What car should I buy?
I have $5000 to play with, looking to get a used car and pay cash in full. I'm in the Queens, NY area. Looking for a midsize sedan for a family of 4 and am interested in an 01/02 chevy malibu or hyundai sonata. A friend told me to avoid american cars as they start to get problems after 100,000 miles but i don't know how much truth there is to this and can't afford the better makes that he suggests like Honda, Toyota & Nissan.
Please suggest possible makes and models in my price range especially if you've had experience with that type of car. Thank You
Gas mileage is a factor, i'm replacing a 94' grand cherokee that gets 10 to 11 mpg.
I am from Manhattan and I can tell you firsthand not to go for the cheap american cars. They are cheap for a reason... their residual value is crap because they don't last as long as their japanese counterparts. I worked as a car salesman for about 6 months and the pattern was very obvious... american cars where problem cars.
Now to answer your question. My father bought an 01 malibu back when it had 30k miles and it had problems then. I believe the Hyundai Sonata is a pretty decent car, especially with the new warranties they offer. But I don't have any firsthand experience with that. I am driving a 99 accord with 110k miles that I have owned since it had 80k miles. I have never ever ever ever had a problem with it. Car turns on in the coldest winter and doesn't overheat in the hottest summer with the ac on and driving for 6 hours straight. I've had the same experience with Toyota Corolla.
If I was in your situation I would try to save up the extra 2000 dollars and get something that isn't going to give me a headache.
Good Luck with the car shopping. This should go without saying... Never Ever Ever Ever go car shopping for a used car by showing up from one dealer to the next. Go to autotrader.com or cars.com.... find your deals there... and then you go shopping with those prices in hand.
