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Gonna buy a car for college, suggestions?

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Raven45

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Cars: Toyota Tundra

Post Tue Jun 09, 2015 2:45 pm

Re: Gonna buy a car for college, suggestions?

Now, I grew up rather poor, so a $10,000 car for me, is a nice car. I started out driving a 1991 Pontiac Grand Prix with a v6 engine in it that was bought for less than $2000. My next car I bought for $8500 was a 2004 Dodge Neon. Great car, great engine, great gas mileage, but crappy everything else. I later traded that thing away for a 2005 Toyota Tundra, which I bought for $10,500 and have been driving ever since. The Dodge Neon was what got me through college.

Quite frankly, you want something that's cheap to maintain, cheap on gas, and cheap on insurance. The insurance is the kicker. For being under the age of 25, your insurance is going to be high. And most lenders are going to require that you have full comprehensive with what's called GAP insurance. The sportier the car, the more expensive the insurance. I remember my insurance went from $135 a month for my Neon down to $85 a month when I bought my truck.

Of the cars you listed, I would much more be inclined to go with a Honda. They are cheap, fast, and reliable, and easy on maintenance and fuel costs. Of course that Mazda 6 is decent as well.
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nialloftara

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Location: Northeast USA

Cars: 2006 Scion Xb

Post Tue Jun 09, 2015 11:00 pm

Re: Gonna buy a car for college, suggestions?

Personally my college car was a 1992 toyota corolla I bought in I think 2003, $2500 with about 109k miles. I drove it for 9 years and another 170k miles with very little in terms of repairs. I know you don't want to be like everyone else, which was why I suggested a focus, but aside from 99-02 corollas (avoid like the plague, came with bad rings that burnt oil and would eventually kill the motor unless you poured in about a liter per 1000 miles) there is a reason everyone buys them, and why so many of them are still around.

Edit, I'm a idiot, if you want everything that makes the corolla great, but you don't want a corolla look for a scion XD. They are awesome little things, pretty much identical to a corolla mechanically but are geared for a bit more fun.
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WildKarrde

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Location: Upstate, SC

Cars: '87 BMW 325e
'88 BMW 325i 'Vert

Post Wed Jul 15, 2015 11:15 am

Re: Gonna buy a car for college, suggestions?

The Miata is a great car. If you're worried about the stigmas attached to that, the BMW E30 3-series are all fantastic. I've been daily driving them for about 9 years now, never been stranded, never had a crippling expensive repair, and I can do most of my own work.

The biggest recommendation with an E30 though is don't buy them based on KBB. Expect to pay at least twice as much for a good one, and if you don't know anyone who can help you find one, definitely demand maintenance records. A $4500-$6000 E30 should easily last you through college if you change the oil like you should and don't abuse it. It'll actually probably be worth more by the time you're done with college too,l they are appreciating in value.

But please don't wreck one, they're getting harder and harder to find, lol.
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Sayonara

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Joined: Tue Nov 26, 2013 1:19 am

Post Wed Jul 15, 2015 10:56 pm

Re: Gonna buy a car for college, suggestions?

On the subject of NC MX-5s:

- The 6MT is a close-ratio gearbox. 6th is not an overdrive gear and is actually slightly shorter than 5th on the 5MT.
- Depending on who you ask, the factory suspension is poor (esp. 06-08). Not uncommon to see NCs with aftermarket suspension upgrades and not a cent put into the engine.
- Aftermarket everything upgrades are very readily available. Very competitive market ensures low prices.
- Unlike many other convertibles the top does not fold into the trunk, even with the power retractable hardtop.
- If concerned about it being called a "hairdresser's car", see below quote:

This should be calculated scientifically. Type name of car and the word hairdresser in to google, and count hits:

S2000 4640
Boxster 12,800
Z3 13,700
mx5 23,100
Corvette 40,600
MGF 45,200
z4 47,900
SLK 49,200
Ferrari 67,200
Hummer 67,800
Beetle 88,400
MG 118,000
TT 124,000
Mini 843,000

So if 750,000 Mx5 were made so far, then only 2.9% are hairdresser's cars. How many Hummers were made?
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WildKarrde

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Joined: Sun Sep 02, 2012 8:03 am

Location: Upstate, SC

Cars: '87 BMW 325e
'88 BMW 325i 'Vert

Post Sat Aug 08, 2015 9:56 am

Re: Gonna buy a car for college, suggestions?

Sayonara wrote:On the subject of NC MX-5s:

- The 6MT is a close-ratio gearbox. 6th is not an overdrive gear and is actually slightly shorter than 5th on the 5MT.
- Depending on who you ask, the factory suspension is poor (esp. 06-08). Not uncommon to see NCs with aftermarket suspension upgrades and not a cent put into the engine.
- Aftermarket everything upgrades are very readily available. Very competitive market ensures low prices.
- Unlike many other convertibles the top does not fold into the trunk, even with the power retractable hardtop.
- If concerned about it being called a "hairdresser's car", see below quote:


I can confirm the 6-speed in the NC, IMHO it was worthless. They really should have made 6th an overdrive. The only reason I got the 6-speed was because I wanted factory LSD, but regretted it. I found the 5-speed in my NA much more enjoyable.

The suspension in very soft for a sports vehicle. It still handeles pretty good, but acts weird at the limit. One time I was going quite fast around a sweeping right hand corner, and the car was swaying quite drastically to the outside, until the suspension suddenly "popped up" and the car unsettled pretty badly. Granted, I was pushing it hard, but such things shouldn't happen in a sports car being driven in anger.

On the top comment, I don't think people who haven't owned a convertible will fully realize how significant this small point is. With the top up, you can use it as extra storage (while it is not recommended by the manufacturer). I once used it to transport clothes during a move. When the top is down, you still have a pretty decently sized trunk that will fit almost everything the bachelor lifestyle would require. In many typical convertibles that fold into the trunk, you can choose to either have the top down, or have stuff in the trunk.
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