What car to get, new used or otherwise

[ESmooth]

Well my 98 Civic EX got totalled in an head-on accident last night, luckily Im ok aside from some bruises and stiffness. I also have an 06 STi I was planning to sell so I now have the option to trade that in plus use the money from the insurance company for the Civic to put towards something new or used if I find something I like. So the question is, what do I get? Here are some of the cars Im thinking:

Honda Fit
Civic Hybrid
New Honda Insight? need to see in person and test drive
99-00 Civic
Prius? I really dont think Id get one, just dont like them

What else would you all recommend looking into if you were in my position.

I like to mod cars so Id like something that has some semblance of an aftermarket and I would prefer a stick shift which I dont beleive the Prius is offered with. As long as I can average 40mpg a tank Ill be happy which is about where I was with the Civic...anything above that is really just a bonus.

[evolutionmovement]

The only stick shifts of them are the Fit and 99-00 Civic. Are those the last of the double wishbones, or was that the previous year?

[chuckm]

Personally, I'd end up in an old Civic. Good mpgs in a stock configuration (with huge potentials, just see basjoos!) and good prices. Or an '02 Corolla... but I'm kinda biased.

[RobertSmalls]

The Civic Hybrid is a better car than the Insight, but can it justify its $4000 price premium? But you can't have a Honda hybrid with a stick, so just get a Yaris and put the $10000 you saved in a money market account.

[KJSatz]

Yeah, don't forget about Yaris, Corolla, and Echo from Toyota. I have a 2008 Civic LX sedan with manual transmission and really like it. Certainly consider the "vanilla" Civic alongside the hybrid, Fit, and Insight. I think I'm going to get a 50mpg tank sometime this summer (but all highway). You can get 40mpg pretty readily on the highway, and well over 30mpg around town. You might also check out the 2001-2005 Civics. There was a hybrid with MT during that generation, and also a Civic HX which would be very nice!

[Daox]

The first gen Civic hybrids came in stick...

[tehnighthawk]

look for a 2001-2005 civic hx manual. but be warned...they are kind of rare.

[ESmooth]

Ill look at the 01-05 civics as well. The yaris is now on my radar as well, espcially after seeing the coolness potential they have:





I guess its really a matter of test driving and seeing what i get out of the payoff value of the civic and trade in on the STi.

[RobertSmalls]

Well, that's not my idea of cool. This is *my* idea of cool:



That's Istas' "Car", and Basjoos' AeroCivic. My car doesn't look cool yet.

[Clev]

Originally Posted by KJSatz

Yeah, don't forget about Yaris, Corolla, and Echo from Toyota.

I rented a Yaris for a week and a half and averaged 43 mpg stock, including my nightly climb to 4,675 feet. And that was with a 4-door auto. With a stick, it should provide a nice platform for an ecocar.