Steiner

I've decided to buy a hatchback to use as my daily driver. I'm in office equipment sales and always have demo equipment to drive around. The Evo is adequate but in the long run the cost of maintenance will be too high. It probably won't be for a few months before I buy still, but I thought I'd start looking now. I need something reliable and cheap, so it will need to be used. What are my options?

Zuhalter Vati

A 1982 Celica GT...Sounds like a joke but that was one bad *** car! Lots of room, great power for its day, and built like a tank. Bought mine when I was 16 for 500 bucks. A new windshield and 70,000 miles later I sold it for 1000. I loved it, but I had a Miata craving to fill!

I know you mean new cars, but I couldn't resist giving my ex-car some credit.

Have you looked into the Mazda 3 or 6? I haven't read much but they look decent.

expo1

Pt Cruiser, Lots of room and cheap, also had a Turbo option starting 2003

Dinhx8

i heard you can get Civic Si's for pretty cheap these days, as sales are down, and hype is out about the new model coming. Its a cheap, quick reliable hatch.

Scion XA wouldn't be bad i guess

th1rd3y3

The xB wouldn't be too bad either if you can get past the ugliness. Should be able to fit a good amount of stuff in there. Otherwise the Matrix probably wouldn't be too bad.

XDEEDUBBX

can't beat the 88 honda crx. I have one and love it. My 8 is always garaged during the week. The crx gets great gas mile. 16 Dollars a week on 87 octane. =)

policyvote

I have a '91 Civic Si and love it. Unfortunately it's in the middle of engine swap and so doesn't currently run, but it's a great little toy that hauls a surprising amount of people/cargo for its shoebox size. The CRX is a good idea too, but good luck finding one that hasn't been abused by a tuner or tuner wannabe . . .

Peace
policy

DARKMAZ8

Honda Insight!!!!

Like Travolta says" if your important, ppl will wait"

How much you want to spend?

Steiner

Scion XB and PT Cruiser are both interesting choices. I'm sure at some point in the past I've sworn to never step foot in either of those ugly things, but hey they're practical. I'm trying not to spend anymore than $7k so that's why it will have to be a used car.

rotten42

Mazda3?

Ike

I think the XB was a good suggestion, they're very roomy for how small they are and you can be like the guys on their commercials :p

DARKMAZ8

Toyota echo 44mpg!

Steiner

Mad tight yo...customization begins at $13k mang. :D

czr

iTrader: (3)

Mazda Protege 5.. Never had one, but I hear they are realiable, fun and from what I see.. cheap too. I want one to beat around..

shaolin

Screw the insurance. Get an R32.

XDEEDUBBX

i got lucky and found one in good condition. Clean title, 150k miles on it..thats low mileage for an 88. =) maybe one day i'll throw in a K20 turbo..hahah

shaolin

Or hey how about this?

323 GTX


It's an AWD 323 hatchback powered by Mazda's B6 engine, the same power plant that later found its way into the Miata. In the GTX, though, it had the added benefit of a turbocharger and intercooler, boosting output to 132 hp. Power was put to the ground through all four wheels by a compact planetary differential with an on-dash switch that could lock the differential for loose surfaces.

The car runs low boost from the factory and is capable of getting you into a whole lot of trouble.

therm8

VW Corrado?

Tough to find though

Steiner

I'm thinking no more than $5k so after looking on cars.com it'll be tough to swing anything relatively new like a Scion XA, PT Cruiser, or Mazda 3. Are the older VW Golf's reliable? I've heard of all sorts of electrical problems with VW's...plus my sister sued VW and won for knowingly selling her a lemon-law-buyback Passat.

BlueEyes

I'm thinking something like a 99 Civic hatch with type R drive train. Fun, reliable, fast and suprisingly roomy. A freind and I did one for about 14K canadian. The car cost 8K, last year, and the engine, tranny, suspension, wheels, tires etc another 6K. We did all the work, so no installation costs. A bargain of a car if you ask me. Handles beautifully and is very quick and reliable.

zoom44

what about a Mazda5?

DARKMAZ8

Honestly steiner, go for a Mazda Mx-3 V6 and swap the 1.8V6 for the 2.5V6 J-spec klze from the mx-6 in Japan. 200hp and 160lb. Swap is very easy. Just need the ecu($250), engine($1000) and it is a complete bolt on. You can get a 93-94 mx-3 for peanuts. So for roughly $3500 you will have a mid-14 second car and still maintain great reliability and gas mileage.

This was my project car 5+ years ago:



I pulled a 13.87 at 102mph all motor on street tires with this engine. It is a great sleeper for sure and I never had any mechanical problems with it at all!

It also has huge space in the trunk/hatch.

zoom44

yeah thats nice!! ^^

Steiner

Thanks Darkmaz but I'm looking for something simple, cheap and reliable with an automatic transmission. If I'm going to be doing any work on my cars it'll be something to make the Evo faster.

Right now I'm thinking Honda Civic, Hyundai Elantra or maybe even a Ford Focus. I'm still about 2 or 3 months away from pulling the trigger on this so I'll keep looking. Thanks for all the info guys.