Random car question

[LenaGardner]

What kind of car do you have/love/hate?

There's a really good chance James will be taking me to buy a car this weekend and I don't have a CLUE where to begin.

I don't want a mini van or a truck...just a 4 door car...it will probably be new or nearly new...and I'm completely STUMPED as to where to start looking!

[LenaGardner]

whoops, that posted before I meant it to.

I owned a Kia once and hated that the repairs were very costly, so that's out.

I'm leaning towards maybe a Toyota Corrolla or a Toyota Camry but I've always loved VW Jettas. How do people make decisions this big?

[Angie4b1g]

Christopher just got a Nissan Altima earlier this year and it's great!

[NeverendingJen]

I got a Ford Focus last year and I love it. It's big enough to fit our family of 4 comfortably plus our stuff for road trips, but small enough not to be huge. It gets great gas mileage(around 400 miles per tank, 13 gal tank) and drives really smoothly. I got the model that comes with bluetooth equipped and its been great for me. I did a LOT of research before I bought (like...almost 6 months researching online) and knew what I wanted, and what I could get for my money too.

[Jennilyn]

Hondas are known to wear well. Our old '89 was over 300,000km before we sold it. We now have a cute '03 Civic.

[lauren grier]

I have an altima... they're great cars-- I know i've had a lot of problems with mine this year, but well.. it has like 208K miles on it LOL

[breakingbrie]

We have a chrysler 300 - it's a 2002. I loooove it. I'd love even more to have a newer one! I also like the ford fusion, it's a nice little car, too. Ultimately I'd like to own an older mustang, that's my dream car, a 67 or 69, dh likes mustangs too, but the newer ones.

[carriesmom]

DH and his brother research for months before deciding and still change their minds. In fact, DH still hasn't decided, he's narrowed it Honda Element or Dodge Journey. His boss drives a Ford Fusion and is really pleased with it. I drive a Dodge Charger, I love it but it doesn't get the greatest gas mileage but it is incredibly safe (they are used for police cars and need no body modifications). I would say go on Consumer Reports and research the heck out of it!

[meems]

Just get this and let me go crazy with jealousy.

[LenaGardner]

Consumer reports is making me lean more and more towards the Toyota Corolla...there's a cute teal one at my local Toyota place for under 15,000 brand new so maybe we'll start there...it's on the CR "best value" list...but I'll have to see if they have the Hello Kitty edition...

[Jennilyn]

I wouldn't buy brand new as it depreciates in value as soon as you drive it off the lot. Try to buy a buy-back where you can get a newer one (like 2009 or 2010) for cheaper and it still has a warranty.

[jaylensmom]

i have an old nissan maxima and i love it...i would love to buy a new one but they are just too darn expensive...i'm leaning toward a toyota camry...

[scrappinsweetie]

we just got a 2010 chrysler sebring. i love it. enough room for the 4 of us and enough speed and get up and go to keep me happy

[LenaGardner]

I'm familiar with depreciation and such, and haven't made a final decision obviously...but James feels kind of strongly about buying me a new one...he bought his car brand new a few years ago and we're about to send in the last payment on it...it's never been in the shop so he wants that peace of mind for me. I don't have much of an opinion personally

[jessica31876]

we drive a 97 Dodge Stratus which has 240,000 miles (or more) on it. It is still going strong. I actually found out doing some research online that the years 1996 & 1997 were in the top 10 for Car and Driver back when they came out. We have not had any major issues since we bought it aside from the transmission going out and the regular maintenance stuff. It is pretty hard on brakes too but thats kinda normal. It is hard to work on though as it is really cramped under the hood.

Prior to that car we had a 1994 Nissan Pathfinder. Nissan's are pretty awesome and the Pathfinder is very well built. We had it for 10 years and put over 200,000 miles on it. It got average gas mileage. Id say about 15-20 mpg. Did not break down ever (aside from a starter issue) which I think was a problem with some defect on the starter we put on it. Both my husband and I were really upset that we had to get rid of it and could not find another in the price range we could afford.

Now if I was going to go look at new cars I would check out Nissans. We have five people in our family so we would need either a larger car, an SUV or a minivan. I have heard good things about the Nissan Quest. I also really like the Juke. It's new out so I do not know how good it is or if there are any problems. I have heard the Murano had issues with some sensor problems. Something about it stalling out when driving. We also owned a Nissan Sentra which was very nice. It was over 200,000 miles when we got rid of it. It was still running but needed a new clutch installed and my husband and wanted a bigger vehicle because at the time our son was in a car seat and my middle son was in a booster seat so a Sentra was just to tight of a fit.

Anyhow good luck on finding the right vehicle for you.

[kim21673]

Our family car is a 2010 Chevy Traverse Crossover. LOVE IT! It rides/drives like a car but has the space and size of SUV. We traded in our 2006 GMC Envoy because we needed more seating. I liked our Envoy too.

DH drives a 2000 GrandAm...it was mine before we got married. We are going to start shopping around for a new car for DH in the spring and have no idea what we will get...probably a GM vehicle though. I just know it won't be a 40K car like the Traverse!!

[strawberryredhead]

My Honda Civic was the best car I ever owned. My last 2 have been Fords (minivan and my current explorer) but I'm headed back to Honda as soon as it's time. They are great cars, inexpensive and don't depreciate much.

[HeatherKS]

My MIL just got a brand new Hyundai Sonata and it is gorgeous! It's a smaller car but she has already taken the grandchildren and their car seats several places and can fit three in the back seat pretty comfortably. I know that she and my FIL did a ton of research before she decided on it so I'm sure they get good reviews - FIL is a Consumer Reports addict.

Have fun car shopping - new vehicles make me giddy!

[TracerM]

I bought an '09 corolla in February and I love it! It gets awesome gas mileage, the back seat is big enough for 2 car seats and another child (an adult with two car seats is a tight squeeze but I've done it).