I just have 3 words for you….toyota, toyota, toyota I've had my SUV since 2003 and now has 160,000 miles on it. I have never had any issues. Only routine maintenance (but just recently, 2 months ago, it's developed an oil leak…which will be a pricey fix of up to 2k depending on where it is).
My daughters's previous car was a Toyota Sierra minivan and it had 200,000 miles on it before she traded it in for her Lexus SUV. It was still running but she was ready for a new car.
Mine is a Lexus SUV too…Lexus is made by Toyota though. I should have clarified that in my post. My mother has a Toyota RAV4 mini SUV and that has never had any problems either…purchased around the same time.
I forget the year my daughter bought the Toyota Sierra but she had it a long time. The Lexus she bought last year.
I so agree with you, @Lara Moss , and would love to have a Toyota, or even a Subaru; but both of those vehicles are out of my price range, even the old, broken down ones. Here is what I have discovered so far with my car search. For my $1000, I can either get an older (seriously beat-up) car that gets good gas mileage, and has between 200,000 and 300,000 miles on it already; or I can get an older , lower mileage (100,000-200,000) vehicle that does not get good gas mileage, and used to be a luxury-type vehicle, once upon a time. To get any kind of decent vehicle that does not have this high of mileage, you have to have at least twice the amount of money that I have, and so I am looking for something in my price range that has the best of both worlds. Since I do not drive very many miles anyway, I am now focusing on a compromise between these two extremes. I am hoping to find a vehicle with under 200,000 miles, and that can get at least reasonable gas mileage, and is not due to fall apart any second.
Yvonne, I hear you. I bought mine used although it was only a year old but still…it cost less than new. I bought it from a reputable place called CarMax. I was very pleased. They have all these services they perform to get the car in like-new running condition. They took my car as a trade-in but I didn't get much for it. It was worth not having to sell it myself though. If you don't drive much the leasing is an option but they're a bunch of crooks so you have to educate yourself or they'll get you with that small type and stick it to you at the last minute. They won't tell you that you have to pay taxes on the sale even though, technically, they should on a used car. The newer the leased car the higher the taxes are on it. My daughter got a leased a new car and then went to the DMV to get her tags only to find out she owed $800 taxes on it before they could issue tags to her (she fought it and they reduced it to like $250). Just be careful and google BBB and "reviews" a lot.
That's good to know @Lara Moss. It seems odd to me that you're leasing the vehicle and don't own it once the lease period ends, yet you have to pay sales tax...that doesn't make sense. The company that owns the vehicle should pay sales tax when they purchase the vehicles, and there shouldn't be 'sales' taxes involved in a lease. Of course, the government has to have its hands in every piece of the pie, so it shouldn't surprise me at all. @Yvonne Smith I'm sure rental vehicles sold by the top tier rental agencies would be out of your reach, but perhaps there are some of the lower tier ones that would fit the bill, and those vehicles should have been properly maintained, also. That might make it a better deal than buying something with a questionable history.
I am finding some of those rental agency vehicles in the listings of cars that I look at , @Diane Lane . Most of those are still new enough that they are above my price range as well. As you said, leasing a vehicle like @Lara Moss mentioned is out of the question for us, because we have no budget for making even small car payments. I have been saving every extra penny for the last couple of years because I knew when we bought the wagon that it would eventually need replacing, with as old and worn out as it was already. Even though I am looking for something that only costs about $1,000; I have listed my search parameters as everything up to $2,000; so I see the ones that are nicer, even though they are out of my price range. Possibly, the owners will negotiate, or lower the price later, so I want to look at the ones that are somewhat close to affordable. I am still trying to juggle that fine line between a dilapidated, extreme high mileage economy car, and an older luxury gas-guzzler with less miles. I think that everyone else is doing that, too; because those get snapped up right away. Plus, people are starting to get tax refunds back, and have cash to grab up the good vehicles when they are listed for sale. The ones that they do not get, the car dealers (and backyard car salesmen) will take, do any necessary minor repairs, and then re-sell. At least, the old station wagon seems to be putting along reasonably well since Bobby replaced the wheel bearing; and I just add that to my prayers each day, that God will help me find a vehicle that is within my very limited price range; but is still safe to drive down the road .
Your car search crosses my mind often Yvonne because I would be in the same boat right now with my old car. I really hope something unexpected turns up for you, a lucky find! Glad to hear that your old car is still working after Bobby fixed it. Have you exhausted all searches for limited income help? Is there a local Facebook page where you can post what you are looking for. I didn't read back to the OP if you've done this or not. Maybe there is someone kind and rich enough to sell you a car they want to trade in but is still in good shape for a lesser amount that they would get in a trade in.
When I was about 28 years old my sister wanted to move to California where I lived at the time. I told her I would try to find her a car to use while she was there. I put an Ad in the paper that said, "Looking to buy a cheap but reliable car for my sister. Must be in good working condition. I don't care what it looks like."…haha. I think the paper was the "Pennysaver". I immediately got a call from the sweetest older couple, probably in their 60's or 70's. They had a small Volkswagon station wagon and sold it to me for $800. I think it was about 10 years old and had no body damage. It worked like a charm. At the time, I didn't know much about what cars were worth and so I didn't fully appreciate the favor they had done for me until a garage mechanic told me that it was the last year they made an engine that was as good and offered me $1000 for it. It wasn't until then that I fully appreciated what that couple did for me. I felt they were angels…real ones…I'm not kidding. That was so kind of them. I remember driving away as they watched me...man had his arm around his wife with the sweetest smiles on their faces So, Yvonne, feel free to use my classified ad writing skills . Seriously though, you might try putting a classified Ad in the paper yourself instead of searching for other people's ads. The world is different now and prices are higher so I don't know. It looked like this one:
I think Lara is right. I think that is the only way you will find a GOOD car in your price range. Somebody who really doesn't need to make money off the car they want to get rid of.