New car time ~UPDATE

[AllGOnoSHOW]

Re: New car time

Know what? My fiance loves the 00-04 Jettas. But the idea of working on a German car intimidates me for some reason. I know the electricals, etc are a little more complex and I think maintenance/parts would be a little more expensive.

Btw didn't I meet the guy you're talking about at IA? Had a red GTI and girlfriend who was bored the whole time? lol

And yeah I remember seeing your wife's Passat at that ****ty Motel 6. Looked good for having so many miles.

Yes that was him. He is a very laid back guy but sometimes his girlfriend can really be a... well loud lol. That is correct you did see her Passat there which we actually bought from Chris (the VW mech/advocate) which was is prestine condition except for the rear drivers quarter panel which was like that when he bought the car. I've seen him work on new and older VW's and has owned numerous VW's including an MK4, 2 or 3 Mk2's, an MK3 and the Passat. He now owns the MK2 with a VR6 swap and also his MK4 VR6 and his GF's 90 Audi convertable. He never talked about having trouble with them. Actually the only car he ever had trouble working on was my damn accord haha. He said all the VW's have been so much easier to work on. As for price of parts him and I have compared numerous prices on parts between the VW's and my accord and they are pretty much the same in most areas but I do remember him talking about some parts being a lot more exspensive as well as some parts being a lot cheaper in regards to VW vs my Accord.

 

[RedRyder]

Re: New car time

^Yeah sorry I didn't remember his name. Should have though, seeing as how it's my own.

I think part of one's perspective is their firsthand, or secondhand, experience with a car. Like some of my thoughts on VW's, and more specifically Jettas, is due to my cousin, whose wife drove a previous gen Jetta (I don't know VW's generations but it was an 00-04). My cousin, who is an engineer, worked at Timken, fashioned a silencer for his .22 rifle out of a Maglight flashlight among other machined parts, and knows classic MG's and Porsche's due to owning a few and completely rebuilding them always talked about how terribly made the Jetta was and how he hated working on it, etc etc. So I go off what I heard. But that was only one car in the line up and not all models are the same. Like our V6 autos are known for sucking, but mine's been good so far.

I dunno, we'll see what happens.

 

[ryan s]

Re: New car time

If she did go for that, it would have to be an 01-02. I would assume those would be just as reliable than the 04-08? Definitely true about the 1G RL and other Japanese made trannies.

Know what? My fiance loves the 00-04 Jettas. But the idea of working on a German car intimidates me for some reason. I know the electricals, etc are a little more complex and I think maintenance/parts would be a little more expensive.

i think my parents got the crv for $15k when it was 3 years old...it had higher miles, maybe 45-50k? these days, its not too bad. creeping up on 60k (drove it wednesday) and its only needed routine stuff...brakes and tires and the rest. you should be able to find the newer style in your price range, maybe $2k over $10k. i know ive seen a couple for $13k but i wasn't really looking...they just popped up

the first style crvs were civics, through and through i cant recall hearing anything bad about them...rear diffs cooking if the fluid isnt changed? maybe thats what i'm thinking of

goodness, 99.5-05 vws are some of the worst cars on the road i wouldn't buy a 1.8t car with your money...

the thing about (good) german cars is that they neeeeeeeed certain things done around a certain mileage/time interval (like timing belts are 100k/7 years or whatever). it's not "replace as they go bad" generally. so if you want to simply gas n go, japanese car all the way. euro cars aren't necessarily harder to work on...they just need different tools and diagnostic software and stuff. theres already 2 "honda only" tools you need for your car...crank pulley holder and ball joint popper.

 

[AllGOnoSHOW]

Re: New car time

i think my parents got the crv for $15k when it was 3 years old...it had higher miles, maybe 45-50k? these days, its not too bad. creeping up on 60k (drove it wednesday) and its only needed routine stuff...brakes and tires and the rest. you should be able to find the newer style in your price range, maybe $2k over $10k. i know ive seen a couple for $13k but i wasn't really looking...they just popped up

the first style crvs were civics, through and through i cant recall hearing anything bad about them...rear diffs cooking if the fluid isnt changed? maybe thats what i'm thinking of

goodness, 99.5-05 vws are some of the worst cars on the road i wouldn't buy a 1.8t car with your money...

the thing about (good) german cars is that they neeeeeeeed certain things done around a certain mileage/time interval (like timing belts are 100k/7 years or whatever). it's not "replace as they go bad" generally. so if you want to simply gas n go, japanese car all the way. euro cars aren't necessarily harder to work on...they just need different tools and diagnostic software and stuff. theres already 2 "honda only" tools you need for your car...crank pulley holder and ball joint popper.

Eh, well I hear what your saying. Haters gonna hate. . Screw the 1.8 the vr6 is where It's at.

Anyways back on topic. Sorry Chris

 

[RedRyder]

Update. Between walking around at a few dealers and me showing her cars online, I've narrowed it down. Still haven't decided on car or suv though, but I think she'll go either way at this point.

Her favorite car seems to be the 03-09 Corolla (either generation). She likes the Mazda3 hatch/sedan but she has more trust in a Honda/Toyota and I know nothing about Mazda. Anyone know much about reliability/durability of Mazda's cars? She doesn't like the Civic. Oh and I've looked high and low for a 7GA for $11k or under, but none of them have low enough mileage.

If we go the SUV route, it will be most likely be a 2000-2002 CRV or RAV4, maybe a 2000 4Runner (last year they made the 4cyl).

So those are the contenders, any thoughts? Esp on Mazda's, I know nothing of them other than MSN autos seems to rate the 3 well.

 

[fastflyinaccord]

It's too bad she doesn't like Ford. My parents have an 04 Escape and it is a great car. Extremely reliable, decent gas mileage, and it looks good too

 

[ryan s]

she doesn't have to like ford...just buy a mazda tribute and dont tell her its a ford

from all ive heard, the escape/tribute is either a love or hate...my aunt liked hers, and i knew a dude who hated his woman's. can't remember what my aunt bought to replace her escape...in any case, its now my cousin's

 

[DarkSideAccord]

yess.... my mazda 3 is in teh running

mazda quality is miss or hit (esp the rx8), but the mazda 3's are well built

 

[nyknick1015]

keep looking for a 7th gen and beat them down at the HONDA dealership... dont go to the side dealerships... you wont get deals there... i just got my 04 with 75k on it for $8800 no accidents and a limited warranty from honda... there are deals out there, u just gotta look for em

mazda, a lot of the new ones are really attractive especially the mazda 3 hatch but im almost positive that that car might me streching your budget a bit

and the corolla is a good car even though i hate it... you can def get a late model corolla for around 10

 

[RedRyder]

It's too bad she doesn't like Ford. My parents have an 04 Escape and it is a great car. Extremely reliable, decent gas mileage, and it looks good too

Yeah that's a good suggestion, it's unfortunate we've both had bad experiences with Fords.

she doesn't have to like ford...just buy a mazda tribute and dont tell her its a ford

from all ive heard, the escape/tribute is either a love or hate...my aunt liked hers, and i knew a dude who hated his woman's. can't remember what my aunt bought to replace her escape...in any case, its now my cousin's

lol too bad she knows that Ford owns Mazda. My uncle likes his Tribute though.

yess.... my mazda 3 is in teh running

mazda quality is miss or hit (esp the rx8), but the mazda 3's are well built

Yep it is haha. I'm going to do more reading on the 3. I like the way it looks more than a Corolla, but not sure if she does. But I have to remember at the end of the day, this care is not for me lol.

keep looking for a 7th gen and beat them down at the HONDA dealership... dont go to the side dealerships... you wont get deals there... i just got my 04 with 75k on it for $8800 no accidents and a limited warranty from honda... there are deals out there, u just gotta look for em

Yeah I'll try another Honda dealer. I mean she would want a 4cyl auto sedan with 70k miles or less...seems like that should exist for under $10, but no luck so far. Is yours certified pre-owned, thus the liimited warranty?

mazda, a lot of the new ones are really attractive especially the mazda 3 hatch but im almost positive that that car might me streching your budget a bit

and the corolla is a good car even though i hate it... you can def get a late model corolla for around 10

We'd be looking at the older Mazda3 sedan/hatches. I like the way they look more than a Corolla, but I want to make sure it's a well built car. I don't want her to have to deal with major problems, frankly she doesn't have the patience for it. And I have enough to deal with with my own car. lol

I agree the Corolla is blah, but she seems to really like it. It's probably what she'll end up with if we don't find anything better. Psh, girls.