Most reliable used simple/basic vehicle

[edyvw]

I've owned 2 VW's and only two. One was a Jetta they primarily they have electrical issues galore. With most of the electronics being a pain to access. Why is the ECU under a cowl behind the firewall? Why not inside the cab under the dash or under a seat, or behind the glove box. You know a reasonable logical place to put one that makes it accessible? You know like a decent company.

What about the throttle body that I assume was designed by a 12 year old on a Gameboy because of how failure prone they are. Then there was the timing chain tensioner recall that had me finally convince my then girlfriend now wife to get rid of the thing.

Drive what you want but VW's are the Chrysler's of Europe. Pretty terrible but somehow having a fan base that I assume have either Stockholm Syndrome or are just masochistic and enjoy the pain.

ECU on all VW’s I had is under the seat or under the hood.
Tensioner? How many companies had tensioner recalls? How many did not bcs. they don’t care?
Honda? Timing belt every 105,000k, power steering pump issues, oil pressure switvh issues, brakes undersized, transmission issues.
Pilot we have in 110,000mls had all that issues and now I think struts are gone.
I won’t even talk about that POS Sienna I had.
But hey, some things are not for everyone.

 

[edyvw]

If you're going to suggest $4000 VW's why not take it further and suggest an old w211 E class, or even worse an S class. Or an old BMW 3 series? You can get them in running condition for sub $4000. But they won't be running for long without needing work ($$)!

Tell us what issues those vehicles have, since obviously you owned all of them? I mean, I have 2011 VW and BMW, so some heads up would be useful.

 

[50yr Street Mech]

I must say nothing but trouble with my 13' Pilot EXL. Tranny @ 75k, ate brakes for breakfast, 3 cats @ 100k , passenger side split axle bearing @ 105k, drank gas like an alcoholic, 40k tops on tires, re-called control arm bushings started leaking oil again, and a crappy radio that sounded like one speaker transistor radio. Bought it for 48k, good riddance for 5k @ 120k

 

[trd1zz]

Tell us what issues those vehicles have, since obviously you owned all of them? I mean, I have 2011 VW and BMW, so some heads up would be useful.

I've owned an early w211 - with AirMatic. Enough said, lol.

Your 2011 BMW 3 is probably worth about double the OP's $4k budget? Buying a $4k BMW today isn't going to get you very far compared to a $4k Corolla. What's OP's budget for annual repair / maintenance?

 

[edyvw]

I've owned an early w211 - with AirMatic. Enough said, lol.

Your 2011 BMW 3 is probably worth about double the OP's $4k budget? Buying a $4k BMW today isn't going to get you very far compared to a $4k Corolla. What's OP's budget for annual repair / maintenance?

Who said anything about buying BMW below 4k? You brought that up. So just asking what to expect.
I owned GX470 with air bags in back. There is a reason why it is the most popular upgrade to coil springs. Unless ABS kills you before that.
Every car has its problems. People who say “I never had issues,” are people who you see on the side of the road with detached wheel bcs. “it was always making that noise.”

 

[andrew_j]

VW makes some amazing reliable vehicles in $4-$5k range however you need to narrow to the 2.5 5 cylinder or that 2.0 engine without a turbo.

 

[GR_CoB]

Tell us what issues those vehicles have, since obviously you owned all of them? I mean, I have 2011 VW and BMW, so some heads up would be useful.

I love your passion for Euro cars. They're amazing when they're fixed. But that passion seems to put some really thick pink shades over you bud. Here is just a couple examples of what I personally had to deal with, and why I'll take a base Versa with a manual over any VW.
- 2013 Tiguan. Timing chain, turbo twice, water pump, oil cooler twice, and a few pricey sensors along the way. Everything requires special tools, so not much of it was DIY. Lost over $7k on this piece of junk, and it wasn't even at 140k miles. But when it was fixed - it was amazing. Up until next thing breaks a week later.
- 2012 Jetta 2.slow. Aside from interior falling apart it was mostly ok. Until serpentine belt cut through an AC line and killed a radiator. Easy fix, right? Wrong. Knowing how wide the range of VW parts world is I made sure to look up every replacement part OEM and by VIN. Checked multiple times over. Once parts arrived - both were wrong, not even close to those in the car. So ended up removing old parts and dragging them to the store to part-match with the Made in Mexico junk from AAP and AutoZone. Did I mention these parts were twice the price of similar parts on my Japanese cars?
- 2014 Jetta TSi. Mechanically ok for now. Electrically - constant gremlins with sensors dying and magically reviving themselves, switches work whenever they feel like it, interior is falling apart just like the 2012 Jetta.
- This one I personally did not have to deal with, but taken straight from my coworker who is the one that dealt with this. He had a 2.5L Passat and 2.5L Rabbit. Both experienced a sudden death with no warning, when timing chains self destructed at highway speeds. He now is a happy owner of a 2.5L/8AT Camry.

 

[HemiBenny]

I agree with the votes for the Pre-2012 Ford Focus, and any Mazda 3. The drivetrain in those will run forever if maintained. Even then, they're not demanding. I think Motor Mounts is the biggest complaint on those. It would be fantastic if that were the only problem on any car these days.
Ford Fusions with the 2.5L are a good choice as well, especially if you can find one with a manual transmission. I've only ever seen one of those in the wild. We tried to buy it at auction, but the bidding went through the roof! HOLY COW! That was a great driving car!
Something a little bigger, like a Fusion, or even a Mazda 5, would be nicer for carrying the kiddos around.

 

[trd1zz]

I love your passion for Euro cars. They're amazing when they're fixed. But that passion seems to put some really thick pink shades over you bud. Here is just a couple examples of what I personally had to deal with, and why I'll take a base Versa with a manual over any VW.
- 2013 Tiguan. Timing chain, turbo twice, water pump, oil cooler twice, and a few pricey sensors along the way. Everything requires special tools, so not much of it was DIY. Lost over $7k on this piece of junk, and it wasn't even at 140k miles. But when it was fixed - it was amazing. Up until next thing breaks a week later.
- 2012 Jetta 2.slow. Aside from interior falling apart it was mostly ok. Until serpentine belt cut through an AC line and killed a radiator. Easy fix, right? Wrong. Knowing how wide the range of VW parts world is I made sure to look up every replacement part OEM and by VIN. Checked multiple times over. Once parts arrived - both were wrong, not even close to those in the car. So ended up removing old parts and dragging them to the store to part-match with the Made in Mexico junk from AAP and AutoZone. Did I mention these parts were twice the price of similar parts on my Japanese cars?
- 2014 Jetta TSi. Mechanically ok for now. Electrically - constant gremlins with sensors dying and magically reviving themselves, switches work whenever they feel like it, interior is falling apart just like the 2012 Jetta.
- This one I personally did not have to deal with, but taken straight from my coworker who is the one that dealt with this. He had a 2.5L Passat and 2.5L Rabbit. Both experienced a sudden death with no warning, when timing chains self destructed at highway speeds. He now is a happy owner of a 2.5L/8AT Camry.

After owning an older Mercedes as a spare vehicle for a short while I quickly learned that my tolerance for lighting money on fire is pretty low.

I think it's decent advice when people say to lease most Euro cars. Or, even better, just use something like Turo and go rent one for a few days every once in a while.

For long term ownership Toyota/Lexus is the way.

 

[edyvw]

I love your passion for Euro cars. They're amazing when they're fixed. But that passion seems to put some really thick pink shades over you bud. Here is just a couple examples of what I personally had to deal with, and why I'll take a base Versa with a manual over any VW.
- 2013 Tiguan. Timing chain, turbo twice, water pump, oil cooler twice, and a few pricey sensors along the way. Everything requires special tools, so not much of it was DIY. Lost over $7k on this piece of junk, and it wasn't even at 140k miles. But when it was fixed - it was amazing. Up until next thing breaks a week later.
- 2012 Jetta 2.slow. Aside from interior falling apart it was mostly ok. Until serpentine belt cut through an AC line and killed a radiator. Easy fix, right? Wrong. Knowing how wide the range of VW parts world is I made sure to look up every replacement part OEM and by VIN. Checked multiple times over. Once parts arrived - both were wrong, not even close to those in the car. So ended up removing old parts and dragging them to the store to part-match with the Made in Mexico junk from AAP and AutoZone. Did I mention these parts were twice the price of similar parts on my Japanese cars?
- 2014 Jetta TSi. Mechanically ok for now. Electrically - constant gremlins with sensors dying and magically reviving themselves, switches work whenever they feel like it, interior is falling apart just like the 2012 Jetta.
- This one I personally did not have to deal with, but taken straight from my coworker who is the one that dealt with this. He had a 2.5L Passat and 2.5L Rabbit. Both experienced a sudden death with no warning, when timing chains self destructed at highway speeds. He now is a happy owner of a 2.5L/8AT Camry.

I have 2011 Tiguan that in 110,000 had HVAC resistor failure ($5),at 60k one coil went bad (replaced all 4) and at 64k I preventively changed tensioner. Water pump changed at 68k, recall.
I had two personal Skoda Octavia tdi in Europe and probably in the last 15yrs 20 delivery VW’s.
My wife had that junk Sentra (i know, not Versa, but same POS). Control arms are just $10 cheaper than BMW 7 series of same year. Interior fell apart. I sold it in 2013, and got 2yrs old Tiguan that she still drives.
When someone tells me about sudden death I always remember my neighbor and her Sienna (I had one, 2015, costed me more than all cars together I owned last 15yrs). I could hear her clunking home from like 50 yards away. I tried to tell her to check suspension by starting conversation abput her car, just for her to tell me how that was best car she ever had and never had single issue.
One day she told me she went to mechanic bcs. she heard something (I was like: finally) and she said: “I just can’t believe it is $4,000.”
Yeah, when you neglect car, ANY car, brand new or beater, death comes suddenly.

 

[edyvw]

After owning an older Mercedes as a spare vehicle for a short while I quickly learned that my tolerance for lighting money on fire is pretty low.

I think it's decent advice when people say to lease most Euro cars. Or, even better, just use something like Turo and go rent one for a few days every once in a while.

For long term ownership Toyota/Lexus is the way.

So, since I am in CO, I had:
2010 VW CC (traded in with 127k, bought with 24k. Had to trade in bcs. first child. Not a single issue. Even water pump was original).
2011 Tiguan (still has).
2013 BMW X5 35d (bought thinking it will be sufficient for family needs. Second child prove me wrong. Still cannot get over the fact that I got rid of that car).
2015 Sequoia (second child).
2021 Atlas (that one had windshield issue. Got rid of it bcs. of that)
2011 BMW 328 xDdive. My primary DD and track vehicle. Has 156k. Since I got it with 84k had TPMS module failure.
2018 Sequoia (replaced Atlas).
2009 Pilot (still had it, drive maybe 1000mls a year as it is probably the most uncomfortable vehicle I ever drove. My in-laws drive when visit).

Guess which one was by far the most expensive to maintain?
Sienna. And all European carsI had combined were not that expensive.

 

[supton]

My VW was the most expensive car I owned, but I drove it the furthest, so that didn’t help. After 100k it needed something every 30k. Got rid when it needed a rear axle (how do they bend?) and was fearing the inevitable heater core repair. Never did understand how a flywheel could go bad, long before the clutch does…

But I suspect my 200k Toyota’s, I was probably ignoring a few (expensive) things towards the end.

 

[50yr Street Mech]

OK, back in the day, I was STRICTLY a GM guy.,,leaning toward Buick's & Oldsmobile's . Then the 80's came. The end of the Big Three. Decisions needed to be made. I chose Honda. Nothing fancy. Just something to get back and forth to work. Civic for me, Accord for the wife. 90's came and went, and so did Honda's quality. Nothing but problems with the 2000 + years of Honda...Did some homework. Toyota / Lexus came out on top. Homework paid off. My wallet is happy.

 

[mojoe]

I live 2 miles from work and I'm looking for a used, sub $4,000 dollar car which will allow me to keep my truck in the garage and not short tripped daily. This car must meet the following criteria: reliable, simple, manual trans, and seating for 4. I'm mechanically inclined and don't mind working on things.

Also before you comment, it's not a safe walk/bike ride to work and I wear a suit/tie.

What vehicles come to mind and why?

My search thus far has included the following in order of interest:
Honda Fit
Scion xB
Nissan Versa
Honda Civic
Mitsubishi Mirage
Ford Focus

Older used cars are always a gamble, but I don't think you can beat the quality and reliability of Toyota and Honda for your purpose and price range. I've had both, and relatively speaking, they are well designed and built, reliable, easy to work on and find parts for, and last forever. Honda Civic or Toyota Corolla would be hard to beat.

 

[GR_CoB]

So, since I am in CO, I had:
2010 VW CC (traded in with 127k, bought with 24k. Had to trade in bcs. first child. Not a single issue. Even water pump was original).
2011 Tiguan (still has).
2013 BMW X5 35d (bought thinking it will be sufficient for family needs. Second child prove me wrong. Still cannot get over the fact that I got rid of that car).
2015 Sequoia (second child).
2021 Atlas (that one had windshield issue. Got rid of it bcs. of that)
2011 BMW 328 xDdive. My primary DD and track vehicle. Has 156k. Since I got it with 84k had TPMS module failure.
2018 Sequoia (replaced Atlas).
2009 Pilot (still had it, drive maybe 1000mls a year as it is probably the most uncomfortable vehicle I ever drove. My in-laws drive when visit).

Guess which one was by far the most expensive to maintain?
Sienna. And all European carsI had combined were not that expensive.

I have 2011 Tiguan that in 110,000 had HVAC resistor failure ($5),at 60k one coil went bad (replaced all 4) and at 64k I preventively changed tensioner. Water pump changed at 68k, recall.
I had two personal Skoda Octavia tdi in Europe and probably in the last 15yrs 20 delivery VW’s.
My wife had that junk Sentra (i know, not Versa, but same POS). Control arms are just $10 cheaper than BMW 7 series of same year. Interior fell apart. I sold it in 2013, and got 2yrs old Tiguan that she still drives.
When someone tells me about sudden death I always remember my neighbor and her Sienna (I had one, 2015, costed me more than all cars together I owned last 15yrs). I could hear her clunking home from like 50 yards away. I tried to tell her to check suspension by starting conversation abput her car, just for her to tell me how that was best car she ever had and never had single issue.
One day she told me she went to mechanic bcs. she heard something (I was like: finally) and she said: “I just can’t believe it is $4,000.”
Yeah, when you neglect car, ANY car, brand new or beater, death comes suddenly.

If I remember correctly the Sienna was a clear case of user error. Complete such error on an X5, or Atlas, or Sequoia, or Pilot, and the repair bill will be same or more. Aside from that user error that broke your automatic hatch mechanism - what else on it was an expensive nightmare to service or repair? How many times did it leave you stranded? How many unexpected repairs did it have?

We truly appreciate your testimonials, but seems like most (not all, but most) of the people on this forum had a negative and often expensive negative experience with Euro cars.

 

[97prizm]

I live 2 miles from work and I'm looking for a used, sub $4,000 dollar car which will allow me to keep my truck in the garage and not short tripped daily. This car must meet the following criteria: reliable, simple, manual trans, and seating for 4. I'm mechanically inclined and don't mind working on things.

Also before you comment, it's not a safe walk/bike ride to work and I wear a suit/tie.

What vehicles come to mind and why?

My search thus far has included the following in order of interest:
Honda Fit
Scion xB
Nissan Versa
Honda Civic
Mitsubishi Mirage
Ford Focus

The Honda fit is a good option but I just don't see alot of them driving around. Of your list of vehicles the Honda Civic is probably the easiest to come by with a manual transmission. The Mitsubishi mirage was is the cheapest car on that list but they also dropped the manual option a few years ago plus not many Mitsubishi dealerships are around for service.

 

[97prizm]

I live 2 miles from work and I'm looking for a used, sub $4,000 dollar car which will allow me to keep my truck in the garage and not short tripped daily. This car must meet the following criteria: reliable, simple, manual trans, and seating for 4. I'm mechanically inclined and don't mind working on things.

Also before you comment, it's not a safe walk/bike ride to work and I wear a suit/tie.

What vehicles come to mind and why?

My search thus far has included the following in order of interest:
Honda Fit
Scion xB
Nissan Versa
Honda Civic
Mitsubishi Mirage
Ford Focus

The Dodge Dart might be an option as with the manual transmission they didn't really seem to have any issues just nobody was really interested in buying them.

 

[OVERKILL]

Drive what you want but VW's are the Chrysler's of Europe. Pretty terrible but somehow having a fan base that I assume have either Stockholm Syndrome or are just masochistic and enjoy the pain.

Boy, you are on a roll! I know edyvw asked you how many VW's you've owned, how many FCA/Stellantis products have you owned? I better go have a stern word with my SRT, because apparently it needs to become a pile of crap instead of a pile of fun!

 

[nwjones18]

I did it from the bottom laying on my back

I did mine from the bottom as well. Wasn't that bad.

 

[nwjones18]

I'll keep an eye on his inventory. I'm staying in ATL for a flight tomorrow, maybe I can drive on home upon my return flights next week!

I got my Mazda 3 from an incredibly shady little car lot near the auto auction in ATL. Place didn't even wash/clean them from auction. Just moved them as is.. haha