Nick1994
$100 site donor 2024
Definitely an Elantra.
inexpensive car for relative
- Thread starter greenjp
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Thanks everybody. I'm definitely pushing the "boring and reliable" angle to her. Her current car is a POS 1995 BMW 530. In its day it was probably pretty sweet but it's in terrible shape, needs a clutch, and she can't afford to maintain it. She has a misplaced sense of entitlement and an income and credit rating that do not support it so I'll consider it a minor miracle if she leaves a dealership with something like I've linked above and not a 2005 A6 with 200k miles. She absolutely has to keep the purchase price low in order to avoid paying a huge amount of interest over the life of the loan.
She's 3 hours away from me in PA, her brother lives in her area and will assist her with going on test drives and avoiding dealer shenanigans. I'm the trusted relative by marriage.
90% of this car's duty will be grocery getter type stuff, occasional trips of a few hours but she does not regularly go anywhere far or even have a regular commute (retired).
I've pointed her and her brother to the following:
2014 Sonic LS 56k for $6,200
2014 Accent GS hatch 27k for $8,100
2012 Corolla LE 58k for $8,000
2016 Elantra SE 78k for $7,800
2014 Jetta SE 67k $8,200 (the only stick and has the 1.8 turbo)
2012 Jetta diesel 77k $7,600 (this is the most "loaded" of 'em all)
No premium to speak of for the diesel, and while the Corolla is a bit on the higher end its mileage is low. For some reason Capital One (I got her preapproved with them) offers a better rate on the Elantra than the rest, significantly so, which keeps the total cost down.
jeff
She's 3 hours away from me in PA, her brother lives in her area and will assist her with going on test drives and avoiding dealer shenanigans. I'm the trusted relative by marriage.
90% of this car's duty will be grocery getter type stuff, occasional trips of a few hours but she does not regularly go anywhere far or even have a regular commute (retired).
I've pointed her and her brother to the following:
2014 Sonic LS 56k for $6,200
2014 Accent GS hatch 27k for $8,100
2012 Corolla LE 58k for $8,000
2016 Elantra SE 78k for $7,800
2014 Jetta SE 67k $8,200 (the only stick and has the 1.8 turbo)
2012 Jetta diesel 77k $7,600 (this is the most "loaded" of 'em all)
No premium to speak of for the diesel, and while the Corolla is a bit on the higher end its mileage is low. For some reason Capital One (I got her preapproved with them) offers a better rate on the Elantra than the rest, significantly so, which keeps the total cost down.
jeff
In that budget range I'd buy the Accent all day long. Not the most exciting car but that's a pretty new car with low miles for the money and they have a good reputation for reliability. I haven't read up on the Sonic much but my sister in law has one and it has been pretty unreliable. My old 2001 Accent is still on the road with a family friend and has survived 2 teenage drivers and less than ideal maintenance with no significant repairs needed. It had 130,000 miles on it when I sold it to them around 2012 or so.
Accent. Great engine, reliable, low insurance, low cost tires, great space for a hatch.
Originally Posted by greenjp
Thanks everybody. I'm definitely pushing the "boring and reliable" angle to her. Her current car is a POS 1995 BMW 530. In its day it was probably pretty sweet but it's in terrible shape, needs a clutch, and she can't afford to maintain it. She has a misplaced sense of entitlement and an income and credit rating that do not support it so I'll consider it a minor miracle if she leaves a dealership with something like I've linked above and not a 2005 A6 with 200k miles. She absolutely has to keep the purchase price low in order to avoid paying a huge amount of interest over the life of the loan.
She's 3 hours away from me in PA, her brother lives in her area and will assist her with going on test drives and avoiding dealer shenanigans. I'm the trusted relative by marriage.
90% of this car's duty will be grocery getter type stuff, occasional trips of a few hours but she does not regularly go anywhere far or even have a regular commute (retired).
I've pointed her and her brother to the following:
2014 Sonic LS 56k for $6,200
2014 Accent GS hatch 27k for $8,100
2012 Corolla LE 58k for $8,000
2016 Elantra SE 78k for $7,800
2014 Jetta SE 67k $8,200 (the only stick and has the 1.8 turbo)
2012 Jetta diesel 77k $7,600 (this is the most "loaded" of 'em all)
No premium to speak of for the diesel, and while the Corolla is a bit on the higher end its mileage is low. For some reason Capital One (I got her preapproved with them) offers a better rate on the Elantra than the rest, significantly so, which keeps the total cost down.
jeff
I own a 2012 corolla with 65,000 miles. Not the perfect car but if the goal is reliability hard to beat. I'll take boring and dependable.
Thanks everybody. I'm definitely pushing the "boring and reliable" angle to her. Her current car is a POS 1995 BMW 530. In its day it was probably pretty sweet but it's in terrible shape, needs a clutch, and she can't afford to maintain it. She has a misplaced sense of entitlement and an income and credit rating that do not support it so I'll consider it a minor miracle if she leaves a dealership with something like I've linked above and not a 2005 A6 with 200k miles. She absolutely has to keep the purchase price low in order to avoid paying a huge amount of interest over the life of the loan.
She's 3 hours away from me in PA, her brother lives in her area and will assist her with going on test drives and avoiding dealer shenanigans. I'm the trusted relative by marriage.
90% of this car's duty will be grocery getter type stuff, occasional trips of a few hours but she does not regularly go anywhere far or even have a regular commute (retired).
I've pointed her and her brother to the following:
2014 Sonic LS 56k for $6,200
2014 Accent GS hatch 27k for $8,100
2012 Corolla LE 58k for $8,000
2016 Elantra SE 78k for $7,800
2014 Jetta SE 67k $8,200 (the only stick and has the 1.8 turbo)
2012 Jetta diesel 77k $7,600 (this is the most "loaded" of 'em all)
No premium to speak of for the diesel, and while the Corolla is a bit on the higher end its mileage is low. For some reason Capital One (I got her preapproved with them) offers a better rate on the Elantra than the rest, significantly so, which keeps the total cost down.
jeff
I own a 2012 corolla with 65,000 miles. Not the perfect car but if the goal is reliability hard to beat. I'll take boring and dependable.
Corolla S with the 2.5
re: Hatchbacks
Kia Soul? these where cars sold for around $16k brand new.
On a search for wagon body style on cars dot com, these would be the most results by lower price.
Had a purple '95 Hyundai accent (I know, 2 car generations ago): that car could turn in a regular residential street intersection without touching any sidewalk/curb. More space inside than the sedan elantra
Kia Soul? these where cars sold for around $16k brand new.
On a search for wagon body style on cars dot com, these would be the most results by lower price.
Had a purple '95 Hyundai accent (I know, 2 car generations ago): that car could turn in a regular residential street intersection without touching any sidewalk/curb. More space inside than the sedan elantra
Originally Posted by greenjp
90% of this car's duty will be grocery getter type stuff, occasional trips of a few hours but she does not regularly go anywhere far or even have a regular commute (retired).
10,000 miles a year is a lot of miles for a retired person doing short trips.
You mentioned the Elantra can get a better loan rate. But another money saver is to get a car used enough that the person doesn't require or feel the need to have full insurance on it.
Of the vehicles you listed, the Accent with 27k on it is a no-brainer imo. And more bonus points for being a hatchback.
I think Honda is good but has been and is overrated, and Hyundai has been beating them lately in at least some rankings.
Sonic if memory serves is actually highly rated.
Both are kind of buzzy when accelerating, but cruising is ok.
A VW Jetta for a reliable grocery getter? pass.
90% of this car's duty will be grocery getter type stuff, occasional trips of a few hours but she does not regularly go anywhere far or even have a regular commute (retired).
10,000 miles a year is a lot of miles for a retired person doing short trips.
You mentioned the Elantra can get a better loan rate. But another money saver is to get a car used enough that the person doesn't require or feel the need to have full insurance on it.
Of the vehicles you listed, the Accent with 27k on it is a no-brainer imo. And more bonus points for being a hatchback.
I think Honda is good but has been and is overrated, and Hyundai has been beating them lately in at least some rankings.
Sonic if memory serves is actually highly rated.
Both are kind of buzzy when accelerating, but cruising is ok.
A VW Jetta for a reliable grocery getter? pass.
For the money, the Corolla would be the best bet, although I doubt that any BMW driver would be happy with any of the cars that you've listed.
You can tell her that I'd buy the Toy out of these cars and I've got an old BMW and have owned a second as well as four Benzes.
For reliable and durable long run operation, a Toyota beats any Hyundai product while a VW is like a BMW with none of the fun.
You can tell her that I'd buy the Toy out of these cars and I've got an old BMW and have owned a second as well as four Benzes.
For reliable and durable long run operation, a Toyota beats any Hyundai product while a VW is like a BMW with none of the fun.
To call her present car a "BMW" would be technically correct but not really an accurate description. It is a monstrous hooptie, in such awful cosmetic and mechanical condition that I am embarrassed to be seen in it when giving it a post-oil change test drive.
She'll be financing so full insurance is a must. She finally followed my advice yesterday and called her insurer for some estimates on full coverage so she can factor that into her plans.
10k per year was her self reported usage, it does seem to be a lot to me. I figure something with 70-80k miles ought to give her several years of trouble free service.
Previously mentioned Corolla is gone. Accents and Elantras still seem to be the most common but I have also found a 2012 Cruze, 2015 Malibu, 2013 Optima, and a really nice looking 2013 Focus SE hatchback with the manual, sunroof, and heated seats. 72k and ~$6,500 for that one.
She'll be financing so full insurance is a must. She finally followed my advice yesterday and called her insurer for some estimates on full coverage so she can factor that into her plans.
10k per year was her self reported usage, it does seem to be a lot to me. I figure something with 70-80k miles ought to give her several years of trouble free service.
Previously mentioned Corolla is gone. Accents and Elantras still seem to be the most common but I have also found a 2012 Cruze, 2015 Malibu, 2013 Optima, and a really nice looking 2013 Focus SE hatchback with the manual, sunroof, and heated seats. 72k and ~$6,500 for that one.
She ended up getting a 2014 Versa SV with 50k. Not the specific model I would have recommended but she liked it well enough and I'm very happy she went with something economical and practical.
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