I need a little help...

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BMWteamPTG

BMWteamPTG

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Hey guys. most of you have seen me around. well i ran into a little problem today. my car died. the engine is blown and im broke. im still in college and will be for atleast another year or two. i need a reliable car, not one that will fall apart on me. also, it needs to be afordable.

here is my input. im in the usa, mid-atlantic region. so it rains, snows, and ****s all year long. im not biased toward any car co. and am open for ideas. any input would be very thanful. im grateful that i can have people like you all to ask this question to as well. thanks for all your help.

BMWteamPTG
 
What kind of car do you currently have, and what exacly is wrong with it? Basically, is it feasible to fix it? Are you still going to keep it, or sell it?
 
ok i currently have a 99 oldsmobile alero. she died...as stated earlier. i already put close to $2,000 in her last fall. i dont have the money to put more work into her. im planning on takin her to the junkyard and getting all i can for her, and putting that $$$ on my current loan. and, after working a few extra hours over the summer, i plan to get a newer car...doesnt have to be brand new.

just asking for a little input :)
 
The junkyard option seems sensible. Earn a few extra bucks this way.

Now, for the replacement car; Id say go for a small SUV w/4WD. Its not that easy to find many passenger vehicles with 4WD for in case when it snows and rains. Get a small SUV like RAV4 or CR-V, but that is if you can pay for them. FWD isnt too bad in the snow either, but Id go the safer route. A good FWD car probably would be a used Civic, from '95-'01. But it all comes down to how much you have to spend.
 
i would give anywhere between 5-10k...civics are always a good bet.

im trying to stick with a coupe or saloon...if i do get a 4wd id like a jeep grand cherokee...but thats way outta my price range.
 
Hmmm then...

How about Sentras? Theyre often overlooked so they should be a little cheaper than Civics or Carollas.

Or a Ford Focus/Escord would be nice too, they are said to be above average according to APA in Canada.

A coupe would be Mazda MX-6 Mystere or Ford Probe. Theyre said to be above average as well. Better to go for MX-6 though.

Tell me if you like those ideas; if you dont then just tell me and Ill try to look for more. :sly:
 
Sounds like you're on a fairly limited budget, so I'd stick with something with good fuel economy and cheap to insure, and old enough to be inexpensive but young enough to stay out of the shop.

I'd be partial to one of the Ford Focus models, around 2001-2002 model years. I've not owned one myself, but I've known a few folks who did and have been happy with them -- most recently, my own mother bought a (new) Focus a few months back.


With regard to the weather in your area, if you have secure storage space for an extra set of wheels/tires, I'd also invest in a separate set of winter tires, mounted on extra wheels. For a compact car, you shouldn't need to spend more than about $600-$700 for a set of snow tires plus wheels -- or maybe even less. And one set of tires should last 2-3 winters, and the wheels should last 10+ years. A few years back, when I was living in that Mid-Atlantic region, I switched both of my family's primary cars to dedicated winter wheel/tire packages for the winter (Dunlop Winter Sport tires), and after one winter like that, I'll be very reluctant to ever drive in snow on "all-season" tires again.

You can switch between your two sets of tires yourself in less than an hour, or pay a service station to do it for you for probably $20-$30.


Well, that's my 2c, for what it's worth.
 
Mazda Proteges? But if you're in College, a Civic or a plain old Corolla would be a no-brainer. Save up for a nice car for when you graduate. :)
 
Just get a Civic, you honestly can't do much better then that.

And how many miles did you have on your car? A blown engine for a car that is only 7 years old seems like an issue.
 
There's a big difference between a Focus and a Civic , in the interior space (I have both), if your tall/big, go with a focus, if your small, a civic isnt so bad.
 
You can get into a grand Cherrokee for 5-10k, but I used to be a Jeep salseman, steer clear of Jeeps if you need reliable transportation. If your going stump jumping, buy one. I needed a 5-10k commuter and I just went and got a new Hyundai Accent in 02, $7788 new with the 10/100 warranty. 70k miles and hasnt broken yet, and thats after 4 trips from Seattle to SanDiego, and I drive that gutless wonder hard.
 
Grand Ams are meh, but they are one of the most common cars on the road. Parts will be abundant for it. But there is nothing wrong with them for a point a to b car...with a little trip to c every now and again.
 
Grand Am is the same car as the Alero, platform share... After I owned a Chevy, drive Fords at work, and sold Mazda, Jeeps, and Oldsmobiles for a living, I will never buy american again (unless its a Vette).
 
Go with a Moped. Gets great gas mileage, and you can pick up chicks by saying you have a Motorbike (technically its a bike with a motor, therefore, Motor-bike) and brag about how your a rebel who lives by your own set of rules.

Either that or buy a Civic. 👍
 
get a pick up truck!like a like ford ranger lot of kids at my school have little pick up trucks.Or get a VW thier quick,reliable and most of them have all wheel drive.
 
Grand Ams are fine, but they arent that exciting, unless you get a GTP model. Does it matter whether the car is auto or manual?

A Protege5 is fun and practical too. Nice to look at, also. They arent that expensive anymore, but depends on location too.

In my opinion, dont buy the Sunfire/Cavalier. That car is barely adequate for basc transportation; you cant love that car. The interior isnt terribly good. The quality isnt terribly good, either.
 
They didn't make a GTP Grand Am to my knowledge, the GTP was a superchraged Grand Prix...they did however make a Grand Am GT with ram air for some strange reason.
 
BlazinXtreme
They didn't make a GTP Grand Am to my knowledge, the GTP was a superchraged Grand Prix...they did however make a Grand Am GT with ram air for some strange reason.
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Oh oh thats what I meant. Grand Am GT w/quad exhausts n stuff. It had shiny chrome wheels, and theres one sold at a lot near my house.
 
I never understood the need for ramed air on those cars, but I must admit the hood looked awesome on the car. I still don't think I'd want a Grand Am, but if you are just looking for a point a to b car they aren't bad.
 
protoge5??? so, basically, all of you are telling me to stay away from american cars...true???

thanks so much for all you input guys. i really appriciate it
 
Well, in my opinion, I dont mind whether if its an American car or not, but as you say you need a reliable car, Im not mentioning American cars because theres some "prejudice" against them....

Or if you think this way: buy a Cavalier for a little money and then save the rest of the money for upgrades and repairs. Wikipedia says that Cavalier has little transmission and engine problems, although theyre known to have lots of electrical problems.

If you dont mind American cars, I will suggest you some choices. Theyre usually a lot cheaper than Japanese counterparts so you can get a fairly big car for the price, if that is what you want.
- Pontiac Grand Prix
- Chrysler Sebring
- Ford Focus Hatch/Sedan
- Olds Cutlass

Old BMWs and Mercs are cheap around Vancouver. I dont know about your area but I saw a '95 BMW 530i advertised for $8800 CDN. Accident car? Dunno.

P.S. You dont like Protege5?
 
BMWteamPTG
protoge5??? so, basically, all of you are telling me to stay away from american cars...true???

thanks so much for all you input guys. i really appriciate it
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I'm with some of the other guys. I'd definitely reccomend a Focus (ZX3/SVT).
 
In my extremely biased opinion, you cant get any better than an MKIII Jetta or Golf.

These cars can be somewhat cheap to buy, and are extremely fun to drive. I wouldnt go for anything over a GL or GLS in your situation, as they are pretty economical with the 155HP 2.0L 8V I4, and offer enough power to keep things interesting. Obviously the gems were the GTI and Jetta GLX equipped with the 172HP 2.7L VR6, often noted as 3-series killers back in the day. Gas mileage was decent with the VR6, and build quality was pretty good on the two since they were built in Germany...

BUT, and this is a HUGE B.U.T.... Insurance and repairs are going to cost an arm and a leg compared to some of the other cars. A Honda Civic has notoriously high-insurance rates, but I'm not sure what they are in relationship to the Jetta or Golf. I know for a fact replacement parts are expensive, and any major repairs are going to cost a lot as well. Thankfully for us, VW has been building a lot of the same parts for the car, and for the engine for decades, so there are plenty of replacement parts to be found for generally less than what you would spend at the dealer.

Outside of the VW twins, you really can't go wrong with a Honda Accord or Toyota Camry (I would ONLY buy an SE). They last forever, are decently priced in insurance rates, and are somewhat "fun" to drive in comparison to other cars in their class.
 
BMWteamPTG
protoge5??? so, basically, all of you are telling me to stay away from american cars...true???
Click to expand...

No offense, as it seems you loved your Olds, but it blew up prior to 100,000 miles. That's really young.

I don't want to turn this into a american-car vs foreign-car debate, so I'll put it this way -- because of your price range, you'll be looking primarily at '90s cars, and even some american car fans will admit that the Detroit trio didn't really pick up their game until the late 90's/early 00's.

Any foreign cars you'll be looking at will most likely be more reliable than american ones of the same age.

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You said you're not biased towards anything, but I assume from your username and signature that you'd enjoy having a BMW... ;)

For your price range, I would recommend an E36 3-series ('92-'98). The engines and drivetrains are bulletproof, a sedan version would be nice and practical, and they're pretty good on gas (~20mpg city, ~29mpg highway, though the 4-cylinder 318 models are a little better). Then there's the whole thing about them being nice to sit in and fun to drive..... :D

BMWs are reliable, but admittedly, when they do break, it costs more. However, as long as you avoid the dealer, you'll be fine. As with any car, make sure you purchase a solid car to begin with, to reduce the chances of mechanical failures.

Also, before anyone comes barging in here with some spiel about how you mentioned rain & snow, RWD cars are no worse than FWD cars if you have an ounce of sense in you -- since you're obviously an avid GT4 player, I seriously doubt you'll have a problem. :)
 

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