so about my '00 Miata.



i bought this car after selling my '93 Land Cruiser when the gas priced hiked real bad the first time around this time last year. (April '06)

now as push comes to shove, the car is great fun. the car talks to you all the time, handles great, it's quick enough and as my girlfriend calls it, it's "cute".

but the fact of the matter is, it's horribly and terribly impractical. gas mileage from the 1.8L is about 20mpg--the detuned, de-turboed rally engine isn't very frugal. the trunk space is nonexistent--my backpack and pool cues alone takes up more than half of what trunk I have. the seats are tiny and don't recline enough in case i need some emergency shut-eye.

i'm a guitarist. and my guitar doesn't fit (Acoustic guitar).

i'm a youth advisor at my church and this small car thing doesn't go well with ferrying kids and taking them out to places. sigh. even giving a ride becomes a problem cuz if i have my sister with me...i can't give rides, period.

as mmarshall pointed out when i first bought the car, the infatuation period has passed and now i'm looking for substance that doesn't exist.

i can probably fetch $10,000 ish if i were to sell the car locally.


i'm open to suggestions to what is a suitable car in that price range. i'm open to pretty much everything and anything at this point, just...

no corollas/camrys/civics and no V8s. and at LEAST 20mpg (combined)

suggestions please folks! i know this is the place to ask.

 

I'd suggest 03/04 Acura RSX-S but you are probably looking for 4 door?

I had it and love it! I sold my 03 for 13K (with 20k miles) 1.5 years ago, so you can probably find a better deal than that.

 

yea...i'm preferably looking for a 4-door as well.

(and reliable. this is a absolute, concrete must.)

 

Several cars come to mind. Lexus - Es300 but maybe too Camry-ish for you.

In that price range and mileage:
Rav4/CRV, Acura TL, Integra Sedan, various BMWs, from the E39 528i, E46 BMW 323i and 325i. I'm still amazed by how nice of a car the E34 5 series (88-96) are.

 

E34s, especially the latter models were awesome! and W124 Mercedes...drools. I'm stuck in the 80s-90s. but anyways, i would suggest an ES300 too. If you think thats not youre kind of cars, I'd look at Acura TL; especially after 2000 b/c it comes with 5AT, HID, etc standard on all cars. The only option was navigation.

 

I would suggest looking into a accord 01+, but preferably 03+ , They have great room and gas mileage. You cant lose going with the 2 door or the 4 since they both have an abundance of room. As far as reliability and maintenance goes all you’ll have to do is change the oil every 3-4k miles and the car will run like a champ, We had a shop accord a while back that with the original engine and with simple maintenance done to it had 240K miles on it and still had its pep.

 

Substance, eh? Though I would consider getting a GS300, SC300, or IS300 with higher mileage, maybe that isn't the best thing for you if you are driving a lot and don't have time or money for repair/service. How about:

Mazda 6 - As a sporty alternative to the Accord/Camry/Corolla, although there is really nothing wrong with them except being common and a little bland.

but I'd get a...

Scion tC - Surprisingly roomy for a 2 door hatch, peppy yet efficient 4 banger, excellent build quality, and possible remaining warranty. You'll have room for your guitar with the hatch and back seats down, and driving kids is no problem. And it's still a fun car.

 

the Scion tC is still out of the price range for me. same goes for most IS300s. looking around for a mazda6 in the price has so far proven unsuccessful online...

keep the suggestions coming!

 

1GS3, ES3, or maybe (even though its a V8) a ucf20 LS4.

 

AVOID the Accord @ all costs. They may have great room and gas mileage but they have MAJOR problem with their auto transmissions.

May I suggest the Mazda 3? It has the room you need and good gas mileage. It's also within the Mazda family. . If I didn't already have my S2k, I would be very interested in your Miata..

 

Get a minivan, lol

 

how about a used nissan maxima? the older gens were considered to have the best performance in their car class.

 

i actually thought about a 2nd gen Odyssey... haha


hm. if i were to get a maxima i'd have to try to aim for a 02' which had the 3.5L 255 horsie engines...i'm still looking through cars.com to see if i can find anything. i might also enlist the help of my dad to scourge for used cars as well...

 

my daily driver is an 03 Pontiac Vibe I picked up last year for $10500 OTD with 35K miles, currently 43K -- it replaced a Toyota Tacoma 4 door pickup. Super reliable and great mileage (filled up today - 31.5mpg and that's with an AUTO TRANNY). Its the Toyota Matrix clone - I actually prefer the Matrix, but it was a little more $$$. 4 door and the seats fold 100% flat for hauling stuff.

to me, its a cheap car that looks decent, good mileage, lots of rooms to haul things, dependable.

 

I second the Matrix suggestion! Just picked one up for myself last weekend