When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Need help figuring out what to get - part time beater for less then $2500
The Loft / EvoM Car Talk CornerThe landing pad for automotive discussions, news, articles, and opinions. A place for the community to kick back and chat.
its better to buy an econobox in decent condition than a "nice" car in absolute sh*t condition. and if you're spending 2500, its gonna be in absolute sh*t condition. either up you budget or get an econobox. although even double and triple your budget is still gonna be a pretty sh*t example of any of the cars you listed.
Alright, I think I am going to bump the budget up to about 5K. I have found a few different 4 door 2007-09 Civic SI with around 150k miles and still in good condition. There are a few with under 100k miles but not in that great of condition for around the same price. At least it would be a fun car to drive around, much better then a car with 100hp.
Looking at that list I doubt you know what a beater is, my opinion of a beater would be a car that will get you around town and when it does break down it won’t cost you $2500 to fix, again my opinion.
Yes that would fit the bill perfectly but.... I dont know. I have something against those cars for some reason. Not sure what it is either. Would rather get a cobalt ss.
Originally Posted by TJ03VIII
Looking at that list I doubt you know what a beater is, my opinion of a beater would be a car that will get you around town and when it does break down it won’t cost you $2500 to fix, again my opinion.
I know what a beater is. Owned many in the past. I just want something that looks halfway decent that people dont normally perceive as a beater, even if it really is.
on another note, it looks like I may not have to buy anything. My gma, who is 89, doesnt think her license is going to get renewed this year. She is the original owner of a 94 civic and it has 30k miles haha. Its mine if she cant drive anymore. So I'm going to wait for now. I also decided that I am just going to drive my Bug while the evo is down, if I must. Not very practical but it will get the job done. And in preparation for that, I pulled it out and washed it.
I ended up getting a beater! Not anything even remotely close to any vehicles brought up Haha. It is like new inside and out but has some miles. Newer engine and trans though. And the best part, 5 speed manual! Here it is, the 04 Saturn Vue. Got it for $1900.
Less reliable than the Honda or Toyota, but sounds like it's in good shape. Should be cheap to maintain. Good short-ish term car, perhaps?
Originally Posted by Jp7
I bought a 2000 honda civic with 74,000 miles and I love it. I have 3 other "mint" cars that I don't want to get winter salt on so I drive the civic as my daily. Very happy with the civic. I am getting 27.5 combined MPG and the car is a breeze to work on.
I have '00 and '12 sedans. I prefer driving the '00, though the '12 gets about 38mpg on the highway. LOL
IMO the '96-00 were the best years. I've had the '00 for about 14 years, now. The only things it's ever needed was a coolant temp sensor.
Less reliable than the Honda or Toyota, but sounds like it's in good shape. Should be cheap to maintain. Good short-ish term car, perhaps?
I am not worried about reliability. I have built several hundred of the engine it has in it so I am confident its a good reliable engine. The trans is the same one I have in my Bug which has taken 400hp abuse on the track. So drivetrain wise, it should be solid. If anything else goes wrong, I get cost +5% on all GM parts. If it ends up just falling apart, well it was only a $1900 investment, not the end of the world. I will pull the engine and trans to have spares for my Bug and part out the rest.
I've occasionally looked for a 04-07 redline vue since it has the honda v6. Don't know much about them otherwise...
EDIT: looks like all 04-07 V6 models used the J35
I looked at one of those. It was so beat, I walked away without even test driving it. They were asking 2k for it. Interior was beat to death, body panels falling off, clear coat peeling and one door that was a completely different color. No thanks.
I am not worried about reliability. I have built several hundred of the engine it has in it so I am confident its a good reliable engine. The trans is the same one I have in my Bug which has taken 400hp abuse on the track. So drivetrain wise, it should be solid. If anything else goes wrong, I get cost +5% on all GM parts. If it ends up just falling apart, well it was only a $1900 investment, not the end of the world. I will pull the engine and trans to have spares for my Bug and part out the rest.
My bad. I didn't mean to imply it wouldn't be reliable, just maybe not as much as Honda or Toyota.
If you don't mind working on it or reusing the parts, then obviously it wouldn't matter.
I buy my DDs so it's the one car I don't have to worry about, ever, so I was just commenting from that point of view. Your situation is unique.
Feb 11, 2019, 01:40 PM
I didn't know those were still around!
