Where to buy a cheap Toyota, Honda or similar (Austin: home, buying)

[nickasarbata]

Hey guys!

My partner and I just arrived in Austin, and one of our first priorities is to get a car for him. He's been in NYC all his adult life and so is now in the market for his first car ever!

We wanted to try to find an older Camry, Corolla or maybe an Accord (or something similar) for under $2k. It doesn't need to be beautiful, he just wants a basic first car he can get around in.

Where should we look? I looked on Craigslist but there were only one or two cars listed. Are there any used car dealerships that sell cars in this price range? Also, we're new to the Texas vehicle inspections, is there anything we should be aware of when buying a car in this price range with regard to passing inspection?

Thanks for the tips!

[neddy]

You are going to have to pass an emissions test so I would watch for that.If you do find a car see if you can take it to a garage to have someone look at it. I am not sure where you are so I can say where but when we moved up here we went to Christian Brothers auto and it was a little pricey but they have always been honest with us and told us what can be done at home vs a pro needs to do it. Go luck and I hope the drive down was alright!

[sinking]

Are you sure you had Craigslist set to Austin? There should be a ton of cars for you to look through. CL is my first place to look for something like that. Stay away from a dealer for a $2k car because you will be able to negotiate better with a private party.

At $2k the car will likely be older than 1996 meaning it will be OBD1 so you will NOT have to pass emissions. The inspection will check for adequate tires (legal limit is 2/32" of tread), all the lights work, parking brake works (pull the parking brake up all the way, put the car in drive, and LIGHTLY hit the accelerator. The car should stand still.) gas cap, wiper blades, horn.

Check for abnormal tire wear. If the inside or outside edge is worn much greater than the opposite you can count on ball joints or at least an alignment. I can tell you how to check but you'll need a jack.

If you have any other questions feel free to ask. I have an unhealthy obsession with cars and enjoy educating.

[blakely]

Ditto about the Craig's List comment above. I would think you'd have a LOT more offerings in Austin on Craig's List. Might want to double-check.

There is also AutoTrader.com. Lots of dealers sell there, but so do individuals.

[Don in Austin]

Originally Posted by sinking

Are you sure you had Craigslist set to Austin? There should be a ton of cars for you to look through. CL is my first place to look for something like that. Stay away from a dealer for a $2k car because you will be able to negotiate better with a private party.

At $2k the car will likely be older than 1996 meaning it will be OBD1 so you will NOT have to pass emissions.

You most certainly WILL in Travis County. The test is called "two-speed idle test." It will be done through tailpipe analysis instead of by tapping into the OBDII system. Texas Emissions Testing - Associated Content from Yahoo! - associatedcontent.com

Has to be a diesel or 25 years old not to be emissions tested in Travis County.

At my repair shop we routinely do repairs to get pre-OBDII vehicles up to emissions standards.

Originally Posted by sinking

The inspection will check for adequate tires (legal limit is 2/32" of tread), all the lights work, parking brake works (pull the parking brake up all the way, put the car in drive, and LIGHTLY hit the accelerator. The car should stand still.) gas cap, wiper blades, horn.

Check for abnormal tire wear. If the inside or outside edge is worn much greater than the opposite you can count on ball joints or at least an alignment. I can tell you how to check but you'll need a jack.

If you have any other questions feel free to ask. I have an unhealthy obsession with cars and enjoy educating.

[sinking]

Originally Posted by Don in Austin

You most certainly WILL in Travis County. The test is called "two-speed idle test." It will be done through tailpipe analysis instead of by tapping into the OBDII system. Texas Emissions Testing - Associated Content from Yahoo! - associatedcontent.com

Has to be a diesel or 25 years old not to be emissions tested in Travis County.

At my repair shop we routinely do repairs to get pre-OBDII vehicles up to emissions standards.

I just did some research and I stand corrected. I haven't had an OBD1 vehicle since moving to TX but could have sworn when I was doing research on how many "not ready's" were allowed on OBD2 that I saw OBD1 vehicles only had to pass safety. I moved from MA and they got rid of the emissions testing on OBD1 vehicles a couple years ago. I think it had something to do with not wanting to pay for the software on the dynos. Kinda interesting that it is stricter in TX han MA.

[atxcio]

Might also expand your search to SA. Sure, it's 80 miles away but certain resale items are cheaper there, and there might be more inventory.

Also check out consumer reports if you haven't already, they rate best used cars in the $X category... so you can find out what would be the most reliable used car for $2K.

BTW, Welcome to Austin! If you are looking for something to do this weekend, the Art festival downtown and Lonestar Custom Hot Rod festival are going on.

[10scoachrick]

Originally Posted by atxcio

Might also expand your search to SA. Sure, it's 80 miles away but certain resale items are cheaper there, and there might be more inventory.

Also check out consumer reports if you haven't already, they rate best used cars in the $X category... so you can find out what would be the most reliable used car for $2K.

BTW, Welcome to Austin! If you are looking for something to do this weekend, the Art festival downtown and Lonestar Custom Hot Rod festival are going on.

And you DON'T want to be in a car there!!! I drove to Mellow Johnny's for a 9AM bike ride...no problem. Tried to leave around 11:30 and I got a taste of that Austin traffic everyone hates!!!

They even 'converted' the Farmers' Market 'free' parking garage into a $7/space money-maker(for SOMEone) . What a mess! Detours, closed roads, impatient drivers(and cyclists)...holy cow! Finally got to 6th street trying to get to the 'Mo' and it probably took a good 15 minutes .

[orbius]

2k is a bad area for a Japanese used car. Any decent Japanese car even from the early 90's sells for more. You begin to find something decent but with high miles at 3k-5k with Japanese cars.
In the 2k price range you'd be better off getting an American beater but its my advice to be sure to get it checked out by a mechanic for any serious problems before purchasing

[eepstein]

When you say Toyota or Honda, I just assume we are talking about a Sequoia, Tundra or Ridgeline. It should be quite easy to find those vehicles on craigslist. Accord or Corolla?? That's so UNAUSTIN!!

Originally Posted by nickasarbata

Hey guys!

My partner and I just arrived in Austin, and one of our first priorities is to get a car for him. He's been in NYC all his adult life and so is now in the market for his first car ever!

We wanted to try to find an older Camry, Corolla or maybe an Accord (or something similar) for under $2k. It doesn't need to be beautiful, he just wants a basic first car he can get around in.

Where should we look? I looked on Craigslist but there were only one or two cars listed. Are there any used car dealerships that sell cars in this price range? Also, we're new to the Texas vehicle inspections, is there anything we should be aware of when buying a car in this price range with regard to passing inspection?

Thanks for the tips!