Well, been toying around with the idea of getting a cheap daily driver for long road trips and to keep the miles of the truck. I already have 2 vehicles, but I don't drive the Jeep at all, it just sits until I cruise it around town on a nice weekend. So, I figure I'll sell the jeep and get a DD car. Looking for something in the 6k range. Something that is good on gas, reliable, and won't cost me an arm and a leg to fix.
I've came up with a couple choices, both are foreign, so cheap fixes are already out the window. But here they are:
VW Jetta. Early 2000 year range. Maybe if I am lucky enough, grab one of the TDI. They are more like 8k though.

Audi A4. Early 2000 year range.

Both are going to have just at 100k miles in that price range. Any insight on these two cars. I am leaning towards the VW, but have no idea about problems/reliability of either. I am also open to other make/models, as long as they meet the price range, and get good gas mileage. Thats why the Mustang took a dive off the list.

 

well the ford contour did pretty good until my ex drove it off in the snow and let some drunk guy pull her out by the rear tie bar. sooo that wheel pointed off to jones'. but its probably on the bottom of your good mpg spectrum. i think i seen 32 best in that thing

 

Almost forgot. Honda accord coupe. Early 2000 as well.


Contour, hmm.... Gonna go look it up. Problem with Fords cars is that,.. well.... they are just plain ugly to me. Well, not all their cars, just the ones in the early 2000 range, that get good gas mileage. I LOVE the mustang. The fusions look great too, and the 500 ain't too shabby either. But for my price range my choice points to the focus or taurus.

 

My brother has had 2 Audi's, a 2003 A4, and a 2002 S4.

The A4 was reliable, gas was decent (not amazing, but not to crappy), but they are a pain in the **** to work on. If you plan on servicing it yourself, join a good Audi forum and do some reading. If you plan on taking it somewhere, prepare for some pricey repairs.

His current S4 is modded out so I can't really comment on the motor, but the rest of the car (should be roughly the same as the A4) runs great.

 

This contour ain't to bad looking. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2000-...lenotsupported

Low price too. Need to hurry up and sell the jeep so I can get serious I guess.

 

If you want a Contour, buy a 2001 or newer. The older ones were subject to transmission failures at around 80,000 miles, they were plagued with electrical gremilins, over heating and plastic parts in the engine bay breaking. They rate as a 4 out of 10 on reliability per CR. I'd avoid the Audi unless you just like paying a lot for parts and having to wait for major parts to be sent over here. The Honda is a decent car as is the Focus if you like a small car. My girls 2006 Focus gets 41-44 mpg hiway at 65 mph and 31-35 town with A/C running. It's a nice econobox....but it's still an econobox. Avoid the 2006 and older VWs with the gas 6 bangers. They are prone to complete engine failures. If you want a VW, the TDI is the only way to go and they are next to bulletproof. Fuel mileages are astounding at 50+ mpg and if you are careful, 60+ mpg. If I were looking for a DD that got loads of fuel mileage, I'd be looking at the TDI VW.

 

hmm the fatality of the contour was a timing belt and the girl couldnt pay for it. no tranny problem and the e-brake light would flicker. but like you say, ford cars arent the best lookers, but i love my mercury milan (fusion)

 

I'm looking at this 2005 Focus as a daily. Clocking too many miles on the F150 way too fast. - Og

 

Yea, the miles rack up quick. Plus, I've been driving a work car for the past 2 weeks, and that thing is awesome on gas. Never owned a car, so never actually exp going forever on a tank until recently. Kinda nice, even though I'm not paying for the gas. Figured it would be nice to have for days I'm working on the truck, or those looooong trips that take 4 tanks on the truck.

 

With the possible exception of the TDI's, I'd never own a VW that wasn't under the factory warranty. If you're looking to keep your initial cost of ownership down, I think you need to be taking a closer look at the Focus -- great reliability and economy, and you can get into a decent one without laying out too much cash on the front end......

 

Audi - Notorious for electrical problems (specifically the headlights), pricey parts, hard to work on, fun as hell to drive.

VW - Good cars, parts are semi-decent priced, semi-hard to work on.

Honda - Good cars, parts are cheap, easy as hell to work on.


I've had experience with both an 2003 Audi S4 and a 2001 Honda Accord, but the VW opinion is coming from my friend who's got an old Cabrolet and a 2002 Jetta.

My S4 was so much fun to drive, but I fell victim to the headlight problem of that time. Headlights would randomly turn off, and it was very hard to track down the culprit. Dealership couldn't figure it out, so I traded it for the truck.

The Accord was bullet-proof. It was my first car, and I beat the ever living crap out of it. When I matured in my driving (I'm almost 25 now), I sold it to my mother, and the thing still runs really good (roughly 195k on the odo.). Only maintenance in those 195k miles was regular oil changes, brakes when needed, a tranny flush @ 85k, and timing belt replacement @ 90k which is the recommended interval for the interference engine.

 

I got a 2003 Z06 vette, cheap as my DD.

19 MPG city
30+ MPG highway

and more power than I can use.

Carries my bike, or two sets of golf clubs.. what more do you need?

 

get a 1999-2004 mustang you maybe could find a good
cheap one

 

my moms 99 gt gets 26 mpg with her lead foot and 25-55 mph drive speeds most of the way.

 

How about something from Mazda? I had a 6 as a rental a few years ago, super nice cars.