What 1:1 car should I buy

[kspitters]

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.

 

[jamesbea]

The ones you are looking can be very expensive to fix. At your price point, the Audis/BMWs are either going to need some work or will in the future. How about a WRX or EVO? Those would handle your weather, have the potential to be fun, & won't break the bank.

 

[King blitz]

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.

At your age I would stay away from anything that's going to cost a fortune to fix.Audi is a expensive vehicle to repair ..Same for B.M.W ..same for the mini Cooper .all vehicles not made from the u.s. so parts and labor will cost you a arm and maybey one leg and a arrma to ..it's your money but if I were you and I was on a budget I would consider a Toyota or a Honda.. awesome reliable and great on gas and cheap to repair compared to some other brands..if you want something sporty that's not going to jack up your insurance rates is the Corolla s. And Honda has the civic which is also sporty .ik at your age insurance rates are high as fk and you'll be in the risk pool untill your 25 .my youngest just turned 18 last October and for full coverage and under my policy I'm still paying 325 a month from progressive..when I was your age my parents made me get my own insurance and it wasn't easy to pay for it with a mc Donald's job part time while going to school..it's your call at the end of the day ..is it worth driving if all your working for is to afford car insurance and car repairs?? If you could I'd say wait untill you get a few years older and you have a good chunk saved up ..that's what I did with my youngest son..good luck bud..

 

[kspitters]

The ones you are looking can be very expensive to fix. At your price point, the Audis/BMWs are either going to need some work or will in the future. How about a WRX or EVO? Those would handle your weather, have the potential to be fun, & won't break the bank.

EVOs are tough to get, and WRXs in that price range are so hard to find semi clean. I’m trying to stay in a cleaner car. Good ideas, and I do love Subarus. Legacy 3.6 Rs are sweet, but rare. I’ll keep my eyes open, thanks!

 

[King blitz]

The ones you are looking can be very expensive to fix. At your price point, the Audis/BMWs are either going to need some work or will in the future. How about a WRX or EVO? Those would handle your weather, have the potential to be fun, & won't break the bank.

Subaru WRX will break the bank .
It's a sports car and insurance will love that..all his poor money will be stolen from insurance ..and those motors are known for high cost repair especially when the timing belt goes ..it's a interference motor ..when that belt Snappe's say good bye the top half of that motor..ik this because I worked on these and replaced a few belts .not cheap.

 

[kspitters]

At your age I would stay away from anything that's going to cost a fortune to fix.Audi is a expensive vehicle to repair ..Same for B.M.W ..same for the mini Cooper .all vehicles not made from the u.s. so parts and labor will cost you a arm and maybey one leg and a arrma to ..it's your money but if I were you and I was on a budget I would consider a Toyota or a Honda.. awesome reliable and great on gas and cheap to repair compared to some other brands..if you want something sporty that's not going to jack up your insurance rates is the Corolla s. And Honda has the civic which is also sporty .ik at your age insurance rates are high as fk and you'll be in the risk pool untill your 25 .my youngest just turned 18 last October and for full coverage and under my policy I'm still paying 325 a month from progressive..when I was your age my parents made me get my own insurance and it wasn't easy to pay for it with a mc Donald's job part time while going to school..it's your call at the end of the day ..is it worth driving if all your working for is to afford car insurance and car repairs?? If you could I'd say wait untill you get a few years older and you have a good chunk saved up ..that's what I did with my youngest son..good luck bud..

Not all of them are that unreliable, especially if you can find one that’s been maintained well. Insurance is stupid, I agree it’s crazy high. I work year round, and in the summer I’m at a marina 40-45 hours a week.

Subaru WRX will break the bank .
It's a sports car and insurance will love that..all his poor money will be stolen from insurance ..and those motors are known for high cost repair especially when the timing belt goes ..it's a interference motor ..when that belt Snappe's say good bye the top half of that motor..ik this because I worked on these and replaced a few belts .not cheap.

My family has owned 6 Subarus. If you keep up and don’t treat your car like crap, it doesn’t run like crap. Usually
If you take care of the timing belt before it takes care of the rest of your engine, you’re much better off. Keep oil changes steady, and stay up on it, you can even prevent a head gasket from going.

 

[King blitz]

Not all of them are that unreliable, especially if you can find one that’s been maintained well. Insurance is stupid, I agree it’s crazy high. I work year round, and in the summer I’m at a marina 40-45 hours a week.

My family has owned 6 Subarus. If you keep up and don’t treat your car like crap, it doesn’t run like crap. Usually
If you take care of the timing belt before it takes care of the rest of your engine, you’re much better off. Keep oil changes steady, and stay up on it, you can even prevent a head gasket from going.

Yeah I get that but insurance at your age if you were to get it under your name is rediculous.will your parents add you to there policy and take a risk ?

 

[kspitters]

Yeah I get that but insurance at your age if you were to get it under your name is rediculous.will your parents add you to there policy and take a risk ?

Yes, under their name till I’m married or move out. They don’t see it as too much of a risk. They both trust me fully driving, i tow our 21 foot surf boat, and back it into the garage. This garage has 6inches on each side of the boat, and the garage is angled. I’ve been driving since I was super young. It’ll be on PLPD, and I’m not trying to buy two cars, hence them not seeing it as a risk. Just trying to explain my situation a bit.

 

[Radiocontrolsoul]

Honda

 

[ArrmaFreek2022]

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.

What is your favorite car or cars? For example when I was your age I loved the 3000gt and stealths, have had 4 of them now lol.

 

[King blitz]

Yes, under their name till I’m married or move out. They don’t see it as too much of a risk. They both trust me fully driving, i tow our 21 foot surf boat, and back it into the garage. This garage has 6inches on each side of the boat, and the garage is angled. I’ve been driving since I was super young. It’ll be on PLPD, and I’m not trying to buy two cars, hence them not seeing it as a risk. Just trying to explain my situation a bit.

It's not you that's the concern.im sure your responsible.its the others that you need to worry about.people drive like fkin idiots.just be careful.youll be ok bud
And reamember..get something with at least 30 mpg.gas will never drop below $3.00 again.in fact due to our wack ass administration gas prices will continue to rise because the left wants us all to go electric sooner than later.also in a few years emissions will be harder to pass when Congress passes new state emissions.we will all be forced to buy some garbage ass electric junk.

 

[EJunlimited]

Look for a used CRV. AWD and reliable.

 

[LibertyMKiii]

Honda CRV with awd would be a solid option.
The Pilot is available in awd also. My 06' pilot has 245k on it and would reliably drive across the country right now.

Subaru impreza, forester, legacy are decent. In my opinion, the motors are crap with their head gasket issues, and crap power output for the displacement. (also not-so-great economy for being a small 4 cylinder)

 

[King blitz]

How about a nice Toyota SR5 Tacoma pick up truck so you put all your Arrmas in the back

 

[LibertyMKiii]

How about a nice Toyota SR5 Tacoma pick up truck so you put all your Arrmas in the back

Maybe just because I am in Texas which is a truck state, but you cannot touch those for under 10k (out of his budget)

 

[King blitz]

Maybe just because I am in Texas which is a truck state, but you cannot touch those for under 10k (out of his budget)

Agree .Toyota holds it's value.i worked in dealership s and body shops all my life up untill the last 9 years where now I work for the government NAVY.and Toyotas are not cheap but....if you look good enough you'll find great deals ..just takes patience.it will come down to milage..he might find a older model that's in great shape and under 7k.but milage will be well over 100 k
If he was here in Rhode island I'd get him one real nice . government auction.with warranty

 

[CrashBoom]

For a first car I'd focus on something reliable like a Honda or Toyota. Some of the cars you mentioned are expensive to maintain and insure, and at that price point you'd be rolling the dice. I would highly recommend having a mechanic evaluate any used car you want to purchase unless you have the knowledge to do it yourself.

 

[Hector_Fisher]

Your delving into an interesting topic. Lots of people with lots of opinions.

It looks like you want something somewhat sporty (natural for a 16 year old). Whenever making a purchase and trying to figure out how much I want to spend or trying to figure out how nice of a thing i can buy, i consider that a car can never be ALL of the following things:
-Fast/high-end
-Cheap
-Reliable

Usually you can find something that fits atleast two of those categories, so you'll have to sacrifice on the other remaining one.

For examples:
-I bought my 2000 Subaru Impreza RS for super cheap in 2008, and it was relatively repair free for almost 15 years. But it wasn't really that fast.
-A buddy of mine bought a Pontiac GTP. It was fast and cheap. But it wasn't very reliable.
-Another buddy of mine bought a MazdaSpeed 3. Pretty reliable, and very fast. But boy it wasn't cheap.

Which area are you willing to sacrifice in?

 

[oldguywnewtoy]

Another vote for a Toyota Corolla. In it's day, they were voted one of the most reliable cars to own and maintain. And if you can find one that was owned by an old lady who only drove to church and the grocery store, better yet

 

[KnowAir]

Toyota/Scion are my vote.. congrats by the way. I hardly remember the first car feeling, but I know it was great!!