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Used Cars - what to buy? - 04/30/12 11:32:54 AM
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crankky
Posts: 1312
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From: God's Country-The Bluegrass State
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Need a car for my 16 year old son. Been scouring Craigslist and see a few candidates. I know it depends on a lot of things, primarily how it's been drive and taken care of, but how many miles would you be comfortable with on a used car?
Let's say a 1998 Nissan Altima, 160k miles. Or 1999 Toyota Corolla with about 150k? At what point is it simply too many miles to be worthwhile? He will be driving in town, to school, work etc.
Thanks y'all.
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RE: Used Cars - what to buy? - 04/30/12 11:36:07 AM
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jreed3
Posts: 3962
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I guess one thing thats important to know if what is the mileage he needs to drive? For example, around here the nearest town/school/work for me is 20 miles or so. Thats a lot different than some that only drive a few miles.
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RE: Used Cars - what to buy? - 04/30/12 11:46:37 AM
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crankky
Posts: 1312
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From: God's Country-The Bluegrass State
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Everything he needs to do is within about 20 miles. Maybe a 80 miles trip (each way) once in a while to see friends in another city.
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SMT 455db, Aldila NVS-75S
18*, 22* Nike CPR-3 Stiff
Snake Eyes 675XC 5-PW, FST 115 stiff
Cleveland 588 51*, 56* & 60* wedges
Wishon S2R Model 3 Putter
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RE: Used Cars - what to buy? - 04/30/12 12:00:11 PM
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goto10
Posts: 6354
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From: Winterpeg, MB
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The Corrolla strikes me as a reasonable choice in a high-mileage used vehicle.
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RE: Used Cars - what to buy? - 04/30/12 12:13:23 PM
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Magnito
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I would lean toward the corrola. I've had bad experiences with Nissan.
Toyota's are pretty dependable and if it needs fixing i'm sure parts and labor would be easier to find for a Toyota???
Buyer beware on Craigslist.
I've leased in the past Acura, VW Jetta, Saturn Aura, and now a Honda Accord. We just bought a 2012 Mazda 5 recently and love it... I think i'll lease a Mazda next year.
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RE: Used Cars - what to buy? - 04/30/12 12:37:57 PM
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MulliganMan
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Another thing to consider is what kind of mileage. I bought a used Ford Focus with high mileage for what year it was but most of the miles were highway miles. Most of the miles I have put on it are also highway miles. It's a 2005 and has 140k on it but still runs great and have only had routine maintenance [knock on wood].
My parent's last 3 vehicles have all been Toyotas and all have been great. They sold the first 2 after about 8 years and got great resale value considering their age (still driving their 8yr old Highlander). They all sold very quickly so that must say something.
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RE: Used Cars - what to buy? - 04/30/12 12:58:24 PM
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mjldba
Posts: 1395
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From: Western NY
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Check your local library for the Consumer Report's issue that deals with new car ratings that came out a couple months ago. There'll be a section about used cars to avoid and used cars that have proven to be good for the long haul.
Promise you'll see some surprises on both lists.
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RE: Used Cars - what to buy? - 04/30/12 1:17:34 PM
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jreed3
Posts: 3962
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Agreed on the corolla....that's probably at the top of the list. There are a lot of camry's out there too.
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RE: Used Cars - what to buy? - 04/30/12 6:16:44 PM
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DC300
Posts: 4048
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From: Rochester NY
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Be CAREFUL on the Corolla, I don't really understand why all the great suggestions come for them. They are little s**tboxes to start and they certainly don't age well. I watched my stubborn step mother buy 3 and get rid of all of them right around that mileage because they litterally got to cost more in repairs than the car was worth. On the other hand, she finally bought a Honda Civic, a 95 base model, again a s**tbox sized car BUT, it's on the road with 260k on it and the only thing that's needed work was an exhaust at 200k and normal maintainence. She bought another new civic (mid 2000's) thats up over 120k with no issues. I wouldn't look at a corolla unless you are getting one of the newer generation, not the type that was over produced to be a Toyota and Geo. If you are going older, go with the Nissan, beware they have PITA sensors that can get fouled once in a while and cause headaches. Good thing they are cheap (less than $100) to buy and a 3 bolts or less job to replace. Neither the Corolla nor Altima are terribly efficient.
Were it my choice, I'd go find a Mazda Protege if you are looking for inexpensive. They are REALLY underrated. If I could spend a little more for you, I'd find a honda. If you are going old, go with great engineering in the first place... that means Honda.
As far as miles, I am comfortable under 150k, heres how I look at it. I have been looking at new vs used and devised a simple equation on how to decide on cars. I start by saying I will drive this car to 150k, so if its used I subtract the number of miles it has from that 150k and say I have 150000- x = (for example lets say 40000) then divide that number into the price. So what I have encountered has been something along the lines of $15000 / 110000 = 13.6 cents per mile I intend to drive it. Now what is interesting is take a new car at $20000/ 150000 = 13.3 cents per mile. The same logic can be applied to your purchase. Take whatever number you like for milage and divide it into the price and see what offers the best value. I will say it is much riskier business at that level of miles, but thats life. I PERSONALLY, would not spend the money on something with 150k on the clock if you intend on dealing with it for more than a year or 2. By the time you get nickled and dimed out of all the repairs that usually start in that range, you are better off just buying something for a bit more and not worrying about it. I'd start the search for cars with less than 110k on them. If that's simply not an option, just make sure all the wear parts are new, has a new exhaust, good tires etc, nothing like spending $2,000 on a car and then dropping half of that again on initial repairs, not a real good deal.
One car that I had in the past was a 96 monte Carlo, that thing was a tank, safe, reliable and reasonable mileage .. O yeah and I rolled up 232k on that before I sent it on its way. That was a great deal, got the car for $200, put a battery in it and drove it away, for $400 I had tires replaced, did the plugs myself and drove it for 25k. That was an expection, but I would not hesitate to recomend one of those cars for a nice first car.
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RE: Used Cars - what to buy? - 04/30/12 9:03:24 PM
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iharris278
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Consumer reports does a report listing good and bad years for all vehicles. Some may be good most of the time but have a year, especially first year redesigns when they suck.
I'd go Toyota. I'm on my second now. Truck, but still Toyota.
Nissan is hit and miss. They tend to do better with their smaller cars, especially the Maxima. Their big cars not too good.
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RE: Used Cars - what to buy? - 05/01/12 6:44:01 AM
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crankky
Posts: 1312
Joined: 01/27/03
From: God's Country-The Bluegrass State
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Thanks for all the great info! It's amazing how much high mileage used cars are going for, especially Toyota's and Honda's. I guess that's what the market will bear. would like to find something with <150k miles at a decent price. Not much around here unless you're looking for an SUV or truck (which are also ridiculously priced!)
_____________________________
SMT 455db, Aldila NVS-75S
18*, 22* Nike CPR-3 Stiff
Snake Eyes 675XC 5-PW, FST 115 stiff
Cleveland 588 51*, 56* & 60* wedges
Wishon S2R Model 3 Putter
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RE: Used Cars - what to buy? - 05/01/12 8:55:56 AM
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bamabasher
Posts: 570
Joined: 02/16/11
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How much do you want to spend?
I'll give a +1 to the Ford Focus. I have a 2001 that runs great.
autotrader.com is a good place to search.
As far as how many miles, basically goes back to how much, but I would look for something under 75,000.
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