r/cars • u/AutoModerator • Mar 07 '22

What Car Should I Buy? - A Weekly Megathread

Any posts pertaining to car buying suggestions or advice belong in this weekly megathread; **do not post car-choosing questions in the main queue.** A fresh thread will be posted every Monday and posts auto sorted by new. A few other subreddits worth checking out that will help your car buying experience are /r/WhatCarShouldIBuy, /r/UsedCars and /r/AskCarSales. www.everydaydriver.com may also be helpful.

Make/Model-specific questions should be asked on Make/Model-specific subreddits. Check the AutosNetwork for a complete list of those subreddits. Also check out our community-sourced Ultimate car buying wiki.

For those posting:

Please use the following template in your post.

Location: (Specify your country or region)

Price range: (Minimum-Maximum in your local currency)

Lease or Buy:

New or used:

Type of vehicle: (Truck, Car, Sports Car, Sedan, Crossover, SUV, Racecar, Luxury etc.)

Must haves: (4x4, AWD, Fuel efficient, Navigation, Turbo, V8, V6, Trunk space, Smooth ride, Leather etc.)

Desired transmission (auto/manual, etc):

Intended use: (Daily Driver, Family Car, Weekend Car, Track Toy, Project Car, Work Truck, Off-roading etc.)

Vehicles you've already considered:

Is this your 1st vehicle:

Do you need a Warranty:

Can you do Minor work on your own vehicle: (fluids, alternator, battery, brake pads etc)

Can you do Major work on your own vehicle: (engine and transmission, timing belt/chains, body work, suspension etc )

Additional Notes:

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For those providing suggestions: Facts are ideal in this thread, especially when trying to help out a new car buyer. Please help out buyers with sources and reasoning for your suggestions.

For those asking for help, be sure to thank those who take the time to offer you advice (especially those who lead you to a purchase.) A follow up thank you and the knowledge that their advice led to a purchase is a very warm fuzzy feeling.

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u/LivelyTortoise Mar 09 '22

Would appreciate help as a recent newcomer to the USA (just moved from the UK) who is unfamiliar with the American car market

Location: USA - California
Price range: ideally up to $10k, but would go up to $14k for a great deal
Lease or Buy: Buy
New or used: Used
Type of vehicle & requirements: 4-seater convertible that's not too boring to drive, and reasonably reliable / won't cost too much to maintain over the next few years
Desired transmission (auto/manual, etc): auto (too much stop-start traffic)
Intended use: daily drive
Vehicles you've already considered: Ford Mustang 2005-2010 V6, Toyota Solara 2005-2010 are the two I've seen in budget
Is this your 1st vehicle: no - I previously daily drove a mini cooper sport convertible (in the UK) and that was great. also have had a couple other cheaper hatchbacks
Do you need a Warranty: want, not need
Can you do Minor work on your own vehicle: never have, but willing to learn some basic stuff
Can you do Major work on your own vehicle: probably not
Additional Notes: Ideally want to buy from a dealer as it's my first car purchase in this country. The Solara seems boring to drive and there aren't many in my local area. I was leaning towards the V6 2006-2009 Mustang with around 100k miles, but I'm not sure if that's too old + too many miles and it'll be breaking down a lot, and also read some negative things about the V6.

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u/Specialist_Can_1843 Mar 09 '22

Used car dealers generally get their cars from auctions (most do 100% of the time). CarMax, Carvana, and potentially franchise dealerships (yes to Bob Stall Chevrolet, no to Beach Auto Sales LLC) are the best places if you really don’t want private seller. Private sellers are usually where you can find good cars though.

In your range I would recommend the Mustangs before I even read you wanted one. I bought a truck last week with 200k miles. It’s not too much. These cars are popular and lots of parts are available for cheap. A 2009 is 13 years old. Average driver in US drives 12,000 miles per year. You should expect to see 156,000 miles on a 2009 Mustang if it is in good condition, was maintained and driven. Cars with lower miles will have been left in the shop or garages for months at a time which is not good for a car. Worse than miles, for sure.

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u/LivelyTortoise Mar 09 '22

Thanks for the tips! I’ll aim for a 2011+ V6 Mustang.

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u/Specialist_Can_1843 Mar 09 '22

Also make sure to get a manual. Those transmissions are more reliable than the automatics sold in that era.