$10,000 to Spend on a Used Car, Which One ?

[jackoroe]

Consumer Reports rated the Hyundai Elantra pretty highly. You can get a new one for close to 10K! Maybe you can catch a demo and save even more. They are making some fairly amazing cars that are an all around good value!

 

[1gayguy]

I have to go with CBTFan on his recomendation of a Smart Car. If you could swing a loan of say 3 or 4k and can wait 3 or 4 months for it to come in she could have a brand new car.
I'm torn between holding on to my car for another year when it's paid off or trading the sucker in for one now. I'm leaning towards keeping it now because my commute is so short (around a mile).

 

[paramedic_861]

I just bought a couple months ago a used 2004 Volkswagen Passat for 11,000. still had factory warranty left on it. Its gets 32 mpg has a turbo engine in it, side curtain airbags etc because my gas guzzler 07 ford expedition was killing me on gas as I drive 100 miles round trip to work. I love my passat. Its worth looking into.

 

[looseliam]

No VW! Cost of maintaining it can get rather high - trust me.

Toyota - hands down.

In my years in the industry, the camrys and corollas I've seen come in the shop need routine stuff - brakes, tyres, maintenance and the odd alternator or cv boot.

If I needed a reliable, economical, low cost of maintenance vehicle, a toyota corolla it would be.

And if she really wanted, extended warranties wouldn't be that much on a car like this.

 

[Ontariobear]

Civic or Corolla. Period.

 

[yellowminicooper]

The waiting list for a Smart is about a year.

 

[looseliam]

I'd not like to be in an accident in a smart car, that's for sure.

 

[Ontariobear]

You need to watch the crash test video for the car, you'd probably change your mind if you did.

 

[1gayguy]

But think of how embarassing it would be to cruise around the city in one of those things. if i were forced to drive one, I'd just take the LRT. Every time I see some douchebag driving around in their stupid little smart cars, I just feel like kicking their asses.

and compare the crash test of the smart car to an older, full-size Ford, GM, or Dodge.

If a Ford Galaxie got hit head-on with a smart car, the smart car would be a total write-off while the Galaxie would probabally just need a new bumper. SERIOUSLY!
and if a smart car hit a semi, i imagine it would be the equivilant to a butterfly hitting your car on the highway. You know, when you can still see the wings stuck to your rad?
I'm not saying that you'd survive hitting a semi on the highway in any vehicle.

First, who cares what other people think of the kind of vehicle a person drives.
Any car is not going to do well in a crash with a semi, even the old American Iron yoou speak of. In those cars you're more likely going to be injured or killed by some mis-engineered part of the interior.
As more and more people downsize from their big suv's and trucks, small car accident survivability improves.
As for Smart cars, they're engineered for maximum occupant protection in the case of an accident. Think along the lines of F-1 racer. Will it be totalled in a serious accident? Sure, but most modern small cars will be. It's how they are engineered for occupent protection. The vehicle absorbs the energy from the impact and less of it is transfered to the occupants, hence making it "safer", more survivable.
A few years back I was rear ended in my VW Golf by a full size Ford van that was cruising along at about 40 mph. Despite me not wearing a seatbelt, I got out and walked away. Sure the steering wheel was bent, the driver's seat frame was torqued, the only glass that broke was the back hatch window. The car was repaired and was literally as good as new.
Just goes to show that size really doesn't matter.

 

[S60Turbo]

Volvo
you can get some good deals on preowned from the dealership and they go and go and go.
They're known to be one of the safest cars in the world.
You can buy pats on line pretty cheap and get advice from places like www.Volvoforums.com