Hi everyone. I’ve asked about used vehicles before on here a few times. Now I’m wondering mainly about mileage.
For instance, is high mileage as much of a worry in a Honda Fit as compared to a brand that’s less-reliably known? I’m curious if it matters for Toyota vehicles too. I’m trying to examine how important model years are with relation to mileage.
With my budget, I’d like to try to keep the price as close to $12,000 as possible, without sacrificing the reliability.
The specific cars I’ve been trying to research are the Honda Fit, Toyota Corolla, Toyota Matrix and the Pontiac Vibe (said to have the same engine as the Matrix, just formed under a partnership with GM).
I’m not sure there’s a good answer to your questions. The type of mileage is more important than the mileage. Fifty thousand highway miles will probably be better than 30,000 in stop-and-go driving.
You’re also looking at the most famous names (Toyota and Honda), and there’s a chance you’ll pay a premium for getting the most sought after used cars. There might be cars from GM, Ford, Kia, whomever, that are 90% as reliable at 75% of the price.
The bottom line is check Consumer Reports for their records of used car reliability, try to get a good used car warranty that will cover any problems, and try to get an independent inspection from someone like AAA before buying. Check around the hood and doors to see if the car has been repainted to cover accident damage.
Good luck (because there’s a lot of that involved.)
whatever the brand, if we’re talking “high” mileage (e.g. over 100,000) then it’ll behoove you to have a trusted mechanic look it over including putting it up on a lift. Even if the engine and transmission are flawless, the car can still bankrupt you.
When looking at high mileage used cars the single most important think in my not so humble opinion is service records.
Did the previous owner change the oil on time? did he/she go to the same shop all the time, or is it a case of Jiffy lube, Firestone, Midas, Quick lube, back to Iffy lube etc.
If the car is on a lot and does not have service records, a good mechanic can give you an excellent idea of just how often the oil was changed in the car by looking in the oil cap. (most cars, there are a few where you can’t see much)
Also you might want to consider, that for 12K you can buy a brand new Hyundai Accent with a full factory warranty, 5/60 bumper to bumper, and 10/100 on the powertrain.
Just sayin…
I’m no stranger to knowing that the vehicle can do less-than great things after you’ve got it. I currently have a 1993 Volvo 240 station wagon that makes a lovely “whrrrrrrrr” noise when you turn the wheel. The odometer also stopped last August (it had been shutting itself off every once in a while all summer)–so she’s well over 280,000 miles. The engine repeatedly cut out on me last summer during my commute to my two jobs. Check engine light is eternally on, no matter how often she’s taken to the shop.
(She tries, she really does, but all of this behavior makes me a little uneasy.)
We got her in February of 2009, I think, if memory serves correctly on the year. She’d been driven up in the mountains when the former owner’s daughter was in college. I know they’re supposed to run forever, but…well, I want more than one airbag if I have my friends in the car. And the security that she’ll make it for any roadtrip I may want to take. And slightly better than 25 MPG would be a bonus.
Mostly, she’s been a stop-go, drive-me-to-work car, although my dad “claimed” her for a while there and was taking her on the highway. He’s had most of the time with her since I’ve been at school since August.
My dad has a bit of an obsession with making older vehicles run. Like his 1980’s Chevy luv with fuel pump issues. And the vehicle I was supposed to learn how to drive in was a Mercedes Turbo Diesel from 1988 (and it had brake failure on a trip he took to Pennsylvania :smack:). Basically, the man is known for buying less-than-trustworthy older cars and “fixing” them.
I have plans for whatever vehicle I end up with to do quite a bit of highway driving–generally about once a month, most of the year, with some trips to the grocery store in-between. But I don’t trust Volvy to survive much longer than the commuting I’ll have to do for three months this summer.
If you’re looking at the Fit you should also be looking at the Yaris and the Scion line (which is a line of small cars from Toyota that they spun off into a separate brand for some reason). And along the same lines as what Rick said, you can get a new Nissan Versa sedan for around $11k. Hondas and Toyotas hold their value ridiculously well so the amount you save buying a nearly-new one is sometimes not that much, especially if you have to finance at higher used car rates.
To sort of reiterate what others have said, the bottom line is that there is really not that much of a difference in reliability among brands anymore. Unless there’s owner neglect, pretty much any car built in the last 10-15 years will run forever (with perhaps a handful of notable exceptions). In my opinion, mileage only matters now because more miles means more potentially missed oil changes, etc, but it’s not like in the old days where the mileage was counting down some finite number of miles a car could be expected to last.
Look for a car that has had few owners. Your best bet is a car that’s been owned by one (or two) people who have kept excellent service records. Look at how meticulously the car has been maintained. Do the owners seem like they get regular oil changes?
Always take the car to a trusted mechanic and have it examined. I recently bought a 2001 Honda Accord with 140k miles and it’s been the perfect car.
I’m assuming any sort of dealer would have the service records for a car given to them by a former owner? (I feel like this is a dumb question, but I figured I should ask.)
jz78817, I’ve heard mixed things about the Versa. I’ve got a friend who adores his 2007 Versa Hatchback, but I feel like I’ve heard less great things about it elsewhere. I know Chevrolet’s Aveo seems to have a consistent track record of being crappy though.
Holy balls. I just looked up used Fit prices out of curiosity and 2010 Sport models are selling in the $15,000 range. Brand new Sports start at $16,000! Those are phenomenal residuals.
It’s a gimmick for the US market to attract young buyers, just as Lexus badging was a gimmick to attract upmarket buyers (also primarily in the US market).
Yeah–the Fit looks great, but the insane residuals make it a lot less easy for me to finance. There’s one from 2009 (a sport model) listed for $9,999 on Craigslist for a dealer in my area, which makes me question if something’s wrong with it.
The reason the Versa is so cheap is because it is a car designed for third world markets. It is by far the most unsafe new car sold in North America. The version they sell in China does worse in Chinese crash tests than many domestic Chinese Chery and Geely models.
Since the Versa is consistently and by far the best selling car in its segment in America, I’m optimistic about the future of Chinese car imports to the US.
TL;DR Buy a used Versa. It’s bigger and cheaper than a Hyundai Accent or Kia Rio.
So, I’m assuming my best bet would be to go with a private seller who has the car records, right? The ideal vehicle would be largely highway driven, if it has higher miles.
I know some would say the ideal is a new car altogether, but I’d like to avoid that at the moment, given my financial standing as a college student. I just don’t think it’s too wise, given that I’m not working as much as I’d have to be in order to be comfortable making car payments above $200 or so.
If you have good credit (or a good co-signer) $200/mo. shouldn’t be too hard to pull off. My payment on a 2008 Hyundai Elantra at 13% (no credit, no co-signer) was $268.
I’m guessing that I’ll be able to put about $3500 down, hopefully. But at the same time, I know I’ll need to take care of the tuition bills ahead and whatnot. I currently work two jobs, but one of them is highly unlikely for next year. The one that I will have only pays minimum wage and probably won’t give me enough hours to make much more than $230 a month. There’s a possibility I could take up another job at the time–transferring my summer job up to school–but all of that makes it quite stressful and pressure-filled.
In general interest rates on new cars is lower than the interest rates on used cars.
So a used whatever could easily cost you more per month that a new car at the same price point.
Also don’t forget to budget $ for repairs on the used car.