$2k Daily Driver Needed
 

I will likely be moving to Sherman, TX in the near future which is approx. 40 miles from my job in Plano, TX. I'm currently financing a 2006 Jeep Liberty. I love this vehicle, but it's fuel economy is awful. I'm looking at buying (for cash) a used car that will have better fuel economy, preferably at least an avg. of 30mpg. I'm looking at spending approx $2k. My initial research on this suggests that pre-1995 Honda Civics and Toyota Celicas seem to be a popular choice for these criteria. Any other suggestions? Any one looking at this thread happen to live in the North Texas area and want to sell me a reliable, fuel efficient car for that price?

The Toyota Tercel is a car I looked at, as I understand it they get in the mid-to-high 30s if you drive them nice.
There's the Geo Metro too, of course.

I don't think a Geo Metro would work for me. I've never been able to comfortably sit in one and if I have to spend 80 miles a day in it, I'd like to be comfortable.

Well then the Tercel might not work for you either. I kind of forget that other people are usually taller than me (I'm 5'7") so it hadn't been a consideration :/
Anyway older Hondas and Toyotas are the way to go for sure. You're not going to find many American cars at that low price with high miles that will still drive as long as the Japanese ones will.

You should check here as well, for every car that catches your interest:

Search by Make - fueleconomy.gov

honda civic, or a crx, or an accura integra all from teh early 90's.

all can be found for 2k if you look just a bit. don't be afraid of 200k miles - but expect to put a timing belt in them.

For what you are wanting, I would recommend a early to mid 90's Honda. Civic, CRX, even an Accord are all good for over 30 mpg. Also as stated before an Acura Integra(Acura is made by Honda) is also a good choice, I drive a 92 Integra LS, and am averaging 40 mpg, with a few modifications and some hypermiling. The Civic and CRX would be the best choice for mileage, but my brother and a close friend both drive 93 Accords, and average high 20's around town and low to mid 30's on the highway. Both are manual transmission, four door model.

Thanks for all the feedback guys. I'll start looking at Acura's as well. I have a list I've compiled on Google Docs, but the forum won't let me post links yet...

Well, there's exactly zero intact CRXs for sale in my area for that price range. I found a few Integras, but the Accords and Civics I've found look like they are in better shape.

According to that site a 1996 Honda Civic HX would be the way to go. I found one in the area for $1,790, but the mileage isn't listed. I'm waiting to hear back from the seller.

Here's that list I was referring to earlier:
Cheap Car Spreadsheet

One of the cars you're looking at is being sold by someone who needs money "for collage."
I for one wish that aspiring artist the best of luck.

Sucks that not a lot of them are manuals (unless you wanted an automatic?) because of the MPG hit you'll take... But then again, for $2,000...

Nice spreadsheet, by the way.

Just so you know what you're getting into....

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...you-21858.html

I've heard similar reports and I think there a lot like the numerous "completely scientific" reports that have come out about second hand smoke in the first decade of this century; subjective and usually funded by someone with an agenda. Also, stating a logical person would be willing to spend ~$0.5M more for a house 30 miles closer to a job is simply... well, illogical. :p I used to travel 72 miles one way. The commute I'll have isn't ideal, but my job in IT doesn't completely mesh with my wife's desire for land and a farm. Compromise is part of every aspect of life. :)

Yea, speeling fails som peepl... ;)

I eliminated manuals for two reasons. 1) My wife can't drive one until we can get her ankle fixed. It shattered 2 years ago and has never set right. She wouldn't be able to use the clutch as a result. 2) I have a friend in the auto repair industry that advised me against it, because you can't tell how the previous owner(s) treated the clutch.

I certainly prefer driving a manual, but I'd rather be driving a manual with less miles, owner(s), and a warranty.

I would encourage you to actually run the numbers for yourself. Simply saying that something is illogical doesn't make it not true. Perhaps his numbers aren't quite accurate for you, so change them and see what it is actually going to cost you.

Zharkov -

Huh. I like to use AutoTrader to look at prices. When I picked Zip code 79110 (near Amarillo) and looked for Saturn S-Series, there was nothing below $3500. Here's one for $3995 :

Cars for Sale: 1999 Saturn SL in Amarillo, TX 79109: Sedan Details - 322009920 - AutoTrader.com

In LA I was able to find this for $1995 :

Cars for Sale: 1998 Saturn SL in Las Vegas, NV 89115: Sedan Details - 322283747 - AutoTrader.com

It's in Las Vegas but it's within 200 miles of LA.

I'm surprised North Texas would have higher prices.

CarloSW2

The study is completely off for someone in my position. I would never be able to get a housing loan at 5%. And then there's financing another $477k. My credit is terrible. I'm working on it, but it's probably going to be another 5 years before it's decent again. Combine with that other factors I mentioned and I simply don't fit into this study.

The health detriments can be offset with a little discipline on the the part of the commuter, as can the mental affects. Long commutes may wear someone down, but using that as an excuse of anger, irritation, etc. is a sign of the weak-willed, imo.

As I said, I used to travel 72 miles one way. I did that for 3.5 years. I know the longer commutes are more nerve wracking, but to give my wife a little of what she wants and still work in the IT field, it's simply unavoidable that I'll be living far from work. Besides, the mere fact I won't be living in a congested town/city will offset some of that stress.

cfg83, I haven't even looked at AutoTrader. A majority of my searching has been on Craigslist. Most of the mainstream auto sale websites are going add $$ to the vehicle being sold.

i figured saturns were going to be $1k ish by now, bought ours 7-8 yrs ago for $2800

Zharkov -

Yes, you are right, Craigslist is the way to go.

CarloSW2

I 2nd the early 90's civic. My job situation just changed myself. went from a 12 miles round trip commute to 120 mile round trip. I just picked up a '91 civic hatch for $1450. which should save me 3000ish a year over what I was driving: at 99 suzuki grand vitara 4x4 v6. stay turned for civic build thread :)

I work a LOT on the old civics. three things they have issues with.
Timing belts. cheap and easy to do.
Fuel pumps. Somewhat prevented by changing the fuel filter, which is almost never done.
Distributor. somewhat prevented by new spark plug wires.

Let me know. I have no experience with working on vehicles, other than simple stuff like changing oil, tires, etc. I'd like to learn more, especially anything I can do to the car once I have it to increase fuel economy. I'm likely gonna end up with a Civic or Accord, early or mid '90s.

Updated Google spreadsheet

Hello there,

I would definitely add the Cd and weight of each of the car you put in your spreadsheet, as well as EPA, it will help you find the best for your target : higher MPG.

As for automatic vs manual, will you keep your previous car and add your commute car on top ?
If so, I can't see it very available for your wife to use it ...
And the extra MPG potential of the manual is a nice bonus for the desagrement of having the car only for you to use ;-)

Well, I ended up getting a 1994 Honda Accord w/ just shy of 170k miles for $1,500. There weren't nearly as many Civics in the area and the 4 I looked at all had major issues of one sort or another. The Accord is in decent shape. It has some body damage, but very slight. The frame is still intact, so it's safe. Only big issues are the radio asking for a code (won't work until I input it) and the sun roof doesn't open; so I guess that makes it a moon roof, lol. I'll be looking here for ideas to increase fuel economy as well.

accords are good cars. if it is in decent shape, expect 300k plus miles out of it. They go a LONG time.

same issues I mentioned above. many are automatics. come to a complete stop when backing up before shifting to drive as rolling tears them up. change the engine oil every 10,000 miles or more often.

if your's has a sunroof, then it is an EX model, and has the higher horsepower engine and rear disk brakes. doesn't really matter honestly.