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I do agree that the newer Toyota's don't seem as good as the older ones.

This discussion isn't getting us anywhere. His belief in Toyota's reliability has little to do with making objective purchase suggestions.

That it doesn't, but newer Toyota's reliability does, since you said it has to be reliable. I still go by the first 2 recommendations I gave.

Either a facelift Focus, or a Mazda 3 of the same age.

You can probably get a better deal on the Focus.

The Focus is nice, though I'm not too sure about the rear leg room.

I've edited one of my previous posts to include another option: my uncle's 2nd gen Plymouth Voyager. He's giving it away for free, though my mom would rather stay away from it because we haven't had much luck with our newer Plymouth Grand Voyager.

Another option is my cousin's 1995 Nissan 200sx Coupe. Unfortunately, it has three things against it in my dad's eyes:

1) It's a Nissan
2) It's modded (engine swap, racing clutch, stiffer springs, air filter, brakes, etc.)
3) It's a coupe

For a project car, it would be nice. He easily put $10k+ into it, but lost interest in it a few years back. His mom wants it out of her garage and has offered to give it to me several times in the past year. Recently passed inspection, though I don't know if it was legit or not (probably not).

Then, there's my other cousin's Suzuki motorcycle. The problem is that it's a motorcycle, which my parents forbid me to ride and it isn't that practical. For free as well.

I love my extended family.

This post has been edited by Kiroshino on Jun 24 2010, 08:37 AM

Damn Kiro, your family is awesome. Get the Nissan, any minivan newer than 95 is trouble. Also, Dodge Magnum Wagon with the high output 3.5l v6 can probably be had for <10 grand. That's my recommendation if your folks are too mean to let you get the Nissan.

I've asked both of my parents about the Nissan. Both have said they're okay with it, if just temporarily. Just want to talk it over a little more before giving my aunt a call and working it out with her.

It's a B14, meaning it's a FF. When I was in my "I have to learn how to drift" mode, I told my cousin that I wasn't interested in it. Now that I know it could be used for other events like autoX, I'm a bit more open to the idea.

Probably won't be a comfortable DD, but at least it'll be fun.

Edit:

Picked it up this afternoon. Will start a thread soon!

This post has been edited by Kiroshino on Jun 26 2010, 12:05 PM

I'm seriously considering selling my Cressida to get a Volvo 850 (likely non-turbo) by the end of the summer. Can anyone chime in on the 850's reliability, economy, driviability, etc.?

This post has been edited by Hachi_Roku on Jun 28 2010, 12:41 PM

So my brother just bought a new G37...

I was planning to take his '96 Protege as a hand-me-down once he got a new car, but it's been very problematic according to what he tells me (needs a new belt, new brakes, tires, rattling problems, leaking, etc.) and I really don't want to have to drive it all the way from Burbank (where he lives) back to the Bay Area and risk having it break down on the way, nor do I want to invest the money to get it all fixed up.

So now I'm basically looking around again for something I can pick up cheap, under $6K in the LA/Long Beach/OC area (heading there this weekend). So far my top candidates are Sentras, Lancers, and Jettas, all around '03-'06. Anyone have any experience with these cars and care to chime in, or suggest something else?

I was looking to get a last-gen (7th?) Celica, but with the funds I have right now I don't think I'd be able to get one. I'd have to extend my budget by at least another $1-2K.

i might have to change my car soon but im not sure when the intermittent problem will be there for good. its a 2003 chevrolet venture free from my parents. there are 3 minor electric problems i can ignore totally. the shocks/suspension are all original and half dead from age. i doubt i can get 1,500-2k for selling it.

i did recently experience a possible pcm problem that had the lights fail on the fuel guage,speedometer and ECT guage. all other dash lights were perfectly fine. i just had to manually turn the lights on and the problem seemed to go away. i dont think its worth bothering to tear apart the whole front dash only to find it might be some fault in the pcm. i dont plan to spend very much to repair the vehicle aside from regular maintenance ie oil, brakes etc and some small repairs.

ive been looking at possible replacements for the venture. some were the hyundai accent, ford focus sedan 4dr (2008-2010), ford fiesta hatchback or nissan versa hatchback.
i ruled out the accent quickly after reading some reviews. atm im leaning more towards the focus or versa. ive read mixed reviews of the focus, especially with the 2000-2007. how does the versa compare to a ford focus in terms of reliability? also how does the +2008 ford focus compare to the previous generation?

This post has been edited by 207 on Jun 30 2010, 09:18 PM

Well 207, my sister owns on 2005 Ford Focus hatch and so far it's done pretty well for her. I don't know how it compares to the Versa, I have no experience with those but I've read good things about them.
Since your looking at sub-compacts also, I think the Ford Fiesta might be the best car on your list.

The Focus had teething problems in the early years, but are pretty good later on ( 2002+ or so ). I would be looking at a 2005+, since they went from the Zetec to the Duratec at that time.

That being said, 2005+ unless you are looking for an SVT.

thanks rallikiai. ive considered a fiesta hatch also but im not sure how much a fiesta will cost me. i like all 3 cars but if the fiesta hatch is too high then id rather go with the other 2 cars. i got a quote for a 2010 versa hatch SL at 20.600 cash at a dealer. ive yet to check a ford dealer for a quote but i'll do so when i get the chance to drop by a dealership. the fiesta seems a bit more expensive than the focus atm but ill see what it wil go for when i go to a dealer.

thanks apex carver, its good to hear they got the teething problems sorted out. im looking at a 2010 focus.

i came by this site just recently, http://www.carcomplaints.com/ its useful but i take it only with a grain of sand. the focus apperently still has some tire wear issues from the site compaints. not sure how much i can belive these complaints just yet. though its right on for some of my problems with the 2003 venture ie engine tapping, coolant consumption, power sliding doors. atm the car hasnt lost the dashlights again but i have the code reader in the car for the time it might reappear.

This post has been edited by 207 on Jul 4 2010, 04:43 PM

Well I'm looking to possibly be in the market for a new car soon depending on how my situation changes in the near future. I came upon an ad by a car dealer for a clean looking 2007 Mazdaspeed 3 with almost 43k on it and priced in the 15k range. I was intrigued at first but that price has me a tad wary. Does this look like something worth considering or a case of "too good to be true"?
I might go to the dealership later in the week to look if I find the time. It's a bit of a ways though.

This post has been edited by RalliKai on Jul 6 2010, 01:17 PM

^ Get a carfax of it.

Also, Mazda is going to introduce a Certified Pre-Owned Vehicle program in the coming months. If you're not in a hurry, it may be worth it to wait for that to be in full swing so you can benefit from it.

Used "performance" car, tread carefully is all I can say.

It's a bit under suggested retail value ($19k) for an 07 with 43k on the clock. I'd get it looked at before thinking about it any further. 3s don't tend to screw up badly as the motor is pretty well built, but you never know. Check maintenance history, possible damage, if it's on a salvage title, etc.

Better yet, send me the VIN if you have it and I can get you the carfax report for it for $FREE.

I wouldn't call almost a quarter off the suggested retail a "bit under".

It's a Mazdaspeed 3, that's why I would be wary. Carfax only shows anything that was claimed, so it's only a start. You can find cars with major damage but a clean carfax, as long as there was no report on the accident and no claim on the insurance. It also won't help if there are mechanical issues.

Maintenance history helps but again doesn't tell the whole story.

Well, there's always the glimmer of a chance that the owner just doesn't know the worth of the car. It happens sometimes.

Whatever information you get, there's always going to be a risk. I made a stupid decision a few years back and bought a car without looking at its history, and got hosed badly for it. Keep your wits about you. If something seems wrong, just walk away from the car and find something better.

I certainly understand the points being made here and really appreciate the advice. It wasn't a private seller but an actual Mazda dealership that is trying to sell it. Again, if I have the time to actually look at it later on, I will check it out. It's odd seeing such a deal when I see regular 2007-2008 Mazda 3s for around the same price.

Here is the actual ad off of autotrader.

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.jsp?ct=u...&loggedOut=true

This post has been edited by RalliKai on Jul 7 2010, 06:33 AM

Other than the ad claiming the MS3 to have a "locking REAR differential," it seems in order. Maybe they've had the car on their lot for much longer than they wanted it to be there, so they're just getting rid of it. I've worked at a dealership before, and people tend to get really bad trade-in values, so this might be selling at a minimal, if any, loss.

If you get it, let us know! (And I can get some insurance quotes for you too haha)

The carfax report shows it's a one-owner vehicle with no claimed issues. If you'd like the full report, please PM me and I can send it your way.

I was wondering who Tyrael was...

Someone's who been playing a little too much Diablo II lately.

That and there is some massive D3 news about to hit the public very soon, and he's involved.

I've got a question for all the car-buying vets out there.

I'm going to be buying a car soon and I want to get educated about price negotiations. I know everyone out there looks up the KBB value of their car and sets their price accordingly, but how accurate is it really, and how strictly should one adhere to it, whether from a buyers' or a sellers' perspective?

KBB value can be pretty tricky from what I've seen, depending on the type of seller that person is. There's guys who will post the KBB values for each condition rating in his advertisement and set their price right around what it should be, whereas some will set theirs a bit higher (claiming the car is in "Perfect/Pristine condition") and others will set theirs much lower (saying that it's "Priced to sell"). I'm also wondering what's a better appraisal tool: KBB or Edmunds' TMV; while not as widely used, I've always trusted Edmunds and it's one of the first websites I'll go to when looking up used car info (or is Edmunds actually a cesspool and I'm going about it totally wrong?)

Another thing that I'm having a bit of trouble with regarding the KBB value is how much slack I can give it in order to calculate the best possible price. One of the cars I'm looking at right now is an '01 Civic EX Coupe coming in at about 100K miles. I checked it out the other night and as far as the engine and interior goes, it's in immaculate condition; the engine especially, everything mechanical has been very meticulously maintained and it seems almost flawless. The exterior, not so much. There are a few dime-sized door dings, which I don't mind, but there's also some parking rub on the left of the rear bumper, which will probably cost $200-300 to get repainted (how much does it cost to get a quality repaint of an entire car?). This is the part where I start cranking out numbers in my mind. "How do I price this thing?" is my question. KBB says ~4900 for fair, ~5600 for good and in the lower 6000s for excellent. I can get it for 4800, which brings up two questions in my mind: From a buyers' standpoint, is this a good price? What is the general consensus of how much less than KBB value counts as a "good" buy? And from a sellers' standpoint, how much is it REALLY worth if I were to be put in the sellers' shoes and try to be the one selling it? Most sellers out there treat KBB as if it were the Bible; is it better to see it more as a general guidebook, subject to personal interpretation?

lolwallsoftext. I appreciate anyone with enough patience to bear with me. I'm a lot younger than most of you guys (hell, some of you guys could probably be my dad), and I just want to educate myself as best I can before I buy my very first car (my dad's very first car was a '75 Pinto; he had to pour a quart of oil in it on a weekly basis and the engine was prone to producing more smoke than our BBQ could )

Simple answer: Don't play around with blue book values or any other going value. What is the car worth to you? Would you pay asking price for that particular vehicle? Would you pay blue book? Less, more? You have to thoroughly look the car over and make a decision on how much you'd be willing to pay for it. Then you may have to compromise if you really like it.