The inevitable finding a car post

[classiccarsrule85]

So im on a quest i suppose to rid ourselves of our 02 passat wagon 1.8t just not my cup of tea when my elantra ends up being a better car in reliability and mpg's....So in order to build up my credit i received a 8k loan though more like 7k with taxes tags etc. And now im on the hunt for a good fuel efficient (seems silly to get something nicer but still get crap for fuel mileage) family car. Partial to wagons and hatches as loading them up is not like a game of tetris, but am considering 4dr sedans as well.

So far all ive come across with my searches would be 1 prius link below seems a tad overpriced as ive found lower mileage ones for around the same price.
https://binghamton.craigslist.org/ctd/5052639602.html


A civic hybrid do like the fact that it is manual
https://binghamton.craigslist.org/ctd/5026574528.html

and a rare at least around here civic gx
GO GREEN 2000 Honda Civic Natural Gas Car White

Now there are others but trying to keep it local unless i find a sitter as a long drive to syracuse with no a/c is no fun for a baby. but anyhow i do have my concerns for these picks as well. Age is a factor even if the mileage is low batteries at least in my experiences have had more age related issues. And i definitely dont have the 1-3k to replace them if they go bad within a year of me owning it so thats a concern. The gx being a alternative fuel i would have to figure out where to fill up as well as the mileage is about the same as a regular civic and making an assumption here since i havent seen prices for ng, that the price difference over regular unleaded wouldnt be that large.

Basically im wondering what else is out there? ive been racking my brain using the fueleconomy.gov site and really trying to do research but everything i tend to see in this price range is rather poor on fuel economy. Maybe its my thought process but if there are other fuel efficient cheap upkeep cars around or models i should keep an eye out for im all ears; as car shopping is already getting stressful since i normally just do private party sales....

Any tips are appreciated, would definitely like to broaden my car search with different car options but all i can think of is hybrid=fuel economy and i know that isnt always the case.


Other factors
-Hills- i live on one....
-country living as in dirt roads no city driving unless we visit family or go shopping, and snow would definitely prefer something good in that weather condition though i plan on getting either non studded winter tires or studded winter tires.
-cost to own
-size im 6'5" so im sure that narrows things down some as i too will be driving this from time to time as well as cargo space as itd be nice to go on a picnic and just throw everything in rather than playing tetris with everything twice.

Im sure theres more but my ramblings have gone on enough hopefully theres enough there to at least get the conversation started and hopefully get me going in the right direction.... Thanks in advance

[Chrysler kid]

The civic cng has the D16Y5 motor, designated as d16a if I recall correctly. The common complaints were the car lacked power and only averaged around 200 miles to the tank. I would check on the availability of cng stations in your area.

The cng motor is one I would like to find for my car, the natural gas burns extremely clean so the engines typically have zero signs of wear. I can not recall if they came with a cvt transmission but I think they did

Cng civics were only made for fleet use so expect the interior to be trashed