Nice car, good mileage

WhiningKhan said:
Completely the opposite from what I've found (owning an old 9000 2.0T16) - used ones are dirt cheap in US. In Europe, people keep them longer (mine's had 400 000 km already...), meaning less availability and higher price.
You must be right, since I have no idea how much used SAABs cost in the US. I was just guessing based on the fact that european cost most of the time more in the US.

Now, Sonic, don't listen to these el cheapo advises and go buy a 406 Coupé. It's fast, reliable and, especially, designed by Pininfarina.
And it cost a hell lot less than a Ferrari!

And before you ask, yeah, I'm kidding.

A Nissan, which like everybody knows is not Toyota, Accord should be about right, though.

This post hasn't been edited, don't believe phpBB.
 
Toyota doesn't make the accord. Peugot isn't available in the states from what I can tell. A Ferrari F430 might be in the garage in a couple months if all goes well. That is, if I like it.
 
ugly or unique is just a personal opinion, I happen to think it's unique, from the classic 900, tp the minimal lines of 9000, 9-5 and new 9-3.

Switched from a Toyota to a 9-5 and never looked back.

2003_11_12_9-5_02.jpg


sa0095a2.jpg


It's fast in stock form and after a cheap engine ECU re-mapping, it's yet to loose a match with riced Golfs and BMWs.

(240bHP/ 390nm/S Torque)
 
_xxx_ said:
hey69 said:
_xxx_ said:
Big bad-ass early 80's Mercedes and you're all set... :)

yup that's the car you want ;)

I have a big, bad-ass '00 BMW and will get my new C-Class Merc in a few weeks 8)


hm, are you in buying selling cars? we should talk once 8)

i'm looking to buy my next car (if i dont get another job withcompany car) in germany and import it over to belgium..
guys i know go to Essen from time to time to buy some used cars from the secondhand market @sundays

still driving my 92 bmw 318 with lpg ;) .... marriage killed my bank balance, had a merc cabrio before :cry:
 
Bah, all the fun gets killed by crawling in stalls for 1-2 hours every day (60 km to work one-way).

BTW, should you be looking to buy a car in Germany, I can surely help you with some advice and maybe a few addresses. Mostly you'll find pretty much everything at www.mobile.de or www.autoscout24.de, at least you can compare the prices there.
 
I wish they offered the lupo over here.

But well america dictates what NA's car market is like, and its SUV all the way :(


Stupid soccer moms.
 
xxx i'm in the same situation. 55km one way to work. average time it takes is 1.5 hour every day..
 
If Echo is too small try a Toyota Corolla, they run on the smell of an oily rag and you can run them forever. Should easily be in your price range.
 
Blitzkrieg said:
If Echo is too small try a Toyota Corolla, they run on the smell of an oily rag and you can run them forever. Should easily be in your price range.

I second that. You can get a nice 99 Corolla for around $4000.
 
Since we're a little off topic. My boss doesn't like to drive so he has me drive him around, in his VW Toureg, Audi A8L and his Mercedes SL500. It works out pretty well.
 
mkillio said:
Since we're a little off topic. My boss doesn't like to drive so he has me drive him around, in his VW Toureg, Audi A8L and his Mercedes SL500. It works out pretty well.

Such a hard work ;)
 
I'm mostly going to agree with what's been said, but anyway:

Last weekend I had the pleasure of driving the new Saab 9-3 that I believe was mentioned earlier in the thread. No racing or anything, just normal driving on a variety of roads. I may be easy to please, but it was very pleasant driving, and above 30 MPG (if only just). It's also, according to several surveys, a very good car to be in should one crash.
However, it will likely be impossible to find for $4000.

At that price point, I would agree that for example a -99 Corolla would be an excellent pick. It'll manage on well above 30 MPG. It will practically never break down. It's not posh, and not comfortable in the extreme, but unlikely to let you down.
So, I would recommend that one - if it wasn't for the matter of crash safety. Not everyone is so obsessed with crash safety as I am, so it may not be that much of an issue to other people, but I would not buy a -99 Corolla. The version that came after that, yes maybe, but not the -99. It's not horrendously bad, just not quite good enough.

However, one runs into problems if one wants a car that
*Needs less gas than 30 MPG
*Has good safety
*Is possible to buy for $4000
The Saab 9000 (but not the 900) may well fit the bill. It doesn't have electronics to keep you on the road (what is that called in English), but no car in this pricerange will.
A stout Volvo 940 or, failing that, 740 may be worth considering. It's possible that they will manage to reach 30 MPG, but I'm not sure. The crash safety of these cars is proven very good, even with quite modern standards. The price should not be too big a problem. Again, not a very posh car, but you can't have it all - and they were built when Volvo cars, unlike today, did not break down.*
Finally, the old Saab 9-3 may also be a good choice. It may reach 30 MPG, crash safety is good if not spectacular, and it's got whiplash protection - an important point for me. I also think that it looks better than the other cars I've mentioned.

One may think that I'm a bit Sweden-centric here (even though neither Volvo nor Saab own themselves anymore). Well, maybe. But both Saab and Volvo were very early starters when it comes to safety, and it shows in cars that are a few years old.
If you don't shun small cars however, I would check just how much a Toyota Yaris would cost.

Well, good luck.


*It's gotten better, but the Volvos of today are still not as reliable as the old 940s.
 
I don't think he'll find a Saab or a Volvo for $4000 either. But I'd never sit in a Corolla or alike unless there is absolutely no other choice, feels so horrible.
 
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