[rxter]

So my daughter's 96 Celica finally gave up the ghost. Blown head gasket - who knows why... $1K to replace it, and maybe find out that I am in for another couple grand to fix whatever caused it. The car has seen its better days so I am planning to 'donate' it. Anyway, she needs wheels, but is not particularly well healed, if you know what I mean. Still a couple of years to go in college.

Planning to spend 10 to 15, and want something that she can't kill. She is part of the group that thinks a car runs on gas and dad's visa card - you know the type.

I thought I'd poll this group of car nuts to see what the prevailing opinion might be. Basic Japanese transport (Civic, Corolla, Versa, like that) or higher mileage German (VW, maybe an older audi or basic 325).

Appreciate learning from your experience.

Thanks, Joe

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[94SilverCab]

For durability to you have to give it to the Japanese. German cars are wonderful, but maintaince must be kept in mind. Japanese cars get driven until they break (and rarely do).

I vote Acura RS (Yes, TSX as Fox stated below, that's the one I meant).

Regards,

Jay

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[Fox944]

Get her an Acura TSX. They are very very reliable/safe cars & get excellent gas mileage.

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[ds968]

+1 on the suggestion to go Japanese.
I have two of them ( both Nissans, one Altima and one Pathfinder ) both over 150k miles, boring as heck to drive, but never ( and I mean NEVER ) had any maintenance issues or repairs. My son drives one, my wife the other and they're happy as punch with them...as am I...for them.
On the other hand, I drive the "fun" P-car and the "great" MBZ ( have driven only these two brands for 25+years now ) and are spending a friggin' fortune, not to mention the inconvenience to keep them running. And according to my mechanic who has worked on BMWs, VWs, Audis, etc.. all of those are just as big of a nightmare, so for a kid, buying anything but Japanese would simply add to the misery IMHO A TSX sounds great !

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[968Syncro]

Joe, funny this subject should come up. I am selling a '98 new Beetle (but not to you) which was the first car for 2 daughters. We've had it since 2000. Now they are definitely not car guys! Overall it has been a piece of $#@*&(. The new Beetle is known to be very problematic, of course especially the '98 which was the first year. It is basically a Jetta with a rounded body. Funny the mechanicals have not been that bad, but the other stuff is horrible - lots of plastic that broke: radio buttons, head liner trim, cigarette lighter mount, cup holder tab, batter cover plastics, tail light holder tabs, high beam headlight mount, under engine tray, etc., etc. the list goes on an on of stuff that just gave up with no reason. They loved the car, great chick car. Sure they neglected the car quite a bit, but it did end up quite reliable, can't recall any tows for example. But the little stuff that needed attention just went on and on.

Agree with the recommendation on stick with the Japanese. My son (and I) chose a 4Runner, very happy with that choice, there are some good examples (both 2 and 4wd) out there with low-medium miles in good shape around $5K or just a bit more.

I just don't understand why VW couldn't get it's act together, their engineers can't be that bad, but somehow the overall design of the VWs in the past decade or more has left something to be desired. I think the overall designs and concepts are very good, but the micro-design like material choices have been terrible, maybe to trim costs.

Roland

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[xrad]

get her a used toyota 4-runner

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[gryphon]

I'm in the same position this summer, Joe. The 97 Honda Civic is just reliable enough to send my kid off in to college this fall. But I would recommend checking with your insurance company before you buy. Mine definitely does not like cars like BMWs etc. for 21 year old boys.

You might also think new car too. There are some amazing deals out there.

Tom

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[biotechee]

Ford Focus
Honda Civic
Toyota Corolla
Nissan Sentra

Stick with FWD or 4/AWD.

JMHO

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[Cloud9...68]

Not to stir up another hornet's nest of controversy by insinuating that Consumer Reports may (gasp!) actually know a thing or two about cars, particularly the more utilitarian types that I'm assuming you're interested in for you daughter, but I would just pick up their latest auto issue, and go through their list of recommended used cars. They have them nicely organized by price range. And yes, the vast majority of their picks are Japanese, primarily because of their consistently superior reliability, as many have attested to in this thread. Good luck.

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[rxter]

Great suggestions gents. Much appreciated.

We went shopping today. My fav of the day - a manual Scion tC. Fast little bugger [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.gif[/img] Also drove a stripper Versa and that tiny little beast actually went OK with a manual. Real, real weak interior though. The seats looked like cushions on a cardboard box, and the fabric looked like it would need replacement in 6 months. And this was a new car.

Her fav - a 2006 Jetta. Yikes....... It definately has a more solid feel than the Japanese beaters, and the engine pulls pretty strong. But I really worry about the maintenance and getting my Visa hammered every 10K miles for something or other.

Tomorrow I am going to my Mazda dealer to try and stuff my RX-8 and some cash into their hands, and walk out with a used 3 and a new leather coated MX5. haha lets see how that works.

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[ds968]

<!--quoteo(post=72862:date=May 30 2009, 09:01 PM:name=rxter)-->QUOTE (rxter @ May 30 2009, 09:01 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->Also drove a stripper Versa and that tiny little beast actually went OK with a manual.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->

What a coincidence ! Long time ago I also drove a stripper, and that tiny little beast also went OK with a manual ( though I believe she used another term for it ) but her name wasn't Versa... may have been Champagne or something like that [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif[/img]

Sorry, just could not resist making a wiseass remark after reading that line.. [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.gif[/img]

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[tom968]

I have a 05 VW Golf as a daily driver with over
100,000 miles. Very few problems, but I really
keep on top of the maintenance. These 4th generation
Golfs/Jettas/Beetles were improved, I believe , after 2002
or 03. Lots of electrical gremlins.

My vote would go for a Toyota Corolla, or something
similiar Japanese. The Corolla is inexpensive, great
on gas, and I hear very reliable. Decent looking too
for the price.

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[The_Oz]

Toyota ...


... and otherwise a 944 [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/cool.gif[/img]

<i>You're the one that's paying, isn't it [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.gif[/img] </i>

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[94'968]

my sister (16) has a 2007 mazda 3... just the base model. its auto with the manual mode. the car is awesome... i like driving it, its really solid. great gas mileage, power is ok... doesnt compare to the 968 [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tongue.gif[/img] haha my sister is in love with it though. might be worth looking at, falls right into your price range.

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[968rz]

For a new(er) drivers car? <b>1976 Caddy De Ville</b>. They can hit anything and not get hurt (pity the other car though)

Really though I would say Honda for reliability.

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[rxter]

haha Dan. We can always count on you to see words for what they really are, and I, for one, truly appreciate your lens.

ANyway, spent the weekend narrowing. I got her into a new body style Civic. She really likes the coupe. Off to a privateer today to do the deal hopefully.

Thanks again for the cumulative wisdom. It really helped.

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[ds968]

<!--quoteo(post=72949:date=Jun 1 2009, 12:58 PM:name=rxter)-->QUOTE (rxter @ Jun 1 2009, 12:58 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->I got her into a new body style Civic.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->

I really like the new Civics - a lot of the new body styles the previously "mundane looking" Japanese cars seem to have developed in the last year or two are very appealing. Hope you can work out a good deal on it.

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[wmuldowney]

"What a coincidence ! Long time ago I also drove a stripper, and that tiny little beast also went OK with a manual ( though I believe she used another term for it ) but her name wasn't Versa... may have been Champagne or something like that"

Crap! I thought I was the only one and she said she loved me!



yeah ok sorry.

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[flash]

with the lease programs of many of these japanese manufacturers being so aggressive, it's pretty easy to pick up a new car for little more than $100 a month - as a student, it might even be deductible - if you own a business, it definitely can be

i think it's nuts to buy a used car for a kid away at school - guess who gets to deal with breakdowns and such? warranties are worth their weight in gold in situations like that - one good breakdown like this and you've exceeded the entire year of payments

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[968Syncro]

<!--quoteo(post=73021:date=Jun 2 2009, 08:14 AM:name=flash)-->QUOTE (flash @ Jun 2 2009, 08:14 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->i think it's nuts to buy a used car for a kid away at school<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Yup, I got calls all the time. "Hey Dad, the light came on...." Eventually she gave up, didn't want to deal with a car, just left it at home.

Roland

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