Efficient, cheap beaters! Used car ads: 35 mpg highway or more for $1500 or less

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by freebeard

Slowly, slowly, catchee monkey.

It's currently in use as a loaner, I have it reserved for this weekend for a trip up the Valley.

XFi review, please. Do a top-up fill so you can measure MPG!

[freebeard]

The road trip has slipped to next week, I'd left it with 3/4 tank but IDK if someone else has used it since.

I was hoping to get the tags up-to-date on the Dasher, but I just found a medical bill for the same amount to the dollar. Maybe next month.

The last trip I drove to my brother's house and then rode with him in his Ford E-something. Except for the road feel due to it's lighter weight and a whistling driver door window, I found them strangely similar. The Dasher gets similar mileage (in diesel), but doesn't have the up-shift indicator light.

[Xist]

This was hit by a trailer?
Could you ever make the windshield seal? https://phoenix.craigslist.org/wvl/c...001657441.html

[MetroMPG]

That Prius is a write-off! I wonder how much he paid his insurance company to buy it back

[MetroMPG]

Well, it was well within my beater radius, only 20 minutes away, so I went for a look & test drive.

Inside, it's remarkably clean. Seriously hard to believe it's 15 years old. Heck - it'd be hard to believe it's one year old. It's mechanically sound, well maintained (5k km oil change receipts, recent pads/rotors) & drives nicely. Owned by a retired landscape machinery mechanic who looks after his things.

Cosmetically it's not great - it does not present a good "face": previously resprayed front bumper is peeling; an ugly rust hole on the leading edge of the hood (and bad attempt to spray over it).

The potential deal-breaker is the rocker panel situation. The passenger side is OK. But the driver's side will need work. It's not as bad as my Echo hatch:




But it's got lots of rust bubbles on the outside, and if you started poking at it, it'd soon be a fairly big hole:




Most of the bubbles are on the bottom, not shown. And on the inboard side of the pinch weld, there is already a small hole right through. I'm not even sure it'll pass inspection. They're going to ask their mechanic about it tomorrow.

I low-balled them and they said no, countering at only $100 below the asking price. He said "let's think about this and talk tomorrow." Sounds good to me.

Oh, and the AC doesn't work. Not an issue to me, but it'll make it a bit harder to sell.

I only paid $1k for that blue Echo hatch, and had $1800 in it by the time it was repaired and I ended up selling.


If I was looking for an Echo to keep, I'd absolutely buy this one at their asking price. It's a good car. But because I'm hoping to flip it next year and at least break even or make a few pennies, I need more wiggle room.

[deluxx]

Summary:
*Excellent car with new engine that has 100K miles.
*Radio & AC are broken; could use minor body work.
*One owner
My husband bought this car new in 2003, and it was his primary car until this past summer, when the AC went out. Before that he always fixed things that needed it and performed routine maintenance.
He put nearly 300K miles on it. You'll get to see it roll over to 300K if you buy it!
In addition to the AC, the stereo doesn't work. Those are the only major things. There is some light body work stuff (see pictures). Mostly, it's been an excellently maintained car, and it drives great.
Shortly after getting the new engine a few years ago, some kid hit the side of the car causing a lot of cosmetic damage. The kid's insurance company wanted to write the car off as a total loss, and he said no way, so the insurance company gave him less money and required him to get a salvage title.

$1200 Possibly under the 35mpg rule and possibly a sketchy car but I thought you guys should see this one, might be a very well maintained car and ready to drive 300k more.

[deluxx]

[QUOTE$750 ]1999 saturn wagon for sale
Very good car to me got me back and forth from baltimore to pa. the only reason i'm selling it is because i have nowhere to store it. No problems to my knowledge besides needs new alternator (i used a jumpbox whenever it wouldn't start you can have the jumpbox) and i can't get the driver seat to slide back. txt me if interested. $750[/QUOTE]

Not a bad price for a cargo hauler, get a tow hitch she can pull 2000lbs no problem.

[MetroMPG]

The Echo seller refused my final offer of $1600! It's solidly disqualified from this thread now. I'm putting the beater Metro back on the road tomorrow.

[Xist]

Can we get some other Canadians to lowball the seller?
Can we get some members to get Canadian numbers through Google Voice and lowball the seller, eh?

[freebeard]

I've taken possession of the XFi. I left him the Superbeetle and US$100. There's a punch list so technically it's a loaner.

On first inspection, the front suspension cradle shows paint and smooth metal. I haven't looked at the rear wheel wells yet. Are they also vulnerable?