What new car would you get for $20k ?

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Without drivng priorities and best value is a Honda Accord 4cylinder or other midsize. It has much more staying power over the long term vs a small car. Its easy to outgrow a small car(Civic, Mazda3, Corolla etc) and they do not hold up over the long haul as well (8yrs/150k miles+).
 
I'd buy a 4-cyl Camry LE for $19k plus TTL.

I went and looked at the Civic EX. Was offered a little over $18k+ TTL for one. Maybe I was tired that day, or was just in a hurry, but I found the driving position tight for my 5'11" frame. It seemed as though it had less room that my Saturn...perhaps I should go back and take a second look.

One thing for sure though, the ride was harsh, though that could've been incorrect tire pressure on the test drive vehicle. Still, road noise was pretty bad...and the engine was noisy even at moderate throttle.

The car was more impressive on paper than in person.
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The Camry Hybrid I looked at before then truly impressed me in terms of quietness, ride, and room. I wouldn't mind spending an extra $500 over the Civic EX to get a base model Camry LE. Well worth the $$$ IMO.
 
I'm sure Camry's and Accords/Civics are dependable and good value for money, but to be a little different, and exciting/distinct: the mazda 6, Legacy, Outback are the best, imo...they have more "character", I think
 
We had an '05 Mazda6 base model automatic. We sold it to buy some case cars (#@$%! Dave Ramsey), but it was a very competent, fun-to-drive car, with the best brakes EVER! IIRC, the sticker was a hair under $20k, but it had $3k in rebates, and I paid right at invoice. I think out the door was about $17k.
 
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2.7L KIA Optima. Car & Driver raved about its solid body, build quality, and quiet ride. 5 yr./60K mile basic and 10 Yr./100K mile powertrain warranties Fortunately, it has NO domestic parts content.




But they'd rather have an Altima or an Accord (Feb 2007)!
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3 years ago, I picked the Mazda3. The Civic has changed a lot since then, and I'd definitely do another round of test drives if I were looking, but I'm guessing I'd end up with the 3 again.
 
The new four door, VW GTI, with the 200 Hp/207 ft-lb, 2.0L turbo and the six speed manual. Check out the doors on this thing, it's built like a tank w/ cold forged hinges. Excellent cloth covered sport seats, 225/45/17 tires, nice tight suspension and plenty of room. With some luck, you can even convince the wife it's an economy car (25 city/32 hwy).
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The Japanese cars in this price range are as reliable as a toaster - and almost as much fun to drive...;)

TD
 
I love my Scion tC. I got it loaded with options for ~$22k.
It's basically a retuned Camry (4cyl) and after one year and 16.5k miles, still very happy.
I don't think you can get as much for the money anywhere, but the Mazda 3 rocks and if you like the Civic's layout (dash, etc) it's also great.
 
Dodge Ram 1500 ST with the SXT package. 3.7L, auto, power windows and locks, cloth, carpet, and a decent AM/FM/CD radio for roughly $17,000 (dealers usually sell them for about that much).
 
I paid 21,300 for my Jetta TDI DSG automatic. I like the car very much, in fact, it is my favorite car ever! I have owned a few too! What I really like about it is the overall package is far more refined feeling. The cornering is fantastic with about .82-.84G typical (yes I have a G monitor) and the braking is equally good. It is far, far more of a car than the 05 civic 4D my niece has.

It is my first diesel, and I like that very much too. The torque makes it a joy to drive. It really shines in the mountains, but works well everywhere. The car is geared for high speeds at low RPM and will cruise at 90-100 all day at 1/4 throttle. Plus boost comes on instantly with the variable nozzle turbo. An absolute pleasure to live with. 42MPG actual highway at 90MPH. Now for the bad part, full throttle application gets very litte additional power out of it, just more RPM. SO, it is not a fast car by any means. Just easy to drive very quickly, as full throttle is rarely used. EXAMPLE: my wife got a ticket for out accelerating the other traffic! This is common behavior for this car.

It truly is a drivers car! Plus 600-625 miles per tank!

Chris
 
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The new four door, VW GTI, with the 200 Hp/207 ft-lb, 2.0L turbo and the six speed manual. Check out the doors on this thing, it's built like a tank w/ cold forged hinges. Excellent cloth covered sport seats, 225/45/17 tires, nice tight suspension and plenty of room. With some luck, you can even convince the wife it's an economy car (25 city/32 hwy).
smile.gif


The Japanese cars in this price range are as reliable as a toaster - and almost as much fun to drive...;)

TD



The optional DSG Transmission is excellent too...truly an engineering breakthrough. An APR Stage I ECU reflash will add another 20-30 whp to the crank, and about 250 lb-ft torque total...making it a complete blast to drive.

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I paid 21,300 for my Jetta TDI DSG automatic. I like the car very much, in fact, it is my favorite car ever!



Didn't the DSG Transmission just fail on you a few weeks ago?
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For that kind of money, you could be driving a 5spd 4cyl Accord. That would be my first choice.
If you look at actual vs sticker pricing, there are actually quite a few new cars 20K would cover, as well as new trucks, SUVs, minivans, and so on. It's all a matter of what you prefer.
 
I'd get an impreza RS. Great looking cars. For under 20k you can get one with a 6 speaker stereo system, moonroof, foglamps, 173 HP engine with AWD, and it gets 22/29 mpg, which is pretty decent for a full time AWD car. I consider it to be at the top tier of economy cars.
 
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I'd get an impreza RS. Great looking cars. For under 20k you can get one with a 6 speaker stereo system, moonroof, foglamps, 173 HP engine with AWD, and it gets 22/29 mpg, which is pretty decent for a full time AWD car. I consider it to be at the top tier of economy cars.




I was just gonna say but you were first. how come nobody mentioning this car???!! It's a steal with all this bang for the buck. As for others sugessting camrys, accords, impalas and legacys-don't these cars cost more than 20 thousand dollars? Cars sure gotten pricey now days. I'm leaning towards Civic vs Mazda3 vs Impreza 2.5i - drove them all and I think Impreza is the best one of them all. Civic got ugly inside and outside and Mazda seat and driving position is hard to get comfortable.
 
I don't like small cars or FWD cars. Dodge Charger would be my pick. Yes, you can get a brand new one for $20k.

Plenty of room. OK gas mileage (mid 20s). 250hp V6 engine. Fun to drive, with no annoying FWD torque steer.
 
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Ford Fusion
I4.auto Very good fuel milage, Great safety, low insurance cost.
Very high degree of customer satifaction. Build quality is exellent.
Nice ride/ Nice handling. A lot of room inside and in the trunk.




+1...Very nice car and first year reliability has been better that either the Camry or Accord.

Drew
 
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