An appropriate user name!
That’d be 80, Bob. :smack:
Absolutely. Note that Consumer Reports, which normally gives Toyota high ratings, did not do so for the Yaris, it was “Not Recommended”. I test-drove one, and it’s pretty bad. You never get used to the wierd dash.
The Honda Fit is a GREAT car. Unfortunately, there’s a high demand, so few deals. Note that you can’t just compare base prices today- some companies are giveing large rebates and 0% financing, others almost nothing. Try Edmunds for ratings and deals. Find a car you like (or two) then use Edmund’s feature where you express your interest in a car, then the dealer makes you a deal.
Get this months CR, they feature exactly the kind of cars you are looking at.
I was more impressed that she still gets around 30 mpg at those speeds! The coefficient of drag really goes up right around Mach 1, as does the force of drag, since it’s proportional to velocity squared! 
As others have no doubt suggested, pick up the latest big copy of Consumer Reports with all the car reviews. You can visit their website and get a basic idea of what’s recommended, but I don’t think you can view all the details without purchasing the magazine.
This is what I did when I bought my car, and I actually learned how to shop for and buy a car from an article on the CR website, too (if you’d like the link, I can dig it up for you). Now I’m totally confident in purchasing vehicles and getting fair deals from dealerships. Can’t say enough positive things about that magazine.
Anyway, we’ve bought two brand new cars in the last two years-- a 2007 Nissan Altima (4cyl) and a 2007 Scion tC (made by Toyota). We’re very happy with both cars, as different as they are. The Altima gets slightly better gas mileage and slightly faster acceleration (I think it has 2 or 3 more horsepower), has much more room, and rides smoother, but the Scion is prettier, has a sunroof, and is very customizable, both before- and aftermarket, and it’s a Toyota, so it will probably need less maintenance and last longer. Both cars were under $20K-- I got an exceptionally good deal on the tC, so mine will be about $18500 even after interest.
For what you’re looking for, I’d highly recommend a Toyota Corolla or a Nissan Sentra, maybe a Camry or an Altima if you want to pay a little more for a bit more room and luxury. Based on average dependability, I would stay away from American cars (this includes Mazda, which sounds foreign but is actually under the Ford umbrella) unless you’re planning on keeping the new car not much longer than 5 years, and stay away from European cars entirely, excluding maybe one or two Volkswagen models.
As for buying used vs. new, it’s a personal cost-benefit consideration. How important is it to you to save a few thousand dollars, compared to the importance of knowing you’re the first driver of a car and there are no surprises? Also, consider that the interest rate on a used car loan will be higher than on a new car, so that will subtract some from what you’re saving by going used-- however, insurance requirements may be lower on a used car, so you might save a little money there by opting for less coverage.
ETA: ooh, forgot to mention the Honda Civic and the Subaru… WRX, is it? as some good alternatives for a 4-door, fuel-efficient car. Subaru even has a nice upgraded version of the WRX with a lot more speed and style. And I wanted to warn you away from Mitsubishi… consistently middling-to-crappy reviews, and generally horrible visibility. Lots of Japanese cars are good, but Mitsubishi is the exception.
Actually, the Vibe is based on the Toyota Corolla platform. Still a good car, obviously, so it doesn’t make a huge difference. Anyway, I mostly wanted to say that the Vibe is actually surprisingly nice to drive and VERY roomy. Because it’s based on the Corolla, it is actually the only American car I would come close to buying at this point in time.
First off all, a person should never go to a Topyota dealer to buy their first new car. They will be ripped off so many ways it won’t even be funny. Price, financing, trade-in, weird “options” etc,.
Next, you are completely wrong about Japanese cars being more reliable that US cars. Yes, Honda (and to a lesser extent Toyota) are tops. But Nissan is only average. Subaru ranks high also.
Why pay extra for a foriegn car when you’re not going to get extra?
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/419551/toyotas_reliability_ratings_lower_in.html?cat=3
*For as long as most people can remember, Toyota has been associated with reliable automobiles. That might be changing though, according to the 2007 Annual Car Reliability Survey from Consumer ReportsToyota’s Reliability Ratings Lower in This Year’s Consumer Reports’ Survey. Several of their redesigned vehicles rank below average. Even the highly respected Camry vehicle is not above the decline for the company. Meanwhile, other manufacturers including Ford are seeing some of their highest reliability ratings in many years. *
Ford and Volvo rate pretty good, as do some GM models. What’s more important is to look at what CR rates the car you are looking at- some car manuf rate well overall, but poorly on a few models, whilst others don’t do well overall, but a few modles are just fine.
Example- Saturn isn’t doing well, but the Aura is fine. Toyota does well, but the Camry has slipped badly.
VW is starting to make a much-needed comeback.
Can you wait till the end of the month? Car salespeople often have monthly quotas, which makes them more willing to negotiate toward the end of the month.
I did, and I bought a Honda Accord Coupe. Which I adore. But then Honda brainwashed me with their damned high quality cars years ago; before this, I owned two Honda Civics, one after the other. I really can’t recommend the Civic highly enough. I drove the last one for 175,000 miles and never had a single problem, repair (other than scheduled maintenance), squeak, vibration, nada. And I got a really good deal on it as a trade-in too, because even at that high mileage, Civics are marketable. So another vote for the Civic.
I got a 2008 Honda Civic to replace my 1998 one and I’ve always been very happy with both. I had about 150,000 miles on my old one and it had never broken down on me once either. I got the 4 door this time and it has plenty of room. The only thing that I don’t like about it is that it has a slight blind spot on the front left when you go around a very tight curve. I doubt that it isn’t even noticeable unless you drive on narrow mountain roads all the time.
Buy a Honda. Keep my neighbours employed. 
Of course, I can say the same about Toyota, Chrysler, Ford, and GM as well.
I’d recommend a Honda Civic, Honda Fit, Nissan Versa, or even a Mazda3 if you want something a little sportier.
I bought a Honda Fit last month. Very happy with it.
To follow-up on the OP’s requirements, all Fit models are 4-doors and a hatchback. There isn’t a trunk per se (except for some space in the spare wheel well), but a cargo net that basically provides that functionality is available as an accessory.
Hee. I got $300 on my trade-in and it had “only” 135K miles. It was a VERY basic model. Even the Honda dealer only quoted $500.
Oh what a feeling!
I recommend the Mazda 3; I’ve ridden in one and it was quite nice. It’s a huge step up from the spartan 1995 Mazda 626 I used to own.
I’ve heard nothing but great things about Mazdas in the past couple of years (apart from a coworker wishing he had bought the 6 cylinder Mazda 6 instead of the 4; he claimed it didn’t have enough “pep.” Edmunds.com has a long-term test drive fleet with a Mazda 6, and they say the same thing.)
I have an '05 Civic. It’s a gem of a car even though it isn’t anything fancy. Pretty much everything everyone here said. I was in a 4 car collision* in 2007 and they had to rebuild the entire car because the chassis had crumpled (seriously, the cost of repairs was $500 less than the bloody blue book value)-I was in the accident in SF and drove the car down to LA that day.
But…ummm…aren’t American cars pretty cheap right now? There isn’t a single one that’s worth buying? Isn’t the Pontiac Vibe a similar concept to the Toyota Matrix?
*Not at fault, before anyone snarks me. I was rearended on the highway by a guy who was rearended a split second after he hit me and the force of their collisons pushed me into the car 10 feet in front of me.
The Vibe and Matrix are built on a Corolla-derived platform and are mechanically identical, except, possibly some engine/transmission combinations.
I think the small SUV format and 30+ MPG of the Vibe/Matrix is hard to beat in a non-hybrid vehicle.
[quote=“SanibelMan, post:10, topic:484321”]
I quite like my Hyundai Elantra SE. Rated higher than the Corolla or Civic by Consumer Reports last summer. I got mine for $16,000[/QUOTe
second the elantra. I really really hope that $16k was a US price cause I paid a lot more than that. I looked at honda also but it was too pricey fro me and Toyota didnt do much for me. Clincher was the great warranty and 0% financing over the term…
Mine gets 36 mpg in the city, very happy so far
Saturn Aura/Chev Malibu. But that’s a small sedan, not a compact. Great car.
A Chev Aveo is damn cheap, but it’s not very reliable according to CR (although my bud owns one and swears by it). But if there was a super-duper deal (like under $10K and 0%) then I’d consider it.
If one can get a Ford Focus at a good deal, then go for it. CR lists it as Recomended.
The Cobalt is OK.
The Saturn Astra is a decent choice, given a super deal. Their dealers are superb, you won’t get ripped off, you’ll be treated nicely. A little bit bigger and nicer than what the Op seems to want, maybe.
Looking here, I see some nice deals on the Focus.
(set your own zip)
Hmm, and the Cobalt has a nice combo.
There’s not that many “small cars” made in America. 
Based upon that, I’d try a Ford Focus.