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I can't tell for sure but based on the alloy wheels that look stock, I'd say that's not a poverty spec version and is likely to be Titanium as advertised. I wouldn't pay too much attention to that though since as you've discovered, Ford made a shitload of almost identical versions, so just pick based on the features you want to have. I've never driven one myself but in general Fiestas are well respected little cars. I know you explicitly said it must be automatic, but really, teach your girlfriend to drive manual. This is a particularly big deal in a small car in Europe for these reasons:
 I'd also take gas over diesel as there are more of them [edit: oops, apparently not in Italy  ], they're lighter, cheaper to buy and maintain, and more fun to drive while the difference in consumption is pretty small.
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Jul 17, 2013 20:03
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learning to drive manual is like a one weekend task to get basically competent and like a month in its subconscious. Also as long as you aren't insane and jam it into 1st at 70mph or something, the most you're going to do is shorten the clutch life while learning.
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Jul 17, 2013 20:51
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Xguard86 posted:Also as long as you aren't insane and jam it into 1st at 70mph or something, the most you're going to do is shorten the clutch life while learning. And even that is a pretty trivial amount in most cars. Manuals are easy, there's nothing to be afraid of. In most of the world manuals are far-and-away the most common transmission in vehicles. Everyone from teenagers to grandmothers can drive them. I've taught numerous people how to drive manual and most people get the basics down in 1-2 hours; enough so that they are good enough to drive around on their own in traffic and practice. After a week you start to not even think about it. After a month it's natural and subconscious. I've had a couple of friends buy manual cars after teaching them the basics in an afternoon and they've all become naturals and they wonder what they were so afraid of and regret waiting so long to learn. Edit: I've found it also really helps to explain mechanically what a clutch is doing, or to show an animated diagram (like this). It helps a lot when you actually know what the pedal is doing when you're pressing/releasing it. Guinness fucked around with this message at 21:14 on Jul 17, 2013 |
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Jul 17, 2013 21:10
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Kofi Annan posted:Is there a reason you'd recommend the Chrysler over the similarly priced 3 series? I never even thought about getting a Chrysler, I grew up thinking of Chrysler as having lower quality parts and being generally less reliable, but is this not the case anymore? Well the Chrysler is the size of a 7 series which means more room for passengers/cargo and a more comfortable ride. It's also made in Brampton. Here's some reviews Car&Driver long term review Motortrend comparison Note that they liked all the subjective aspects of the 300, but didn't put it on top because in this one anecdotal, unrepeatable test they got poor fuel economy. I would suggest the EPA ratings are a better objective reference to fuel economy. Motor trend long term 1 long term 2 Consumer Reports review Autoblog comparison with Hyundai Genesis Reliability:It's going to be a hell of a lot better than a BMW. VS Toyota or Honda? Sure, it will probably be worse but not enough to matter especially not on a new car with a warranty.
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Jul 18, 2013 00:17
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symbebekos posted:I'm not married to RWD if I can get the same feel out of an advanced AWD system. That said, I think I might wait for the 2014 Caddy CTS to come out and see if it depresses the value of the older style, then buy one of those. Thanks guys! The specs and pics of the 2014 are already out and everyone knows what it's going to be, that in itself won't really affect the pricing of the current generation, since everyone already knew that the current gen is due for replacement in 2014 and the current dealer inventory is already priced to reflect this, and that's for 2013s. If you're looking at 2010-11s the pricing shouldn't be affected much, so you can just start looking right now.
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Jul 18, 2013 02:13
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I read an interesting thing on Jalopnik this morning. http://plays-with-cars.kinja.com/why-your-next-unreliable-luxury-car-should-come-from-ca-814250605 TL;DR Prospective S65 AMG buyers should totally check out carmax. http://www.carmax.com/enus/view-car...2c-692379e54bfa I was going to say that this is further proof that America is the best country in the world, then I read the fine print on their website and it says that the warranty is good for anywhere in the US and Canada. Shiieet that price with an extended warranty is basically wholesale book price for a 2008 S65 in Canada. I know where I'm going for my next Range Rover Supercharged Autobiography.
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Jul 18, 2013 04:38
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I need a car... Proposed Budget: I’d like to stay between 10-15 thousand, but would probably go up to 20 thousand. New or Used: With my proposed budget I’m most likely looking at used, which is fine by me. Body Style: I’d like midsize if possible. Something very Jetta like but definitely NOT a VW. How will you be using the car?: Most of the time there will just be 1 or 2 people in the car, but I do have nieces and nephews I need to haul around occasionally. My commute is only 30 miles round trip per day. But 4 or 5 times a year I go on pretty long road trips and can easily do 1000 miles in 2 or 3 days. Don’t need any gizmos. What aspects are most important to you?: Reliability and cost of maintenance is huge for me. I’m in the mid-west USA. I had a 2002 VW Jetta V6 as my last car. Loved the car… HATED VW service and will not buy another VW ever. That being said I would love a very Jetta like car that is reliable and when something does go wrong it doesn’t cost me big $$$. I’d like a car I can do a lot of maintenance on myself or at a local garage. With my Jetta a lot of things could only be fixed by the dealer service…
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Jul 18, 2013 14:42
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FrankeeFrankFrank posted:With my Jetta a lot of things could only be fixed by the dealer service… Is this what the dealer told you? Because lol.
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Jul 18, 2013 14:46
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FrankeeFrankFrank posted:I need a car... You could get a new Elantra for somewhere between $15k-$20k. It will have a 5 year/60k bumper to bumper warranty and a 10 year/100k powertrain warranty. Alternatively, a Chrysler 200 or Dodge Avenger can be had with a V6 for very little, I've heard of people getting a V6 new for under $20k. They'll do everything you ask of, have a V6 power and are very reliable.
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Jul 18, 2013 15:36
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Bovril Delight posted:Is this what the dealer told you? Because lol. No... this is what more than 1 local garage that I and my family have used for 25+ years have told me. They just refuse to work on Jettas or VWs in general because they simply don't want to hassle that always comes along with them. I could go on and on... I've got probably a dozen horror stories over the last 10 years... but one of the most telling stories is this... I'll make it as short as possible. Car acting up. Drive to dealership service. The transmission is going out. They give me a price of like $4500. I call around, find an Ammco that will do it for $3000. I tell VW forget it, Ammco is going to do it. I guess VW didn't like this fact. I send a tow truck to VW to get car and take it to Ammco. I get a call from the tow truck driver. He is at the dealership and the service manager doesn't know what he is talking about. It may have been a different guy then I dealt with I don't know. I have to drive to the dealership point out my car to the tow truck driver and we hook up and pull out together. No one ever even comes out to question what we are doing once I got there, which tells me they new exactly what was up with my car, they just lied to the tow truck driver to be dicks. I don't go in to confront anyone, I'm just happy to be getting my car off their lot. Tow truck driver says that is the dumbest most petty thing he has ever heard of. I tell Ammco... again it's the one of the most ridiculous service stories he has heard. So a week later I go to pick up my car at Ammco. The manager tells me what a hassle it was to get parts from VW through that same dealership. He'd call in parts numbers and they wouldn't know what part he was talking about, etc. Just all around giving him a hard time. He ended up faxing them a picture of the exact part boldly circled before he got anything out of them. Then the Ammco guy says to me... "After hearing your story and going through what I had to go through with them... you should really think about suing them, and if you do I will back up 100% any way I can. You should at least write a letter to corporate, and I'll co-sign on whatever you want. They just can't treat there customers this way." I never did write a letter or anything. I just said I would never go back to them. Now the current local garage I'm using has a personal friend of 30 years as the head mechanic and he just will not touch a VW beyond changing the oil and the like. This is the same garage that does all the work on my mom's Lexus, and Ford 250 diesel pick-up, my sisters Neon, etc. So in short my 3 favorite local garages will not touch VW engines. Period. So I keep getting pushed back to VW service... and I have serious been to every one of them in a 100 mile radius all with varying levels of dis-satisfaction. Currently... I took my Jetta to my local and they said, "We think it's a timing issue but we won't touch it with a ten foot pole." I go to the last VW dealer I haven't had a problem with yet. I tell them I think it's a timing thing. They say it's probably a fuse. A fuse? wtf? After a week they say it's a CAM sensor... $566... I say fine... another week passes... VW says something else is wrong it has no compression and we don't know why, it will cost you another $300 for us to find out. I say I''l probably just junk it then. He says he wants to work with me and will try to figure something out and call me back. I come here for help finding a NON-VW vehicle.
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Jul 18, 2013 15:51
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Throatwarbler posted:You could get a new Elantra for somewhere between $15k-$20k. It will have a 5 year/60k bumper to bumper warranty and a 10 year/100k powertrain warranty. Thanks. I'll look into them.
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Jul 18, 2013 15:52
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The Elantra is a much better car than both the Avenger and the 200. My friend has had two of them now and they're considerably more well built, at least from both a fit, finish and features standpoint. The other two are just really underwhelming. They just come off as cars that look about 5-7 years behind the times even though they're new.
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Jul 18, 2013 16:01
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I'm shopping for a car for the first time and while I'm mostly just browsing craigslist right now for a beater ($1500-$2000) and most of the cars popping up that run are 1990s 150k+ miles with minor cosmetic damage. Assuming that the cars actually run as advertised, what manufacturers/models should I be keeping an eye out for if I also want to learn a bit about car maintenance? Oh yeah I prefer coupes or sedans.
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Jul 19, 2013 00:23
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Control Volume posted:I'm shopping for a car for the first time and while I'm mostly just browsing craigslist right now for a beater ($1500-$2000) and most of the cars popping up that run are 1990s 150k+ miles with minor cosmetic damage. Assuming that the cars actually run as advertised, what manufacturers/models should I be keeping an eye out for if I also want to learn a bit about car maintenance? Honda. Cheap(ish) parts, easy to work on, reliable. Of course, for $2000, reliable is a relative term.
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Jul 19, 2013 00:30
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MrYenko posted:Honda. Cheap(ish) parts, easy to work on, reliable. Comedy option: Chevy Cavalier. Cheap parts, cheap build quality, WILL teach you how to work on cars. 
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Jul 19, 2013 00:30
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MrYenko posted:Honda. Cheap(ish) parts, easy to work on, reliable. As long as it's reliably fixable. I'll look into Hondas, thanks.
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Jul 19, 2013 00:50
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Well, the Taurus is sitting in my driveway now. True to form, grandma handed it over with a taped-on side mirror and a copious amount of white paint (from someone else's car) to remove from the front bumper.
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Jul 19, 2013 01:45
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I'm going to need to finance a car and don't want a beater, but I'm fine with something cheap. It looks like I can afford around $15,500 if new and $14,500 if used, assuming the rates posted by my credit union. That's for a five-year loan. I'd like to shoot for cheaper, of course. What sort of criteria would people recommend for a used car around $10-14k that would actually last that whole loan without major expenses?
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Jul 19, 2013 04:05
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Maultaschen posted:I'm going to need to finance a car and don't want a beater, but I'm fine with something cheap. It looks like I can afford around $15,500 if new and $14,500 if used, assuming the rates posted by my credit union. That's for a five-year loan. I'd like to shoot for cheaper, of course. You might try haggling the price on a new 2013 Hyundai Accent down to below invoice. Base MSRP is around $14.5 and I would imagine 2014s will be arriving soon. Combine with the warranty and you're set. Might even be able to get an Elantra down close to $15k if you're totally lucky.
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Jul 19, 2013 09:36
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I'm looking at new Elantras in my area, just on the internet so far, and even though they say they start at $16,900... they are all listed at $19,900... Do they really have $3000 worth of bells and whistles on them? I don't need bells and whistles. They have a USED 2011 Hyundai Sonata 4dr Sdn 2.4 Auto SE with 38,050 miles. Any idea how much this would run? This particular dealership doesn't list prices for whatever reason. Currently liking these deals... EDIT: Certified 2011 Hyundai Elantra 4dr Sdn Auto GLS for $14,48 or New 2013 Hyundai Elantra 4dr Sdn Auto GLS PZEV for $17,497 FrankeeFrankFrank fucked around with this message at 15:10 on Jul 19, 2013 |
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Jul 19, 2013 14:58
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FrankeeFrankFrank posted:No... this is what more than 1 local garage that I and my family have used for 25+ years have told me. They just refuse to work on Jettas or VWs in general because they simply don't want to hassle that always comes along with them. I could go on and on... I've got probably a dozen horror stories over the last 10 years... but one of the most telling stories is this... I'll make it as short as possible. This sucks and feel for you. What a nightmare this has to be. VW's must have really changed a lot. I remember growing up that those were the cars that were the easiest to work on out of your garage. I'm not saying that you could of done that your self but back then most people knew someone who knew there way around a vw engine. Or maybe I'm just that old. 
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Jul 19, 2013 18:43
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thisnamesucks posted:This sucks and feel for you. What a nightmare this has to be. VW's must have really changed a lot. I remember growing up that those were the cars that were the easiest to work on out of your garage. I'm not saying that you could of done that your self but back then most people knew someone who knew there way around a vw engine. Or maybe I'm just that old. VWs aren't any harder to work on, they're just different enough that most shops dont want to bother with them. The guy with the nightmare dealer story had just that, a nightmare DEALER story. Scumbag dealers are not brand specific, sadly.
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Jul 19, 2013 22:01
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My sister had a 2002 Jetta with electrical gremlins and the shops in Topeka didn't want to deal with it. She had to drive to Lawrence to find a VW shop that would work on it. She got rid of that car and her 2008 Jetta has been a much better car.
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Jul 19, 2013 22:32
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I'm in a pretty strange situation. I had to sell my nice car when my parents died to pay for all the things you have to do right away (long story, boring emo stuff). But I ended up with my Dad's old '97 sebring and I HATE it. It's not just the fact that I've dinged up the super-extended low-as-poo poo front end on my 30 degree driveway over and over, but there's emotional crap, and I also hate driving an automatic, and it's ugly and it's maroon, and I'm having serious troubles with the registration every year because it's my dead parent's car and it's from a different county, and I'm just.. bleh I hate it. But I drive like 2 miles a week. I go to the grocery store, and the pet store, and the occasional outing. I don't want a toy car, but I don't need anything with space for fishing poles or helping people move. I want a snappy, powerful or fun ride that makes me happy to drive again. (I've had a 1977 Porsche and two convertible Eclipse Spyders) With useful technology would be awesome. I haven't filled up the Sebring with gas in .. I dunno 6 months, so gas mileage isn't the biggest thing right now, though I'm sure I will get a job eventually, and then I'll be wishing for it. I test drove a 370z, but it was actually TOO silly powerful. I live in a trafficy area. I want a car that can get you out immediately between two merging trucks, and something I can feel good about, but I'm not into name for name's sake. IE- no BMW or lexus or anything like that. I was looking at Mini Coopers online.. are they any good? I have the money to buy something outright, but I don't know where to start  I know this is very vague. The sebring still runs fine. I just hate it with the power of a thousand internet atheists. I teach it how I hate it by letting it grow cobwebs and turn yellow from pollen. I think it hates me too.
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Jul 19, 2013 22:54
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DoggPickle posted:I'm in a pretty strange situation. I had to sell my nice car when my parents died to pay for all the things you have to do right away (long story, boring emo stuff). But I ended up with my Dad's old '97 sebring and I HATE it. It's not just the fact that I've dinged up the super-extended low-as-poo poo front end on my 30 degree driveway over and over, but there's emotional crap, and I also hate driving an automatic, and it's ugly and it's maroon, and I'm having serious troubles with the registration every year because it's my dead parent's car and it's from a different county, and I'm just.. bleh I hate it. 2004-06 GTO, or a 2008-09 G8 GXP. Good luck on the GXP, there were only 1829 ever built. 
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Jul 19, 2013 22:59
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Fiat abarth? Small zippy might be a good fit.
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Jul 19, 2013 23:04
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DoggPickle posted:I'm in a pretty strange situation. I had to sell my nice car when my parents died to pay for all the things you have to do right away (long story, boring emo stuff). But I ended up with my Dad's old '97 sebring and I HATE it. It's not just the fact that I've dinged up the super-extended low-as-poo poo front end on my 30 degree driveway over and over, but there's emotional crap, and I also hate driving an automatic, and it's ugly and it's maroon, and I'm having serious troubles with the registration every year because it's my dead parent's car and it's from a different county, and I'm just.. bleh I hate it. Snappy fun ride? Don't care about mileage? Manual? Mazda RX8.
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Jul 19, 2013 23:46
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Or a hot hatch! VW GTI! Really if you're putting low miles, don't care about MPG, and just want something fun, there's lots of options. But, what's your budget?
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Jul 20, 2013 00:36
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Leperflesh posted:Or a hot hatch! VW GTI! Really if you're putting low miles, don't care about MPG, and just want something fun, there's lots of options. But, what's your budget? Budget is anything reasonable really. Anything above/around $25-$30k and I'm probably going to cry at night that I spent it while I had a technically working car. Particularly if it depreciates quickly. AND because I don't drive very often. I hope I'm not sounding like a rich jerk. I'm not. I just hate this car, and I used to love driving. I would like to enjoy driving again. Mazda, Fiat, VW. I am looking these up. I don't want a GTO. A little too redneck, too manly, not my style. I'm a small girl btw.
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Jul 20, 2013 01:37
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DoggPickle posted:Budget is anything reasonable really. Anything above/around $25-$30k and I'm probably going to cry at night that I spent it while I had a technically working car. Particularly if it depreciates quickly. AND because I don't drive very often. I hope I'm not sounding like a rich jerk. I'm not. I just hate this car, and I used to love driving. I would like to enjoy driving again. Are you thinking of the same GTO as us? Because most of the complaints about the GTO were that it wasn't redneck enough. However if you don't need the 370Z's power then the big ol' V8 in the GTO is probably even more overkill anyway. So based on your criteria and with special emphasis on the manual transmission aspect: Mazda RX8 Mazda Mazdaspeed3 Ford Fiesta ST, maybe Focus ST but those are at the upper range of your budget and there aren't really any used ones yet. VW Golf GTI/Jetta GLI Honda Civic Si Lancer Evolution or Impreza WRX STi Subaru BRZ/Scion FRS Nissan Juke You say no toy cars so I guess Miatas/S2000s/Corvettes are out. The FIAT is also really loving small and probably falls into the toy categogry more than anything else. I wouldn't buy a MINI unless you also really enjoy fixing cars and/or sitting around the BMW dealer service department. Throatwarbler fucked around with this message at 02:00 on Jul 20, 2013 |
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Jul 20, 2013 01:56
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Also check out the Mazda Miata (MX-5). Starts at $24kish. Or perhaps you'd like a Hyundai Veloster, or a fully loaded Ford Fiesta? Or maybe the new Dodge Dart II? e. I think she said she doesn't need cargo space, and mentioned the MINI, so I don't think small cars are off the list. There's really a lot of options for new cars that are inside your budget. Most of the major manufacturers have something in that class that isn't a horrible thing to buy or own. If you care about depreciation, buy a car that is 2-4 years old! That's when the worst of the depreciation happens. In a few cases the used market is so high that this doesn't save you enough to be really worth it, but for most make/models it'll save you several thousand dollars. Modern new cars should last upwards of 300k miles if they are properly maintained, so buying a car with like 30k on the clock means you trade 10% of its lifespan for maybe a 25%+ discount, and that's well worth it. I think we'd all agree that a 1997 Chrysler Sebring is a truly miserable piece of poo poo car, so almost anything you buy is going to be at least one step up from that. Leperflesh fucked around with this message at 02:02 on Jul 20, 2013 |
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Jul 20, 2013 01:59
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I'm still looking up, processing all your input. Ford Fiesta, however, had me laughing my butt off. That is ONE seriously silly looking car.  *edit* When I said "toy car", I meant more like - please don't give me SmartCar or other bizarre electric foot-pedal-powered options  I'd like a real car that can manage a VROOM.
DoggPickle fucked around with this message at 02:09 on Jul 20, 2013 |
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Jul 20, 2013 02:06
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DoggPickle posted:I'm still looking up, processing all your input. Ford Fiesta, however, had me laughing my butt off. That is ONE seriously silly looking car. I'm really excited about it coming the North America, because the preliminary reviews all pretty much say it's really awesome.
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Jul 20, 2013 02:33
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DoggPickle posted:I'm still looking up, processing all your input. Ford Fiesta, however, had me laughing my butt off. That is ONE seriously silly looking car. I personally wouldn't get an RX8 (coming from an RX8 owner). If your only driving 2 miles or so and its particularly cold, then your gonna have to wait 5-10 minutes to let the car warm up so it doesn't flood. Maintenance is expensive, and you have to properly go through the entire rev range to keep it from dying. Its a great car, but from what your doing as a daily commute it may not be the greatest choice. All the other options seem pretty cool otherwise.
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Jul 20, 2013 03:28
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skipdogg posted:My sister had a 2002 Jetta with electrical gremlins and the shops in Topeka didn't want to deal with it. She had to drive to Lawrence to find a VW shop that would work on it. She got rid of that car and her 2008 Jetta has been a much better car. This is the one thing I will never understand about VW brand loyalists.
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Jul 20, 2013 05:55
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If you keep buying them you'll eventually get a good one. It's all a numbers game.  If you keep hanging around AI you start to get the idea that everyone who owns a car can recite their spring rates and final drive ratios by heart and have shock dynos in their living rooms. The truth is that despite(or maybe because of) all the marketing $s carmakers spend, basically no one knows a goddamn thing about cars or which ones are good, and once a brand establishes itself that's all anyone will know for the next 50 years. I heard a quote from some head honcho at Hyundai/Kia a while back and it was something like "Over 50% of prospective North American car buyers are still not aware of our brand". Not "Eh buddy use to have a Hyundai and it wasn't very good", it was literally "What is a Hyundai I have never heard of this thing that exists".
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Jul 20, 2013 06:21
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Anybody who had a shitload of problems with a Mk4 VW and went "Hey, maybe I should give the 5th gens a try," is criminally insane. It's called Stockholm Syndrome. That said, VW makes a great car when it's in warranty.
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Jul 20, 2013 06:50
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Phone posted:Anybody who had a shitload of problems with a Mk4 VW and went "Hey, maybe I should give the 5th gens a try," is criminally insane. It's called Stockholm Syndrome. In the only exception to that rule, my fathers 13 year old Golf TDI has been a loving tank needing only regular maintenance and upkeep.
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Jul 20, 2013 07:10
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Phone posted:Anybody who had a shitload of problems with a Mk4 VW and went "Hey, maybe I should give the 5th gens a try," is criminally insane. It's called Stockholm Syndrome. The Mk4s would have been phenomenal if they didn't break all the time. Good powertrains, great interiors, drove well etc.
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Jul 20, 2013 17:24
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KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:The Mk4s would have been phenomenal if they didn't break all the time. Good powertrains, great interiors, drove well etc. If VW and Audi of the late 90s and early 2000s had been as reliable as Toyotas, there would have been little reason to buy much else. Thankfully for the competition, bosch exists.
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Jul 20, 2013 17:31
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