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Daily driver/ beater/ "first" car?!
Well Ive officially started looking into a beater for my daily use. I have 2 months till I get my license but I think that the 2 months I have might help me pick the most reliable and fuel efficient car Possible.
I need some help though. What cars should I be looking into? I need at least 30 MPG in the city and something cheap to insure(even though it wont be cheap :( ) and some thing that can get hit by the morons at my school. Ive done some research and I have come up with a few cars. 1. Ford Festiva 2. Saturn sl 3. geo metro What kind of cars should I be looking into? What should I look out for when searching for a "beater" they have to be cheap for some reason, but how can I find out if the car will be reliable. What are some things I should notice and immediately walk away from? Please help me!!!!!!!! -Matt |
lmao @ a festiva, seriously...dont go there
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i had a 96 chevy beretta and i loved that car...3100 v6 in it it was a pretty quick little thing..
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http://www.uh.edu/engines/bicycle.gif
no gas or insurance. |
out of those 3...i'd go with the saturn. just check the oil once in a while and itll last. and its made of plastic
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i'd get a small sedan or coupe obviously. a little honda or toyota. early mid 90's. last quite awhile, easy to maintain, safe, good gas consumption, all that good stuff. on ur list though, the saturn is the only thing i would trust.
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I bought a 2001 Dodge Neon for my daughter back in 2004 with 31,000. It now has 81,000 and still runs great, The gas mileage is 32 highway, and it has never let me down. If you get the LX or the upgraded model, they come with cassette and CD radios, full instrument dash, power windows and mirrors plus dual air bags. Some even came with aluminum wheels and a rear spoiler. Just get the 2000 or newer model as a lot of improvements were made with the new design. :nod:
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FIERO!! like me
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May want to think about the fact that sacrificing a few MPG's for a little bit of a bigger car will give you a little insurance of not getting completely mauled if you ever get into an accident. Any late 80's to mid 90's 4cyl/5speed nissan or toyota easily fits the bill for MPG's though. |
mk2 dub...just sayin
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get a 96+ cavy Z24 5speed! i always wanted one for a beater, if i had to commute somewhere
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Chevy S10, gets good mileage, and can haul all the crap for your other car!
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get a geo....that way when you blow it up nobody will care, and theres already 4,000 of them in every junk yard so parts can be cheap. and 3cyl sip gas |
One thing to think about when getting a cheap beater with higher miles is the maintenance required. I know the older Toyota pickups and 4Runners are great vehicles but the 4cyl engines need to have the timing chain and timing chain guides replaced every so often.
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Add these to your research list. Look at the older cars of the mid 90's that are still in decent condition, which you can pick up for a small amount of cash. They should last until the end of your Freshman year of college, then pick up a part time job and get something a little newer, or start driving your Trans Am as a DD.
Chevy Cavalier Pontiac Grand Am Ford Taurus |
matt,
i would drive the ta for your senior year of high school, it wont get that many miles put on it, and it will allow you time to save more money. if you decide to go to a school that you will be in a dorm, you wont be able to have a car freshman year anyway and that will give you another year to save. then you can spend a little more money on somthing even more reliable...... the last thing you want is to buy some 500 dollar pos and get stranded on the side of the road |
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So Matt, if you work during your senior year of school, and go away to college / tech school, you may need transportation. MPGs trump BHP in this economy. |
4cyl Toyota Camry.
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3cyl XFi Metro's are going for a million dollars now, thanks to someone that foundo ut that they get 53mpg city. 42hp will do that.
Id agree with a bike...kill two birds with one stone on that one. Ford Taurus with the Vulcan V6 3.0 in it. Make sure it has had it struts replaced, check the brakes, but cheap to run, good gas milage, and cheap to repair. also, check transmission. You can run into a problem there. |
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i also vote for the saturn.... they are cheap cars and great on gas
my best beater choice would be a chevy cavalier..... but i am biased ;) |
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166k miles driven, 2 transmissions, blown struts, shot brakes, bald tires, bad speedo, body damage to 3 sides, the engine didnt get its first tune up till 145k...the engine is the best part of that car. The Ford 3.8 had the head gasket problems, especially the supercharged 3.8's in the Tbird/Cougar |
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