Choosing my first car...

[Mattarias, King.]

So, I'm going for my license test again on Tuesday, and I don't doubt I'll succeed this time.

I've been charged with getting a car for myself. Budget is maxed at 2500 money-dollars. Anyone have any suggestions? I just need something that works and isn't a deathtrap. :smalleek: I have no idea how to go about this..

[Tirian]

You're probably best off going to a used car dealer and looking around their lot. You'll be sure to get something that isn't a lemon that way, which is important if you don't know much about cars yet. You might well be winding up with a car that's as old as you are, but that isn't such a big deal. I'm still driving a '96 Saturn and the car is getting the same 35 MPG that it did when I bought her new.

[Krrth]

Are you friends with a mechanic? If so, get them to check out any car before you buy. This becomes even more important for your first car, as I'd recommend something cheap that you don't mind getting dinged.

[Mattarias, King.]

:smallconfused: A lemon? Okay then..

But no, no mechanic friends. Yeah, though, I just want something safe that works. Fanciness doesn't factor much into the equation.

[Grynning]

A lot of people will recommend against Ford, but I have a 2000 Ford Contour that has endured an incredible amount of abuse and still runs and gets decent (30 mpg) mileage. It's basically an Escort body with a Taurus engine. Cost me less than 6,000 bucks 4 years ago, and you can find them everywhere, probably even cheaper than that.

Also, Toyota. Pretty much any Toyota. They're generally great to drive and will run forever.

If safety is your primary concern, Volvos are generally considered the safest cars on the road, but I've never driven one.

As for your budget, remember, you can almost always finance these days. Your 2500 is more than enough for a down payment on a used car, and you can probably get really low payments if you have a parent co-sign or if you have decent credit.

[Ishmael]

Well, some of the older sedans actually have superior gas efficiency than the newer models, so if you choose correctly, it'll be happier on your walletbook. Interestingly enough, the average MPG of most US cars has decreased over the past few years as regulators have eased CAFE standards (and more automakers make SUVs, which don't have to follow the standards). Well, until gas got expensive again, that is.

This is just my opinion, but I'd definitely look into getting a sedan. They're smaller, more responsive (in general), and get better milage. How often do you need anything bigger. I drive a '95 Toyota Previa at home (before I sequestered myself at college, that is) and hated driving it. Being a minivan, it was cool, because it could hold a lot of people. But it's brakes were horrible, it had absolutely no turn radius to speak of, and got somewhere like 15-16 mpg.

$2500 isn't that bad, either. I second the idea of going to a used car place. If you're not looking for something pretty, but just safe and reliable, then that's the way to go. I'd go with a used Honda Civic (a bit common for 16-year old drivers, but for a good reason), Toyota, etc. Japanese cars=reliable and efficient. Kind of.

[Grynning]

Another piece of advice - you may not have any mechanic friends, but I imagine your folks or other adults you know have a mechanic they visit regularly and trust. Most mechanics are willing to give a car a test drive and a once over for little or no money, my dad's mechanic did it for free for my car. The idea is that if your parents have brought them plenty of business, they figure you will as well.

Also there are several websites like www.carfax.com where you can get vehicle history reports before buying a used car; some of the reports are free, others charge a little.

[turkishproverb]

So, I'm going for my license test again on Tuesday, and I don't doubt I'll succeed this time.

I've been charged with getting a car for myself. Budget is maxed at 2500 money-dollars. Anyone have any suggestions? I just need something that works and isn't a deathtrap. :smalleek: I have no idea how to go about this..

If your going used, Nissan is pretty good, and their older cars still have nice mileage. Just be sure to check for everything, get a mechanic to do it, and get a history on the car.

[de-trick]

it all depends on where you are, and wat do expect to drive in, if its mainly city driving than a small car would be better than a truck,

i would suggest a 4x4 truck or jeep if you live in the country, or any place where you can expect snow storms frequently

do u expect to be a taxi, or have lots of passengers than a 4 door would be best,

[Tirian]

$2500 isn't that bad, either. I second the idea of going to a used car place. If you're not looking for something pretty, but just safe and reliable, then that's the way to go. I'd go with a used Honda Civic (a bit common for 16-year old drivers, but for a good reason), Toyota, etc. Japanese cars=reliable and efficient. Kind of.

http://www.kbb.com/ is a good site for checking out what used cars might cost in your neighborhood. In my neighborhood, a Civic would be out of your price range, but you would be able to score a Ford Escort which is another good choice. You might also want to check out Consumer Reports (http://autos.msn.com/home/reliability_ratings.aspx) to see how much the maintenance costs will tend to be. No sense in buying a $2000 car that will cost you an extra $150 a month in repair bills.

[Tholok Razescar]

Advice: Something with a large trunk.

[Vizen]

:smallconfused: A lemon? Okay then..

Just to clear up your confusion there, the term "lemon" when talking about cars means something along the lines of the car won't start, the car breaks down, the cars got broken parts....Basically the car was a waste of money and time.

[Mattarias, King.]

:smallbiggrin: Ok, so lemons are bad. Gotcha.

Thanks for the advice y'all. Sorry for slow responsage. Got caught up in an RP and forgot about this thread. ._.; I feel I've been rude...

But yeah, I'm planning on a small car, used, of course; a sedan or sommin' (What the heck is the difference between a sedan and a coupe? They look identical!) probably of japanese make. I've had Toyotas and Hondas and such recommended to me more than other types...

The links have been helpful, too. A friend referred me to vehix.com, and I've found a pretty decent-looking accord and civic, each at about 1k. They SEEM like a good deal.. Though I dunno the difference between the two types. O.o

[Deathslayer7]

I have a toyota corrola 2001. Bought it new then. These past 7 years, all i had to do was change the door handle (which broke off) and oil/air filters.


Also has good mpg (30ish on the highway). I usually only drive to and from school, and only have to tank once every two weeks. Saves me money on gas as well. :smallsmile:

[Mattarias, King.]

I have a toyota corrola 2001. Bought it new then. These past 7 years, all i had to do was change the door handle (which broke off) and oil/air filters.


Also has good mpg (30ish on the highway). I usually only drive to and from school, and only have to tank once every two weeks. Saves me money on gas as well. :smallsmile:

Hm, sounds sweet. I'll have to look into those. I know someone who also recommended corollas. Interesting. :smallconfused:

[Destro_Yersul]

Make sure you check how many miles/kilometres the car has on it. You don't want some giant huge number.

Oh, and make sure you paint flames on it. Especially if it is black.

v: Not a huge giant number, as far as cars and miles go. Huge giant numbers start, as far as I'm concerned, at 200,000. Definately don't want anything in that range. Ideally though, around 50,000 miles would be a good number to look at. Buying one with only 50,000 means you can be absolutely sure.

[Deathslayer7]

please. My corrola almost has 100,000 miles on it. It's around 92,000 right now.

it's still good. (although a check engine light has recently popped up) :smallredface:

I went to go check it, but they said they couldn't find anything wrong with it, so now i just ignore it.

[Tirian]

(What the heck is the difference between a sedan and a coupe? They look identical!)

Q: Why do chicken coops have two doors?

A: If they had four doors, they'd be chicken sedans.

Yeah, I make my own fun.

[Jack Squat]

please. My corrola almost has 100,000 miles on it. It's around 92,000 right now.

it's still good. (although a check engine light has recently popped up) :smallredface:

I went to go check it, but they said they couldn't find anything wrong with it, so now i just ignore it.

they can reset the lights you know...

My Jeep's got about 120,000 miles on it, still going strong.

Our two suburbans both have over 200,000 miles on them, and we were told they'd die out a little after 100,000. They've got at least another 100,000 on them.

I think that for buying a used car that you don't want anything above 130,000...you don't really know how well other people take care of their cars, and it could very well be on it's way out, especially if they decided not to change the oil for 2 or 3 years.

A lot of shops do free inspections, so always ask if you can get cars checked out and not have to take someone's word that everything's in good condition

[Jimp]

Test drive as many different cars as you can. When you find the one you'll know :smallcool:. Worked for me! I'm now an active and loving member of the Dub scene (VW lovers) :smallcool:.

[de-trick]

small newer cars, not my department, now bigger older trucks are my department

they are by far, easier and simpliar to work on. Also i find they are more dependable my 94 chev, besides some hail damage their should be nothing wrong with it(not a 100% sure cause till i get my licence ive let my sister drive it) have been going strong since at least 2000, when my dad bought it

im never gonna get a asian car, just not my personality

the reason why they are eeasier to work on, is because you dont need to worry about electronics on the engine,

then your right about fords bein bad, well besides crusty trusty, thats a 85' or so and still runs, might not have reverse, good brakes, or pass a safty, but is still registered and good to go

[Bonecrusher Doc]

You can probably find a good deal from a private party, in the newspaper or on Craigslist, but I would pay the $25-$35 for a mechanic to look it over and tell you what's wrong with it before you commit to buying it. You can also do a Carfax report on the VIN# to make sure it hasn't been in an serious wrecks, which can damage the frame of the car.
If you know that the previous owner was diligent about changing the oil and oil filter regularly, that's a big plus - it significantly extends the lifetime of the car.
You'll get what you pay for. So, if you buy a $2500 car with 4WD or a big engine (6 or 8 cylinders) or leather seats, you are probably getting a less reliable car than a $2500 base model 2WD 4-cylinder sedan. Japanese and German vehicles tend to be more reliable at higher mileages, but you will pay extra for that. I've never owned a Kia, but my friends who have told me not to get one.
As far as avoiding a deathtrap, I wouldn't get a tiny car. I think in your case I would go with a mid-size sedan or wagon. If you live in a city with tight parking spaces, a really long car is going to be a big pain, especially as a new driver. So maybe a Toyota Corolla or a Honda Civic. I got my wife a Ford Taurus when she was a new driver because it had really good safety ratings for a non-luxury car. If you want to get serious about researching specific models of cars, I would try edmunds.com - go to Used Car Research, Reviews & Specs.
Bottom line - don't pay extra for features you don't need, and if a deal seems too good to be true, there's almost certainly a catch. That way you'll buy a fairly reliable car, and not have to spend its price several times over again on repairs at the most inconvenient times!

[Lilly]

Places to look for a car:
The Classified Adds in your local newspaper
A specific used car dealership
A new car dealership, in their used car section (almost every dealership has one of these sections, so they can sell the cars people trade in)
Drive down the road and around neighborhoods. I've noticed a lot of cars sitting in vacant lots with for sale signs on them. These sorts of cars should be approached with caution though.

Types of cars to look for/features you want to have:
A small car, brand is personal preference, but Toyota and Honda make cars that last forever.
Personally, I'd look for a mid to late '90's Toyota Camry or Corolla with 4 doors and no more than 100k miles.
If you get anything more than about 8 years old, continue to save money, or don't spend all your money at once, because your car will break down some time in the next 3 years. I had an '89 Toyota Camry for several years, and every other year it would break down and cost $1000 to fix.
Power windows, power locks and A/C are three features that you should probably look for in a car.
If you are looking at cars with manual transmissions, make sure you know how to drive one.
Subarus tend to have very high maintenance costs.
If you live in a snowy area, you can get by with front wheel drive, but stay friends with the friends that have SUVs.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Agree with everything Lilly said, though looking at kbb.com you may not be able to get a car like she recommended for $2500, depending on what zip code you are in. Maybe ask for a $1500 loan so that you can get a $4000 car, which I suspect will be eventually be worth the saved cost (and hassle!) of paying for repairs.

Less common brands of foreign cars, like Volvo and Saab, will have more expensive maintenance costs because the spare parts are more expensive (I assume you're in the U.S.).

Of course if a black and yellow Camaro is the only car in the lot without broken windows, I'd take that one.

[xPANCAKEx]

if you can get a used japanese car - do it

their build quality is superb, even if it is "unpatriotic" to buy foreign brands

[KnightDisciple]

I've got a '95 Dodge Spirit (plenty of puns on the name!), and it's done well by me. I've had to take it in a few times, but two of those were freak accidents (busted a tire, and a wiper got loose and tangled the other wiper, during a rainstorm no less). Most of the rest was just long-term wear and tear; filters, shocks, spark plugs, belts, etc. I've also put a lot of miles on that car. I think I got it when it had between 50 and 70k miles, and it's at 140k-ish or more (haven't checked mileage really recently, and I drive a ways to work). It gets between 25 and 30 mpg, depending on various factors. Lots of leg room, lots of trunk space.
One thing I've found is that as a larger person, 2-door cars are unpleasant; not only am I uncomfortably tall, I'm typically slightly uncomfortably, ah, broad. That's why trucks and larger, older sedans can be nice.
The biggest thing is, like others said, do your research.
I'd also say, make a list of things you want your car to have/be like. 4 door, 2 door? How much trunk space? How high mpg? How high off the ground (this is somewhat important, as this affects how easy it is to get in)? Etc. Things like that. Then try looking to see what matches best.
I would say buying something at the 50-70k miles range is a very good goal; that's usually enough miles they broke it in pretty well, but short enough it's generally not starting to wear out.

[InaVegt]

I'm personally a fan of VolksWagen, even though the brand was started by one of Germany's more well known and less liked leaders.

Their (VolksWagen's) cars aren't pretty, they don't go fast, but they are tough.

My parents have a VolksWagen (As well as a few other cars) from 1989, and though it looks like it, it runs smoothly, rarely has problems, and it has low upkeep.

I don't know what it's top speed is, but it's higher than the highest speed limit over here (120 kmph / 75 mph).

[Ceska]

Problem with VW is, while they indeed hold forever, you pay for that extra, which means they are expensive in comparison with other cars of the same class. Generally, German cars are great if you can afford them. I personally have a fond love of Japanese cars, and lately, French. My mother drives a 1997 Citroen ZX, and I love it dearly.

[Tirian]

Types of cars to look for/features you want to have:
A small car, brand is personal preference, but Toyota and Honda make cars that last forever.
Personally, I'd look for a mid to late '90's Toyota Camry or Corolla with 4 doors and no more than 100k miles.
If you get anything more than about 8 years old, continue to save money, or don't spend all your money at once, because your car will break down some time in the next 3 years. I had an '89 Toyota Camry for several years, and every other year it would break down and cost $1000 to fix.
Power windows, power locks and A/C are three features that you should probably look for in a car.
If you are looking at cars with manual transmissions, make sure you know how to drive one.
Subarus tend to have very high maintenance costs.
If you live in a snowy area, you can get by with front wheel drive, but stay friends with the friends that have SUVs.

I'm going to play Devil's Advocate on a few points here. Not strongly disagreeing, just showing both sides of the argument:

If a $2500 used car lasts three years without any major work, you've won the lottery. Your major goal for your first car is for it to last long enough for you to save up the down payment on your second car. With any car that hits your finalist list, get an independent assessment of which original parts are going to collapse within your lifecycle and how much it will cost to replace them. But don't hold out for one with no potential issues.

Another advantage of older models is that the insurance rates will probably be lower. You're going to take a major hit here no matter what you do, but you might save enough insuring an older car to be able to afford some incidental repairs along the way. In general, try to keep control over the entire cost of ownership and factor that into your final decision making.

Also, see if you can't avoid power windows and locks, and especially AC. They'll drive up the cost of the car, and especially on older models they will drain your engine's performance and mileage. And not only is AC one extra thing that will need to be repaired, but it is a honking big part sitting on top of your engine that will need to be moved around for every other repair that will need to be done along the way. If you can get by with what my dad calls "four and forty" air conditioning (i.e. rolling down the windows and driving forty MPH), it'll save you some money.

Another bonus for an older car and fewer machines under the hood is that you can learn to do some of the basic maintenance work yourself. Replacing your own oil and filters, keeping fluids topped off, changing your own spark plugs, that sort of thing. It is a very cost-effective way to help your performance especially on a car that has been around the block a few thousand times, and you may as well learn on a car that doesn't have one of those infernal computers under the hood.

[insecure]

I'm sure someone already have suggested this, but I think you should buy a Lamborghini.:smalltongue:

On a more serious note, I'd suggest a Toyota. Not one of their big station cars, but just a small one.

[Deathslayer7]

Also, see if you can't avoid power windows and locks, and especially AC. They'll drive up the cost of the car, and especially on older models they will drain your engine's performance and mileage. And not only is AC one extra thing that will need to be repaired, but it is a honking big part sitting on top of your engine that will need to be moved around for every other repair that will need to be done along the way. If you can get by with what my dad calls "four and forty" air conditioning (i.e. rolling down the windows and driving forty MPH), it'll save you some money.


In Las Vegas, you don't drive without AC unless you want to end up dead. :smalltongue:

[Mattarias, King.]

:smalleek:

I am sooo bad at replying to threads.. Gah..

Thanks for the advice, everyone! :smallsmile:I've gotten acquainted with some mechanics that said they'd help, but I'm still looking for a car. Might take a while..

But alright, I'll add German engineering on top of that list. ..And I must say, power locks, windows, and A/C sound worth it. I hate people opening things they shouldn't. And A/C would help calm down some passengers.

"Wah, wah! Dehydration! Melting! We're on fire let us out oh gods!"

Pfft, if it's under 90, it ain't worth it. :smallamused:

Edit: :smallbiggrin: And yes. It's gonna have lots and lots of flames.

[DanielX]

Good and bad:

Good:
- Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Mazda - the major Japanese brands all score pretty high on reliability and quality, though you should look at individual models (I frankly don't know if Mitsubishi is any good or not, to be honest). Honda Civic/Accord and Toyota Corolla/Camry all score very well indeed... and thus may cost more for a given model year. From my own family's experience, the Toyota Tercel and Nissan pickup trucks tend to be pretty solid.
- Lincoln-Mercury tends to score pretty high among domestics, as does Buick. I know, their cars are boats, and a major reason for reliability is "we've been making the same parts for 30 years, we ought to have gotten it right by now...". My dad loves his Town Car, if that means anything...
- Volvos tend to be pretty safe and reliable. Don't know about maintenance costs though.
- Models made in North America tend to have lower maintenance costs than models made in Japan or elsewhere - because the parts are made right here ('here' meaning US/Canada/Mexico). For older models, this usually means Domestic brands (though some "domestic" models, like the Ford Festiva/Aspire or the Chevy Aveo, were made elsewhere, often South Korea). though they've been making Camrys and such in the US for many years now.
- Also, cars made for many years tend to have readily available -and fairly cheap - parts. You want to know why Taxicab drivers and police agencies favor Ford Crown Victorias? They've been made, more-or-less, on the same basic platform since the 1970s (and the same engine block since 1991), thus parts are readily available and cheap. Thus, cars made for a long time without changing platform and/or in large numbers have lower-cost maintenance.
- Power steering, especially on any car that's bigger than a peanut. My sister drove a tiny Ford Aspire w/o power steering, and even then she missed it. Power steering does add to maintenance costs, tohugh.

Bad:
- Subaru. They have horrible maintenance problems and I've heard nasty things about their repair shops.
- BMW and most of the other German marques (except maybe, for Volkswagens and very old Mercedes-Benz models): They're good enough quality, but tend to need expensive maintenance. Same problem, if not worse, for Land Rover and a lot of other European luxury and performance marques.
- Anything Korean from before about 2000 or so. They've gotten a lot better in recent years, but the older cars generally were no good.
- Likewise, though they don't sell in the US right now, anything made by a Malaysian, Indian, Russian, Iranian, or Chinese brand should be at least a little suspect. (Though some of them are actually pretty good, most... aren't. Chinese cars especially, the few I've read about have terrible safety issues). On the plus side, if you're in India $2500 will (soon) get you a brand new Tata Nano, or a lightly used Maruti 800. :smallbiggrin:
- Suzuki. Generally the least reliable/lowest quality Japanese brand, aside from perhaps Subaru.
- Any car brand without a dealership or a licensed mechanic within a hundred miles or so. Because you need someone who can figure out how to keep it running, even if you're a halfway decent (me, I can barely check the oil :smalltongue:). Domestic brands do well here, followed by the big Japanese brands.
- For the same reasons as above (parts and mechanic availability), any car brand not sold in your country. That means, no matter how good they are, its a bad idea for an American to get a used Citroen, since they stopped selling here in 1975 (actually, no French brands sell in the US, except if you count Nissan, which is part-owned by Renault).
- Any car that was only made in very small numbers.
- Any feature you don't absolutely need or want. Extra money and maintenance costs...
- An airbag, if you live in a high-crime area. Believe it or not, someone stole the airbag out of my brother's old Tercel, and left the rest of the car...

[some_other_dave]

My experience:

German cars require more maintenance (and more expensive maintenance) than Japanese or American cars. If they are maintained, though, they will run for an incredibly long time.

There are some exceptions; VW and Audi had a bad rep in the mid- to late-90s for poor quality. :(

It's hard to go wrong with a small sedan from a major Japanese manufacturer.

If you can get maintenance records with a used car, that's a bonus. It lets you see that the maintenance was done regularly. It's usually best to assume that, unless you can prove otherwise, the car has never had any maintenance done on it when you buy it. Which means you can easily drop $300-$500 as soon as you buy it, unless there are records that show the maintenance is current. That also means you need to see what maintenance is actually required for a particular car.

Your local library, or Google, should be able to help out with maintenance schedules. And will hopefully give you an idea of what tends to wear out on a given car.

I know, for instance, that early-90s Honda Civics need timing belts and water pumps every 60,000 miles (possibly every 90K, but no longer than that!), need a valve adjustment every 15,000 miles, new spark plugs periodically, oil changes every 3-5000 miles, and new coolant and brake fluid and transmission oil about every other year.


... Let's see. The "coop" thing has been answered, but just to make it clear:
A "Coupe" body style will have two doors. (And possibly a hatchback.)
A "Sedan" body style will have four doors. (Usually no hatchback.)

The Civic and Accord are two sets of Honda models. Each has come, over the years, in coupe, sedan, wagon, hatchback, and more variants. The Accord from a given year will be larger, more powerful, and more upscale than the Civic from that same year. (Think of the Accord as the "big brother" of the Civic.)

Make a list of what you have to have in your car: If you're in Vegas, it sounds like AC is a must. The power locks and such, probably not. Does it have to have four doors? Does it have to have XXX sort of power or performance, does it have to get at least YYY miles per gallon? Are you particularly tall or long-torso'd, or otherwise harder to fit into seats than the "95th percentile" person they make most cars for? (If I sit up completely straight in one of my cars, I bump the roof! Ouch!) Are you going to be carrying around people who are big or hard to fit into places? Or have restricted mobility? Are you going to be hauling lots of "stuff" that can be exposed to the weather and prying eyes? Lots of "stuff" that needs to be out of the weather?

Be honest about what you need versus what you want.

Realize that, in general, the newer the car the larger and heavier and safer and more powerful it will be. And that each of those things tends to result in worse fuel economy, and more expense to buy and to repair when it breaks. Newer ones will also need maintenance less frequently than older cars, but often the maintenance they do need will cost a lot more.

I myself like working on cars. If you can, or want to, then older cars start becoming a more attractive option. Much of the cost of maintenance and repair is labor, and if you are providing that yourself that all becomes much cheaper. (Though tools are expensive, and learning things The Hard Way can get pricey in a hurry!) Older cars tend to be simpler and easier to work on, as well.

...Just more stuff to think about...

-soD

[Mattarias, King.]

:smallbiggrin: Heh, I love the coop joke. So using that some day..

But alright, thanks for that great advice. :smallsmile:

Personally, I'd just like to ride a raptor, but those are hard to find and tame..

:smallbiggrin: Anyways, woo! I got me some licensage! Guess 4th time's the charm. Heheh.

But Ok. Maintenance schedules. Good idea.

..And really? Airbags? Geez..

[Ilena]

Well personally i love my 2001 mustang but thats definately out of your price range, i do agree though with what others have said here, jap cars tend to be good, i mean my grandfather had a like 1980ish 4 runner and the stuff that ive seen him do to it in that time ... im suprised it ran up till it did (died in like 2006 or 7ish) about 300 - 400k (at least, probably more) on it no major work, heavy massive loads, hunting outdoor logging road driving .. you name it its seen it, (final killer, i think the transmition was finaly going out on it ...)

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Yahoo had this (http://autos.yahoo.com/articles/autos_content_landing_pages/714/how-to-spot-a-lemon;_ylc=X3oDMTE2djluZTNlBF9TAzI3MTYxNDkEc2VjA2Z wLXRvZGF5BHNsawNzcG90LWxlbW9u) link today...

[Bouregard]

Mhm take a japanese one. (or eastern) Toyota Corolla myself. Its nothing fancy but well it drives, don't break, fairly save and didn't drink gas stations dry. Never had to replace/repair something.

Our german cars are extremly secure but not that cheap anyway. And the posters above me are right if something break you can spend a small fortune in repairs.

[Tarnag40k]

My advice, First things first.

Get something you will absolutely hate. period. Especially if you live in the winter. Trust me you will ruin your frist car either by A. Driving it hard increasing wear. Or B. Totaling due to inexperiance. More so on B if you live in northern area's such as I.

Also you'll want something that will be low on insurance. Watch the honda's they are not as cheap as you think. A lot get stole especially in west coast U.S. states, this is because of the cost of OEM parts for those models and the use of them in the tuner culture. A toyota corrolla can be a good choice, I'd prefer a early 90's with the 2.2L.

One thing. Do not even A. talk to people who are into modifying cars. and B. Never change a thing on it. Trust me. My friend was a big starwars and chorus geek in highschool. He had a Honda Passport (suv). It first started with us replacing the radio that was blown. Then he got some subs for fun. Then he later bought a Mitsubishi 3000GT and has a full planned mod setup. Trust me man the modding bug is a very very aggressive and expensive disease something that you will not want to get rid of either. Kind of like women, they are a disease you can't get rid of, and don't want to either....