Used Car Recommendation <$10K

[Hoey]

Getting a copy of the Con umer Reports, annual car report (if I recall correctly), usually available at a library does a nice job of laying out used car prices, model, year, with a list of those that are recommended and those to stay away from.

[Slabasaurus]

I've found myself in a situation where I'm going to need to have a vehicle which is less expensive to own...so I'll have to sell my truck.

Any recommendations for a car that gets good mileage, costs less than $10K, I can put my roof rack on, and won't die on me constantly.

I've been looking at VW TDIs. The possibility of 50mpg sounds nice and I've found a few with ~100K miles and the price range I'm looking for.

I would strongly advise against v-dubs unless it is the passat with the v6.

Sooo expensive in the end... but they drive great when they work.

I love my passat when it's not in service. But I am going to be selling that car asap and picking up a midsized truck here in the next... asap.

[OnAFly]

Yeah, the overwhelming reaction to VW has pretty much removed them from the list.

Vibe is interesting. Tough to find any Toyota or Honda for under 10K unless it has about 150K miles on it...or it's a salvage title.

[dan z]

My lady bought a Chrysler Concorde last Oct and it has been a great car. It rides like a dream , the mileage isn't the greatest but its a big heavy car that rides amazing. She has drove it 3,000 miles and it has been flawless the odometer now reads 85,000 miles. And its a 2002 with the 3.5 liter v6

[caseymcq]

In answer to your question, the following are vehicles that I would routinely see come into the dealership I worked at with crazy high miles that still ran well. ... Chevy Impala (2000-2005,)...

My wife had a 2003 Impala with the 3400 V6. In six years she racked up 197,000+ miles on that car and some of it driving a few somewhat rough roads. That car ran like a top to the day we sold it. I was extremely impressed. 30+ mpg. Nice driving and riding car. Quiet. Didn't burn a lick of oil. Minor issues (had to replace the hazard switch). Put one new set of struts on the car. I think we went through 5 or 6 sets of tires. One set of brakes. Regular oil changes with plain old Valvoline 5w30. I replaced one CV joint but considering the roads she was driving with the car I considered that very minor.

For my commuter I have a 2007 Mazda3. I bought it used in 2010 with 12K on it and have run it up to 100K since. It's a decent car. I consistantly get 34 - 35 mpg and at times 36 - 38 mpg. It is a small car. Not as quiet of a ride as a larger car but I figured it would be like that. It drives really nice. I had to have the rear trailing arm bushings replaced but I'll blame that on the streets in Duluth since most of them appear to have been cratered by RPG's. Had one issue with a solenoid associated with the gas tank that was a $260 repair. Other than that routine maintenance and tires.

[OnAFly]

OK, any more info on a Vibe? Anyone else on here own one? Is it actually made by Toyota? Looks like I should be able to pick one up under $8K, which would be awesome.

Mileage estimates?

[caseymcq]

It's the Toyota Matrix's twin brother seperated at birth.

Wikipedia

Edmunds

[smartguy]

I know its a late response, but we looked at Vibes. W eliked that fact that they were essentially rebadged Toyotas, and it did drive wonderful when I had it. Only two problems for me: 1) I'm tall and the rearview mirror was set too low on the windshield so it made a huge blind spot and 2) didn;t get great gas mpg. (This was all wheel drive, but 26 mpg seems low for a smaller car.

We ended p going with a VW Passat wagon for the mpg and the storage capability, though i wish I would have read these forums sooner before we purchased (so far no probs). And yes, we bought it with 104,000 and low and behold the manuel says timing belt change at 105K.

Fingers crossed she is reliable

[perchking]

I have a 2005 VW passat bought it about 4 years ago, when it had about 50K on it. I have never had an issue with it, and I just hit 100K. I did get the timing belt changed about a month ago from a Honda dealership and it cost just under 600. So far I like it, most likely will trade it in a year or so while it still has some value.

[Shack]

Another one to recommend around the $10,000.00 mark is the Nissan Versa.

Sold a 2012 to a young gal today for around $12,500.00 with a little over 35,000 miles on it and they are pretty solid cars for the space and the mileage you can get.