tough cookie car reccomendations wanted

  • Thread starter Thread starter Sniffs
  • 82 comments
  • 4,250 views
Sniffs

Sniffs

Messages
2,568
Messages
we're waiting for the PS4
Messages
fishtailrook1 (?)
:yuck:
after only 4 months of use, my 92 Taurus LX is starting to fall apart mechanically. too many things have suddenly gone crunch (including my drivers headlight) in the past month. I know first year versions of each model change have a rep for going to pot easier than usual, so I'd like some reccomendations on a tough cookie model that I can beat up some.

Specs: car midsize group to compact group minimum, sedan prefered (how would you fold a 6 footer in the back of a coupe?), good reliability record, and doesn't cost a fortune to get repair parts for, with easy access to filters, wiring, fuses, etc.
generous trunk if possible.

truck: comp or midsize 4x4 extended cab shortbed auto...preferable at the xl/sl level (no carpet, just "rubber floor covering")

have been contemplating trying to locate a cheap used Xterra
 
Sounds like you want a Toyota. I've got a 93 pickup (not t-100 or tacoma, just pickup) that hasnt had a single problem since we got it in 95. The 4x4 version is really popular with the off-roaders, too. The engine in it has a really solid reputation.

The car version would be a camry of course...

And....how much are you willing to spend? The early/mid 90s versions of these cars run pretty cheap (something similar to that Taurus, probably). If you're looking at an Xterra, I guess you're looking to spend a bit more than what a 92 Taurus costs, though.
 
Pretty much anything Japanese is enough to outlive modern man.
 
For a truck...do not get an older Japanese truck, they are just aweful. Newer ones kick ass, but anything from the early 90's and sooner I would just stay away from.

I would suggest for a small truck a Ranger isn't bad, althought the suspension on the thing is by far the most confusinf thing I even messed with.
 
BMW would work great, but repairs would be more costly than anything Japanese. VW's aren't as reliable but are cheaper to repair.

Your best bet would be to find something Japanese. I recommend Toyota, because Toyota's run FOREVER, or Subaru, because I hear they're easy as pie to do simple maintenance on.
 
Wrong VW's are more reliabe just steer away from any 1.6's that are older than two years. They have a manufacturing defect. So any 1.6 golf from 2003 onwards are ok.
 
Wolfe2x7
BMW would work great, but repairs would be more costly than anything Japanese. VW's aren't as reliable but are cheaper to repair.
Click to expand...
It's more a matter of reliable but expensive to repair. Especially over here.

Get a Toyota Hilux 👍
 
1990-96-Jeep-Cherokee-93107041990615.JPG
 
I'm sure there's a Toyota out there to fit your needs... if you were in Europe I'd recommend... a Toyota, he he. VW Golf is another good choice, but parts are more expensive and you should avoid the Mk IVs, since I've heard they're quite problematic in the States.
 
I'm not sure on the price range here but I caution strongly against a used Xterra.

Help us out a little on how much you can spend, Sniffs!
 
What you're looking for is a Pontiac Bonneville with a 3.8L V6.

They're indestructible, fuel efficienct (torquey engine combined with lazy 4speed does that) and the AC Delco PH47 (Wix number 51040) oil filter can be found by the side of the road if needed.

My boss owns two of them (one 1995 with the N/A 3.8, one 1994 with the supercharged 3.8) and at least a dozen of our customers own them as well. The most expensive repair we've done on a Bonneville of that generation to date was installing a remanufactured supercharger on a 220k mile SSEi model Bonnie that had never had its blower oil topped off.

Don't be fooled by the import rhetoric. A Pontiac Bonneville will do perfectly.
 
I think he wants the fuel-efficient 4-cylinder type, not the Huge engine, gas-guzzling-V6 type. And not that I want to get into the whole subject of imports vs. domestic, but I've had (and my family has) one Pontiac and it was crap and three Toyotas, and I bet somewhere on this planet they are still running.
 
Yeah im always surprised on this site when someone needs help in choosing a new car and the person is american they always reccomend this strange and to me boring looking great big cars.
 
Actually the 3.8L motor is a great engine to have in a car, and I don't know what you are talking about, Pontiacs will last a long time. Grand Am's and Grand Prix are some of the most common cars on the road today. The Bonneville is up there too.

The 3.8L also puts out decent horsepower numbers...I'm a GTP/SSE/etc. fan, you know with the supercharger and all.

Yeah im always surprised on this site when someone needs help in choosing a new car and the person is american they always reccomend this strange and to me boring looking great big cars.
Click to expand...

A Bonneville is a midsized car that has enough room so people can ride in the back with out being cramped. And what the hell should we suggest? Sniffs lives in Pennslyvania, not Europe. We are going to suggest cars that he can buy, and I would never suggest a small car...they suck in the snow.
 
just to clarify one issue... what in the US is a compact, in Europe is considered a family car. The Sunfire, for example, I believe is a sub-compact... and it's bigger than an Alfa 147 (or at least the same size category), which is an average sized car here. Cars like the Ford Fiesta are average here.. and there's a piece of crap parked in front of my building called Microcar, which is even smaller than a Smart, and has a 500cc engine... you don't even need a license to drive it.
 
Young_Warrior
Remeber we get snow in the UK and the average car over here is the size of a 3 series.
Click to expand...


Pennslyvania gets like 3 feet of snow at a time, trust me the east coast of America gets a lot of snow and most small cars have issues with it.
 
Young_Warrior
Remeber we get snow in the UK and the average car over here is the size of a 3 series.
Click to expand...

Oh yeah we get loads of snow...you mean the centimetre we get in march if we are lucky.
 
I despise Jeeps with a passion, but they are good at making it through snow and what not. Just remember if you get a Jeep you are not God and you can't drive through anything.
 
The naturally aspirated 3.8's knock down 30mpg highway, and Pennsy has plenty of highways.

It's also very hilly, and you want torque to carry you up those hills. 3.8's have plenty of torque.

And, for your information, the Bonnie isn't that big of a car. I've driven big cars. Big cars are friggin Crown Vics and Caprices. A Bonnie is somewhere between an A4 and an A6 in size. Very midsize.

Though it has a bigger back seat than the A6, bigger trunk too. Makes very good use of its FF layout.

And, quite frankly, the earlier Bonnies are pretty handsome for a Camry/Accord competitor.

1994_pontiac_bonneville_ssei%20007.jpg
 
touch cookie cars as in terrain? or as in they survive abuse..

Anything japanese with an H should survive abuse..

Terrain wise..
I don't know
 
As an american living in Wisconsin, I must say that I would hate to drive a big, heavy, torquey, automatic-equipped front-wheel-drive in the snow.... :yuck:

Heaviness provides accelerative traction, yes, but it also provides massive understeer, especially when combined with a 3.8L FWD.

Also, my parents had a '90 Pontiac Grand Prix...not even 100,000 miles on it, yet it dumped a few alternators, had brake issues, fuel pump issues, and the most persistent, annoying electrical gremlin I've ever seen, where the trunk would randomly and frequently pop itself, and the doors would unlock, then lock.

My parent's current '95 Blazer and '95 Olds Cutlass aren't much better...the Olds' interior is held together with chewing gum, the suspension loses all grip with the pavement on any slightly bumpy road, and I feel I must mention that the car lacks any sort of trunk release save for physically walking to the rear of the car and using the key (annoying as hell :lol: ). The Blazer has gone through a front diff actuator, heater, and 2 fuel pumps. Neither of these cars have 90,000 miles yet.

My '85 BMW has over 200,000 miles. It has a bouncy idle that needs adjusting, a noisy, worn-out diff, and worn-out shifter bushings. The alternator failed once, but because the grounding wire broke from 20 years of use. :lol: Once properly grounded, it worked like a charm.

My advice? Go Euro if you want, go Japanese if you like money :D , and definitely stay away from GM.

@Firebird: We saw it the first time; posting the bigger picture was a little annoying.

I actually like old Jeeps myself, but that generation of Cherokee you've pictured was a piece of ****. My parents owned one before they got the Blazer, and even though I liked it, I can't say it was a good vehicle...also, it certainly isn't a fuel-efficient choice, if that's what's desired here...
 
GT_Fan2005
Oh yeah we get loads of snow...you mean the centimetre we get in march if we are lucky.
Click to expand...

Thats because you live in bloody crappy brighton. Around manchester and further up north they get up 3 feet of snow aswell.
 

Latest Posts

Back