Which car out of this list for $2500 ish cad

No Mazda due to terrible rust not only on surface but happens undercarriage.

The balance of vehicles look at condition at his price point. This is roll of dice. They ALL likely will have some sort of issue in next 2-3 years that is how it goes on cars that old.
 
Keep in mind those Matrix (not sure which years) the odometer stops at 299,999 KM. It's a defect and Toyota was not covering it.

The guy across the street had one for few years. Every year when renewing his tags he wrote down Odometer reading of 299,999. They are good cars, but that one point would be annoying if I owned one. Call me OCD.......
 
for the matrix and honda would u basically go in order of km driven? like if everything else is the same condition etc, then lower km one prefered? or do u think the matrix/vibe have better quality then the civ?

I think the Matrix/Vibe is better quality than the Civic. Also, the wagon/hatchback body has more space and utility
 
Keep in mind those Matrix (not sure which years) the odometer stops at 299,999 KM. It's a defect and Toyota was not covering it.

The guy across the street had one for few years. Every year when renewing his tags he wrote down Odometer reading of 299,999. They are good cars, but that one point would be annoying if I owned one. Call me OCD.......
Interesting never heard of this issue before.
 
Keep in mind those Matrix (not sure which years) the odometer stops at 299,999 KM. It's a defect and Toyota was not covering it.

The guy across the street had one for few years. Every year when renewing his tags he wrote down Odometer reading of 299,999. They are good cars, but that one point would be annoying if I owned one. Call me OCD.......

Interesting never heard of this issue before.

Every 03-08 Corolla, Matrix, and Vibe has the odometer problem. They all stop at 299999 and there is no fix. At least here in the US, it's 299999 miles, so it's less of a problem here. For the first few years, Toyota paid for a new cluster, parts and labor. Today, they might still pay for the cluster, but you have to pay for the labor to install the new one.

The board on the odometer is a88888 rather than 888888 like most odometers. The a for the first digit looks like it should be able to handle 399999, but they made it stop at 299999 for seemingly no reason.

Most digital odometers stop at 999999. Why do they do this? Why don't they roll over to zero? :mad::unsure:o_O
 
Every 03-08 Corolla, Matrix, and Vibe has the odometer problem. They all stop at 299999 and there is no fix. At least here in the US, it's 299999 miles, so it's less of a problem here. For the first few years, Toyota paid for a new cluster, parts and labor. Today, they might still pay for the cluster, but you have to pay for the labor to install the new one.

The board on the odometer is a88888 rather than 888888 like most odometers. The a for the first digit looks like it should be able to handle 399999, but they made it stop at 299999 for seemingly no reason.

Most digital odometers stop at 999999. Why do they do this? Why don't they roll over to zero? :mad::unsure:o_O
They probably saved a dollar per cluster by doing that.
 
IMO mileage once up over 100K makes no difference, it's about how they were maintained.

I've owned all those brands, multiples of the Honda, Toyota and Mazda.

The Honda's are the least reliable of those by a long shot. I'd go with the Vibe/Matrix followed by a Mazda. I would not go with a G5/6 or a Kia. I do like Hyundai/Kia but the one's i've owned just don't hold up for the long haul like a Toyota/Mazda can.

I've only owned 2 Ford's, not really a fan. They were actually pretty reliable but they way the engineer their stuff makes it hard to work on sometimes. I'd say my Toyota's have been my overall favorite, most reliable and easiest to maintain.
 
UPDATE
didnt get to see many vehicles today before it turned dark
honda civic - was not good, drove nice, but trannny fluid almost brown when its supposed to be red, owner doesnt know if its ever been changed at 225,000 km. also had some type of slight jolt when letting go of the accelerator at very slow speeds.
07 matrix - apparently has 230k km on the whole body and vehicle but engine was replaced last year with a lower km engine. the km is unknown on the engine but owner said the km is lower on engine then the car. drove it around and felt very bumpy from the back area. has some body damage but no big deal cuz price is good.

sadly not sure if we will even be able to see the 200k vibe cuz the owner doesnt have time till weekend
 
i wanted to add
does a 2007 jetta 2.5l with 210,000 km change anyones opinion? like is this a good car compared to the toyota and mazda?
or a 2009 mazda 3 with 230k km?

are these options decent?

thx

You really have to look at these cars in person. You haven't mentioned anything that has any known catastrophic design issues that would rule it out. At this price point, you're really buying on condition. If it passes your inspection, have a shop take a look at it to make sure there isn't any hidden underbody rust, the front end is tight, the brakes aren't leaking and there aren't any other major mechanical or safety related issues you missed. A second set of professional eyes are always a good thing.
 
You really have to look at these cars in person. You haven't mentioned anything that has any known catastrophic design issues that would rule it out. At this price point, you're really buying on condition. If it passes your inspection, have a shop take a look at it to make sure there isn't any hidden underbody rust, the front end is tight, the brakes aren't leaking and there aren't any other major mechanical or safety related issues you missed. A second set of professional eyes are always a good thing.

Thanks! I’m fine with sacrificing on condition as long as mechanically the car is perfect.
Example the only reason we are getting a Toyota Matrix in our price range is cuz the body has some damage. Doesn’t seem to be rusting tho and j checked underneath and everything looks good.

its just hard for me to swallow the pill of choosing a 230k Toyota over a 160k Pontiac g6 for example. It just seems like a no brainer to choose the lower km car but then again I’m not a Mechanic
 
Thanks! I’m fine with sacrificing on condition as long as mechanically the car is perfect.
Example the only reason we are getting a Toyota Matrix in our price range is cuz the body has some damage. Doesn’t seem to be rusting tho and j checked underneath and everything looks good.

its just hard for me to swallow the pill of choosing a 230k Toyota over a 160k Pontiac g6 for example. It just seems like a no brainer to choose the lower km car but then again I’m not a Mechanic

It all depends on the condition, I'd take a higher mileage but well cared for car over a lower mileage one that someone didn't care for.
 
i wanted to add
does a 2007 jetta 2.5l with 210,000 km change anyones opinion? like is this a good car compared to the toyota and mazda?
or a 2009 mazda 3 with 230k km?

are these options decent?

thx
I know several Jetta owners they are always working on them. I would not get a Jetta personally.
 
i wanted to add
does a 2007 jetta 2.5l with 210,000 km change anyones opinion? like is this a good car compared to the toyota and mazda?
or a 2009 mazda 3 with 230k km?

are these options decent?

thx

most likely no

Don't even consider a German car. They're not reliable even when new. No VW or other European car you can get for $2500 is worth buying.

The Mazda is prone to rust. If your example is rust-free, you will have to get Krown done.

These Echos are worth considering. The red Yaris I found earlier looks good too
 
Back
Top