What do you guys think of the following cars?

[Joe The Homophobe]

With gas prices going through the roof and not being able to afford an SUV, I thought about buying a small budget car instead in the future. Lucky for me some cool budget cars have come out recently that are designed to have roomy interiors, 30+ mpg. This is part of the new trend going on in that is making people think about small cars again instead of expensive gas guzzlin SUV's.

Here are the brand new budget cars that look nice and have almost anything you could want. These are cars below 13k that you won't be embarrased to drive around in, have seating for 5 and are roomy on the inside and will save you money on gas. If you're a young guy without a car you should definitely consider buying one of these.

Nissan Versa
Honda Fit
Dodge Caliber
Toyota Yaris

Personally I like the Nissan Versa Hatchback. It is better than all the others in just about every category, and the interior looks luxurious considering this is a budget car you would swear this has an expensive car interior. I also like the Dodge Caliber it looks manly on the outside but it is a Dodge (my dad always tells me to buy Japanese cars they last forever lol)

 

[ShizamDaMan]

I think the Dodge is probably the manliest of the bunch. However, I wouldn't be opposed to rolling the Nissan, it's pretty cool.

Have you checked out some late model Honda Civics? They'd probably fit the bill. I'm looking for a mid 90's hatchback (I have a lot of guitar stuff to carry around).

 

[chickenlegs03]

^you heard of Scion? It's by Toyota, and the quality is top-notch...the prices are very reasonable. they come fully equipped and customized...the most expensive one is the xB at $16k.

they are also very gas efficient. i'm getting one in the near future myself. probably an xA or a used tC if I can find one that's used.

they may appear small on the outside, but are very large and roomy on the inside. looks are really deceiving sometimes.

here's the tC, for example: http://www.scion.com/showroom/tc/gallery/ (very sweet looking, imo)

 

[S1NN3R]

Spend a little bit more on the Scion tC, get five times more car, both in looks and performance, without sacrificing too much space or economy.

I'm a performance kinda guy, so none of the options you listed could ever possibly be choices I would even consider, hence my addition. Not that the tC is a screamer, but your choices make it look like a Continental GT.

Incidentally (and only somewhat off-topic) I did a study in college about import vs domestic reliability. The famed "Japanese cars will run forever" idea came from the fact that at the time that they really got popular, Japanese cars were primarily driven by hippies and the general "eco-minded" public who are less likely to drive a car hard or use it outside of recommended procedure where as American car of the time were still being purchased mainly by the "manly men" who drive their cars hard and into the ground. When subjected to similar conditions, it's the Japanese, Korean and French cars that completely fall apart while their American counterparts are still running on original equipment. It's the mindset of the person who would buy that type f car that makes it last longer, not the car being better. As it happens the two vehicles with the highest Guinness Book records for mileage (last time I checked) were a Dodge Cummins Deisel with over a million miles and no engine work, and an old Volvo P1800 with nearly 2 million miles on it's original engine and it's never even had the head off. Japanese reliability is subjective at best.

 

[typical]

Umm I make enough to pay for the gas so big SUV all the way , but the last car ( The Scion tc ) seems to look the best the others look like minivans, and we all hate those hahaha.

Edit : yea the modded scion looks the best

 

[brucevangeorge]

Get a hybrid civic. You can put bodykits and such if you want to change the style. It's the most moddable car due to its large fanbase.

 

[S1NN3R]

The Hybrid Civic is actually the least moddable car as far power goes, due to the unconventional powerplant. Plus, I don't know if anyone here has seen it, but someone did the math and you would have to drive it for a hell of a lot of miles and for years and years to actually save money over the regular gasoline Civic because of the higher initial purchase price.

The tC is by far the most moddable car in this thread, not to mention the fact that you can buy the mods (everything from shiftknobs to superchargers) right from the dealer and not screw up your warranty, unlike all of the others listed here.

 

[spider_007]

it's funny watching these, when a big 18 wheeler pases by them and they almost fly off the road.

http://www.thesmart.ca/index.cfm?id=4802

 

[ntssv]

Incidentally (and only somewhat off-topic) I did a study in college about import vs domestic reliability. The famed "Japanese cars will run forever" idea came from the fact that at the time that they really got popular, Japanese cars were primarily driven by hippies and the general "eco-minded" public who are less likely to drive a car hard or use it outside of recommended procedure where as American car of the time were still being purchased mainly by the "manly men" who drive their cars hard and into the ground. When subjected to similar conditions, it's the Japanese, Korean and French cars that completely fall apart while their American counterparts are still running on original equipment. It's the mindset of the person who would buy that type f car that makes it last longer, not the car being better. As it happens the two vehicles with the highest Guinness Book records for mileage (last time I checked) were a Dodge Cummins Deisel with over a million miles and no engine work, and an old Volvo P1800 with nearly 2 million miles on it's original engine and it's never even had the head off. Japanese reliability is subjective at best.

I hate to say it but I strongly disagree - respectfully.

Yes, the early makes of foreign cars were no match for American but have surpassed American makes in terms of reliability. Style as well IMO.

Not to many Ford Focus, Escort or Chevy Cavaliers running around out there. Plenty of early nineties Japanese still hanging in.

I live in Ford Country - Kentucky that is. There are two major truck plants here and I know a lot of people that work there. Plenty of older union guys will buy foreign because of reliability and Ford doesn't like this. If you don't drive a Ford to work, your a$$ is parking in the back parking lot.

A couple of years ago when Toyota was looking to get into the full size pickup market, they went to GM and asked them to design their V8. GM did this, sent engine to Japan where it was rejected. Doesn't meet our specs they said.

Volvo isn't American and Deisel Engines as whole no matter where they are, are very reliable.

Me, I'm a German fan - BMW M3 all the way...

 

[penkitten]

whos paying for all these cars?
with the economy the way it is, who can afford a new dang car?

 

[S1NN3R]

Volvo isn't American and Deisel Engines as whole no matter where they are, are very reliable.

Right, and my whole statement was saying that Japanese cars aren't just more reliable due to being built better, but because of how they are driven. And I was referring to the 70s and 80s for the most part, hence why I said "at the time that they really got popular".

Me, I'm a German fan - BMW M3 all the way...

I just sold an E39 M5. Best car eVaR!!1!

 

[OfficeSpace]

Owning a BMW is my dream.. When I'm on my own and financially stable, I'll take some serious thought if I want to spend that kind of money in a car that will lose its value so quickly.

 

[ntssv]

I just sold an E39 M5. Best car eVaR!!1!

A man with style...:rockon:

Too bad you sold it though

 

[S1NN3R]

Well, someone made an offer that I knew I'd never see again, so.... It had to be done. Plus I have a friend who will probably sell me his DINAN S2 M5 for a good price, so we'll see how that goes. I've been a sport sedan guy for as long as I can remember. Lincoln LS, Audi S4, BMW M5, I just keep moving up the ladder. There's no more up to go after the M5 though, because I can't stand the new one at all.

Back on topic, my M5 got 13 mpg, b!tches!! (and that's when I was driving nice), but she dropped panties like a steel tampon.

 

[OfficeSpace]

13 mpg! Damn.. well with a 10 cylinder engine, it's no wonder! that car has some monster power though! 500 HP baby!

 

[S1NN3R]

No, mine was the E39. 400hp five liter V-8 with 6-speed. I think it's a better cat than the E60 with the V-10 and SMG.

 

[Joe The Homophobe]

Back on topic, my M5 got 13 mpg, b!tches!! (and that's when I was driving nice), but she dropped panties like a steel tampon.

THat would be a great car to have..IF YOU LIVED IN VENEZUELA! (where gas is 12 cents a gallon)

 

[ntssv]

Back on topic, my M5 got 13 mpg, b!tches!! (and that's when I was driving nice), but she dropped panties like a steel tampon.

My M3 gets about 17 mpg when driven easy, needless to say it vary rarely gets driven easily. I'm quite sure you know what I'm talkng about.

I just put my M up on the market because I plan on moving up to the M5 as well. M3 is a little small.

 

[ntssv]

THat would be a great car to have..IF YOU LIVED IN VENEZUELA! (where gas is 12 cents a gallon)

If one can afford a 50-60K car plus the maintenance that's involved, I don't think they would be to concerned about filling the thing up.

Still would be nice to have 12 cent gas however.

 

[TurboOverCubicInches]

There was a time when Japanese cars were far more reliable than American cars. That isn't so today as it once was. There were technical reasons for their reliability:

-engines were built with tolerances that the American engines were not.
-manufacturing philosophies and techiques (thats why some shops won't touch foreign engines).
-economic conditions: Japanese people did not buy a new car every 4 years like Americans did, forcing a different emphasis on build quality
-better research and development

I learned alot more about this in my opearions management course, its pretty interesting, although being into cars since I was 16 and working in my dad's shop, I saw it first hand.

NOW, however, the tables have been leveled. The American's are starting to get it right and they are now more reliable than ever.