looking for a cheap beater car

Hey guys, I'm looking for a cheap car, something in good shape, good gas mileage and under $5k.

I'll also have my bike up for sale soon, so if anyone is interested in a 2002 ZX-6R with about 9k miles PM me.

I know of a mid 90's T-Bird with a V6 that runs great and looks good too. They're wanting $1500.

You'd have to promise me you wouldn't run over a fire hydrant and flip it though.

Mike,
Not sure exactly what you are looking for. But I have a nice daily driver, that's comfortable for sale. Gets decent milage for the type/size of car. It's a Black supercharged buick riviera 3.8L that's all stock. 3 mods away from being a 14 second car (pulley/intake/exhaust) but the car rides out nice. I put quite a bit of work into it.PM me what you are looking for generally..

How much for the Riv?

http://photobucket.com/albums/v409/Yoell/Mazda/


1995 mazda protege.

dohc auto. after market cd and speakers. no ac. runs great. clean, only one tiny ding on pass side and some peel on the front, w/ a little chip. cant even see these. great on gas. power options.

Drew
dustinimports@gmail.com

I've spent quite some time on the car. 3600 obo It's jet black. and a very nice ride.... esp for everyday driver.

Rivs are nice cars imo... L67 is a good motor.

Yup it's a strong running car that is for sure.

looks like some beaters here... jsut a warnign some of these might have been ther "race cars"

http://orlandoforums.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=88

the riv is cool, friend of mine his parents had one for like years, they had "issues" with teh odometer ;) but I believe it has over 200k still running.

A little update.

One reason I was looking for a uber cheap car was I thought I wasn't going to be able to get a loan, or at least not a good one. Well, it turns out that even with so-so credit the Central Florida Educator's Credit Union freaking rocks. They've already approved me for a $10k loan at 7% interest rate for anything 98+ and under 100k miles. Since the payments won't be bad on that kind of loan, I'm going to get something a little nicer I think.

So, I think I'm going to aim for an Audi A4 1.8T, around a 2000 or so. I've been able to find a couple right around $10k in autotrader, so I'm going to start looking at them. If anyone knows of any, feel free to post up!

they are nice... but imo... if you are getitng into something like a '00, I'd get something american and relatively cheap to work on.

seems most europeon cars are pricey for even simple maintenance.

Hey Mike Sorry I haven't talked to you so busy man. If you want a cheaper car Rick is selling his moms neon CHEAP with AC and everything!!! Also give me a ring so we can get Nick all confirmed.

they are nice... but imo... if you are getitng into something like a '00, I'd get something american and relatively cheap to work on.

seems most europeon cars are pricey for even simple maintenance.


NOT SO at all. I am not sure about Audi, but my wife's 99 BMW 328i convertible is very cheap to work on. Not only that, it rarely ever breaks. I can quote many similar parts that are way cheaper on the BMW than something American. Just to quote one part we recently had to replace on the BMW and also a friends 96 Dodge pickup. A radiator. I found a radiator for the BMW brand new for $110 and for the Dodge it cost us $270. Take a look at eBay and you will find that a lot of parts are very comperably priced or often cheaper. Check out an engine for a BMW compared to an LS1.

American cars are no longer that much cheaper if at all. They are just as sophisticated and a lot of times more expensive because of demand. BMWs just dont break down causing the demand for parts to be less.

This is all just from my experiance. I have owned and worked on a lot of cars. If you truley want a cheap car to run and work on pick up an old Triumph Spitfire. They get nearly 50mpg and parts are so cheap you can nearly rebuild the entire car for what an LS1 would cost to replace.

Anyway, just some thoughts.

mnypit prolly right about the BMW,
but i would steer clear of Audi/VW. their quality ranking is low.
100k miles jetta's are "supposed to use a quart between changes"

parts were Ok moneywise, but dealer maint was a killer, $180 for a tranny fluid & filter change, that you "had to have special VW only tools for"

since my kid just called me mooching money, let me step into the "Dad Zone"

seeing as how you are kind of digging yourself out of a hole, I'd stay cheap & easy.

like the Neon, do that, get a year on it, pay down bills, round up some other assets,
but at LEAST a few hundred dollars in the bank,

and go to State Farm, and start a $50 a month retirement annuity. $50 a month ain't much, but over a few years, it is a NICE pad, and makes you very strong financially when you go to buy big ticket.

and not be car poor. being car poor sucks, esp if you been broke a$$ poor for along time, you get your head above water, and then smash yourself back into debt & insurance.

you need to have a $100 to your name between paydays.

i remember you thought alot of your girl, and she's been pretty supportive, maybe go lite on the car budget, and try to repay her with some easy finances for awhile.

</dad mode off>

YMMV :)

you don't have to ask me how i know...see my sig....

pray about it, best thing to do.....

I'd love a 3 series, but it's impossible to find one under $15k over a 98 with under 100k miles. I'm looking really hard at a 99-00 Acura TL and a 00-01 Volvo S40/S80. They're both really nice cars, it'll just end up depending on the best deal I can get. I still want an A4, but they're almost as hard to find as the 3 series. Though if this one guy will email/call me he's selling a 01 A4 1.8T Quattro for $12k with only 68k miles. I'd love that car!

Mike I got your email.. Sent you one back... I was in GA yesterday and today for nhra finals. I knew someone that had a Audi a4 an they got rid of it for an infiniti g35 in a second.. They didn't like that car after awhile at all. Just something i was told.
Paul

Well, I put a deposit on a car.

Ready?






























1999 Volvo S80 T6 Twin Turbo I6, 82k miles, silver "moondust" exterior(it's almost a pearlescent kinda of color in the right light, looks awesome) with tan leather interior, loaded with sunroof and just about every option but the nav system(which I read was pretty bad anyway). All for $10,995. Out of the dozen or so cars I looked at this weekend it was by far in the best shape. The paint is absolutely perfect and the interior is 98% perfect with only 2 minor blemishes I could find. I drove it for about 15 minutes and I fell in love with it. The power from the bi-turbo 6 was very impressive, as it makes 268hp and 280ftlbs(that's almost as much as my LT1 was stock!). The seats seriously just surround you and are extremely comfortable and supportive. It felt like the entire interior just wraps around you. The engine ran perfectly and felt wonderful. All in all it's an awesome car at a great price. This is the kind of car I can see myself driving for a long time.

Now I just looked at the 2001 Audi A4 1.8T Quattro over in Windemere(Oil Heir, guy could give the car to me and it wouldn't dent his bank account, house was freaking MASSIVE and beautiful) and it was the cleanest Audi I have seen yet. It's his wifes car and she kept it in pristine condition, I could only find a few minor scratches in the interior, exterior was perfect(silver again, with black pleather interior). Now, after driginv both of these cars can you guess which one I like more, alot more? The Volvo!???! I still can't believe it, but the Audi, while having an extremely nice interior, was very uncomfortable. The seats were hard as rocks, very unsupportive(slide all over the place on them) and the engine was pretty dissapointing. I mean you can get some acceleration out of it, but you have to wring it's neck and it's honestly not thata fun to drive. I'm still shocked that I'm choosing a Volvo(albeit a $40k Volvo brand new) over my dream car Audi A4 Quattro. I think the single biggest reason is the seats, they really are just aweful, which is extremely dissapointing for Audi.

So anyway, I'll be picking up my new(to me) 1999 Volvo S80 T6 tomorrow after work. Payments should be in the low 200-250 range, which isn't bad at all. Once I start working at a school and make a bit more money I'll pay more on the car each month to get it paid off early.

So what do you guys think? Here's a link to a review on the car and some nice pics of it.

Review:
http://www.edmunds.com/apps/vdpcontainers/do/vdp/articleId=44268/pageNumber=1?synpartner=edmunds&pageurl=www.edmunds.com/new/2005/volvo/s80/100456701/roadtestarticle.html&articleId=44268&tid=edmunds.e.roadtest.content...Volvo*

Pics(almost identical to my car):
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/620898

S80's are awesome cars.

friend has an 02 Accord, will deliver to Jax Area, she wants something sportier & convertible. looking at new V6 mustang 'verts now. :(

asking $10,700
white, tan interior

ONLY mod is security system/remote start

e-pics avail later

Engine: 4-Cyl. 2.3L VTEC
Trans: Automatic
Drive: FWD
Mileage: 56,000

Equipment
Air Conditioning
Power Steering
Power Windows
Power Door Locks
Tilt Wheel
Cruise Control
AM/FM Stereo
Single Compact Disc

http://www.kbb.com/kb/ki.dll/kw.kc....cord&4;HO;A3&&&

Trade-In Value $9,650

Private Party Value $11,795

Retail Value $14,165

OH NO! I guess I should have included a disclaimer about that one. Volvo is the only car that I will NEVER own or try to sell again(besides Cadillac, but for differant reasons). Remember how I said parts were comperable, or lower?? Not so with Volvo. Then you factor in the fact that not only are the parts much more expensive, the car will not run if you try to install anything yourself. The dealer has proprietary software that you have to have updated any time you replace anything. Even the Volvo only independant shops do not have the equipment.

Case in point, we had a 2000 C70 turbo convertible. What basically amounted to a throttle position sensor cost us nearly $1500 to have replaced. To replace a peice of trim on the door panel(seperate from the door panel itself) you have to replace the entire door panel from the dealer at a cost of $766. On a BMW the same part is $9 because it is sold seperate of the door panel.

Oh, and look at them carefully. I think that because people think they are safe they use them as battering rams. Every single one I have bought and sold has been in some type of bad accident that was covered up well enough to be missed on a quick inspection.

Think long and hard on that one.

We only paid $13400 for my wife's 99 BMW 328iC convertible with 59k. If you are looking to get a lesser model, like a 323 or 325 or even a 328 or M3 with a sunroof I cant beleive you cant find one in your price range. Check ebay. If it is far away, even after paying an independant inspection company(and dont buy one sight unseen without doing this) and having it shipped, I think you would still be under your budget.

I could even take you to the auction if you want.

Oh, I should update you guys. I'm not getting the Volvo. I forgot to update this thread. I'm buying a 2001 Audi A4 1.8T Quattro with 69k miles tomorrow. It's silver with black leather interior. I'll post some pics and a review when I get some time this weekend.

:)

Oh, and don't worry, I'm getting my deposit back on the volvo!