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Originally Posted by dknv
Mazda 3 -
Go to Carson City Mazda/Hyundai, see Curt & tell him I sent you - and I'll get a $50 kickback on the purchase of a new vehicle. 
Seriously, besides base price of the vehicle, are any other criteria important? It sounds like reliability may be important based on the first post in this thread, and there are probably others (i.e. color/options availability, gas mileage, the list can get quite big).
When Dean posted the list from cars.com, not only is it a list, but it is a pointer to one of several resources on the web, that can be very helpful in searching in the right direction. I would recommend a mindset of taking time to do the right research, including getting people's opinions, researching the web resources, reading what car magazine reviewers have to say, and blend that information towards narrowing the list to 2 or 3.
But - if it were me, and I were going to buy a house soon - I'd wait on a new car purchase, buy the house, live in it a few months, then take an equity loan to get a car. But that's just me. |
I'm pretty sure Jason's covered all the websites, from cars.com to edmunds.com, etc, etc, etc.
He needs the car now because, as was mentioned, his Neon is almost dead: blown head gasket... it barely starts in the morning and goes through more oil than it does gas.
I think Jason already narrowed his choices down to 2 or 3... with the Scion TC and the Mazda 3 at the top of the list. I put up this thread just to see what everyone's opinions were about these (and the others I mentioned) cars. I was hoping more for stuff like "the Mazda's motor is a little weak", or "I love the way the Focus handles", etc, you know, personal 1st hand info, the kinda stuff JC replied with. Basically I intended for this to be a thread about $16k cars, not a thread about how to shop for a car with obvious things like "do research and pick the car that meets your requirements"... of course you do research and pick the best car for your requirements!
Anyway, back on topic:
Jason, his GF and I went down to Mazda and Toyota at lunch to peep the 3 and the TC. I really dig the Mazda 3 hatch. It may be a little bit blukier than the older MP3 wagon, but I still think it's pretty nice. Plus the 3's can be had for a base price i the $13k's! Not a bad price for a decent car. I'm just worried that it's way underpowered.
Toyota didn't have a TC in house yet.. it was supposed to arrive today, but was late. They expect it tomorrow. Scion's are prices al la cart with fixed prices like Saturns are (or used to be?). So there's no hassle purchasing one. We check out an xB a bit. I'm a fan (as I've stated before) but I think Jason's turned off by the extreme-tissue-box look.
We didn't go by Ford. I still think the SVT Focus is the best deal if you can get one for around $16k. They've got all that extra horsepower and the LSD over the Mazda 3, but should handle just as good since their virtually the same platform. I also like the styling of the SVT better. I think I might have to test drive one just to see how fun they are.