Help me choose a daily driver..choices inside

Mr Boogeyman · Jun 12, 2008

I will be buying a DD in the next month and would like your thoughts, need something with very good gas mileage but that looks good , here are some I can think of

1995-2000 civic
2000-2003 Jetta
1996-2001 Eclipse
2000-2004 Hyundai Accent

I'm trying to stay under $6,000 and those are the only ones I can think of. Thoughts? Maybe something else?

mustang50v8 · Jun 12, 2008

1995-1999 Oldsmobile Aurora
Lincoln Mark VIII

BennyBlown2v · Jun 12, 2008

Honda. And definitely not a jetta, they aren't the most reliable lol...

langod · Jun 12, 2008

The Aurora and Mark VIII are great cars (I had an Aurora), but he said he's looking for decent gas mileage.

Of the above, the Civic is probably the best choice. Those things are practically bulletproof. YOu see tons of the 90s version all over the place.

VW = reliability problems and high repair cost
Mitsu -- not as reliable either.

The Hyundai might not be bad. Reliable, but very, very basic.

For what it's worth, I picked up a '01 Nissan Maxima last year -- they're very reliable and fun to drive. Not as good gas mileage (about 22 mixed, 28 highway), but fast, roomy and handles good. You should be able to get a decent 1999-2000 for somewhere around the top end of your price range.

mustang50v8 · Jun 12, 2008

langod said:
The Aurora and Mark VIII are great cars (I had an Aurora), but he said he's looking for decent gas mileage.

my dad had a 97 aurora several years ago and i loved that car, i took it on a few trips and got like 25-26 mpg's i thought it was good. but i think its the shape of the car that made it like that, it cut through the air like a knife, no wind noise at all.

Mr Boogeyman · Jun 12, 2008

Wow didn't know VW was unreliable, a couple of years ago i had an 01 1.8 Turbo Jetta and that thing flew and it didn't break for the 3 years I had it.

Aurora is bad on gas, might aswell keep using the mustang for comutting. Gas here is almost near $5 a gallon so not worth it for all the commute I do. But I'm open to other suggestions

flstang65 · Jun 12, 2008

my dad's bonneville ssei gets 28 on the highway at 75 mph or so. low to mid 20's in town.

my500hp99gt · Jun 12, 2008

I think the Honda is the best way to go. You can drive it forever and when it does die throw it away and you would still have gotten your moneys worth.

N8Dogg98 · Jun 12, 2008

Whatever you do, don't buy a Hyundai Accent it's a POS! My wife has a 2003 4-door GL and it handles like crap, is slow as hell, gets poor gas mileage (between 20 - 25 MPG mixed driving), if you hit a pothole the alignment is thrown off, timing belts have to be changed every 5 years or 60k miles, sheet metal is extremely thin (flicking it will cause a dent), the clearcoat is fading on the door handles (we wash and wax it regularly), it is really tiny and there is no place to put your knee when you are driving and you can't see the stoplight without bending down by the steering wheel cause the roof is so low (I'm 6' 2") etc..

Her car only has 38K miles on it, and it feels and drives like a 25 year old beater. We bought it about 4 years ago with only 8,000 miles on it and I wish we would have looked around more. I expected it to be a nice economy car for her.. but... well.../end rant

She really wants a Dodge Charger R/T which would be nice... Hey do you want to buy my wife's Hyundai!!!!!

CobraRed_96_GT · Jun 12, 2008

maybe a Golf GTi?

wyldpny · Jun 12, 2008

Pontiac Fiero. Bullet proof, reliable, great on gas (even the 6 cyl GT's) and parts are cheap.
The Fiero has the second highest rated crash test right below the Volvo and the Fiero doesn't even have air bags Plus, you will have lots of money left over since Fieros right now are not expensive at all since they are a still a sleeper sports car...

Mr Boogeyman · Jun 12, 2008

maybe a Golf GTi?

Those are nice but expensive, can't find a cheap one

Pontiac Fiero. Bullet proof, reliable, great on gas (even the 6 cyl GT's) and parts are cheap. The Fiero has the second highest rated crash test right below the Volvo and the Fiero doesn't even have air bags Plus, you will have lots of money left over since Fieros right now are not expensive at all since they are a still a sleeper sports car...

I want something 1995 or newer. 20 year old car doesn't sound very reliable Plus i'm not looking for a beater, i want a nice looking commuter that will give me good mpg

Whatever you do, don't buy a Hyundai Accent it's a POS!

Really...I have heard lots of good things about them, specially the hatchbacks..But thats why asked here to learn more

Looks like it might be the civic from what I gathered so far but keep them comments coming..

Mr Boogeyman · Jun 12, 2008

How about 95+ Tercels ......I hear they are good in gas but someone mentioned they have have bad engines?

wyldpny · Jun 12, 2008

Mr Boogeyman said:
I want something 1995 or newer. 20 year old car doesn't sound very reliable Plus i'm not looking for a beater, i want a nice looking commuter that will give me good mpg

Any car can be a beater if you make it that.
Except for being older than a '95, a good condition well maintained Fiero actually has all of the other things you wanted, nice looking commuter, reliability and good mpg. You do know that a Fiero is a mid engine sports car, right?

LI98GTStang · Jun 12, 2008

A family member has the Hyundai elantra, decent car for the money - the accent is a tin can IMO. If you can afford it, a Honda Civic is the way to go - got a 90 still for station and local driving. Engineered right and timing belt changes are in the 80k range, where toyotas and hyundais are 60k. If you can stretch to a newer used Mazda 3, they are awesome handling daily duty cars that use timing chains, so no belts to mess with.

FWIW, a very good friend of mine had the 4 cyl fiero and repairs were frequent and expensive.

Fastwrx15 · Jun 13, 2008

Be different and buy a older 90's model Subaru Impreza.
They are very reliable and dependable.With the rising gasoline
prices they get good MPG.All Subarus also have great resale
value too.My stock 2003 WRX with only a catback exhaust is my daily driver and I never had one problem with mine it's a excellent vehicle I love it.

www.subaru.com

Greenscobie86 · Jun 13, 2008

Fastwrx15 said:
Be different and buy a older 90's model Subaru Impreza.
They are very reliable and dependable.With the rising gasoline
prices they get good MPG.All Subarus also have great resale
value too.My stock 2003 WRX with only a catback exhaust is my daily driver and I never had one problem with mine it's a excellent vehicle I love it.

www.subaru.com

+ 1 on the Subies! My first car was a 1995 Legacy station wagon, I loved it. If I get a chance to scoop up another car for a daily driver, my choice would defenitely be a 1997-99 Legacy GT wagon or sedan.

Best looking cars IMO, plus they are on the cheap side and get great mileage, and as already stated they are rock solid as far as reliability.

As far as VW's go, I just sold my previous project, a 97 Jetta 4-cyl 5 speed with 75k on the ticker. It was a good car and never left me stranded for the 2 years of ownership. But with VW's its a hit or miss, some people get lucky while others get hit with everything in the book..

I guess a Civic or maybe a Corolla would be the safest bet, but they are on the expensive side. Good Luck!!!

BurningRubber · Jun 13, 2008

Civic or even a (99+ ?) Accord if you find one in your price range.

A Subi would be a good choice also. A little more expensive to fix IMO but they are reliable.

Id probaly still go Honda. A 2 door 5 speed Civic will knock down some great MPG and can still be a fun car to toss around.

old_blue · Jun 13, 2008

sister had an accent and it was crap. always had problems.

cant go wrong with a civic.

VW- again hit or miss, had a 01 golf and it was a good car but it had its quirks.

I was looking at a toyota mr2 a while ago for a DD. good looking car and it is a toyota.

BurningRubber · Jun 13, 2008

I know someone who had a VW and it was OK. She (youll see how this ties in...) didnt change the oil for 9-10k.

The dipstick hardly had any oil when I checked it... plently of sludge though...

Changed the oil and all that ~~~~ got sucked up in the pickup screen on the oil pump. Engine didnt kick the can though, and it ran fine after the debris was removed from the screen.

Help me choose a daily driver..choices inside

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