Any recommendations on a used car?

[cindys]

I am going to help my boy get a car...The car he drives now is 15yrs old and is on its last leg.

He is in college and works full time and needs a reliable car, not only for work but to travel to see me and his Dad.

He is in school in Nashville but I live in Ga and his Dad is in W.V.

I dont have alot to spend..Maybe $5000..

Any suggestions?

Cindy
Mama to 3 boys...21, 6 & 3 :love-retry::love-retry::love-retry:

[elbenn]

I think older Hondas and Toyotas are a good bet. They have good reputations for being reliable even if they are older and have high mileage. Maybe a Honda Civic?

[LMPC]

I was going to say a honda civic as well. Good gas mileage and reliable.

[misshollygolightly]

Another vote for Honda or Toyota. Nissans (maybe a Nissan Sentra?) may also be a good choice. We got a good deal several years ago on a gently used Honda Fit that was at our local Lexus dealership. I'm sure it was a trade-in, and the Lexus folks just wanted it off their lot! What we paid was above your range, but the car we bought was only about a year old. Anyway, I think Honda, Toyota, and Nissan all tend to be reliable, fuel-efficient little cars that rarely require expensive repairs or specialized parts.

[AnnieW625]

A 8-10 yr. old Honda Civic or Toyota Corolla. DH would suggest a small pick up truck. Uou might be able to find a Chevy Colorado or Ford Ranger that is about 5-10 yrs. old for that price. Just depends on the market of what your price will be.

[athompson]

I'd highly recommend a Honda Civic.

[knaidel]

not to be a kiilljoy or anything, but you might want to widen your search beyond a toyota corolla/honda civic simply because they can be hard to find used, especially under 10 years old (that might not necessarily be a problem, though). I just did a search on cars.com, and any corollas within 100 miles of my house in that price range are minimum 10+ years old with 100K miles. Same with the civic. 100K might not be such a big deal, but it does sound like this car will be used to some long trips, not just around the neighborhood to the store and to college classes.

I asked about this on the board a few weeks ago-- I was looking to replace our 1999 minivan and asked about getting one with high mileage. however, I don't drive a lot. I work from home most days per week, I don't drive my kids to school, and maybe drive 200 miles per month. I have to check mint.com....I don't remember how many weeks its been since I went to the gas station! So the wise people on this board told me that for me, a used minivan with 100K+ miles would be sufficient. Not sure if you want to go so high with the amount of long trips your son does.


. when we were looking for a used sedan, we "assumed" we would get a civic/corolla because of reliability. We found it nearly impossible to find one...people tend to hold on to them for a long time, and when they do need to get rid of them, their kids/niece/nephew/neighbor tends to get it! Also, when the economy isn't so great, people tend to hang on to their cars for longer, equaling a tighter used car market.

I would suggest seeing if you can get a copy of the most recent consumer reports used car buying guide-- or something like this-- your local library might have a copy---,

http://www.amazon.com/Lemon-Aid-Used-Cars-Trucks-2012-2013/dp/1459702344/ref=pd_cp_b_0


This way, you can expand your search beyong a toyota/honda to see what other makes and model years are known for being reliable in your price range. When we did go sedan shopping, we went with the consumer reports used car guide for that year and ended up with a ford escort for $7K. Of course, CR is not fail-proof, but it's a for that year, it reccommended specific years of the escort from as "best bets" or something like that. We've had minimal problems with the escort since we bought it (we bought it summer 2004 and have put about 60K miles on it).

good luck!

[TwoBees]

I second (or third) the recommendation for a Honda Civic. They run forever.

[stinkyfeet]

I'd also recommend a used civic or corolla. Just make sure to get the carfax report and find a good inspector to look at it before you buy it (if not certified used from a dealer). DH also likes to ask about and see service records to see how well it has been maintained.

[knaidel]

Okay, I found it-- this is what another poster (ElBenn) replied when I asked about buying a car with high mileage:

"I am absolutely not an expert, so others may weigh in with much better advice, but my first thought was that many cars with good reliability ratings can go up to 200,000 miles, and you get a much better price if a car has 100,000 miles on it, so I don't think getting a car with 80,000 is a bad idea. I would make sure it is a car made by a manufacturer with a really good reputation, like Honda. A car that is pretty new with a lot of mileage may be a really good buy and would be better than an older car with high mileage. I would make sure that they did all the proper maintenance, which is key to getting the most mileage out of a car."


So let's say you can assume the following 1)the car has been well maintained and 2) Since the car has been properly maintained, you can reasonably rely on it lasting until 200K without any major issues. Anything beyond 200K is luck. That being said, I don't know if you can assume that a car has been well maintained. And when you're looking at a 2002 or earlier corolla/civic, I would be surprised if the dealership actually had the maintenance records....unless the previous owner/owners did all their maintenance at the dealership that they sold it/traded it to and it was all on file there.


Maybe figure out 1) how many miles on average he needs to drive in a year and 2) how long you "need" this car to last. He's 21 now-- do you figure that by the time he's 24/25, he will have made it big in investment banking and will want a newer car? :) Or , is he in college now, and does not expect to enter the "regular" workforce" for another 6 years, following grad school, residency, whatever.....
I would work backwards from there.. How high in mileage can you really start out with? If a car with 120K miles is really going to carry him through, then it sounds like a civic/corolla would work. If not, you might want to look at other options.

Also, FYI-- I would not rely too much on the carfax report. When I bought my 1999 minivan, the dealer told me that only certain states (I think it's around 30 or so) have to report to the agency that carfax gets their info from. My ford escort had been in an accident, but it was NOT on the carfax report. I also don't know if a dealer is going to spend their time "certifing" such an old car, so you'd definetly want it checked out by someone you trust.

[barkley1]

We have a 2002 Toyota Camry with 220k on it and hope to keep it another year or two....def got our $$$ worth!

[bcafe]

I would look for a chevy prizm. It is the exact same as a corolla but will be less money. Google the model and you will see reviews.

[AnnieW625]

Look at the Nissan Frontier pickup, and maybe a late 90s model Toyota Tacoma.