(USA) >25K Car Suggestions

[Cruor]

I'm looking to get my first car. I'm far from a kid, I just lived my whole life in New York City where there is no need for a car. I'm in Georgia now and need to get one. I'm looking to spend an absolute max of 25,000, but the lower the better. What I'm looking for:

-At least 160 HP, I like a little get up and go in the car, plus admittedly its just a guy thing, yes 120HP will get me from point A to B just fine... but its like walking your GF's purse rat on a pink leash, doesn't feel right.
-I'd like 4WD if it can fit the budget, its not an absolute requirement, but it would be nice.
-I'm a single guy so back seat space doesn't matter, for that matter it doesn't need a back seat. It needs some storage space however. I'm in the army so need to throw my gear in there. Also, would be nice to be able to buy a 40" TV and fit it in the vehicle or other large things I may get on occasion.
-High reliability rating, I don't want the thing breaking all the time.
-MPG is nice but not a huge issue, I'm not going to be driving long distances very often and I'm not hurting on money.

I'm kinda all over the place on what I've been looking at... 1) Jeep Wrangler, 4WD, 285 HP, useful if I do go off roading (sounds fun) or if I go back up north and need to get through bad weather. 2) Ford Fiesta Hatchback with the 197 HP engine option. Gets great reviews, senseable, has room for storage. 3) Subaru Legacy 4WD, looks good imo. 4) Dodge Dart GT Cheap decent power seems pretty nice all round.

Anyway, looking to see any recommendations people have, or maybe point out a good vehicles I havn't looked at yet.

[Twix]

Honda Civic SI around 200hp.. civics never break.. mpg is nice.. storage space is meh.. no awd.. sporty car to pick up chicks

If you want AWD.. you can go with a Subaru legacy or impreza or WRX but that one is a bit over 25k I think

[the game]

Get the Jeep. You'll have way more fun in it than the other ones.

[Twix]

Get the Jeep. You'll have way more fun in it than the other ones.

I don't agree with you. I think a sporty car like the civic SI or subaru WRX is way more enjoyable in the city. Also, more mpg so you'll save money AND have fun speeding

[Hooked]

I would get a truck with a tonneau cover. Men drive trucks and classic chevelles.

[the game]

I don't agree with you. I think a sporty car like the civic SI or subaru WRX is way more enjoyable in the city. Also, more mpg so you'll save money AND have fun speeding

Off road is way more fun than speeding. Also better in bad weather. OP talked about interest in off roading. Civics are for teenagers with fart can exhausts.

[Blueobelisk]

How much are you trying to spend?

[Twix]

Off road is way more fun than speeding. Also better in bad weather. OP talked about interest in off roading. Civics are for teenagers with fart can exhausts.

Clearly you never drove a civic SI if you think it has a fart can exhaust. That V-tec engine and exhaust sounds beautiful for a 4 cylinder.

[AceGoodheart]

altima? but I got a used one cuz i'm in the 15k range. I only put this up because I swap over to the manual mode to do the shifting myself cuz i'm a cheap asshole and like seeing my mpg sit @ 40 or more (current best = 490 miles on 17 gallons? LOL yea i'm a cheap asshole) THAT said I second the subaru cars

P.S. Getting better than the advertised mpg for a used car is a win for me plus I just keep coasting more these days so I'm still running up even higher.

[Cruor]

Anyone have any input on the Dodge Dart? Anyone know a good 4wd other then a jeep for cheap?

[Themius]

Kia Optima it's like 22k or so and it really is a great car. The person who designs their cars is the ex designer from benz so they have really stepped it up. If you can expand your budget a fully loaded kia cadenza it's similar to the E class benz but a bit bigger.

Optima pictures below:




Starts at 21k, you can get a used one by 1 year.

[Gheld]

That short list couldn't be any more all over the place.

The problem with the Dart is that it's a compact and you clearly want utility. Commercials probably make it look all fun and utilitarian but if utility is high on your priority list a compact probably won't suit your needs.

If the top of your short list is a wrangler then alternatives to check out in your price range would probably be some of the smaller SUVs like Chev Equinox, although a 6 cylinder model is probably out of your price range, Toyota Rav 4 , Mitsubishi outlander, etc.

You can probably squeeze a base model ford exploder into your budget as well..

Just know the golden rule of SUVs.

They can do everything but they aren't great at anything.

[Blueobelisk]

How much are you trying to spend?

*got completely ignored*

Sorry, I know you said "absolute max $25k" in post but your title says you're spending more than $25k so I was confused. I wanted to suggest some $$ expensive stuff. :/

[littydiji]

You'll have way more fun in it than the other ones.

[Moraven]

Kia Optima it's like 22k or so and it really is a great car. The person who designs their cars is the ex designer from benz so they have really stepped it up. If you can expand your budget a fully loaded kia cadenza it's similar to the E class benz but a bit bigger.

Optima pictures below:




Starts at 21k, you can get a used one by 1 year.

Good luck fitting anything to large tho. TV maybe. Small Freezer nope (I tried). Reliable.

Legacy are nice. Rented one once. Similiar to optima. Good AWD. But the AWD kills your mpg.

Don't go sedan if you want to off road. Jeep and the like a lot better drives.

[PBitt]

I haven't purchased a new car in...well, ever, but one thing you should do is avoid buying the cheapest model the company makes no matter which edition it is (like the Dart). While it depends on the market, you can get a higher model car from a couple years ago for not much more than a new car. I think the 'oh I can get a new car for only 16k!' is something a lot of people fall for. Chances are you're not going to be happy because it's a piece of crap and it'll drive like one, too. If you really want to look into Dodge, then get a Charger, they have 4WD options so I'm sure you could find one with that that's a couple years old that fits more into your budget. Though I'm not sure about the 'reliability' it's probably average at best...but certainly better than the Dart. It's also an actual manly looking car unlike the Dart GT rice burner. Not sure I would 'recommend' it over other cars in that price range as I've never driven one but it's about the only Dodge I could consider buying but it's got balls and it ain't tiny.

If I were you, though, I'd figure out what you really want most...as you said yourself, you're all over the place, but figure out what matters most to you and go from there. I would go with whatever is the most 'practical' for you. If you've never been off-roading and it just sounds kinda cool then chances are you may never even do it or just do it once and never again. And you don't want to have to ask a friend of family member to borrow their car every time you purchase something larger than a toaster if you buy a car like the Dart.

[Varabently]

So wait is it >25k or <25k? You say max of 25k, but ">" in the title is a greater than symbol. I'm confused.

Why do you need 4wd? I'm just curious. If you aren't hurting on money, why do you have a relatively small budget? There's just too much going on here, I can't answer.

I just bought the cheapest, most fuel efficient car I could. 5 years later never had to do any maintenance on it, same tires, etc. 14k Nissa Versa. Meets none of your criteria, but it's a great car.

I hear the 2014 Impala is one of the best cars ever made so maybe try that.

[FathomFear]

I just bought a 2014 Subaru Crosstrek. It checks most of your boxes (AWD, small but decent space, etc) but may not have enough power for your liking. http://www.subaru.com/vehicles/xv-crosstrek/index.html

If you want AWD and decent power, then WRX would be a good option. The 2015 WRX will be on the lot soon, so there may be some decent deals to be had on the 2014 models once they arrive: http://www.subaru.com/vehicles/impreza-wrx/index.html

An AWD CX5 would be a good option too. I friend of mine has one and it's awesome. It was my 2nd choice behind the Crosstrek: http://mazdausa.com/MusaWeb/displayP...ehicleCode=CX5

- - - Updated - - -

Kia Optima it's like 22k or so and it really is a great car.

The problem with the Optima is that it's getting a little old. It's due for a refresh. It really doesn't hold a candle to the current Accord or Mazda 6.

[Gheld]

Why do you need 4wd?

This guys asking a good 100,000 question right here.

As much epeen as 4 wheel drive might provide, it leads to less fuel economy and higher maintenance costs. And it adds more potential failure points to your drive train.

If you genuinely intend to go offroading often it's an essential investment.

But if you don't ever anticipate yourself departing from the pavement and driving on uneven terrain you can save yourself thousands of dollars by skipping it.

I drive a 2 wheel drive SUV and I can assure you there are more of me on the road than WRXs after 6" of fresh snow. If it's a winter thing, vehicle mass, tires, and ground clearance are far more important.

[FathomFear]

I drive a 2 wheel drive SUV and I can assure you there are more of me on the road than WRXs after 6" of fresh snow. If it's a winter thing, vehicle mass, tires, and ground clearance are far more important.

The thing is that the fuel economy gap between AWD/FWD is closing substantially as technology improves. This is in part because of CAFE standards--car manufacturers need to hit some pretty aggressive fuel economy goals by 2016 or they'll face big fines.

For example, the AWD Subaru Forester gets better fuel economy than just about all FWD equivalent vehicles in its class (Escape, Santa Fe, etc). Maintenance costs also aren't statistically that much worse, if at all--but that depends on the particular manufacturer and how they've implemented AWD. Some setups are more complicated than others, which would increase failure points.

I do agree that AWD isn't a necessity though. I like having it, but I also survived many winters in my beater Dodge Neon...winter tires plays the biggest factor in snow. AWD just helps with acceleration and not getting stuck.