Economical Cars
 

So in march or so, im gonna get a new car. i want something thats cheap to buy, cheap insurance, good gas mileage, cheap to maintain, etc... dont want a car payment.

ive thought about getting a 88-91 crx or civic hatch, ive always loved hondas, and these are my two favorite ever. hatch has more space, but a tid bit heavier and a little less aerodynamic. i think this would be the best mix between cheap to buy, good gas mileage, cool factor, maintnance, etc... i work on hondas all the time for friends and theyre a piece of cake, i can almost pull an engine blind folded.

im not looking for a hypermiler, do some weight loss, light aero, and mabye a warm air intake or something like that, and pumped up tires.

I think just about any of the mid sized honda's would do. My '93 accord has 274,000 miles on it with original clutch, transmission, and engine. It has seen no major repair, just regular maintenance, and it runs perfectly. I'm also 70% above EPA rating for in town

Can't really go wrong with Hondas. Parts for my CRX are dirt cheap, I just got a timing belt/water pump kit for like $45 on Ebay. If you're not looking for a hypermiler, generation 2 Integras (90-93) can be picked up for $1500-$2000 and is alot nicer car then a Civic or CRX and can still get 30mpg.

i thought it would be cool to get a crx or hatch, and swap in a vx engine, then put the vx gears into a cable tranny case (if it would work) and have a vx that looks a lot better (imo) with most of the functionality. otherwise, just the engine and a hf tranny should still work, and wouldnt have to get a cable -> hydraulic conversion.

but like your car... 40 mpg in a near stock crx, driving on the 15 even. thats more than respectable imo.

ezeedee -

The 88-91 is my favorite generation of Civic hatchback, and I still wish I had kept my CRX from "the good old days". Between GasSavers and the tuner crowd, you could go mild to wild as you please.

Do you require having a scangauge? If yes, then I'd look into a Civic HX (lean-burn) coupe. You'd probably have to be realllllllly patient if you wanted one. They seem to be scarce.

CarloSW2

The other car I would look at is a 96+ Metro. You can get a very clean one of these (with the 3cyl and 5spd) with under 100K miles for about $2500.

Honda hatches seem to be very overpriced on the west coast, so the best car really depends on where you are imo.

I agree that Hondas in CA are priced higher then a similar car of the same year/mileage. A 90s Civic could easily cost $1000-$1500 more then a Sentra or Corolla of the same year/mileage. On the flip side, they may hold this value longer.

I rented a Corolla hatch in Australia. Drove over 100 miles or so in mixed driving-not trying to get great FE, The gas gauge never budged until the very end of the trip in stop and go traffic. When I filled the tank it took about 7 litres. Wish they'd bring that car to the U.S. :( Basically the same as the Volkwagen Golf. Why don't you want to get a Civic VX? I got 52.5mpg on a 500 mile plus tank in a 1994 Civic DX manual tranny 2 door coupe. So that could be a good bet too. The VX is peppier tho.

True, but only a concern if you plan on selling. Imo, better to get something and fix it up, even if the market value is relatively low, because after the repairs it'll likely be worth more than you put in it.