A New to Me Car

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DuchessAimee

DuchessAimee

Senior Member
#1
Apr 27, 2011
3,922
129
63
#1
As many of you know, I got into a car wreck last week. My car was totaled, so I must go through the process of finding a new one. I'm not sure of my price range, but I know I'm going to buy an SUV if possible. Here are a few questions.

Which car brands should I stay away from?

How many miles are too many?

What kind of red flags am I looking for?

What kind of sounds am I listening for?

Any other advice you'd like to give is appreciated!
 
D

Donkeyfish07

Guest
#2
#2
If you want something that's going to last you a long time, I suggest you get something made by Honda or Toyota.....Those two brands outlast all the others. 100,000 miles and they're just getting broken in.
 
H

Hellooo

Guest
#3
#3
I'm a fan of buying used cars outright, but if you must finance, get a preapproval letter first from your credit union or bank, don't finance through a dealership.

I'm no car buff but I like Toyotas...mine is 13 years old, reliable, not a gas guzzler, and I'm at 160k miles. Donkeyfish is right, they last forever.
 
A

arwen83

Guest
#4
#4
What?! I missed this! Are you okay? All in one piece?
 
H

Hellooo

Guest
#5
#5
Also, if you're going to a used car lot, wait til the last few days of the month...a lot of dealerships have sales cycles that close at the end of the calendar month, and used car salesmen are willing to be more flexible when they're trying to wrap up their goals.
 
BillyTheKid

BillyTheKid

Senior Member
#6
Feb 17, 2009
274
2
18
#6
There are no red flags, mileage problems, brand issues, etc. It is all about the person that owned it before you. I personally drive a Toyota 4Runner. SUV but decent on fuel mileage. It has 260,000 miles and runs like it is brand new, BUT that doesn't mean that all Toyotas will run that way. I have made sure to keep the oil changed, regular tune-ups, filters changed, etc. You need to test drive a car and take it to a local garage and have someone look it over for you. Also, go to Official Kelley Blue Book New Car and Used Car Prices and Values and look at the value of the car before buying it. You can use that to your advantage. If the estimated retail price on Kelley Blue Book is $7,000 for a car in ''good'' condition don't go and pay them $9,000 for it. NO PRICE IS SET IN STONE WITH A CAR LOT!!!! Only suckers pay the asking price :)
 
A

arwen83

Guest
#7
#7
My dad always told me to get a Honda or Hyundai. They are reliable and great on gas. I have a 2002 Elantra and it still runs well
 
V

violakat

Guest
#8
#8
A. Glad you're still alive.
B. Hope you're not in too much pain.
C. Avoid Fords. At least, I dislike them. They were good at one time, but it seems like the later models have become more of clunkers after a year or two.
D. I like Chevy's a lot. Currently driving a Chevy 2002 S10 pick up, which does get good MPG. However, if you have problems, some of the cars can be a little expensive in repairs. And SUV's are well known for being gas guzzlers, in any model. So keep that in mind.
 
zeroturbulence

zeroturbulence

Senior Member
#9
Aug 2, 2009
24,644
4,305
113
#9
DuchessAimee said:
As many of you know, I got into a car wreck last week. My car was totaled, so I must go through the process of finding a new one. I'm not sure of my price range, but I know I'm going to buy an SUV if possible. Here are a few questions.

Which car brands should I stay away from?

How many miles are too many?

What kind of red flags am I looking for?

What kind of sounds am I listening for?

Any other advice you'd like to give is appreciated!
Click to expand...
Me and my family have always stuck with Honda or Toyota because they are always winning top honors as the most reliable and I always liked Honda's styling. Acura and Lexus are also Honda (Acura) and Toyota (Lexus). I can certainly vouch for Honda's reliability because I put over 500k miles on my previous Honda and it held up extremely well. Never needed to rebuild the engine or tranny either.

My parents had a Subaru Forrester SUV and that was a great car too. Right now they have a '05 Honda CR-V and it is like a perfect small SUV. It also was rated 'best used car' in an article last year.

Whatever you decide on, I recommend checking out the ratings and reviews on it at Edmunds.com.
 
O

OceanGrl

Guest
#10
#10
Avoid Volkswagen, stick with Toyota or Honda.
 
N

NukePooch

Guest
#11
#11
As many have already said, Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV-4, Subaru Forester/Outback would be good compact SUV choices. Ford Escape and Chevy Equinox are also good.

I would avoid the European brands (VW, Audi, BMW) due to high repair costs, etc.
I would also tend to avoid Dodge/Chrysler products due to hit-or-miss spotty reliability.
Ford and GM are ok, generally not bad at all.
Honda and (especially) Toyota have seen their reliability drop in recent years while the American brands have become more reliable...if you buy anything made since 2000ish, they're all about the same, give-or-take.
Nissan's good. Hyundai and Kia are good, but I'd avoid their cheapest cars...cause they're really, really cheap.

Miles? Well, if you have to finance, sometimes it's hard to get financing on a car with over 100,000 miles. Most cars will require a healthy (expensive) service at 100,000 as well.

You can take a potential used buy to a mechanic to have an inspection done that will tell you possible problems.

For used cars, I've had great luck with Carmax. If there's one in your area, you can go and test drive a bunch of different models/brands at one dealer. If you find something you like, but don't like the color, etc, they'll find one for you at another Carmax and ship it in.

CarMax - Browse used cars and new cars online
 
zeroturbulence

zeroturbulence

Senior Member
#12
Aug 2, 2009
24,644
4,305
113
#12
I almost forgot.. if you are buying used be sure to check out the Kelly blue book price at Kbb.com, and I recommend getting a Carfax report too to see if its been in any accidents or has been damaged or salvaged.
 
V

violakat

Guest
#13
#13
Also, don't let the dealers not let you turn the car on. I had one who saw me and thought, "Oh, she's a woman. She'll never suspect we're giving her a clunker." The sales rep and I drove to my mechanics. When the mechanic turned it off to inspect it, he couldn't turn it back on, because the battery was completely dead. Probably a few other things as well. Needless I didn't go back to that dealer. So basically, my point is, be aware there are some shifty dealers out there who'll try to take advantage of you.
 
DuchessAimee

DuchessAimee

Senior Member
#14
Apr 27, 2011
3,922
129
63
#14
arwen83 said:
What?! I missed this! Are you okay? All in one piece?
Click to expand...
I'm okay, just bruised and sore and scraped up. Some kid turned in front of me and I couldn't stop in time. I posted a thread about it last week.
 
DuchessAimee

DuchessAimee

Senior Member
#15
Apr 27, 2011
3,922
129
63
#15
I had a Ford Focus and it did a good job protecting me. :)

violakat said:
A. Glad you're still alive.
B. Hope you're not in too much pain.
C. Avoid Fords. At least, I dislike them. They were good at one time, but it seems like the later models have become more of clunkers after a year or two.
D. I like Chevy's a lot. Currently driving a Chevy 2002 S10 pick up, which does get good MPG. However, if you have problems, some of the cars can be a little expensive in repairs. And SUV's are well known for being gas guzzlers, in any model. So keep that in mind.
Click to expand...
 
DuchessAimee

DuchessAimee

Senior Member
#16
Apr 27, 2011
3,922
129
63
#16
A carfax is a great idea! I won't be financing the car, so I'm not worried about it. I also plan on going to kbb.com and using their total cost calculator. The cost of gas in California is absurd and I need to know what insurance will cost me.
 
A

adekruif

Guest
#18
#18
Any car that has been taken care of will last. You just need to know if it was taken care of and how it was driven. Avoid a dealership if at all possible, there's a reason they are called stealerships....try Craigslist, autotrader, and cars.com.

Don't get rushed into making a deal, if you feel uncomfortable, step away.
 
C

Chrissy77

Guest
#19
#19
violakat said:
Who knows, maybe it's just Texas that Ford cars don't like. :D But at least it protected you.
Click to expand...
That must hate NY also because I owned 4 Fords and they all ended up being nothing but trouble! I know it doesnt may sense why I bought another one after the 2nd time, but it just worked out that that was what was available to us at the time.
 
A

adekruif

Guest
#20
#20
Chrissy77 said:
That must hate NY also because I owned 4 Fords and they all ended up being nothing but trouble! I know it doesnt may sense why I bought another one after the 2nd time, but it just worked out that that was what was available to us at the time.
Click to expand...
FORD, aka: Fix Or Repair Daily.....or backwards...Driver Returns On Foot. :D
 
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