Not sure which car to get..help?

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

White and black cars are for sure more reliable but never discount the blues.

 

[GingerBeer]

Try a Mazda they've had very good reviews for the past three and more years so a 2015-2017 second hand Mazda may suit your needs. They have several SUV sizes. They also have sedans.

 

[faroukfarouk]

Sorry in advance if this is the wrong forum. There's no car forum anywhere on CF, that I'm aware of at least.

Anyway, so I've been driving for quite a number of years now. I've always used my family's car since I still live with them and they don't mind and I help pay for gas.

I'm looking to purchase a used car. I have saved up enough money to buy a decent one. My family has owned Toyotas their entire life and frankly, all of us are ready for a change.

My preferences: 2015-2017, reliable, low maintenance cost [the usual oil change, tire rotation, etc-no major issues outside of those], great for winter driving, fuel efficient.

I'm willing to consider Toyota [we've owned Corollas] and other 'years'. I just want some helpful advice on the cars YOU'VE owned/driven and ANY OTHER recommendations outside of your personal experience. Please mention the Make, Model, and year as I hope to do extensive research on each recommendation.

Thank you for your time : )

Toyotas do have the reputation of being reliable. A small car that uses little gas is also a consideration.

 

[TuxAme]

Mitsubishi is pretty good- outside of my price range, but they're good cars. The Outlander is a great car. 7 seats, 25 mpg in the city, 31 on the highway (a lot more than what my car gets), and a backup camera. Handles well in the snow, too. Because they're still being manufactured, you don't have to worry about not finding parts for them. I think the payments are between $300-$600 a month. Like I said, a bit pricey, but you could get a deal on a used one at a dealership.

I got a Volvo that's older than I am a few months ago. It's a pretty car, but I need to keep a lookout for something better. The second something happens to it, I'll need to get a bus pass (no aftermarket parts that I'm aware of).

 

[Kit Sigmon]

Sorry in advance if this is the wrong forum. There's no car forum anywhere on CF, that I'm aware of at least.

Anyway, so I've been driving for quite a number of years now. I've always used my family's car since I still live with them and they don't mind and I help pay for gas.

I'm looking to purchase a used car. I have saved up enough money to buy a decent one. My family has owned Toyotas their entire life and frankly, all of us are ready for a change.

My preferences: 2015-2017, reliable, low maintenance cost [the usual oil change, tire rotation, etc-no major issues outside of those], great for winter driving, fuel efficient.

I'm willing to consider Toyota [we've owned Corollas] and other 'years'. I just want some helpful advice on the cars YOU'VE owned/driven and ANY OTHER recommendations outside of your personal experience. Please mention the Make, Model, and year as I hope to do extensive research on each recommendation.

Thank you for your time : )

Used cars we own/or have owned and recommend: Mazda 5, Hyundai Voloster,
we still have it and it's a 2014 model, we bought it used and have had it for nearly three year.
The previous owner didn't have it long and traded it in for another car because she was scared of the Voloster, she said it was too powerful for her... that Voloster has a sports package and turbo, it's fine for us.

The other vehicle we bought used was a BMW X3(2015) and it was also a wonderful vehicle for us and we are sorry that we ever traded it...we even went back to see about getting it back but it was already sold.
We have never had a Toyota, so I can't say anything about them.

 

[SkyWriting]

Hi, thanks for your reply. Just curious..how might one find these 'free cars'? I'm weary about anything 'free' in general so not quite sure what you mean. I'm mainly looking to find Certified Pre-Owned vehicles.

In high school I asked a friend of my sisters about a car sitting in her driveway. She said her husband had bought a new one and I could have it. The frame needed some repair, but after repairs my dad helped me with I drove it for a year. It was "my" first car.

 

[Bible Highlighter]

Sorry in advance if this is the wrong forum. There's no car forum anywhere on CF, that I'm aware of at least.

Anyway, so I've been driving for quite a number of years now. I've always used my family's car since I still live with them and they don't mind and I help pay for gas.

I'm looking to purchase a used car. I have saved up enough money to buy a decent one. My family has owned Toyotas their entire life and frankly, all of us are ready for a change.

My preferences: 2015-2017, reliable, low maintenance cost [the usual oil change, tire rotation, etc-no major issues outside of those], great for winter driving, fuel efficient.

I'm willing to consider Toyota [we've owned Corollas] and other 'years'. I just want some helpful advice on the cars YOU'VE owned/driven and ANY OTHER recommendations outside of your personal experience. Please mention the Make, Model, and year as I hope to do extensive research on each recommendation.

Thank you for your time : )

Yes. Buy a Toyota pick up or their smaller SUV (the RAV4).
Highlander is awesome! But you should test drive one to see if it is the right size for you.
You cannot go wrong with a Toyota; They are the most reliable vehicles on the market.

If you did not live in a snow environment, I would recommend the Prius. They get 50 miles per gallon. However, I would not mess with getting a Prius if you live where it snows. You will easily get stuck somewhere. You need a truck or SUV from Toyota if you live where it snows. Also.... make sure there is no rusting on the body right above the tires or underneath the car if you are buying a used one up North. Toyota is good, but no vehicle can withstand salt on the roads. I had a new SUV/truck up North in the past and within 5 years, the salt on the roads had eaten away the body right above one of my tires. It cost me 1,000 bucks to fix it.

So if you do buy used, make sure there is no bad rusting issues underneath and make sure you take your vehicle to Ziebart right before snowfall (and they start to salt the roads). Make sure you take it to Ziebart EVERY year. I took my SUV to Ziebart once when I bought my vehicle brand new and it did not help. One needs to do Ziebart every year. Make sure they cover the body part of the vehicle right above the tires. Salt and snow kicks up in there and loves to eat your car like it is some kind of ice cream Sundae.

 

[com7fy8]

A pick-up can be good for holding loads which might not work well in a station wagon or trunk. But a pick-up can be limited for driving more than one passenger. You might get more social and into ministering so you need to carry a few people, at times. I would say have a station wagon model so you can carry stuff behind back-seat passengers. Plus you might want your car to be the go-to for taking your family somewhere

Also, I would make sure about if you have a trusted place where you can take your car for maintenance and repairs. Make sure they can handle the make you get, maybe have one of them check the car and advise you about which they would suggest and which they would want to work on.

And then make sure you will have the money to spend on anything they will say it is important to do.

 

[salt-n-light]

What size car are you looking for? sedan(camry), small car(carolla), Small suv(Rav4), big suv(highlander) etc? What sizes are you considering?

Rav4s are awesome!

 

[RaymondG]

Rav4s are awesome!

Just traded in a rav4 that we owned for 10 years....was a sad day.... I think they look better with the tire on the back though.....dont really like the new look.... but they are definitely good cars.

 

[gym_class_hero]

all my kids have had Honda Accords and they have all been excellent vehicles. And if you aren't driving a ton of miles, leasing is the way to go. That way you get a new car every three years...

 

[timewerx]

Thanks again, you've helped me before with my car questions lol. (Sorry if I sound like a broken record with my posts. I figured I'd get more replies on the advice forum). I also figured I'd be more specific with my preferences but be more open with car recommendations. So Toyota seems to be the most recommended. Do you have any recommendations for a Toyota model that isn't Corolla and is 2015-2017?

One reason I presume why Toyota will be very good, apart from its incredible reliability and efficiency is that it is a very popular brand in Canada. If at some point it will need repairs, you'll have more experts and parts able to service the car because of its popularity.

If you want something smaller and somewhat looks nicer too, there is Toyota Yaris hatchback. I'm not sure if it's "Yaris" in Canada. The same car is named differently in other countries (Vitz, Echo). I actually owned a much older model of that car and it was called "Starlet" back then.

Toyota Yaris - Wikipedia

Back in the 90's the Starlet came with AWD versions. I'm not sure if Yaris also have AWD but I'm pretty sure, the Corolla has AWD variants. AWD is nice thing to have in snowy Canada.

The more expensive alternative is Toyota RAV4 or Camry. The choice between the two is up to you, both are very good models, they even have the same engine. The RAV4 is a mid-size SUV and some have AWD.

Good luck!

 

[Tom 1]

Sorry in advance if this is the wrong forum. There's no car forum anywhere on CF, that I'm aware of at least.

Anyway, so I've been driving for quite a number of years now. I've always used my family's car since I still live with them and they don't mind and I help pay for gas.

I'm looking to purchase a used car. I have saved up enough money to buy a decent one. My family has owned Toyotas their entire life and frankly, all of us are ready for a change.

My preferences: 2015-2017, reliable, low maintenance cost [the usual oil change, tire rotation, etc-no major issues outside of those], great for winter driving, fuel efficient.

I'm willing to consider Toyota [we've owned Corollas] and other 'years'. I just want some helpful advice on the cars YOU'VE owned/driven and ANY OTHER recommendations outside of your personal experience. Please mention the Make, Model, and year as I hope to do extensive research on each recommendation.

Thank you for your time : )

I’ve had a few Hondas that were excellent on all counts, low fuel consumption on the diesels, well designed. I had a Civic and a couple of CRVs

 

[A_Thinker]

I have a 2012 Ford Fusion and have been very happy with it, but it's not the most fuel-efficient.

My 2010 Ford Fusion has been a bit of a trial from the time that I got it until now.

I ultimately got the Ford because I had purchased foreign-made cars for some time, ... and wanted to give the US made producers another shot. I did some research and Ford was supposed to be producing pretty good quality marks back then, ... and the Fusion was one of it's most highly rated products.

So we went with the Fusion, ... and it wasn't long before I noticed ... the annoying cabin noises (ticks, squeaks, etc.) I had experienced before with my Fords (I had a 1974 and 1978 Mustangs) which both had issues with annoying cabin noise. But I figured I could get used to it. (I guess I did ... I barely HEAR anything now).

Unfortunately, we had the car (purchased used in 2012) only a few months, ... when I experienced a couple episodes of complete loss of power ... upon attempting to accelerate from a stop (in traffic). That was harrowing, ... but it would start right back up. We took the car to the dealer, and found that the electronic fuel sensor needed to be replaced (due to a recalled factory issue). This work was performed by the dealer at no charge ... and we had no future occurrences of this problem.

For a long while, however, I would periodically feel momentary hiccups in drive power ... especially when driving at slower speeds (i.e. in moderately heavy traffic). Though we took the car in for this issue as well, ... the dealer couldn't find any causation for the issue.

A few years later, the "Check Engine Light" came on, ... and, according to the dealer, their diagnostic checking indicated a problem with the engine cams (either the cam sensors were not indicating correcting ... or there was a problem with the cam assembly itself). Turns out that it was the Cam sensors ... which were replaced ... for a bit less than $1,000.00.

We've also had tire pressure sensors fail (in both front tires) ... and the driver-side door handle assembly break. Fixing the door handle assembly also took care of the fact that the drivers side interior door handle's chrome finish had begun to peel off ... to the point where I had covered it with the finger of a rubber glove. Unfortunately, I had to repeat the same work-around for the passenger-side interior door handle ... which began peeling perhaps a year later and ended up giving my wife a minor cut on her hand.

Other than that, the car's been great. My neighbor from across the street has one of the newer Ford Fusions as well. I sincerely hope your experience will be better than mine.

 

[chilehed]

My 2014 Chevy Cruze 2.0 Turbo Diesel has good torque and gets great fuel economy. With winter tires I've never gotten stuck over three Michigan winters (and I'm an avid skier, which means I hunt out snowy weather). I'm very pleased with it. The only downside is that so far I've had to go to the dealer to get oil filters, but that's not an issue with the gas engines.

I've also spent a LOT of time in the Buick Regal AWD package. Great car, and with winter tires it was a dream. One ski trip I was in a near whiteout, the county road I was on had well over 12" of snow on the center line and there was someone in the ditch every couple of miles, but I just rolled along at the speed limit without a hint of trouble.

DISCLAIMER: I work for GM as an engineer. I do not represent GM; my comments are my own opinion.

 

[A_Thinker]

I've also spent a LOT of time in the Buick Regal AWD package. Great car, and with winter tires it was a dream. One ski trip I was in a near whiteout, the county road I was on had well over 12" of snow on the center line and there was someone in the ditch every couple of miles, but I just rolled along at the speed limit without a hint of trouble.

The Buick Regal was my dream car for a few years (as in I dreamed that someday I might have one). The closest I actually got to owning the Regal is a Buick Century that I bought after I graduated from school. The Century was a nice car, ... though it was a little under-powered (as we were in the days of the early 4-cylinder engines).

 

[Persis]

Sorry in advance if this is the wrong forum. There's no car forum anywhere on CF, that I'm aware of at least.

Anyway, so I've been driving for quite a number of years now. I've always used my family's car since I still live with them and they don't mind and I help pay for gas.

I'm looking to purchase a used car. I have saved up enough money to buy a decent one. My family has owned Toyotas their entire life and frankly, all of us are ready for a change.

My preferences: 2015-2017, reliable, low maintenance cost [the usual oil change, tire rotation, etc-no major issues outside of those], great for winter driving, fuel efficient.

I'm willing to consider Toyota [we've owned Corollas] and other 'years'. I just want some helpful advice on the cars YOU'VE owned/driven and ANY OTHER recommendations outside of your personal experience. Please mention the Make, Model, and year as I hope to do extensive research on each recommendation.

Thank you for your time : )

I love your question! I have driven a Nissan since 2002 and it is still in mint condition. Mind you I don't drive huge distances everyday, maybe 30 minutes both ways at best, somewhat frequently a month.

I got a Nissan because it was recommended to me because they have strong engines. It has some body work done because of some hit and run accidents while my car is parked, but other than that it has held up to be true. I think that Volkswagons and Subarus are also very good. These have also been recommended to me. They may be more costly though, so it all depends on your budget, and what you can afford. Good luck finding your dream car!

 

[chilehed]

The Buick Regal was my dream car for a few years (as in I dreamed that someday I might have one). The closest I actually got to owning the Regal is a Buick Century that I bought after I graduated from school. The Century was a nice car, ... though it was a little under-powered (as we were in the days of the early 4-cylinder engines).

Back in the '90's I got a 3800 V6 Regal for my wife... a '95, I think. Very comfortable and reliable ride, lasted us a long time and was a great mommymobile. Took it on quite a number of trips home to Miami.

 

[Daniel Marsh]

Sorry in advance if this is the wrong forum. There's no car forum anywhere on CF, that I'm aware of at least.

Anyway, so I've been driving for quite a number of years now. I've always used my family's car since I still live with them and they don't mind and I help pay for gas.

I'm looking to purchase a used car. I have saved up enough money to buy a decent one. My family has owned Toyotas their entire life and frankly, all of us are ready for a change.

My preferences: 2015-2017, reliable, low maintenance cost [the usual oil change, tire rotation, etc-no major issues outside of those], great for winter driving, fuel efficient.

I'm willing to consider Toyota [we've owned Corollas] and other 'years'. I just want some helpful advice on the cars YOU'VE owned/driven and ANY OTHER recommendations outside of your personal experience. Please mention the Make, Model, and year as I hope to do extensive research on each recommendation.

Thank you for your time : )

Visit some Machanics and ask what cars have thew most problems?

 

[Cat Loaf You]

Most people told me to never buy new car if you are average salary person , you probably want some 2-3 year old car which will save you somewhere near 20-30% .