Car Buying for this Dummy

[kybearfuzz]

I was getting an oil change the other morning when the grease jockey beneath the car noted that I have a small transmission leak, he thought, though it could be just water splashed up on it. Well, being the worrier I tend to be, it seems like now would be a good time to turn in old faithful for something new. I've pondered this for a long while. My car is a 1997 Honda Civic and it's had a good run, turning over 150,000 miles just this past weekend. However, I despise the haggling of buying a new car.

I need any advice you wish to give a guy in my situation. I am looking at either another Honda Civic or a Toyota Corolla, though a friend just showed me a Scion Xa, which looked kinda cool. I'm all about reliability and gas mileage. Any opinions? Do any of you own one and can share experiences? Any advice on handling salesmen and haggling?

HELP HELP HELP!

Comments

[ricksf.livejournal.com]

OK, apologies for a long winded comment but you touched on a topic (cars) that is near and dear to me...

First, the Civic and the Corolla are both excellent cars as are just about anything in the Honda and Toyota lines. They make solid vehicles that, as you've experienced, give you tons of miles with few repairs. The Fit and the Yaris are the new kids on the block and are worth a look BUT I always recommend that people stay away from new cars for the first year, regardless of manufacturer. The Toyota Prius hybrid is a technological marvel and seems to be popular and reliable. However the reviews suggest that it's not the best highway car. I'd also wonder if all that technology will come back to haunt you as the miles accumulate. You may also want to look at the Mazda and Nissan cars as they're similarly reliable and cheap to own.

As to the Scion Xa and some of the trendier iron out there, I'd suggest you buy with your brain, not fall into the 'oh, that's hot looking' trap. Saturn does offer haggle-free deals but I don't think their cars are as bullet-proof as the Honda/Toyota cars.

I'm bad at haggling as well, hate it. In purchasing my current car, I used a local auto broker that had been recommended to me. For a fairly small fee, they got a better price than I could with better loan terms and they found a way to get the exact equipment I wanted rather than compromising. I was totally pleased and would strongly recommend you look into the same thing.

Bottom line though is do your homework on what the car of your dreams costs the dealer. Drive everything you think will be acceptable to be sure that you fit comfortably. And have fun, this is a good thing!

[benjiej.livejournal.com]

I would add to that that the Fit has been sold around the world for many years as the Jazz, this is just the first year it has been available in the US, so I wouldn't have the first-year doubts (which I share). I think it's a cool car, but I hear they are hard to come by, so there may not be much haggling. (also, there may be a newer version of it fairly soon)