Car for My College Kid < $6K

[darent]

No, when I say "program" they're previous rentals, all 10's, auto, w/ the heated seats...no sticks for "program cars".

The car you're describing would be taken in on trade, and wouldn't be that much cheaper (right now) than a new one. That's why I mentioned that the used car market has been turned upside down, In fact, the NADA books (the god of all used car values) sent out an email basically stating to throw them out...they don't even know what's going on.

I sit online at these auctions and just shake my head.....it's going to be an interesting year.

the 2000 outback I have now was a program or leased car, It was three years old with 28K when I bought it, I am looking to get a 2009 4cyl mt with a winter package/I want a 2009 because the 2010 is butt ugly and drives like a marshmellow

 

[campgottagopee]

I'm not sure if it still holds true but for the first few years after title 9 was enacted, if a girl could break 80 she could get a full ride...

You should've made JR wear a skirt!!! :smile:

 

[campgottagopee]

the 2000 outback I have now was a program or leased car, It was three years old with 28K when I bought it, I am looking to get a 2009 4cyl mt with a winter package/I want a 2009 because the 2010 is butt ugly and drives like a marshmellow

Gotcha, you're looking for an off lease car. Plenty of them out there, but in a stick, well, that will be hard to find...good luck in your search.

 

[wa-loaf]

the 2000 outback I have now was a program or leased car, It was three years old with 28K when I bought it, I am looking to get a 2009 4cyl mt with a winter package/I want a 2009 because the 2010 is butt ugly and drives like a marshmellow

Gotcha, you're looking for an off lease car. Plenty of them out there, but in a stick, well, that will be hard to find...good luck in your search.

Want my 05? Got all the winter stuff, 5 speed, runs great, 92k, just has an impending HG job .... ;-)

 

[pro2860]

You should've made JR wear a skirt!!! :smile:

hahaha...I'm sure he wouldn't have minded :roll: And of course my daughter didn't LIKE golf:-x

 

[darent]

If they do that I want my $2000 back...

I had heard that if you pressure subaru you can deal on the head gasket repair. has anyone heard that. I have 65000 on mine and every thing is Ok so far would like to trade up soon though

 

[darent]

Want my 05? Got all the winter stuff, 5 speed, runs great, 92k, just has an impending HG job .... ;-)

my 2000 has 65000, to many miles loaf

 

[deadheadskier]

Nantucket must be a great place to pick up a low mileage used vehicle. Can't really drive all that far.

 

[darent]

Nantucket must be a great place to pick up a low mileage used vehicle. Can't really drive all that far.

It is my off island car, drive it mostly in the winter to go skiing. my inlaws live in hanover mass on the south shore so my non winter miles are low

 

[ChileMass]

Thanks to camp and everyone else for the input. I decided to lease a 2011 Jetta SE from VW for my daughter. 39 month/ 10K per year lease for $2700 down (including all acq fees) and $189 a month. All maintenance paid for, so that's a bonus. It's the cheaper option to get her into a good car. She can buy it for $11K at the end of the lease, which is still a good bargain. I'm satisfied.

Thanks again fior the advice.....

 

[campgottagopee]

Nice, glad it worked out....bet she's real pumped to have a new whip!!!

 

[hammer]

Bump for discussion...been recently looking for a used car for our 16YO daughter and it's been hard to find something less than 100K miles and less than $10K. Will admit that we've been looking at new car dealers which makes for more expensive cars, but we've been going on the assumption that the new car dealers for the most part would auction off trade-ins in questionable condition.

We were close to negotiating price on a newer Mazda3 with high miles, but on the test drive we noticed a chirping sound which the dealer says is from the AC compressor. Since the AC is working OK otherwise they aren't willing to do a repair. Did like the car overall although the base model is underpowered...not to my liking but fine for around town teen driving.

Think otherwise we have narrowed it down to a compact vehicle, think something similar in size (Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, etc.) would be good for getting around in.

May just take a while.

 

[JimG.]

My 2 oldest sons now drive...wait until you get her the car and get your first insurance bill!

The last used car I bought was a 2004 Honda Accord with 69,000 miles on it; paid $8500. That was at the Honda dealer in Tarrytown NY. Bought it last September. I stick to dealers only. You can look at their inventory online and get a feel for how much negotiating you can do. The Honda was listed at $10,500; give them a lowball price, know what you are willing to pay, and be ready to get up and leave if you don't hear what you want.

You can find cars with less than 100K for less than 10K, but they will most likely be older cars, figure 2004-2005. Forget about cars coming off lease; you might as well just buy a new car. You are doing the right thing taking test drives and checking for potential problems. You will not find a perfect used car, so be willing to compromise on issues other than reliability.

I find it easy to spot a creampuff even if it is old. The Honda was obviously well maintained, it ran like new and still does. The body was flawless except for very minor hail damage and the previous owner had used touch up paint on any scratches. The tires were new. The brakes were smooth and quiet. Hondas are good used car buys. I have also had good success with Subarus...my oldest son drives a 2005 Outback that had 67,000 miles on it that I paid $10,000 for and I previously owned a 2004 Outback I bought with 71,000 on it that I drove until it had 350,000 miles on it...that one cost me $9,500. I would still have that car if it had not been totalled by a teenage girl texting; she rear ended me at about 40 MPH while I was stopped at a school crossing.

Anyway, you have to shop around, but it can be done for $10,000 or less.

 

[hammer]

I previously owned a 2004 Outback I bought with 71,000 on it that I drove until it had 350,000 miles on it...that one cost me $9,500. I would still have that car if it had not been totalled by a teenage girl texting; she rear ended me at about 40 MPH while I was stopped at a school crossing.

Ouch, hope there were no serious injuries...

 

[xwhaler]

We were close to negotiating price on a newer Mazda3 with high miles, but on the test drive we noticed a chirping sound which the dealer says is from the AC compressor. Since the AC is working OK otherwise they aren't willing to do a repair. Did like the car overall although the base model is underpowered...not to my liking but fine for around town teen driving.

My daily driver is a 2006 Mazda 3...used to be the wife's car but when we got an SUV we kept the Mazda rather than trading it in. I drive approx 80 miles/day for work so it's a good comfortable car for commuting.
No issues to speak on the vehicle whatsoever...have done the normal routine maintenance (brake pads, plugs, tires) but nothing out of the ordinary. Steering still feels nice and tight and I have little doubt that the car will continue to be good to me.
It's gotten synthetic oil every 7500 miles since new and with 146k on the clock we've been real happy with it.

I've seen some Mazda 3's in this age range with significant rust issues (esp under the wheel wells) so you will want to look for that but otherwise I think Mazda makes great cars.

 

[JimG.]

Ouch, hope there were no serious injuries...

None to me, she left on a gurney in an ambulance. The school crossing guard almost had a heart attack...he was about 5 feet from my car when she hit me.

 

[hammer]

So after about a month of scouring dealer lots and factoring in some requirements creep (and cost) we settled on a 2010 Ford Focus. It won't win any speed races but it appears to be in great shape, it has ABS (which a lot of used compact cars may or may not have), it has all the modern conveniences (including bluetooth and iPod connectivity) and should do fine getting our daughter around. We looked at Mazda3s, Civics, Corollas, and an Impreza (and a few others) but in all honesty they were either too expensive ($15K and up) or they were high mileage and looked like they lived a rough life. There's a lot of price inflation out there right now IMO and in all honesty there are a lot of crap cars out there as well.