Used car under $3000?

jamb75

Hello

I am trying to find some car experts to help me out with finding a car for my teenage daughter. We currently have a 97 Jeep Grand Cherokee for her but the paint is peeling off of it and I think we over paid, the person we bought it from is willing to buy it back. What I am thinking is a Honda Accord or Civic, early 2000's. with under 200k. I am also considering a 2002 Nissan Maxima with 160,000 miles. I wouldn't mind her driving a small truck like a Ram 1500 or Ranger but I don't know how reliable they are. I am also finding a l ot of Taurus but can't seem to get a good feel for their reliabilty because there are so many darn years of them! Last but not least, I have found a 2000 Ford Focus that an elderly lady owns and it has 19,000 original miles. This sound good but the car is rated a clunker and I do worry that seal and whjat not could start to go quickly.

I know that's a lot of chew on, I would appreciate any opinions and help anyone can offer, I am a mom and I know very little about cars!!!

brian125

If you cant afford a newer more reliable model vehicle stick to your plan with older vehicles with better than average ratings in the used car arena. Buying vehicles with 150k plus miles is only leaving yourself open to costly car repairs especially a everyday driven vehicle.

Check websites like @Edmunds and @kbb.com for reliable used vehicle reviews.

Buy the Consumers report used car vehicles book for idea's on a good used vehicle.

Good luck

stickguy

in general used Hondas and Toyotas go for a premium price. Under 3K will often be very miled up or really ratty.

I did recently sell a 2000 Acura TL for a little less than that, with 176,000 miles. Strong mechanically, and bit scratched up body. A good deal for the buyer, but still taking a risk. Something like that could work.

what you find will also depend on where you live.

I would take a serious look at the Focus. Cheap to run and will hold value at those miles. And not like a kid is going to (or at least should!) be driving a ton of miles or long distances.

Focus, a Saturn SL (that last version), a Cobalt (if the ignition was fixed!) are all options for a car in good shape and reasonable miles for not a bad price. I also like Mazda Proteges.

the domestics can be a good deal too. I don't like the Taurus, but they can be had cheap. Maybe a malibu?

I would stay away from any trucks for a new driver.

xwesx

I would stay away from any trucks for a new driver.

Just to quantify this a little, the driving dynamics of trucks are much less forgiving than that of cars. The good part about them is that they tend to offer better basic protection in a crash with another vehicle, but, if the reason the driver is in a crash is linked to the difficulty in controlling the vehicle, was it the chicken or was it the egg?

As far as used cars go, I'm a firm believer that the used guides are bunk. By the time they reach the age and/or mileage at which you're looking, the individual conditions of the car's life are much more important than anything else. For example, that Focus could be a real jewel and the low miles aren't going to mean it's worth a whole lot more than a miled up version of the same. On the other hand, such low miles could mean serious neglect that will translate to major issues down the road. My biggest concerns are seals and exhaust for a car like that. You'll likely want to put all new fluids in it right away, along with belts, hoses, and spark plug wires.

I owned a 1998 Ford Escort (which is basically the exact same car as the Focus in a different skin) for four years. It was driven hard and put away wet its whole life. I bought it at 108,000 miles and added another 50,000+ to it. In that time, I spent $4,000 on it (including original purchase of $800), mostly to address deferred maintenance items. Still, way, way cheaper than anything else around and it was a decently fun little car to drive.

I think you're on the right track as far as age and condition of the car. It's a good thing for a child's first car to be less than trouble-free, as it teaches them excellent life lessons about the intricacies of ownership and, hopefully, they'll learn some stuff about cars, too.

Mr_Shiftright

Japanese car, around 130K or less if you can swing it, preferably with at least a clean CARFAX and a mechanic's checking it out before you buy.

A $3000 truck is going to be a rat, so forget that.

You might look at the Japanese "second string brands", like Mitsubishi and Subaru and Hyundai.

stickguy

Except Subes tend to be on the pricey side. And often miled up. Though that probably varies (the price part) by part of country. Would help to know where the OP lives.

jamb75

Thank you for all of the info. It's very helpful! I'm in the Kansas City area. She has a restricted license until May so she can only drive to school or work and back.

Do you guys think I'm right about the Jeep? This guy we bought it from is a friend who fixes them up but we paid $2500 for it, the mileage is sketchy, the odometer says 178k but the title say 230k. i didn't pull a carfax on it. It's a 1997 6 cyclinder which he said goes forever. KBB is about $1800 in fair condition and it has peeling paint down to the metal.

I used to have a Festiva back in my day, talk about a rattle trap! It never let me down though

stickguy

I would give the Jeep back if you can. Probably going to drag you down, and the mileage is not good. But hard to say without seeing it for sure.

jamb75

I'm going to talk to the lady with the Focus again and I've also found a 2000 Honda Civic with 160k but only one owner and he has all service records for $3100.

graphicguy

Jump at that Civic, if it's clean..showing no neglect. Something like that can go another 75k miles with little in the way of repairs. Still a risk, but a calculated one.

Agree with Mr Shiftright about the trucks.....stay away. Regarding the Jeep, no matter the mechanic's opinion....still a big risk on a brand notorious for problems.

xwesx

Wow; I'm surprised a car of that age, with those miles, could bring that kind of money! I suppose that if "one owner and all service records" includes impeccable maintenance (e.g., it "needs" nothing) during that time and it still has a high-quality interior and exterior, you may likely be better off than a car like the Escort I purchased for a quarter that price.

jamb75

He's higher than KBB ($2700)and Edmund's value ($2500) but he's pretty thorough with his maintenance.

Car history highlights (all paperwork included)

Oil changed every 3000-6000 Miles (Majority of all paperwork records included)

15,000 mile service completed at 18,500 miles
30,000 mile service completed at 31,000 miles
37,500 mile service completed at 40,000 miles
New muffler set april 2005 at 45,000 miles
60,000 mile service completed at 58,000 miles
75,000 mile service completed at 74,000 miles
Driver side window power window regulator and track replaced at 86,000 miles
90,000 mile service and timing belt replaced at 97,000 miles
Rear trailing arm bushings, both replaced at 116,000 miles
120,000 mile service completed at 124,000 miles
4 new tires put on at 138,000 miles (they have 27,000 miles on them)
Front brake pads new at 145,000 miles

When the car was purchased in June of 2000 the paint, rustproofing, fabric, soundproofing, and trim protection plan was purchased.

xwesx

That all sounds pretty good. If not in that list somewhere, things the car likely needs at this point include struts all around (pretty cheap to DIY, but spendy at a shop), possibly ball joints and/or tie rod ends, an alignment, and you'll want to check out the CV boots to ensure they're in good order. Or, you could wait on the struts until your daughter starts talking about wanting a new car, then do all the suspension work, and she'll be content with her "new" car for a little while longer.

jamb75

We went to look at the Honda tonight. The guy forgot to mention that the A/C compressor doesn't work. I'm not impressed after driving 30 minutes each way. I figure he's probably got it overpriced by about $1000. I'm not sure if it's even worth trying to negotiate. The hunt continues!

stickguy

welcome to the bottom of the market. There are a few gems out there. Hidden under a large pile of fright pigs.

so when you find a good one, jump on it before it disappears.

jamb75

I'm back, still looking for a car. Any opinion on which of these three cars would be the better choice? 2001 Hyundai Elantra with 90k, 2000 Camry with 140k, or a 2001 Accord with 130k. All are within $500 of each other with the Hyundai being the least expensive. I like the mileage on that one but know there''s more to a car than that. I'm just assuming at this point that all have been kept up maintenance wise. I'm leaning towards the Hyundai and then getting the timing belt and other things changed right away but don't want to overspend.

stickguy

Camry and Accord are durable cars, but 130/140K is a lot of miles regardless. So the Elantra if cheaper is a good option, and still a nice car. Smaller obviously, but should be cheap to run.

in this price range and age, condition and maintenance history is the most important factor. I would rather the Accord if well taken care of than an Elantra that was neglected, but that goes in reverse too.

jamb75

I'm looking at the Elantra in the morning. I'll pull a Carfax if it seems good and take it to a mechanic to check out. The guy selling it is a motorcycle mechanic. I'm partial to Hondas, but the transmission issues scare me.

Thank you for your help, I really appreciate it!

I also found a 2009 Kia with 62k, asking $3700 but it's a salvage title. I've been avoiding salvage but it seems like a good deal!

stickguy

stay away from the salvage title unless you really know what you are doing. It is super cheap for a reason. And sometimes the reason is that it isn't really safe.

xwesx

Agreed, stick. Salvage titles aren't *necessarily* a big deal, but it really depends on what happened and what went into the repair.

As an example, my '98 Escort had a salvage title due to a tree falling on it. The roof was collapsed in the middle (pillars okay), hood damage, front and rear glass destroyed, some damage to the dash and other internals. At the time, the value of the car (undamaged) was only $6K, so this was clearly enough to total it.

But, a salvager bought it, fixed the roof, replaced the hood, and put new glass in it... viola. Good as new! Well, close, he didn't do any work on the dash, which, from what I was told, was a significant part of the insurance estimate due to the labor involved (dealing with all the wiring, etc). So, even though that happened in 2005 and I bought in 2008 with 108K on it, never a lick of problems from that event and the car remained as safe (structure, passive crash protection systems) as if it had never happened.

On the other hand, a major collision, flood damage, or shoddy work can significantly compromise the future performance of the car (particularly in crashes). It is those that you want to avoid.

stickguy

Yup. What he said. Water especially is the hidden killer.

jamb75

We ended up getting the Elantra. It's in great shape, at least what could be checked out. There was a line up for this car, feel lucky to have snagged it!

That Kia apparently just had some fender damage, my feeling was it was probably a safe bet but feel that we still did good.

Thanks again for all of your help! I hope to not have to buy a car again for awhile but if I do I'll be back! :-)

stickguy

sounds like a good choice. Enjoy. at that price, if it drives well, shows clean, and checked out OK, you can't really go wrong. If you don't like it, just resell it and try again!