Cheap, low mileage vehicle, have some questions.

[JustinH]

Hey Guys.

Myself and my longtime girlfriend are moving from Buffalo, NY to Phoenix, AZ this summer.

She is finishing up her masters program, and I am going to be applying for a real job, after years of temp work and thankless IT jobs.

Basically, we are getting rid of our vehicles, and I am getting into something late model, low mileage, and CHEAP.

Needs to be under 9000 or 9500 dollars, I am paying cash.

I am selling my 98 roush f150, and a 96 custom supercharged thunderbird, then buying a cheap commuter car to drive for a few years, and investing the rest of the money, so that we can buy a HOUSE in one years time in Arizona.

Times have changed for me, and so have priorities. I'm 24 years old now, btw.

Anyways.

I was looking at Scion xB's. To get into a 06 with low mileage, I would be right around 10k dollars, which is a bit over my budget.

Again, I don't want a payment of any kind, I want to pay cash, and have a cheap car that I can drive to and from the office that will be excellent on gas, and reliable.

I was looking at the focus, but the overall quality of that thing has me wondering about it alot. Also, I really don't like the interior. I could get a 06 focus with under 5k miles for under 9 grand cash.

Finally, I took a look at the Cobalts and Ions.

I like the styling of the Ion more than the Cobalt, but there are far more Cobalts in the used market than Ion, so with the Cobalt, it ends up being cheaper, and the Ion ends up being out of my price range slightly.

I was looking at a red 05 cobalt for 8500 dollars, with under 2k miles on the clock.

I'm really thinking this is the car to get.

The ecotech motor seems better than the ford offerings.

The 5 speed trans is sourced from saab (not sure if thats a good thing), and GM got rid of the CVT trans in favor of a GM automatic in 05 (i'm sure thats a good thing).

My girlfriends mother has a base cobalt, and the thing is good basic transportation.

What do you guys think?

Get a cobalt with the stick, or a cobalt with the automatic?

I don't mind driving either, i'm intersted purely in reliability.

Thanks,
Justin

 

[SargeGTO]

Buy a new Z06. Go into debt up to your eyeballs. Have a blast.

 

[ThirdeYe]

Toyota Corolla.

 

[SrDriver]

Hyundai Accent.

 

[Merkurwwu]

Go for a Focus, and try get get one with a manual trans. We have an '06 SES and it has been great in the 10k we've put on it (other than a $6k smash in the back end). I'm not sure what about the interior would make you think it's lower quality when comparing it to other cheap cars(and I emphasize CHEAP to avoid comparing a $9k Focus to a $17k Civic)-(although, if you were looking at a base model, it is really quite "BASE" and cheap.) The '05 and newer Foci have a Mazda engine and transmission and you should have a 100k transferrable powertrain warranty.

The shifter is slick, the steering is pretty tight, the SES's lower-profile tires make for great turn-in, the seats are comfy and we got 35mpg on a run to visit the fam over Easter, plus it rides pretty nice and the road noise is better than expected. For the money, the Focus is going to give you the most bang for the buck, you'll actually enjoy driving it, and if it's anything like our first Focus, a 2001 SE that we bought new and ran to 150k, it'll change your opinion of Ford.

But, if at all possible, and I can't say this enough, go for a manual transmission. The automatic saps every last bit of fun out of the car, makes the engine sound like it's laboring at EVERY RPM and slows the car down considerably

 

[Ramblin Fever]

You won't find a low mileage, newer Toyota corolla for less then 11k, but you might with a hyundai if you look hard enough.

Me, i'd go for the 5-spd, an automatic *car* 4-cylinder is no fun to drive.

 

[Rotarydave]

I agree with Merkurwwu on getting a Focus. The Mazda powertrain(MZR/Duratec motors) in the new models are second to none in my book.

 

[mstrjon32]

Cobalt is an excellent little car. Go with the 5-speed manual, I've got a friend who has one and she LOVES it.

I would NOT buy a Corolla (though I have nothing against the Camry, other than personal opinion that it's ugly) or a Hyundai. Focus isn't a bad car either. Maybe a used Civic. You definately won't go wrong with the Cobalt, though. You might also be able to find a cheap Pontiac G6.

 

[ThirdeYe]

Why wouldn't you buy a Corolla? Just curious, they're great cars.

 

[Mr Nice]

Corolla, Matrix, Civic, Vibe

 

[2003TRD]

we own a 2002 focus ZTS with 50K miles average 28mpg mostly city and we have had no problems what so ever. I am very pleased with it so far.

 

[2003TRD]

Also, edmunds voted for the mazda 3 in the economy car class, they said it beat the new civic in every category that involved moving. LOL

 

[mstrjon32]

Quote:

---

Why wouldn't you buy a Corolla? Just curious, they're great cars.

---

IMO, it wanders all over the road on the highway and is very noisy, it also just felt like a tin can overall. Maybe the newer ones are better, but the one I drove I was very unimpressed with. The only thing the Corolla has going for it is fuel economy.

Honestly, overall I will admit that the Civic will probably deliver better fuel economy and less problems than a Cobalt, but if he can get a Cobalt for that price; in my opinion, the Civic isn't worth the difference.

If you can believe it, I came very close to buying a Civic as my next car. The main thing that stopped me was the fact that I was too tall for the thing, and the fact I was able to get such a good deal on my current vehicle.

GM depreciation might be bad for new car buyers, but it's excellent for people who are fine with owning a car that only has a few thousand miles on it and saving thousands and thousands of dollars.

As for the Focus, I've heard many people say good things about them, but the one time I was in one, I didn't think it was any better than a Civic/Cobalt.

 

[Anduril]

Yaris? Other than that, I'd say Cobalt or Focus.

 

[mstrjon32]

Mazda3 is a very nice car too. Had a friend who used to have a 5-door, it ended up getting totaled. Before it got totaled, however, it was a very nice car. IIRC, it wasn't the best on fuel economy, not bad, though.

 

[smokey1]

2000 - 02 Prizm's are a cheaper alternative to a COROLLA , same engine and tranny , 5 speed PRIZM gets us a 35 m.p.g. average for the year . Other good alternative is 2000-02 FORD ESCORT , inexpensive used , better than the FOCUS in handling , dependability , and is part MAZDA ( PROTEGE', 323 I believe ) . The '99 ESCORT 5 speed we had averaged 34 m.p.g. and had a nice ride , along w/ a deep trunk , would buy another ESCORT in a heartbeat (already have 2 cars ,2000 PRIZM and '07 PRIUS ).3rd would be a charm

. Good Luck

 

[ThirdeYe]

Good point, forgot about the Geo version.

 

[Anduril]

Yeah, it's the same car, just a cheaper price tag.

 

[BrianWC]

I agree, Corolla/Geo or Matrix/Vibe. Don't know if any Vibes have made it that cheap but surely....

I've had a saab 5-speed, btw. It's fine.

 

[Diesel_Clatter]

I drive a 2007 ION with 5spd and my wife drives a 2006 Corolla with automatic, both bought new.

The ION gets absolutely no respect in common wisdom or the media but, so far, it has impressed me in direct comparison to the Corolla.

The ION is quieter than the Corolla. The ION has a much nicer ride than the Corolla and a far more comfortable (subjective I know) driving position.

I really like the ION's electric steering (better than the Corollas hydraulic) despite much propaganda to the contrary. The plastic body is also very nice IMO for its rust and dent resistance. It is a dream changing the oil on the ION because of the cartridge filter and built in drain plug seal.

The Corolla takes the lead in rear seat comfort and mpg of course. The ION has a bigger trunk.

Both cars have had no major mechanical issues although the Corolla quickly developed a very (VERY!) annoying rattle in the drivers side b-pillar area. The ION emits an occasional creak from the drivers seat.

It took me quite a while to get to the point where I actually enjoyed the ION's manual transmission but I am happy to say that I have made the adjustment and now it is fine.

The point, I suppose, is don't give up on the ION. Their lack of respect should help your ability to pick one up for a reasonable price.

Assuming the manual transmission Cobalt shares much of the ION's characteristics then that gets my second vote.

Don't think the Corolla is a bad car or anything and long term is still unclear but I do know you won't find one cheap unless you go the Prizm route mentioned earlier.