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

[Fat Charlie]

1. Stay away from the scissor doors.

2. Stop adding cars to the stable.

[Xist]

Don’t add to the population.
Don’t subtract from the population.
Stay out of the hospital, the newspaper and jail.
If you do end up in jail, establish dominance quickly.

I believe that is accomplished by saying "That's my spot."

Honestly, I planned on removing the doors while I removed the parts, but it should have been clear that I am not adopting this poor Accord, I am fostering it... or more accurately, slaughtering it for scavenged parts, but I do not like that comparison, not like the Phage that claimed that each person sacrificed saved the lives of many people--until they needed their next transplant.

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by mpg_numbers_guy

Mazdas don't get great fuel economy

Ahem

[Xist]

Metro's a witch! Build a bridge out of him!

I found this for sale near me. All that they say is that it is in good condition and has 240,000 miles. The pictures do not show much, but you can see the sunroof. I cannot find out if that was available on submodels besides the EX and Si, but chances are it is an EX.

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...3262848404927/

I cannot find the EPA rating for the EX, it shows the autotragic HX getting 30/36, the manual HX getting 31/39, two 1.7l autotragics getting 26/34, one manual getting 28/35, and another manual getting 27/33.

I guess that the unspecified manuals are DX\LX and EX, but the DX\LX and EX versions with autotragics get the same fuel economy [while the manuals don't]?

I do not believe it.

Maybe it is 25/32, which does not qualify it for this thread, but it is still smaller and more efficient than my Accord, right?

I did this math before noticing the sunroof [and accompanying inferior fuel economy]: I reported 25 fill-ups in 2018, driving 12,152.8 miles on 329.39 gallons, averaging 36.89 MPG for the year, and I spent $849.05 on gas. If I slashed that to $636.79 and all other expenses were the same, this Civic would pay for itself in 5.65 years.

That was based on my Accord getting 25% over its highway rating.

Anyway, I am going to catch up on notes, and then work on my Civic.

[Xist]

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...4984916556820/

[Xist]

It is autocraptastic, so it is only rated 34 MPG, don't judge!
The ad says that it is a hatchback, so I wonder in what other ways the owner is an idiot. It looks atrocious, but I have never seen a better candidate for a $50 Rustoleum paint job:
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...9005767465721/

[roosterk0031]

If a car is neglected on the outside the mechanics probably were too.

[Xist]

Oh right. That car. I forgot about it when I saw the ad for the 2007 Prius. It looks pretty!

[Xist]

When I looked at the Prius pictures closer it was dirty and the clear coat was peeling, but I am sure that it still looked better than either of my Hondas. I asked the owner if I could look at it and he said that he was not available until today.

I was only available because we had a snow day. I work both jobs today, but I asked if I could have someone meet him at my mechanic's, and pay for a mechanic.

We exchanged many messages back and forth, but he sold the car today.

If I had a good, running car that got better fuel economy than my Civic and I could not get the Civic running easily, I would start calculating how to recover money from that car most efficiently (like hauling the car to a junkyard and pulling the wheels to sell, etc.).

Oh well.

[Xist]

The Civic owner reduced their asking price 10%, so they now want less than this Toyota that just appeared. This is five years newer with an additional 80,000 miles, but aside from bad paint and dirt, it looks fine.

Boring, really.

Runs great has some minor stuff two elec windows don't work one broken door handle 220000 miles has heat and AC cold ac four brand new tires and front wheel drive good in snow brand new belt just put on

Of course, it is the driver's door handle that is broken. The center console is missing the top and there is a snag in the front passenger door liner. Who knows how many problems aren't shown. It is only rated 34 MPG, but at $1,250, the price difference would buy you several tanks of gas. Unlike my Hondas, there is a dealership in-town, but it is an automatic, and those are only for the elderly and disabled.

However, I am not looking at any cars until I get my Civic running.

Is there any reasonable way to fix ripped sheet metal? I never saw that before!