Advice on buying a used car in SD?? (San Diego: car rental, rental)

[emcake]

I am moving to San Diego from Denmark, planning to stay here for at least a year. I would like to hear if there are any of you who know a good retailer around San Diego to buy a cheap used car? My budget is around 1000$, and I’m not interested in an old muscle car or anything, just a reliable car that can get me from A to B and can cope with going some distance (e.g. Las Vegas and back). Any help?

[Timmyy]

You would be lucky to get a Yugo for that price and it won't be running.

[jwblue]

I would try craigslist.com

[whiteboyslo]

You'll definitely want to use craigslist, and you'll definitely have to be diligent and move fast. Cars that cheap that run OK find their way across the border really fast.

Mike

[Oerdin]

I bought my first car for $1000 (an 18 year old 1974 VW Beatle) but that was in 1992. I imagine prices have gone up in the last 19 years, in fact I know they have, not least because the specs of a 1995 car are so much higher then the spec on a 1974 car. Add in the fact that the cash for clunkers program encouraged people to junk most of those older low cost cars and that the earthquake in Japan has cut production of new cars all around the world and the end result is car prices, new and used, are now at record highs. Save up at least twice that amount and you might find something worth buying.

That's not just San Diego either but the whole country which is experience high used car prices.

[emcake]

Thank you for your responses, Maybe I'll have to look into long time car rental instead..