly, why would anyone want to sell a car that was 2 or 3 years old and in perfect condition? Lease return, changing needs/desires, bored with the car, no longer need a car, need the money for a large purchase, etc. There are lots of reasons to sell a perfectly good car.
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Apr 25, 2013 23:29
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Never underestimate the ability of people with some money to waste gobs of it in idiotic ways. Buying a neverending stream of brand new cars, only to sell them for a terrible loss within months or a year or two, is a remarkably common habit of people with more money (or, perhaps more accurately, more credit) than sense.
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Apr 25, 2013 23:39
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Wow. 3 replies in a row all saying basically the same thing. I will leave this thread with the following wisdom: For my needs, a Fit is probably a good idea. I need a mildly comfy car for one or two adults and sometimes groceries, not much more. (By the time babies roll around, it'll be time to get a different car) It would be worth my time to buy used, as I can probably get a hold of a decent used one in the 2-3 year range I desire, thereby dodging the "off the lot depreciation" bullet. Thanks guys!
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Apr 25, 2013 23:43
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internetstuff posted:It would be worth my time to buy used, as I can probably get a hold of a decent used one in the 2-3 year range I desire, thereby dodging the "off the lot depreciation" bullet. Well, maybe, maybe not. "Off the lot depreciation" is an old adage that is not always true, and certainly not to the extent that many people think it is. Especially now given that used car values, especially economy cars, are quite inflated compared to the past couple decades. I'm not sure how true it still is, but for a while the Fit was one of a handful of car models that barely depreciated at all due to low supply and high demand. Especially on a cheap car like the Fit, an argument can be made that it's worth paying 18k for a brand new one rather than 15k for a 3 year old one with 35k miles.
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Apr 25, 2013 23:57
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Guinness posted:Especially on a cheap car like the Fit, an argument can be made that it's worth paying 18k for a brand new one rather than 15k for a 3 year old one with 35k miles. Yeah; there are some cars that do depreciate heavily in the first year or two of ownership, but Hondas in general aren't in that category, and the Fit especially so because it is such a solid and well-liked car.
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Apr 26, 2013 00:10
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You guys are awesome. I spent the last couple hours hunting around and did find that, actually, the average price of new Fits is only 1 or 2 thousand dollars off from the price of new. That makes me feel better - I like the idea of buying new as opposed to used because I am "not a car guy" and the idea of used was stressful to me.
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Apr 26, 2013 00:13
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From a buying-new perspective, economy model Hondas and Toyotas retain their value pretty well, which is good for you if you intend to sell the car down the line somewhere. From a buying-used perspective, I tend to advise people to avoid Hondas and Toyotas because they are overpriced for what you get on the used market. The perception that Honda/Toyota = the best quality cars is based on a reputation built during the 1980s and 90s and which is, today, not really true. That is, they still make good quality cars, but the gap between them and other makers has mostly been closed. So let me say that I agree that if you have your heart set on a Fit, buying a new one isn't a terrible idea. But if you would like to save money and are OK with buying a nearly-new car (say, 2 years old with 30k on it or so, which is just barely broken in for most new cars these days) you can consider non-Honda/Toyota options and save yourself thousands of dollars.
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Apr 26, 2013 00:21
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Leperflesh posted:The perception that Honda/Toyota = the best quality cars is based on a reputation built during the 1980s and 90s and which is, today, not really true. This is the kind of thing that makes me stressed ... If Honda and Toyota are not the safest bets for a cheap, reliable, commute-and-groceries car, what is the current "killer app" in that segment? Chevrolet Sonic? Ford Fiesta? I feel adrift.
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Apr 26, 2013 00:32
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Well, here's a thing. What would be a good "not-Honda Fit" car that still has the same general set of features with regards to cargo space and mileage, a mid 2000s wagon?
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Apr 26, 2013 00:42
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internetstuff posted:This is the kind of thing that makes me stressed ... If Honda and Toyota are not the safest bets for a cheap, reliable, commute-and-groceries car, what is the current "killer app" in that segment? Chevrolet Sonic? Ford Fiesta? I feel adrift. That's the thing - you can argue a bit that maybe Honda and Toyota have slipped / become complacent with their reputations, but the bigger picture is that if you're looking at new cars, you have to try to find a bad one. Even the ones that people here love to hate (Chrysler 200, most anything Mitsubishi) aren't necessarily fatally flawed, they just aren't as good. You can pick nearly any sub-$30k car on a dealer lot today and drive it like you stole it for 100k miles and likely not have to do much of anything other than consumables.
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Apr 26, 2013 00:47
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Simple Answer: Yes the Chevy Sonic turbo is the best car if you like driving, but it doesn't have the folding seats of the Fit and it will likely end up being more expensive because it is a better car in every which way - more horsepower in the turbo engine, nicer interior, better crash test ratings, etc. Here's the thing about "resale value". When people talk about it it's always with respect to MSRP. The Fit happens to be a car that tends to sell for around MSRP with little room for discounting. Thus the resale as a percentage of MSRP tends to be high. This is due to a variety of factors but mostly because Honda doesn't actually sell that many of them in the US and has very little incentive to. It's a very cheap car, so the profit margins are very low, and they are all made outside North America (American market models are made in Japan), and the car actually happens to be very popular in European and Asian markets, so there is a built in mechanism for Honda to limit their inventories in North America - they'll sell every single one that's already here before importing any more because other markets with higher margins will get priority in production. To call it "high demand/low supply" is a bit off, there is supply and demand at the price point where Honda makes a reasonable profit, and Honda isn't going to supply any more cars for any price lower than that. If you compare purely the residual/MSRP value to other cars the Fit comes out on top, but very few other cars actually sell for MSRP like the Fit does, if only because most cars sold in the US are larger, more expensive models with higher profit margins that have more "room" for carmakers to load up with incentives and discounts and once you take that into account the resale value thing isn't so clear anymore.
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Apr 26, 2013 00:48
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Revitalized posted:Proposed Budget: Ideally < $10k? (Maybe 8k? Although if it's highly recommended I guess I could squeeze a little over 10k) Okay now let's pretend that my budget grew for some reason and a New car is not entirely out of the question. What are the best options for a relatively cheap efficient Sedan? Are the new Honda Civics still really good? Also back to used car discussion, are CPO cars worth the extra premium? It's basically like a manufacturer's warranty right?
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Apr 26, 2013 00:49
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Claverjoe posted:Well, here's a thing. What would be a good "not-Honda Fit" car that still has the same general set of features with regards to cargo space and mileage, a mid 2000s wagon? The Toyota Matrix and Pontiac Vibe. They're nearly identical to each other, and both have fold-flat seats like the Fit does. They also get decent mileage. The only downside is you may think they are ugly; I personally don't, but I understand why someone might not want to be seen in either of them.
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Apr 26, 2013 03:01
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Revitalized posted:Okay now let's pretend that my budget grew for some reason and a New car is not entirely out of the question. What are the best options for a relatively cheap efficient Sedan? Are the new Honda Civics still really good? There aren't really that many actually bad cars any more. The Focus, the Elantra, the Mazda3 are probably the top three. The next three are probably the Kia Forte, the Civic and the Cruze.
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Apr 26, 2013 03:18
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You drove the new Forte? It's not coming out until the middle of this year. - 3 year/36k mile free maintenance - 12 year rust warranty - 15.5cf trunk - Beloved by women everywhere 
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Apr 26, 2013 03:45
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Revitalized posted:Also back to used car discussion, are CPO cars worth the extra premium? It's basically like a manufacturer's warranty right? AC, radio, brakes, power steering, etc. Not all CPOs are created alike, read the details.
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Apr 26, 2013 04:50
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Throatwarbler posted:You drove the new Forte? It's not coming out until the middle of this year. I did get my mittens on a new Forte, but I really meant the old one. I like the old one. The 2.slow Jetta is terrible, but the Jetta is actually a pretty good choice if you want a midsize car.
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Apr 26, 2013 16:20
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Apollodorus posted:The Toyota Matrix and Pontiac Vibe. They're nearly identical to each other, and both have fold-flat seats like the Fit does. They also get decent mileage. Thanks! Since I am an unhip nerd who has never worried about being cool, I'd probably be happy with either one. Camping trips, cross country driving, and a happy (future) doggie are more what I'm angling for.
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Apr 26, 2013 19:05
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Not gonna lie, the 2013 Honda Civic's 'standard' features attract me. 1. Bluetooth features 2. rearview camera (or parking assist) 3. a driving dashboard similar to the Civic which displays a digital mph count Are there any other good cars that come with these at a lower price point than the Civic? I think the Ford Focus does? also a side thing: is the SMS reading thing on the Civic a completely new thing? I had never heard of it before now.
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Apr 27, 2013 22:38
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