Are cheap cars worth buying?

[diplomatic_lie]

I've seen used cars selling (on my college sales website) for as low as $1500.

Is it worth buying those cars? My only concern is whether they're likely to break down. I don't know how to fix cars, and lugging it to the mechanic every fortnight will cost me heaps.

 

[Skel]

you get what you pay for

You may be able to find a great deal but you never really know until you have driven the car a few months.

 

[Vincent]

Just depends on the car. A used civic will last forever with very little maintenence. Usually if they're that cheap, there's a problem. Just get it checked out before you buy it.

 

[AverageFC]

The purpose of a car is to get you from point a to point b. Nothing else. Sort of like a cell phone is to make phone calls, not play games.

 

[Vincent]

Originally posted by AverageFC
The purpose of a car is to get you from point a to point b. Nothing else. Sort of like a cell phone is to make phone calls, not play games.

You're no fun.

 

[Julian]

The purpose of a car is to get you from point a to point b. Nothing else. Sort of like a cell phone is to make phone calls, not play games.

The purpose of a car is not simply for transportation, sure maybe that was the case in 1908. get with the times sonny.

 

[penkitten]

i have never had a brand new car..

i have had to buy used cars all my life .

a toyota , a mazda and a dodge seem to be great used cars , trucks and vans , that dont give you trouble, from my experience.

the cheapest car i got was a dodge caravan for 500.
the most expensive was a cutlass for 3500 and so far , its been the worst .its had to have all sorts of things replaced like the transmission for 2000 and its only been two years and its going out again.
a previous cutlass had to have the transmission replaced .

 

[Sweet Ken]

It all depends on the car. My first car was a 91 Chevy Lumina that had 180000 on it when I got it from my brother in law for $1000. It ran pretty well for about a year, then we had problems with a radiator hose, transmission. But that just comes with age.

Im driving an 88 Dodge Dakota right now. It has 200,000 miles, and while it's not the smoothest thing around, I haven't had any real mechanical trouble.

If you're looking to pull honeys with a car like that, forget about it. But if you want a good reliable car that will get the job done and save you a LOT of money, most $1500 cars are great. Make sure to test drive it, and go at least 15 miles or for 30 minutes. A lot of problems take a few minutes to pop up, and everyone with a lemon will try to pull a fast one on you to get rid of it. Trust me, I've done it myself.

 

[MetalFortress]

Originally posted by AverageFC
The purpose of a car is to get you from point a to point b. Nothing else. Sort of like a cell phone is to make phone calls, not play games.

Right. And the purpose of women is to have sex with men. Nothing else. Puh-LEEZE.

 

[7 Virtues]

A car is a tool. A phone is a tool. They can't be compared to women, who while acting like tools, aren't useful for anything.

 

[Dust 2 Dust]

Yes, those cheap cars will break down and in the end you'll probably spend thousands of dollars getting them repaired in the long run so it would be better to get a new or semi-new car. My old car I bought for 1,800 and over the next 4 years I wasted over 2,000 getting it fixed because it would break down.

Rule #1 of buying a car- If your inexperienced with purchasing a vehicle then take a friend along with you who is knowledgable about cars. People will try to rip you off and sell you a car with oil leaks, cracked radiators and sh1t.

Rule #2- NEVER buy a car than has an automatic transmission with over 100,000 miles.

 

[TurboOverCubicInches]

I've been in the family business (several repair shops) for the last 10 years. All i can say is: Depends. If its all beat up, probably not. Because the price you pay for repairs will exceed the cost of the car. Not good business. Obviously, since yer only spending very little money, transportation is the only thing that should be on your mind. At only $1500, I'd check the car out really good. You can find a decent car for that price, just have a mechanic check it out. Like someone said, Honda Civic is decent car if yer looking for something cheap. So is a Ford Escort, if its in decent condition. I've seen plenty of those run forever (1992+ models with the 1.9). I can advise you on some cars to stay away from, even at a low price:

pontiac grand ams (will fall apart right under you)
older subarus (the all wheel drive system will cost you an arm and a leg to repair)
MOST GM's from late 80's to mid 90's (sorry gm people)
Mazdas (parts prices outrageous)
early-mid 90's Chrylsers (including their mitsubishi twins)

reccomendations:
92+ ford escorts (reasonably well built, cheap to fix)
92+ Honda civics (unmatched build quality, but THEY DO need to be checked out like any other car)
Nissan Sentra (any during the 90's)
Toyotas (all)
Ford Taurus before the 1996 years (plentiful, generally well built, parts cheap, especially if u can find one from an older owner)

Overall though, check it out. Check compression, look for leaks, check out the frame, if its an automatic have a mechanic drive it, check the trans fluid.

good luck

 

[AverageFC]

The purpose of a car is not simply for transportation, sure maybe that was the case in 1908. get with the times sonny.

The sole purpose of a car is transportation, sorry.

 

[diplomatic_lie]

Cool, thanks for the advice guys. The cars I'm referring to are from $500-$1500, mostly made during the 80s and early 90s. I'm not too worried about appearance (the places I drive to won't have any people to impress), but mostly about having to fix and repair the car, or if the car suddenly breaks down in the middle of nowhere.

 

[sfalexi]

Originally posted by diplomatic_lie
Cool, thanks for the advice guys. The cars I'm referring to are from $500-$1500, mostly made during the 80s and early 90s. I'm not too worried about appearance (the places I drive to won't have any people to impress), but mostly about having to fix and repair the car, or if the car suddenly breaks down in the middle of nowhere.

In that case go with a car that you see a lot of on the road, and probably american (as foreign parts can cost a little bit more money). Ford Escort, honda civic, jeep cherokee, all would probably be good choices. Parts are plentiful, and they've proven their worth time and time again.

Alexi

 

[Bonhomme]

Geo Prizm

A real good one to look for is a 90s Geo Prizm. The things run like a top and get great gas mileage with a reasonaly quiet ride and enough pick-up when you accelerate that it doesn't feel like you're riding a golf cart (as with a Geo Metro). They even look reasonably sporty, unlike a lot of economy cars.

If you want to have decent enough wheels for the least net cost possible a used Prizm is a good way to go. But you might not be able to get one for only $1500, unless the body has some dents and such. They hold their resale value, too.

 

[Tryin to Grow a Chin]

Re: Geo Prizm

Originally posted by Bonhomme
A real good one to look for is a 90s Geo Prizm.

It's identical to the Toyota Corolla.

 

[Bonhomme]

Yes, TTGAC

They do have the same Haynes/Chilton's manuals. Therefore, my advice is interchangeable for Toyota Corollas.

The mechanic who checked out my Prizm said I shouldn't expect any major problems for a long time. And that's when I bought it with something like 110,000 miles on it.

Some models tend to have much more durable transmissions than others.

 

[TurboLover]

Originally posted by AverageFC
The sole purpose of a car is transportation, sorry.

Anyone who thinks this has only driven crap or cannot appriencate fine engineering. Tell that to people who bust their ass on project cars like muscle cars, sport cars, etc. They can be considered a hobbie and a car can make you feel different things.

Hey whats that Enzo for? Oh that thing, it transportation, yeah, I like to drive it to 7-11 so some rat basterd with no insurance can hit it. The wife is like, hey let's have sex in this thing. No, stop spilling the damn milk, we need to get home before the ice cream melts. Good thing we have 600+ horses.

 

[TurboOverCubicInches]

Turbo, the guy has a couple bucks to spend on a car. I'm an SCCA racer and agree that cars CAN be for more than transportation, but many people just are not interested in anything else but transportation, which IS what the automobile was conceived for.