Looking for a GREAT used car...any suggestions for what I should consider

[dianne]

Hubby and I have been plagued with auto trouble lately, for my car and his truck, and I think we may have to replace one of them. Both vehicles are paid off, both are 8 years old, both with over 100,000 miles--mine has 110,000 and his has 170,000. I guess it''s time to move on to a newer model but we would rather buy a reliable used vehicle instead of a new one.

Here''s the kicker...we would like to have something 2005 or newer and spend less than $12,000 so, as you can see, my selection will be limited. I can do online searches for what is available to meet this criteria but I wouldn''t know the reliability...I mean, I know there''s good and bad with every make and style but I was hoping to hear from those who have had really good luck with a lower priced auto to help narrow my search.

Thanks!

 

[monarch64]

A good online resource for researching used vehicles is Consumer Reports. I can''t remember if they are a .com or a .org.

Anyway, you can get detailed yearly reports regarding reliability of each make and model. Edwards.com is another site that does pretty much the same thing. Good luck with your search! And good for you for being a responsible consumer!

 

[scarleta]

you may want to ask a good car repair place or a mechanic.Often people will approach them if they know a buyer for their car.If you know a good one you may be able to also get a history of the car..

 

[rockzilla]

Toyota toyota toyota.

Edited: I bought a 1995 Camry in 2004 for $5k with over 100,000 miles on it. Four years later I have had no issues - just regular maintenance!

 

[pennquaker09]

Date: 5/11/2008 12:05:30 AM
Author: rockzilla
Toyota toyota toyota.

Amen, amen, amen. But I highly doubt one can find something from 2005 that is reliable for 12,000.

 

[monarch64]

Date: 5/11/2008 12:08:03 AM
Author: pennquaker09

Date: 5/11/2008 12:05:30 AM
Author: rockzilla
Toyota toyota toyota.

Amen, amen, amen. But I highly doubt one can find something from 2005 that is reliable for 12,000.

True...I sold my ''99 Corolla in 2005 for $5k, it had ~60k miles on it, if that gives any perspective. It''s possible that Dianne may find a Toyota with higher miles on it within her budget...Toyotas are really made to endure a lot of mileage as long as they are well maintained. In any case, I agree Toyota would be one of my top contenders if I were her.

 

[brazen_irish_hussy]

Consumer reports is your best bet. They are the best in the business. I looked, hondas are their recomendation. They last the longest, have the highest resale value, the lowest repair costs and the fewest need for repairs.

I have known many people with hondas and their nicer models, acuras, and those cars last longer than any other cars I have ever seen.

 

[monarch64]

Date: 5/11/2008 2:24:56 AM
Author: brazen_irish_hussy
Consumer reports is your best bet. They are the best in the business. I looked, hondas are their recomendation. They last the longest, have the highest resale value, the lowest repair costs and the fewest need for repairs.

I have known many people with hondas and their nicer models, acuras, and those cars last longer than any other cars I have ever seen.

I think you can pay CR $29.99 or $30 to be a member for a year. I signed up last spring when I was looking for a "new" used car and was not disappointed. (I didn''t end up buying anything, but there was a plethora of info).

 

[Dancing Fire]

japanese,japanese,japanese...
Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla.

 

[gwendolyn]

Date: 5/11/2008 12:05:30 AM
Author: rockzilla
Toyota toyota toyota.


Edited: I bought a 1995 Camry in 2004 for $5k with over 100,000 miles on it. Four years later I have had no issues - just regular maintenance!

Ditto! I bought a ''92 Camry in 1997 for $1000 (from my aunt). It had about 119,000 miles on it when I got it. I drove that baby until it had 258,000+ miles on it--if I''d had the money to replace the clutch and the AC and whatever else had died due to old age, I would have. I LOVED that car!! I would buy another one in a heartbeat!

 

[rockzilla]

Why the 2005 year limit? You guys are right, it is going to be difficult to keep it under $12k for a full size like a camry - a corolla would be no problem though. The corrolla has gotten bigger over the years though, so its not like its tiny...

Just wondering if there is something specific about that year, or if it just an arbitrary "mind clean" kind of thing...

 

[Skippy123]

Date: 5/11/2008 3:18:13 AM
Author: monarch64

Date: 5/11/2008 2:24:56 AM
Author: brazen_irish_hussy
Consumer reports is your best bet. They are the best in the business. I looked, hondas are their recomendation. They last the longest, have the highest resale value, the lowest repair costs and the fewest need for repairs.

I have known many people with hondas and their nicer models, acuras, and those cars last longer than any other cars I have ever seen.

I think you can pay CR $29.99 or $30 to be a member for a year. I signed up last spring when I was looking for a 'new' used car and was not disappointed. (I didn't end up buying anything, but there was a plethora of info).

Ditto, I love CR. I would buy a honda or toyota; those cars last forever.

I love the Honda Civics (eta: ops I don't have one, I will say I have a European car and they are so expensive to fix and they need to be fixed more often). Next car is a Japanese car.

 

[neatfreak]

Honda or Toyota for sure. Dianne, also if you don''t need a big car, you might want to check out some of the smaller model Scions. Very reasonably priced used (because they are reasonably priced new) and they are made by Toyota. Good cars.

 

[UCLABelle]

I second the Honda or Toyota. However, I also suggest looking into a Saab. I just got a certified pre-owned 9-3 2006, with about 18,200 miles on it for $19,000- so my guess is you could find one, not certified with the warranty, with more miles, for much less....

 

[diamondsrock]

Date: 5/11/2008 4:07:05 AM
Author: Dancing Fire
japanese,japanese,japanese...
Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla.

Yes, Yes, Yes. That would be my recommendation. I have a civic and I love it.
Good on gas, too.

 

[movie zombie]

february, 2007 i bought a honda accord 2-door coup with 146,000 miles on it.......for $4000. found it on craig''s list. i love love love this car. especially at the price. my husband has a 1993 honda accord that has about 250,000 miles on it. obviously, we''re not into car payments and/or newer cars.

movie zombie

 

[strmrdr]

2007 or stretch a little and get the 2008

http://autos.yahoo.com/hyundai_elantra/

 

[gwendolyn]

Date: 5/11/2008 3:25:19 PM
Author: strmrdr
2007 or stretch a little and get the 2008



http://autos.yahoo.com/hyundai_elantra/

Er, a friend of mine has the 2006 version of that car and has had tons of problems with it. She said she wouldn''t get another Hyundai again because of it.

 

[DivaDiamond007]

Sort of tongue-in-cheek, but if you want foreign for cheap why not buy a new Kia? They advertise them 2-for-1 where I live!

Joking aside - I come from a strong Ford family and would be shunned for suggesting this but I know a lot of people that have bought used Honda Civics and have had great luck with them. They do cost a lot to repair since they are not American made, but seem to hold up well over the years - especially if they''re well cared for.

Jess

 

[dianne]

Hey Everyone, I am taking a break from the Mother''s Day celebration held here at my house to take a quick peek to see if there were any responses. I am glad to see so many. I will read them all when the Mother and MIL leaves....and, on top of it all, it looks like we are about to have a storm and I turn off my PC during storms. Dang it! Just wanted to say a quick thanks for the responses and I will check back as soon as I can! Thanks so much!

 

[tevyk]

yay, a topic I can actually offer advice on instead of begging the advice of others!


I agree with the recommendations of going with Honda or Toyota *especially* for a used car. Their reliability track record is awesome. And when Hondas have abnormal problems (ie, the transmissions on 2001 Honda Accords), they extend the warranty [I just got my transmission replaced completely free under a 7-year, 100k mile warranty that they extended free on all 2001 Accords from the standard 3-year 36k mile warranty that was long expired]

A bit over a year ago, I had a similar budget to buy a car. If you look for a private party used car on craigslist or something, you can often get a pretty good deal on a 3-4 year old Honda or Toyota. In late 2006, I bought a reasonably equipped 2001 Accord in great condition with only ~40k miles for $10,500 -- right at blue book value. I personally think you might be better off going another 2 years back and looking for something with lower miles, since I don''t imagine you''d find a 2005 Honda/Toyota for under $12k unless .


Storm''s suggestion of a new Hyundai is actually a great idea -- I believe they offer a 10 year/100k powertrain warranty standard on most/all new cars, and 5-year bumper-to-bumper. Their reliability isn''t as good as the nice Japanese cars, but IIRC consumer reports said they had equal or fewer problems as most domestic cars. These comments all apply to Kia as well.
And you''re much more likely to get good financing (0-5%) buying a new car than you are used. My credit score was over 700 when I bought my car, and I couldn''t get a loan under 8% (which is going to cost me almost $2k in interest over its 3-year term).

 

[krisvrn]

I so agree! We have a 2000 camry ~ 100K miles ~ no problems

Also have 2006 Toyota 4Runnner ~ no problems!

Hondas are not bad either!

 

[krisvrn]

Back in college (2000) I''ve know a few people with Hyndai''s........... I think it''s a bad idea... too many problems!

 

[Dancing Fire]

we own 4 Japanese cars....no problem

(2) Civic ...daughter''s car. my Toyota truck and wife''s Lexus.

 

[Deelight]

Date: 5/12/2008 12:11:56 AM
Author: krisvrn
Back in college (2000) I''ve know a few people with Hyndai''s........... I think it''s a bad idea... too many problems!

I have a 92 Hyundai and have had her for 5 years she has been through the mill and she is a reliable little beast I love her , she has broken down once in the whole time I had her and that was last year the gearbox died but not to shabby for such an old car.

 

[Sabine]

I just went through a very similar situation when my 1994 chevy cavalier was about to die. My dad is a mechanic, and he knew I wanted a small car with great gas mileage that would be reliable, and my budget was right around yours. His first choice for me was the Toyota Corolla, but I couldn''t find anything with less than 75,000 miles for that price, which is not what I wanted. He then widened my choices to a Honda Civic, a Hyndai (sp?), and a Nissan Sentra. I ended up getting a 2006 Sentra with about 30,000 miles for less than your budget. I''ve had it for close to a year now, and I haven''t had a single problem with it, plus it does get great gas mileage!

 

[Elmorton]

Toyota or Honda and you might try Nissan - and get a certified used. DH comes from a Honda family - his clan has 3 civics, an element, and DH has an accord. Everyone loves them. To swing the budget, you might have to go a little higher in mileage, but I think you could do it - I was looking at the used Matrix two years ago and they were around 15k typically. Since the Matrix and Corolla were just re-vamped, I''m guessing finding a good price will be a little easier.

Another idea - for 2k more, you can go new and get a Nissan Versa (and I think the Toyota Yaris is close in price, too). I absolutely adore my Versa.

 

[Delster]

BF's folks have a 2000 Hyundai Accent with no major problems so far. 100,000 miles + on the clock and it's still going strong. They plan to drive it until it falls apart as at this stage it's not worth much on a trade-in (Hyundai resale values aren't great over here). They are definitely marketing hard on the reliability factor over here. They offer longer warranties than any other manufacturer in Ireland.

I'd second Toyota and Honda for sure. My family have had both with no problems. The Toyota was a 1993 Corolla car-van and it ran to over 150,000 miles without so much as a flat tyre. When it was traded in the garage already had a purchaser lined up for it! They currently have a 2005 Accord and they are in love with it.

My family has had Nissans too - a Primera (don't know what it's called over there) and a Micra (I would seriously doubt you can even get that one in the States!

) - and those cars are indestructible. Absolutely amazing reliability. They are incredibly popular here, but oddly they don't have such fantastic resale values (not counting the Micra, as that's a very common first car here so there will always be buyers for that).

 

[sunnyd]

Date: 5/11/2008 12:08:03 AM
Author: pennquaker09

Date: 5/11/2008 12:05:30 AM
Author: rockzilla
Toyota toyota toyota.

Amen, amen, amen. But I highly doubt one can find something from 2005 that is reliable for 12,000.

I beg to differ! My 2005 LX Civic (the medium model) with only 24000 miles is worth about $12000, maybe a bit more. Guessing, but I think the value on used cars has come down with the market too. A couple of months ago it was worth $14000.

I love my car dianne! Super reliable and not much maintenance required.

 

[dianne]

Hi Everyone! Well, I''m back...the storm that was coming was actually a tornado...big new flashes on TV that it was right on top of my house. I had three calls in about a 15 second time frame of people warning me to take shelter! I could hear thunder and there were dark clouds but the sun was shining! It was just strange to see the radar map on the TV screen of my neighborhood, and the very excited weatherman telling everyone to take shelter and implement their tornado plan, but it was sunny! I guess it can sneak up on you but since there was so much thunder I kept my pc unplugged....then we had a bad storm later in the night....jeez!

Anyway, thanks to all for responding and I''m just now catching up on reading.