Vehicle suggestions

[wolf_Q]

Originally posted by popcornbird


Amy, have you considered a Volkswagon Jetta.......or Passat? Passats might be a little pricey, but Jettas are excellent too, and they're great, reliable cars. I drive my brother's Passat and its so smoothe and easy to handle. I love it! Whatever you do, don't even consider getting a Ford Taurus. We used to have one, and it was an ultimate nightmare.

Hmm I do like VW's, I'll have to look into those.......

We had the most horrible Ford Taurus as well. Just because of that car I would never even THINK of buying a ford!

[Blustang24]

Amy,

Either way you look...Toyota, Honda, or Saturn, they are all excellent vehicles. Toyotas and Hondas last forever...they just don't want to give up. So, used toyotas and hondas will be okay too! I use to want a Saturn, but they stopped making the model I wanted before I got a chance to get it. I have only heard good things about them. I know quite a few families and friends of mine who have only had Saturns and will only ever have saturns. The only reason they get a new one is because they like a newer model...lol. If you're parents are willing to help you, sometimes in the long run it's better to buy new. Especially with 0.0%APR on a lot of vehicles or 1.9% up to 4.9%. Some also get the low APR PLUS cash back too. It's something to think about. ALSO.....if you do change your mind to new buy GAP insurance with it. If you were to total your car the GAP insurance would pay for the difference between what you owe and what it was worth before the crash. I don't get a car without it. If you need anything else just PM if you want! Hope this helps.

[Blustang24]

Jettas are nice cars too. When I thought my car was totalled I was looking at those and Ford Explorer Sport Tracs

[Pam]

I have a Honda CR-V and LOVE it! My husband is pretty much a Japanese car guy. We have mostly owned Toyotas and Nissans (he drives a 350Z right now), and my CR-V is our first Honda. I would get another one in a heartbeat. I also love the Toyota RAV-4's. I looked at them before getting my Honda and the CR-V has a tad bit more room and lots of neat storage compartments. I would say that you will probably be happy with any of the ones you listed. My hubby would say "buy Japanese." LOL! Good luck!

[Twisterdog]

Toyotas, Hondas and Volkswagens are all great cars.

I currently own a Toyota (well, it's a Geo, but it has a Toyota engine) and it has been the BEST car I've ever owned - not a single problem, even a minor one, in nine years of steady driving. My firend's mom has an ancient Toyota that is approaching 300,000 miles. Seriously.

I also currently own two Volkswagens, and I love my little VW's!

I've never owned a Honda, but I wouldn't hesitate to buy one at all. My niece had a CRX that was a great little car for many years.


I would highly recommend avoiding American cars. I have especially witnessed and heard of Ford horror stories. I have a Dodge van for work - timing chain broke before 70,000 miles. My brother-in-laws Ford truck's engine block cracked at 50,000 miles. I had a Ford Escort in college that went through three carborators in a single year. My best friend had a Taurus that had everything possible wrong with it within the first few years she owned it.

OTOH, I have a 24 year old Chevy Camaro that is my baby. Other than a slight transmission seal leak, it still runs like a dream.

[shais_mom]

I love Honda's. I think they are great Cars.
I would love a Honda Element b/c they seem practical with pets.

I have a Olds Alero and I love it. It is 3 years old and I think its great. I drove it and a Saturn and chose the Alero. It was more solidly built. Not that the Saturn wasn't a nice car or Isn't a nice car I just liked the Alero better.
My sister had a Chevy Sprint in College that was one of the ugliest cars ever but she loved it. It sounded like a sewing maching when it ran and it got 65 miles to the gallon!!

[Aspen and Misty]

Hmm, we are looking at a Ford Taurus, it's a 97...might need to re-think this. Can anyone tell me why they didn't like it??

Thanx a WHOLE bunch!

Ash

ps: Amy, I hope you find the perfect car! Car shopping STINKS!

[popcornbird]

Originally posted by Aspen and Misty
Hmm, we are looking at a Ford Taurus, it's a 97...might need to re-think this. Can anyone tell me why they didn't like it??

We had a 95 Ford Taurus that we bought when it was 3 years old.......pretty new for a car. It had 40,000 miles when we bought it. It ALWAYS had oil leaks, and no matter how many times we got it fixed, the oil continued to leak. First year, the transmission died. It costed thousands of dollars to fix it. Second year, the engine started giving problems. At the end of the year, the transmission died again. My dad couldn't take it anymore, so he got it fixed, made it all nice, and sold it. Do yourself a favor and DON'T get a Ford Taurus. The only good thing they have are comfortable seats, but otherwise, its a nightmare of a car. I would highly recommend getting a VW Passat. We've had one for 4 years and never had a problem with it. Its still like a brand new car. Runs great, looks great, and is known to be a great, reliable car. I personally like Toyota Camry's and Honda Accords too, but I would take a VW over them.

[Aspen and Misty]

We don't have alot of money to spend on a car. So when a Taurus came along in our price rang we were like SWEET!!! LOL, I told my dad what you said and we aren't sure weither we will get it or not. The machanic is checking it out tomrrow. We just want a reliable car! LOL!!

Thanx a bunch!

Anyone else?

Ash

[wolf_Q]

We had several problems with our Taurus, I KNOW the transmission was a constant problem for us as well....it was several years ago so I don't remember everything, but I remember that much.

Thanks again everyone for the replies! I am taking in all of your advice and suggestions!

[Aspen and Misty]

Originally posted by wolf_Q
We had several problems with our Taurus, I KNOW the transmission was a constant problem for us as well....it was several years ago so I don't remember everything, but I remember that much.

Thanx for your help Amy! My dad is going to take it in and Ask there opinion (I told him no better advice then from someone who has owned the car before!)

I hope you have better luck then we have been!!!


Ash

[neko1]

I have a Jeep Liberty Sport and hubby drives a Saturn. Both are great, we've never had any problems with either. I love my Jeep, it's the best car...er shall I say suv...I've ever had

[Nomilynn]

As you know, I just bought a 92 Camry (named Tobias). The thing you need to remember with Toyotas, is the REAL age of the car is based on how many miles it has. If you can find a older Camry like early 90s like mine, but the mileage is REALLY low, it basically will be like a brand new car. I did a LOT of research when I was ready to buy a new car, and this is what I found out. Basically if you want the best for your money, go with Toyota. Make sure it has no rust and has been mantained.. the key to those cars is very regular oil changes and maintenance. If you go to a dealer, ask if they have a maintenance record. Second best but very close behind is Honda. Not AS great IMO, but still very nice cars. I almost bought a 97 Accord but the mileage between that and my Toyota made that decision easy. The other thing I found out was that a Saturn is the highest rated domestic auto for things like safety, reliabilty, etc etc. They didn't have a saturn that I liked at the dealership, as I was looking at used and I didn't want a station wagon, but it was something I would have considered if they had a nicer model on the lot.

My Camry is a 4cyl; it gets 600km to the tank.. in miles that's about 360. For a midsize family car, that's really good mileage. It is very roomy and has HUGE trunk, and the seats do fold down. I think Nebo plus a doggy pal would fit comfortably in the backseat. Really, there hasn't been one thing with my Camry that I don't like. I don't think I'll ever buy another "brand" again.. I'm definatly a Toyota fan. Look at it this way.. Nathan has a '83 celica. It has 395,000km or about 237,000miles on it. Before he got it, it was NOT maintained, it has been in at least 1 bad accident, has been stolen, is rusted out on the back fender, but that little car is like old faithful. It starts every morning without fail!! And he puts about 2000km on it a MONTH!! (That's about 1200 miles).

[spunkadelic]

I own a 2003 Suzuki Vitara and I will probably never buy another brand other than Suzuki. I recently got into my first accident and I can honestly tell you that if I had been in my old Dodge Neon I probably would have been hurt a lot worse. I got rear-ended by a drunk driver and let me tell you, the sound still reverberates in my head. The damage to the exterior was minimal (due to the well built quality) although the undercarriage was slightly damaged.

It is a small SUV, perfect for a lady or a small man. Very affordable too. I purchased the truck brand new for just over 14,000 (US) - and it was my first car through a dealer. Dealing with Suzuki has been a Godsend and they have done everything for me that I could have possibly ever asked them to. I have to give them a five star rating.

The truck itself is a 4 cylender(sp?) [The 2004 is a 6 cylender or whatever], four door "wagon". Roof rack, a/c, heating, cd player, automatic (standard). Can be bought in four wheel drive. It has running lights - and you can forget about not remembering to turn off your headlights at the end of the night. There's a sensor on the dash that turns the running lights into regular lowbeams when the light level outside get's low. I find that my truck has low road noise (although when the windows are down the noise is slightly loud). It has a quick acceleration and is built on a truck chassey instead of a car chassey like many of the smaller suv's.

Sorry...I just happen to love my car.

[Logan]

Originally posted by Aspen and Misty
Hmm, we are looking at a Ford Taurus, it's a 97...might need to re-think this. Can anyone tell me why they didn't like it??

Thanx a WHOLE bunch!

Ash

ps: Amy, I hope you find the perfect car! Car shopping STINKS!

I owned a 97 Ford Taurus for a couple of years and I never had a problem. It was my "work" car, and I put tons of miles on it. I never had it in the shop a single time, and I bought it used!

I buy American, as does my husband, and so far, so good. I have a 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee, which fits my dogs, my daughter and myself, perfectly! My husband has a 2002 Ford Expedition and his car has been flawless as well. Mine was purchased new, Scott's was purchased used. I have never owned a foreign made car, although I have heard wonderful things. I have always had a Ford, Chevrolet or Chrysler (Jeep). In fact, my last two cars have been the Jeep Grand Cherokee models. I could not be happier. I plan to drive mine until it dies (although my daughter thinks that my car should become hers when she gets her license!).