The Perfect Car Under 5 Grand
5/2/1
Wifey emailed me. My mission is to find out four or five different car models with four doors, air and AC, and cost less than $5000.
What can I think of off the top of my head? There is no bad Honda and no bad Toyotas. I would avoid Mitsubishi on general principles, as I would any American car with the possible exception of Saturn, but only because Saturn has traction control available. Mazdas are quite good and underrated to boot. I do wish that Mazda hadn�t fallen for the autobelt stuff in the early 1990s.
In fact, Autobelts force me to exclude the Mazda Prot�g� of the 1990-1994 generation. Honda and Toyota fell for that stuff earlier in the 1980s and saw the error of their ways by the time 1992 rolled around.
I have a fondness for smaller cars, and I�ve done some research. The absolute best four-door car in the 1990s that can be had for under $5k is the Honda Civic EX. That is number one. It�s safe, has good gas mileage, a good hp/lb ratio, and Honda reliability. In addition, there is also a trustworthy Honda repair place here. Note: I didn�t say trustworthy dealer.
Pushing the safety and functionality window, and thus edging into second place, is the Subaru Impreza. The Impreza comes in all wheel drive and also in a station wagon form. The engine is top notch also. The horizontally opposed boxer engine is a work of art and reliable too. It is reliability and safety that put the Impreza in second place. It sure isn�t styling, unless you can convince yourself that you are Colin McRae.
Third place? The Maxima. Which year? Which options package? Who cares? All Maximas come with the same powerful engine. There is a major styling change from 1993 to 1994, but they are all good. The Maxima is very reliable and has more of a sporty feel compared to the next two on our list.
Fourth and fifth place go to the Accord and Camry. Both came in station wagons in the 1990s, with the Accord�s wagon looking tres swank. I highly recommend getting the EX for the Accord. The LX and DX are not underpowered, but for safety reasons I suggest getting more power. The Camry wagon is so ugly it�s still ugly. The Camry has a V6 available which is more desirable than the just adequate four cylinder version. Both cars are from the cream of the crop in Japanese automaking and will last forever if properly maintained.
Speaking of cream-of-the-crop-ness, these cars are very lax to depreciate, which is good�once you already own it. But if you are shooting for that under $5k price range, you may have to spend a little time finding the best car or settle for more miles on the car than you�d like or perhaps an older model. Going from a 1994 Maxima to a 1993 is a big jump since the body styles changed so much.
There are a veritable plethora of cornucopias of runner-ups in this competition.
Toyota also makes the Tercel and Corolla. I�m not fond of either because they lack power, but they are both excellent choices for fuel economy, safety, and reliability. If you were able to find a middle 1990s Avalon for under $5k, there would be something wrong with it.
Mazda makes the wonderful 626 and Prot�g� models. I am not clear on when Mazda got rid of the autobelts for the 626, but anything after 1994 of the Prot�g� will have normal belts again. There is nothing wrong with the Prot�g�, in fact I drove a Mazda 323 for a decade and loved the little car, but the polish on the interior doesn�t compare to those in the main running. The 626 should really be in with the 4th and 5th place guys, but it doesn�t have a station wagon, and for maximum versatility, you can�t pass the hatchback up.
Saturn was mentioned earlier. Saturn is a good, modern little car made of fiberglass. This makes the car weight lower and gives you better gas mileage and improves your handling. But it�s an GM car, so if the previous owner hasn�t replaced the alternator with something aftermarket, it will die on you. If you�re versed in the GMness, then this will exceed your expectations. Saturn also has the high end feature of traction control. Where ABS is a rule saying all wheels must rotate at the same speed when braking, TRAC, as Saturn calls it, is a rule saying all wheels must rotate at the same speed while accelerating. Saturns come in sedans, coupes and wagons. I have personally owned a 1995 wagon and currently own a 1994 coupe. When buying a Saturn, make sure the name ends with a 2. An SL2 and SW2 will not cost you much more than an SL1 or SW1, and the added safety of the extra 36 hp is worth it.
I cannot recommend any European cars. This is not because they are unreliable, but all the good ones cost too much to repair. Volvos get an extra demerit by being moving bricks. They are very safe in the wrecks that they have. They have these wrecks since they handle like a lead cloud. VW is the best automaker for this low price range. The Passat is a great car, if you can afford to keep it running. The Passat also comes in a wagon.
I avoid Fords and Chevys as they don�t feel worth the money. I am fond of the Focus, but it has only come out this year. Most good Fords are two doors. The best Fords are trucks. Chevy is the lackluster division of GM. Or was that Oldsmobile? Or Pontiac? They are all clones anyway. They don�t have good reliability like a Japanese car, but they are cheaper to fix, allegedly. Buicks and Oldsmobiles and Pontiacs all suffer from Volvo Lead Cloud syndrome, but without the safety.
What about our Korean brethren? They are cheap for a reason. The lone exception is the Ford Festiva/Aspire/Kia Rio. It�s all the same car. The Festiva only came in a two door. The Aspire was too heavy. The Rio is brand new and will depreciate like you won�t believe.
Geo Metros were not left out by mistake.