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<blockquote data-quote="Jmac" data-source="post: 4277138" data-attributes="member: 545486">I think asking for opinions on used cars is an exercise in futility at best, irresponsible and expensive at worst.&nbsp; With used cars, you have to take into account things such as maintenance, treatment by the previous owner, repair history, etc. that are going to be unique to each individual car and will have a HUGE impact on how much money you&#039;re going to have to put into the car in the short-term and long-term.My advice is to spend a few days researching features that you like (MPG, trunk space, etc.) and make a list of suitable models.&nbsp; After that, go through the classifieds finding advertisements that feature the models you&#039;ve chosen and make appointments with their respective owners to test drive them.&nbsp; You may need to spend several weekends test driving, depending on how many there are in your area and how much time you&#039;re willing to devote to this (the more time, the better, IMO).&nbsp; Don&#039;t forget to get the VINs for checking out accident/repair history.After you feel you&#039;ve test driven enough, make a short list of the cars you liked and do some research on repair history.&nbsp; Cross out any cars which have had required major repairs (especially frame work).&nbsp; After that, arrange with the owner of the car on the top of your list to have it inspected by a professional mechanic (not just your buddy who knows cars, spend the money and get a real mechanic to look at it).&nbsp; The mechanic will give you a break down of what needs to be replaced immediately, what will need to be replaced shortly, and the estimated costs of each repair.&nbsp; If the car will require only minor, cheap repairs, go ahead and buy it.&nbsp; If you feel the car will require too much work/money in the short-term for it to be worth it, move on to the next car on your list.Hope this helps.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Jmac, post: 4277138, member: 545486"] I think asking for opinions on used cars is an exercise in futility at best, irresponsible and expensive at worst. With used cars, you have to take into account things such as maintenance, treatment by the previous owner, repair history, etc. that are going to be unique to each individual car and will have a HUGE impact on how much money you're going to have to put into the car in the short-term and long-term. My advice is to spend a few days researching features that you like (MPG, trunk space, etc.) and make a list of suitable models. After that, go through the classifieds finding advertisements that feature the models you've chosen and make appointments with their respective owners to test drive them. You may need to spend several weekends test driving, depending on how many there are in your area and how much time you're willing to devote to this (the more time, the better, IMO). Don't forget to get the VINs for checking out accident/repair history. After you feel you've test driven enough, make a short list of the cars you liked and do some research on repair history. Cross out any cars which have had required major repairs (especially frame work). After that, arrange with the owner of the car on the top of your list to have it inspected by a professional mechanic (not just your buddy who knows cars, spend the money and get a real mechanic to look at it). The mechanic will give you a break down of what needs to be replaced immediately, what will need to be replaced shortly, and the estimated costs of each repair. If the car will require only minor, cheap repairs, go ahead and buy it. If you feel the car will require too much work/money in the short-term for it to be worth it, move on to the next car on your list. Hope this helps. [/QUOTE]

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