Cars and where to buy them

Dave1442397

danger_mouse_tm wrote: »

That car is fantastic looking. I've never even seen them on the road over there. I was looking at some nasty dodge estate thing. I need to investigate that cadillac further!

Thanks There's also the 500+ horsepower version, the CTS-V Wagon, but of course it costs a lot more too.

I can throw my bike (Cannondale CAAD 10) in the back of my car with the seats down, which is one reason I wanted an estate car. Audi, Volvo and Subaru still sell estates here, so there are some to choose from.

The Dodge Magnum is sold as the Chrysler 300 estate in Ireland (I saw a couple over there this year) but is not as nice inside as the Cadillac.

You can get a nice used CTS Wagon for around $20k at this point. Maybe less, i haven't kept track recently. They come in 3.0 and 3.6L versions, and 4WD is also an option. I don't need 4WD, and I got the 3.6 engine.

dave2pvd

Dave1442397 wrote: »

Thanks There's also the 500+ horsepower version, the CTS-V Wagon, but of course it costs a lot more too.

I can throw my bike (Cannondale CAAD 10) in the back of my car with the seats down, which is one reason I wanted an estate car. Audi, Volvo and Subaru still sell estates here, so there are some to choose from.

The Dodge Magnum is sold as the Chrysler 300 estate in Ireland (I saw a couple over there this year) but is not as nice inside as the Cadillac.

You can get a nice used CTS Wagon for around $20k at this point. Maybe less, i haven't kept track recently. They come in 3.0 and 3.6L versions, and 4WD is also an option. I don't need 4WD, and I got the 3.6 engine.

I live in Atlanta. Also drive a wagon. 2002 E320. Cheap as chips over here! Saris 3 bike rack on a rear hitch. Roof racks are expensive as even unloaded will increase fuel usage ~10%.

A friend has the CTS 3.6 wagon. He loves it. He also uses a hitch rack. I think the next car for me will be a 2006 E500 wagon. FYI - FL seems to have a lot of really mint used Mercedes. Snowbird retirees, I guess. I bought mine in St. Pete.

Be careful cycling in FL! I believe FL has the worst fatality rate for cyclists.

danger_mouse_tm

I'd love to go back driving a merc. I gave up smoking five years ago and treated myself to a 97 e230. It was cheaper to smoke! The car rusted away on me after I threw some serious money at it. But it was beautiful to drive. There's already a 2010 e370 bluetech and a 2013 e class convertible (white with wine roof😕) in the in law's house at the moment. I'm sure another merc in the driveway wouldn't go astray. If anyone sees a good example of a station wagon between 10_15k on cars.com feel free to let me know so I may get a feel of the market there. I'm fairly good at valuing cars here but looking at used cars stateside throws me right off with people asking silly money for 15 year old Toyotas. Incidentally, How far would you travel to buy a car? I've been limiting my search to 300 miles from Cape Coral however, my wife's grandfather may be finishing with his mint 2003 corolla in St Paul and my brother in portland may have a 99 Isuzu trooper going cheap. Long drive to Florida, especially if something goes wrong on the way.

Dave1442397

Keep an eye on ebay and autotrader to see what prices are like.

Used Japanese cars can command silly prices, for sure. My co-worker is looking at cars for his daughter, and a PA dealer only $2000 less for a 2003 Corolla with over a 100k miles than the local Ford dealer was asking for a 2013 Ford Fiesta with 9k miles on it.

Be careful with German cars in that price range. There was a good story in Hemmings Sports & Exotic Cars magazine last month about a guy who bought an older BMW estate for $12k, and said he probably has around $28k in it at this point.

You'll find American cars a lot cheaper to maintain for the most part.

The good thing about FL is that a lot of the drivers are old and slow, so their cars don't get much abuse.

I don't think I'd travel all that far for a car. You should easily find a decent car in the Tampa/St. Pete area.

ProudDUB

Dave1442397 wrote: »

I don't think I'd travel all that far for a car. You should easily find a decent car in the Tampa/St. Pete area.

Neither would I. A six thousand mile round trip to pick up a 15 year old car? Madness.

InTheTrees

Remember to check craigslist for cars.

http://tampa.craigslist.org/search/cta?query=mercedes+wagon&srchType=T

InTheTrees

danger_mouse_tm wrote: »

I'm fairly good at valuing cars here but looking at used cars stateside throws me right off with people asking silly money for 15 year old Toyotas. Incidentally, How far would you travel to buy a car? I've been limiting my search to 300 miles from Cape Coral however, my wife's grandfather may be finishing with his mint 2003 corolla in St Paul and my brother in portland may have a 99 Isuzu trooper going cheap. Long drive to Florida, especially if something goes wrong on the way.

Corollas, civics and some nissans hold their values well because they do tend to be bulletproof and cheap to maintain. Small cars in the US are mostly asian, there's very few euro small cars except minis and fiat500's.

But from the early/mid 2000's they (civics, corollas and sentras) should be around $4k-$5k? Somewhere around there?

dave2pvd

* Don't compare used prices in Ireland to the US. No NCT over here. It's a different ballgame.
* 300 miles is nothing. I'd drive cross country if I found the right car.
* Autotrader is the most comprehensive source for used cars.
* NEVER buy cars from snowbelt states.
* Pay attention to Consumer Reports. Especially if you want to buy a German car.
* Don't buy older VW/Audi.
* Toyotas go for big money because they don't break down. Boring, but reliable. There's a lot to be said for that when your car is what takes you to work.

Dave1442397

True about Toyotas. If you want cheap and reliable, get a used Camry. It's an appliance, but it works.

A more sporting option is a Honda Accord, which is much more of a driver's car than the Camry or Corolla. Not a wagon, of course, but nothing a hitch mount and bike rack won't cure.

InTheTrees

You can get an honda accord wagon. I agree Honda has a lot more character than toyota. I think there's a camry wagon too. Ugly looking things though.

Up here in the pacific northwest the Subaru Wagon is really popular. They're all over the place and there's a vast amount to choose from.

Just searching seattle craigslist on "Subaru Wagon" yields 700 results:

http://seattle.craigslist.org/search/cta?query=subaru+wagon

InTheTrees

dave2pvd wrote: »

* Autotrader is the most comprehensive source for used cars.

For doing research maybe, and checking out dealership ads.

But I believe craigslist has taken over and now has more vehicle listings. My last thee cars have been bought locally off Craigslist.

Dave1442397

InTheTrees wrote: »

You can get an honda accord wagon. I agree Honda has a lot more character than toyota. I think there's a camry wagon too. Ugly looking things though.

Not any more, neither company has sold wagons here for quite a while. I see one old Camry wagon around here, and yes, it is ugly.

I think the closest Honda comes these days is the Accord Crosstour, which I think is ugly too.

http://automobiles.honda.com/crosstour/

InTheTrees

Dave1442397 wrote: »

I think the closest Honda comes these days is the Accord Crosstour, which I think is ugly too.

http://automobiles.honda.com/crosstour/

That honda really is ugly isnt it. I lke how they picture it from low down to try and minimize the horror.

danger_mouse_tm

I don't think I'd say no to the Honda. One of my previous cars was a 407sw and I was well pleased with it. I suppose with the amount of mini vans over there there really isn't much market for the station wagons. When I was in Orlando last year we drove by a car lot full of ex rental mini vans for sale. In fact, my sister in law picked up a two year old voyager loaded with built-in TV screens in the head rests and electric sliding doors. I think the only one of those that I wouldn't mind having would be the Toyota sienna or maybe the Honda odyssey. We took an upgrade last year from the rental company from a dodge mini Van to a chevrolet suburban. Although it didn't look all that big on the rental agents screen when she showed it to us, it was a beast of a thing to get out of the underground car park at the airport. We shoved a lot of petrol into it during the two weeks we were there, and although I wouldn't be pushed on getting another one again, my dad loved it.

spideog7

Some states do have NCT, we even have emissions tests here. Watch for tax too when you're buying it out of state, make sure you don't pay tax in the state where you're buying it since you might have to pay it again in your home state once you register.

Most states use the book value for tax so you can't say you bought it for a dollar or something stupid like that.

Used manuals can be dodgy over here too since they're often not the greatest manual drivers, so be prepared for a new clutch.

él statutorio

Just a smog test in CA, not overly fussy about dash warning lights (apart from a check engine light).

We've bought 2 cars here, a 01 Toyota Highlander V6 with about 140k miles which we got for about $5,500 inc taxes and a 2002 GMC Sierra V8 with almost 200k miles which came in at around the same price. The Toyota was bought from friends and the Sierra from Craigslist.

The highlander is my wifes car. Decent car, comfortable, great economy good for long journeys. No problems with it apart from the air con being temperamental on occasion.

The Sierra is my car, comfy drives well, no issues except for a busted ABS sensor (cheap part to fix), fuel economy is poor, i get 12.8 mpg... which isn't exactly brilliant. But I do love driving it.

InTheTrees

There's only smog tests here in Washington State but only in urban areas. Oh and if your vehicle is over 25 years old they're exempt.

danger_mouse_tm

Ive been looking at Jeeps today. I've not much experience with them. My father had a 2008 jeep patriot CRD and it wasn't bad. The father in law (in Florida) had a Jeep wrangler that was plenty of fun. I'm looking at a Jeep compass. Any views on them? I'm not too sure about the Liberty. They seem to have much bigger engines.

Dave1442397

I've never heard anything good about the Compass. It gets pretty crappy reviews for the most part - http://usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/cars-trucks/Jeep_Compass/

dave2pvd

Terrible reviews on Consumer Reports and just about any other publication.

InTheTrees

the jeep compass is just a rebodied dodge hatchback which is an (older) asian design anyway.

Its a very very long way from being a "genuine" Jeep.

I'd stay with a Wrangler, a Rubicon, (its the serious off road version of the Wrangler) or a Cherokee.

And Jeep is about the only Chrysler brand I'd go near. Chrysler's dont have a good reputation for longevity.

danger_mouse_tm

Just had a quick search for the cherokee. You're definitely going way back in the years withe the $10,000 budget. Although the first one I looked at before I adjusted the money was a 2015 model. It looks fantastic. The 2001 doesn't quite have the same appeal although like a Toyota, it's probably something you would hand down to your children. Would a 2007 compass be that bad? I've read a couple of reviews with people complaining about Road noise and poor ride. I think its still a lot of car for the money.
The ol man reckons I should start looking at the sante fe or the rav 4. The brother in oregon is going around in a tesco, which I'm not too fond of.
We will be a two car family. The wife wants something small like a fiesta (ST!) as a runabout and then something bigger for the home depot trips.

InTheTrees

The Jeep Compass is re-badged Dodge Caliber. Which is a licensed mitsubishi hatchback design.

So you may save some bucks looking for the dodge caliber which wouldnt have the added price of a jeep badge on it.

But Honestly, I really wouldnt recommend either.

I'd take a 1980's Cherokee over a year old Caliber/Compass.

braddun

lots scammers on craigslist and ebay

watch out for flood cars

InTheTrees

braddun wrote: »

lots scammers

If you find a vehicle you like you can check its history through:

www.carfax.com

Its a popular service, they advertise all the time on TV.

You can also get an inspection done. I've done this a few times and 99.9% of sellers should be perfectly happy for you to have one done.

InTheTrees

What about Volvo's? They have a good reputation here and seem like good value.

There's also the venerable Ford Explorer. Pretty good value, good reputation, and they come in a 2 wheel drive so you dont have to deal with the complexities of a 4x4.

danger_mouse_tm

I was looking at a ford fusion for small money on the phone. It wasn't until I looked at it again on the big screen that I saw why it was so cheap. It looked like it at been beaten with a Base ball bat. The description read "hail damage, salvage title". I'm sure it would be a lovely car to drive and probably no shame it the states usually affected by giant hail stones.
Is a "flood car" one that's been driven through a flood and probably rotten underneath?
Serious amount of Kia sols and PT cruisers around. Although, I get the feeling if you picked up a PT it could be tricky moving it on in few years.

braddun

I would not depend on carfax

its a dealers selling tool

danger_mouse_tm

Wifey didnt really like the Volvos. I've always found them quite appealing. I will have a look at that Ford. I know that one of her cousins is driving a Ford edge and it's a mighty looking machine. She wants to go Japanese all the way for reliability. So i was looking at the mitsubishi. We haven't had the galant over here in some years. Looking at a couple of 2009 models, they really don't look eye catching at all. The lancer, like it's European counterpart, does look well. I got side tracked by an Edndeavour. What do you make of them?

Dave1442397

The Mitsubishi should be pretty good.

Check out the Toyota 4runner and Nissan Pathfinder too. My neighbor's sons bought Pathfinders back in 2002 and both are still going strong with no issues.

Some states (Texas was notorious for this) allow you to get a new title for a car that was a salvage title in another state. One thing Carfax is good for is tracking where the car came from, although you can't depend on it for a full history. You're better off having an inspection done by a mechanic.

Flood cars are cars that were underwater to some extent, such as during hurricane Sandy. There are people who buy them from the insurance companies, then dry them out and fix them up enough to sell them. The most common problem is that the electrical components and connectors continue to rust, and you start getting weird (and sometimes untraceable) problems. I worked with a Russian immigrant who bought a flood damaged Ford Taurus and had nothing but problems before selling it for half what he'd paid.

InTheTrees

braddun wrote: »

I would not depend on carfax

its a dealers selling tool

?

For checking a VIN number?

InTheTrees

danger_mouse_tm wrote: »

Is a "flood car" one that's been driven through a flood and probably rotten underneath?

Or they can be cars sitting on the dealers lot and completely submerged, then they're written off, then purchased for scrap and illegally sold on (maybe in another state) as legit.

Some states allow you to buy and drive cars on "salvage" papers (titles), the title paperwork is supposed to show that but there's ways of forging them.

InTheTrees

danger_mouse_tm wrote: »

Wifey didnt really like the Volvos. I've always found them quite appealing. I will have a look at that Ford. I know that one of her cousins is driving a Ford edge and it's a mighty looking machine. She wants to go Japanese all the way for reliability. So i was looking at the mitsubishi. We haven't had the galant over here in some years. Looking at a couple of 2009 models, they really don't look eye catching at all. The lancer, like it's European counterpart, does look well. I got side tracked by an Edndeavour. What do you make of them?

Honda and Toyota have the best reliability records. Followed by Nissan, Subaru and then Mazda. I've owned Hondas and Mazdas and never had any issues at all.

Mitsubishi have far less of a presence, you dont see them around as much. Although there's a souped up Galant that parks a block away from me.

danger_mouse_tm

We were trawling through cars.com the other day and started looking at 06-07 Saabs. They look exceptionally good value and I wouldn't rule out a convertible one. It's one of the few that I've always liked.

InTheTrees

danger_mouse_tm wrote: »

We were trawling through cars.com the other day and started looking at 06-07 Saabs. They look exceptionally good value and I wouldn't rule out a convertible one. It's one of the few that I've always liked.

Good idea. I love SAABs. MY dad went through a series of 900's back when I was learning to drive so I've had a soft spot for them.

And its a good used choice. What I've read is that now that SAAB has been discontinued, there's no more SAAB dealers so it's effected used values as well. People are wary of them because there's no main dealerships to take them to for maintenance.

But there's plenty of places to get them worked on and they have a good reputation here in the US.

Go for it. And get a convertible too while you can, they should be easy to find.

Dave1442397

If you want the best of both worlds, take a look at the SAABaru from that era - http://jalopnik.com/the-saab-9-2x-is-badge-engineering-but-weve-seen-a-l-914446574

InTheTrees

Dave1442397 wrote: »

If you want the best of both worlds, take a look at the SAABaru from that era - http://jalopnik.com/the-saab-9-2x-is-badge-engineering-but-weve-seen-a-l-914446574

That was an odd vehicle for the short time it was around. A subaru hatchback with a Saab grill tacked on.

RIP...

dave2pvd

Good car, but beware older turbo'd Subarus. They've typically led a rather exuberant life. I would never have bought the WRX that I sold 2 years ago.