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A Jeep Wrangler is a terrible choice. Poor fuel economy and relatively poor safety ratings in older models. Unless you NEED offroad capability (which is very good of course) there is no reason put up with the harsh ride, noise, lack of refinement, and poor fit and finish of a Jeep.
The Nissan Altima is a good car but the older ones are not as good as newer ones. The current Altima is rated above the Accord by CR.
Note too that very few older Altimas have ABS if that is important to you.
A Civic is an excellent choice but they are still expensive used (for good reason). Other good "cheap" used cars are the Mazda Protege or Ford Focus. They don't have the refinement of the Civic, but they are solid economical cars with a lower price.
Early Volvo S40s had terrible reliability but are better now. A $5K s40 would be older and one to avoid.
Agree mostly with what's said here, except the part about older Nissan Altimas being worse. The Altima body/platform that ended in 2001 or 02 had some of the best JD Power ratings in its class:
Wow, thank you all so much for your help!!! Really appreciate the info.
I am happy to say I was able to find a 2000 Honda Civic Lx. It has 133k miles & is in very good shape. It needed new tires, an alinement, which I have done. I got it's oil changed & now is there any other maintenance I should do before hitting the road??
Wow, thank you all so much for your help!!! Really appreciate the info.
I am happy to say I was able to find a 2000 Honda Civic Lx. It has 133k miles & is in very good shape. It needed new tires, an alinement, which I have done. I got it's oil changed & now is there any other maintenance I should do before hitting the road??
Has the timing belt been changed? It should have been done between 90-105k, depending upon driving conditions.
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All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.
~William Shakespeare (As You Like It Act II, Scene VII)
I am in need of any feedback anyone can give me!
I have been on the hunt for a used car. I want something i can count on as well as something that gives me good gas mileage.
-I love the honda civic which is my #1 choice. They have a wonderful rep & get great gas mileage, however they are harder to come by. That is a newer year (2001-2005) for under $5,000 (any thoughts on 2000,2001 or 2002 being better?)
-I love the looks of the Nissan Altima (2001? & up). They see to be more resonable. Nissans seem to have a good rep as well, but I have read many negitive things about trouble people are having with these cars. The cat. converter, exccessive oil loss... is this true? Also, do they get very good gas mileage? & are they like the honda going well over 100k miles?
-Another car we are looking at is a Volvo s40. I know my parents always loved volvos for their safety! From what I have read, the newer models (2001 & up) are not like the older faithful volvos. Having more problems. You can get more for your money buying this car, but is it worth it? Any feed back with what gas mileage they get? Do they endure high miles?
Thank you SO MUCH for any feed back anyone can give! With this economy, I need what money I have saved for this to be put in the best place!
*Any other cars you might recommend would be appreciated as well!
Since your are doing your homework prior do shopping on the dealers lot (a VERY good thing to do BTW) here are some links to help you........
I have a 1994 Crown Vic LX that came to my attention as a very reliable used car and I now have 7,000.00 plus invested in last 2 yrs and it only has around 115,000 miles on it and can be yours for only 750.00 as a parts car.
Plenty of leg room.
Oh and it is not running again and is parked in backyard and becoming an eyesore waiting for the next sucker who believes this is the best route to go. rotflmao!!
I just bought my wife a '01 Nissan Sentra with 97K for $3,000. We just took it on a 1500 mile trip to try it out, and it is as perfect as you can expect a ten year old car to be. I think there should be ten more years left in it. Got 35 mpg (5 on the floor, no freeways), dipstick still at flush full and clean yellow. Brakes and steering right on. body and ride tight. I don't see how you can get more car for the money.
I just bought my wife a '01 Nissan Sentra with 97K for $3,000. We just took it on a 1500 mile trip to try it out, and it is as perfect as you can expect a ten year old car to be. I think there should be ten more years left in it. Got 35 mpg (5 on the floor, no freeways), dipstick still at flush full and clean yellow. Brakes and steering right on. body and ride tight. I don't see how you can get more car for the money.
I purchased a '93 Caprice for $800 as a winter beater. Bought it with 98k on the clock and gave it to a family member with 160k. The two things that failed on the vehicle was a starter (replaced for $20) and a pinhole leak in the heater core ($30). It still runs perfectly but years of not washing the vehicle has rusted her into oblivion.
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