Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

[eDotd]

What are some good/cheap cars for first time buyers? I'm just looking for something that works and is durable. Not that I'll be crash testing it or anything but the more repairs and visits to the auto shop I can avoid, the better. People have suggested Honda Civics or Toyota Camry/Corrolas. Are those ok? Again I could care less about glam, speed, sexiness, and all that good stuff, as long as it gets me from point A to point B then I'm good. What were some of you guys' first cars?

[Scott]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

My first car was an 89 Pontiac Grand Am, but later upgraded to a 2003 GMC Sonoma. Toyota Corolla's are great cars and get great gas mileage.

[eXperiment63]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

Gas Mileage should be very very high on your list. The price of gas is not gonna go back down, it is going to keep climbing.

[mjb2124]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

My first car was a 2001 Nissan Maxima. Great car that had no problems after 75,000 miles - I just traded it in a month ago. The only issue I ever had was when I was in an accident where a lady ran a stop sign and t-boned me....only had 5000 miles on it when it happened and caused about 15K worth of damage ). Remarkably, it went another 70,000 miles after the accident.

Toyota's and Honda's are often very good cars and reliable. A Camry or Accord might be what you're looking for. If those are more than you want to spend a Civic or Corolla might be what you want.

If gas mileage is a concern, make sure to take that into affect.

[eDotd]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

Anybody drive a Yaris?

[joshuar9476]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

honda fit recently got the best value per gas mileage or something like that. you might want to check it out. here's the wiki link. lots of awards toward the bottom.

[mgoblue]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

honda fit recently got the best value per gas mileage or something like that. you might want to check it out. here's the wiki link. lots of awards toward the bottom.

My parents have a Fit and like it...my Mom uses it for her commute to work, helps with gas since it's so expensive. My Dad's 6'4 and is comfortable driving it as well (this can be an issue with some cars, if they're too tiny/compact)...

[TheGamingChef]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

Anybody drive a Yaris?

Great, great car. Only downside is that is can possibly get a little cramped in there. But there definitely is a LOT of space in that car for how big it is.

If you're not looking to put that much money down, the Toyota Echo is the exact same car as the Yaris, before they changed the name. If you can find an Echo at a good price, it's a steal.

[Unoriginal Name]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

I'd opt for a Toyota. I have a 1996 Corolla with 130k miles on it. I still get over 30mpg to it. No way am I giving up that car. I'll drive it in to the ground before I buy something else.

[jpup]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

Nissan or Honda are your best bets. The Ford Focus is a really good option as well.

[ehh]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

I think you already hit the nail on the head with the title of this thread, buying instead of leasing. Very smart move.

As for a car, Honda's and Toyota's are your best bet for durability. The wifey constantly gives me crap for my '05 Altima, despite the fact that I have had zero problems through the first 60k miles.

Whatever you do, stay away from domestic cars.

[eDotd]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

Thanks for all the suggestions. I probably won't be getting one for a couple of months but now I know what to look for.

[TheGamingChef]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

Whatever you do, stay away from domestic cars.

Domestic cars get a bad rap for their years of futility, but as of late, domestic cars perform as well as foreign cars in reliability. The Ford Focus is a great example.

It's much easier to get inexpensive parts for a domestic car if you do happen to have problems as well.

Let's just put it this way: Most domestic cars are allright, some are even excellent. But the vast majority of Toyotas and Hondas are crazy good.

[RockinDaMike]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

My uncle still has his 84 toyota celica running with the OG engine. Its been through a couple tranny's but man, I can't say enough how durable a toyota is.

I have a ton of friends with toyotas that are over 150k and are running extremely strong even after 200k. Me and my brother are looking into getting a 95 Supra soon, he recently got a 2003 is300 wagon and that's pretty sweet and he's hoping to have that for a long time.


I've been a honda guy almost my whole young life and they are great as well, but they are not as reliable as a camry corolla or even a celica IMO. I'm really close to get a beater toyota just so i don't have to drive my sti all the time and get blasted by the gas prices.

[Zer0xray]

Re: Car suggestions for a first time buyer?

i wish toyota had more coupes...corolla coupe would be sweet!