Hey, I'm buying a new car. The max amount that can be spent is $5000... I'm not paying for it, but I do get to pick which car it is. I want to get a Japanese car, preferably Honda (I like Civics). But the problem is that $5000 can only get you at tops a '95,'96 Honda (or any other japanese car) I could get up to a 2001/2002 American car (barf) for that same amount of money. But I hate American cars... So any suggestions? Like should I get a Japanese car, more durable, slower depreciation, but older? Or an American car thats newer, faster depreciation..? (I mainly need this car just to get me places, and to ... look nice on the outside at least. I'm Chinese, so I feel I should drive asian car. For the past couple of while, I've been driving an American car the size of a boat, which makes me feel so unasian, and manly...)
Actually, the new american cars that are coming out aren't too bad... they have realized their horrible ways in the past and have been putting out some much better products. With a $5000 budget tho, I would stay away from American cars. Hondas are over-hyped and been selling at much higher value than the car is worth. I'd give you some suggestions, but I'd need to know what features you're looking for... 2dr or 4dr? Power Windows and Door locks? Speed? Comfort? Reliability? Size of the car? These will help a lot for determining what options you have available to you. Pulling a car out of my hat type of answer tho... a 1997 or 1998 Nissan 200SX SE (not XE or SE-R). Does 30+ mpg, looks sporty, and average speed, reliable, ez on insurance, power everything included, can be found in Manual or Automatic pretty easily. Will run you about $3500 - $4000 for a good condition one.
Do not buy Ford, or Mazda. Chevy's decent, Toyota and Honda are the best in terms of reliability. With $5000, I would stick with a Corolla or Civic, mainly because they are reliable and if anything were to break down on it, it's cheap to fix and easy too. There are a lot of new and used parts and they are relatively easy cars to find. Pretty good gas mileage too. The reason why Japanese cars are so much better is because of the way they manage their company and employees. You won't ever see a union strike with Japanese companies. American car companies have excellent designs, no doubt. They trail the Japs because they fail to manage their company and employees. In an article I read about the employees in GM and Ford is that the employees work hard enough to keep from getting fired whereas the Jap car companies have employees that love to work for their company. I digress...sorry, but anyways, stick with a car you know is good.
Get a used honda. If you're 18-20 without your own income, you should just go budget and get a lowkey car that is reliable & cheap to fix.
I would avoid this particular easily stolen and often stolen "lowkey" car. (referring to civics and accords)
you are on a strict budget >> i was there too i used http://www.kbb.com/kb/ki.dll/ke.kb.sp?kbb&&&usedCars;slp kelley's blue book for used cars ^^ there is a search on the bottom of that page .. for a budget tight individual. you can used it >> very useful >> give a good rough estimate of cars in your price range -clap
My sister is currently shopping for a new car. She wants to get an SUV like infiniti fx. I think it's a nice car but both she n I are not too familiar with SUV's. Any suggestions? She was also thinking of a TDI or subaru...
No SUVs please!! Although I'm really feeling the infiniti fx, with gas prices going through the roof, it's better that she doesn't get a car that consumes gas like it's water. If your sister can get her hands on a TDI, it'd be awesome. Lots of people are converting their TDIs into grease cars (cars that run on processed oil). I think the new subaru legacy 2.5GT is really good too...it has a good engine, is reliable & powerful, has AWD, and doesn't cost an arm & a leg to fix. What more can you ask for??
2dr or 4dr? - Well, it doesn't really matter, but I'd prefer 4dr b/c it's easier to get in and out. lol. Power Windows and Door locks? Quite important, but if a car didn't have it, I wouldn't mind. Speed? - I don't know... lol... I'm a girl... But I drive fast (I think) Comfort? - Needs to be. Haha. I'm always in a car, so it has to be comfy. Reliability? - Needs to last for a while... at least 3 years min. Size of the car? - Enough to hold myself and a few friends . Basically, I need a car to get me to school, work, etc. But I also want it to look nice. I want it to reflect who I am - Asian/girl. Right now I drive a hugeass old American 'boat' (1992 Cutlass Siera) and it makes me feel 'white' and 'manly'. No fun, and its ugly car.
i would never buy an American car. If you are familiar with the LA region, there is this one used auto dealer called C & H Auto. I sell my used cars there, though i feel bad for not buying. It seems though that the used Honda's and Toyotas at same price as Nissans are older. If they were kept in good condition problems usally dont arise.
stick with public transport til you can add dosh. you don't wanna waste your money on a crap car . =)
