What 1:1 car should I buy

[kspitters]

What ever you get just don’t put big fart fan on it. Good luck with your decision.

I hate those!!! Ricers.

 

[gotnitro]

One of the most masculine men around here drives a subaru.

How long ago did she transition?

 

[#ARRMArcfanboy4life]

I hate those!!! Ricers.

Some RICE is better than others.

 

[djrahbee]

I do love Subarus.

I didn't even bother to read all the comments but saw you mention Subaru and that's what I was going to suggest. A sport version of an Impreza or Legacy and they even make a Sport Forester now. Toyota close second, Kia, Hyundai and then Honda, Nissan imo. I grew up around cars, my dad owns a 3rd generation repair shop my brother runs now. I've painted cars for a living for a while before, in other words I've worked on them since I was a kid, early 80's. Subaru and Toyota are the easiest to work on, Kia and Hyundai have come along way in the last 20 years. Honda and Nissan are good but I hated working on them. Just my opinion fwiw. Good luck! Gettin that first ride is AMAZING!!

 

[Bustedaw11]

Read into Hyundai and kia's oil consumption issues. They apparently find it acceptable to use 1qt of oil per oil change intervals. So in 3k miles its acceptable to use 25% of thier oil as a new car.... no thank you. That doesn't spell out quality or support to me.

 

[Johnny b]

Hate cars with a cvt personally. Good luck pulling a trailer for any length of time.

 

[Radiocontrolsoul]

Read into Hyundai and kia's oil consumption issues. They apparently find it acceptable to use 1qt of oil per oil change intervals. So in 3k miles its acceptable to use 25% of thier oil as a new car.... no thank you. That doesn't spell out quality or support to me.

Yup! I found that when my GF got her Hyundai Kona. She sold that junk

 

[Mr9Mojave]

Toyota's are good and VERY reliable.

I once owned a 95 Toyota Aristo 2JZGTE, i couldn't break it...well i blew the diff once after too many burnout's but that was all.

You want reliability, get from A to B is all you want, you have a good budget just don't buy anything that has been modified too much.

All the best with your search and post pics when you have it!

 

[wtfmfer]

I put 335 thousand miles on my Accord wagon. All the while beating the hell out of it driving around NYC.
I changed the oil and timing belts and she was super reliable. I miss her and I actually almost bought another one. Still might.

 

[Jamr]

I have had two Prius's in 23 years. The first one was 15 years old when I sold it and the second one is now 10 years and still runs great.
The only problem I have ever had with both of them is a broken water pump with the first one.
I have save countless gallons of gas as the first got 50 mpg and the second one gets currently gets 45 mpg.
Maintenance and repairs are just tires, filters and oil changes. Since the engine does not run some of the time I am driving the car, I can go over 10000 miles on a synthetic oil change.
If you are looking to save money and still do everything another car does, get a Prius.

 

[Mad Bogger]

get a jlb cheetah they are tough

 

[King blitz]

Yup! I found that when my GF got her Hyundai Kona. She sold that junk

I agree.those cars are bad news ..poor design bad engineering.unless you buy them new and as soon as they come around to 70k they start having problems.my shop gets Jamed up because of those garbage cars.oil pressure sensors start to go .then valve cover gaskets leak .problems start there and don't stop.fuel pumps give up at 50k.the sonata is probably the worse model we've seen.

 

[Warby]

+1 for a Toyota

 

[Tex Koder]

I turn 16 the first week of August. Looking for a car, the budget is like 7,500 or lower. What car do you think I should get? I like sedans, hatchbacks, and coupes. I love mini coopers, so I’ve been looking into those. I also like the Audi A4/s4, and the 3 or 5 series beamers. Living in michigan, awd is a high priority, but fwd can work.

First of all , Happy Early Birthday! (in case I forget to say it on that day.)

Secondly, I agree with @King blitz , @LibertyMKiii and all the guys above who are speaking from actual first-hand experience owning those cars.

I KNOW how "Blindingly Enthusiastic" it can be to Want to get your 1st car and have it be something Exciting!...
But please take this to heart and Be aware & Careful about >
. Getting what you Ask for..

Nothing wrong with wanting those cars-

Audi
BMW
Mini Coopers

Very Nice vehicles WHEN Brand New.. However they All have prescribed (basically Required)

Maintenance Schedules
(Look up their schedule maintenance by mileage)

-that must be done and in "groups"..
NOT just one or two parts 'when you need them or feel like doing the repair'..

Most folks don't realize it and would skip those parts replacementS because once they see the price of having to replace ALL those parts "on schedule" even when they think there's nothing "wrong at the time" so they end up ignoring those schedules...
Which Will cause even More expensive problems later.


Because even if you can "afford" to buy those cars -used- with your $7,500 budget...
You NEED to add on top of that another $10,000+ to cover all the needed repairs that the previous owner May have neglected..

Unless you get REALLY lucky and find one where the owner has done all the maintenance and documented with proof/receipts.

And a lot of times you'll need specialized tools just to (reach) work on even the simple things like sparkplugs, water pumps, coolant expansion tank to the motor and transmission..

All I'm saying is >>>
Be Careful of what you ask for.. with any of those German vehicles.

Just a courtesy heads up.

 

[LibertyMKiii]

The lesson I learned was that if you take a cheap car and try to do something sporty with it you will dump 10k into it before you know it and still not be happy with it.
Put that money aside and save up for a real sports car that can be separate from your daily driver.

 

[Johnny b]

Now that your thoroughly confused, I'm sure you wished you never asked. My only advice is don't let that car own you. Working just to make that payment gets old. Americans are obsessed with cars ( I was also ) my 222k mile liberty gets me around as well as any other 4 wheel depreciating rolling expense.

 

[LibertyMKiii]

Cars really can be your worst investment if you go out and spend a lot.
Buying used and buying the right car, can be the way to go if you do it right. If sports cars are your hobby then it is different, but if you can get away from the looks and pride.... its just transportation to and from places you need/want to go.

I hate the payment on my wife's SUV. It kills me every month, and knowing that in 10 years it will be worth 15% of the amount we are paying makes it sting a bit more.

 

[King blitz]

First of all , Happy Early Birthday! (in case I forget to say it on that day.)

Secondly, I agree with @King blitz , @LibertyMKiii and all the guys above who are speaking from actual first-hand experience owning those cars.

I KNOW how "Blindingly Enthusiastic" it can be to Want to get your 1st car and have it be something Exciting!...
But please take this to heart and Be aware & Careful about >
. Getting what you Ask for..

Nothing wrong with wanting those cars-

Audi
BMW
Mini Coopers

Very Nice vehicles WHEN Brand New.. However they All have prescribed (basically Required)

Maintenance Schedules
(Look up their schedule maintenance by mileage)

-that must be done and in "groups"..
NOT just one or two parts 'when you need them or feel like doing the repair'..

Most folks don't realize it and would skip those parts replacementS because once they see the price of having to replace ALL those parts "on schedule" even when they think there's nothing "wrong at the time" so they end up ignoring those schedules...
Which Will cause even More expensive problems later.


Because even if you can "afford" to buy those cars -used- with your $7,500 budget...
You NEED to add on top of that another $10,000+ to cover all the needed repairs that the previous owner May have neglected..

Unless you get REALLY lucky and find one where the owner has done all the maintenance and documented with proof/receipts.

And a lot of times you'll need specialized tools just to (reach) work on even the simple things like sparkplugs, water pumps, coolant expansion tank to the motor and transmission..

All I'm saying is >>>
Be Careful of what you ask for.. with any of those German vehicles.

Just a courtesy heads up.

Awesome advice.and everything that is mentioned is 100 percent correct..I've owned 3 Toyota Corollas in my time and my wife still has hers.its a 07 with 62k on it runs beautiful .parts are allways available and so cheap.and it's so easy to work on.you don't have to spend a hour removing plastic covers just to get to a simple part in the bay.you can't go wrong.this is why I suggested the Corolla s .it's sporty and so many things you can do to soop them up..body kits and performance parts if that's your thing..a car that will easy get you everyday to where ever you want . reliable and affordable..and they hold there value..a Corolla with 200 k or more still sells at a good price ..

 

[KnowAir]

Cars really can be your worst investment if you go out and spend a lot.
Buying used and buying the right car, can be the way to go if you do it right. If sports cars are your hobby then it is different, but if you can get away from the looks and pride.... its just transportation to and from places you need/want to go.

I hate the payment on my wife's SUV. It kills me every month, and knowing that in 10 years it will be worth 15% of the amount we are paying makes it sting a bit more.

So true.. I've bought one new vehicle in my lifetime, more due to financial restrictions than anything else but, knowing what a 3 year old car is worth vs what was paid new.. nah. Never again for me.
I just replaced the exhaust from the cat back on my 06 xB..aka "The Toaster" I feel like a new man!! been driving it for a few months with a broken mid pipe.. sure, I "soup canned" it..but it just kept springing new holes in other spots, LOL. It's embarrassing to drive something so obnoxious.. ☹..now I'm "quiet and proud"

Awesome advice.and everything that is mentioned is 100 percent correct..I've owned 3 Toyota Corollas in my time and my wife still has hers.its a 07 with 62k on it runs beautiful .parts are allways available and so cheap.and it's so easy to work on.you don't have to spend a hour removing plastic covers just to get to a simple part in the bay.you can't go wrong.this is why I suggested the Corolla s .it's sporty and so many things you can do to soop them up..body kits and performance parts if that's your thing..a car that will easy get you everyday to where ever you want . reliable and affordable..and they hold there value..a Corolla with 200 k or more still sells at a good price ..

Agreed.. hard to convince a teenager that but, @kspitters seems pretty mature for his age.
After we bought our house 10 years ago, I picked up a rather neutered looking mint green tercel 2 door. 4 speed standard (no OD) with 125k miles for $1500. Butterfly seat covers and all.. my wife said wtf!? You paid $1500 for that!? Yep Ain't she a beaut? Ughh.. she weren't convinced, LOL. Guess what? 10 years, 60k later, we were sad to let the old girl go!! Livin in the rust belt will do that, unfortunately.. was a helluva run for $1500!!
One of my favorite cars, I gotta say. $30 for 2 weeks of commuting is pretty sweet!! So, now I got a "toaster" 1st gen xB.. same made in Japan quality, runs like a top with 160k on it. A lil more "aero challenged" than the Tercel though..

 

[kspitters]

So true.. I've bought one new vehicle in my lifetime, more due to financial restrictions than anything else but, knowing what a 3 year old car is worth vs what was paid new.. nah. Never again for me.
I just replaced the exhaust from the cat back on my 06 xB..aka "The Toaster" I feel like a new man!! been driving it for a few months with a broken mid pipe.. sure, I "soup canned" it..but it just kept springing new holes in other spots, LOL. It's embarrassing to drive something so obnoxious.. ☹..now I'm "quiet and proud"

Agreed.. hard to convince a teenager that but, @kspitters seems pretty mature for his age.
After we bought our house 10 years ago, I picked up a rather neutered looking mint green tercel 2 door. 4 speed standard (no OD) with 125k miles for $1500. Butterfly seat covers and all.. my wife said wtf!? You paid $1500 for that!? Yep Ain't she a beaut? Ughh.. she weren't convinced, LOL. Guess what? 10 years, 60k later, we were sad to let the old girl go!! Livin in the rust belt will do that, unfortunately.. was a helluva run for $1500!!
One of my favorite cars, I gotta say. $30 for 2 weeks of commuting is pretty sweet!! So, now I got a "toaster" 1st gen xB.. same made in Japan quality, runs like a top with 160k on it. A lil more "aero challenged" than the Tercel though..

Thanks man!
Good advice around, thank you all for commenting!



@Tex Koder i agree with a lot of that.

@LibertyMKiii yes, cars are more than just transportation to me! Def a hobby. I clean my sisters cars for them because I don’t like how dirty they are… but my rooms an absolute mess