[RedDevil]

Countryboy - I figured you out.
You do not want a car that is cheap and dependable.
You want a car that you like.
And that is the only right thing to do! Never get stuck to a car you hate!
You dislike hybrid???? Beats me, but don't get a hybrid, then.

My first car was a '85 Honda Civic. My dad sold it to me when it was 7 years old. He had almost bought a Honda Integra instead of the Civic, I craved that car... nearly could have owned it! I hated the Civic for not being an Integra.
But it was reliable, cheap to maintain, zippy, elegant in its simplicity. It grew on me.
12 years on, rust killed that technically still perfect car. I still miss it.
My Insight is the first car that really is better than that Civic. It uses less fuel than even my old '86 Diesel Rabbit, it is roomier than my '98 Nissan Almera, it is more advanced than the laptop I'm typing on. I cannot imagine... but that's me.
Just do what you like, and like it for that.