If you were the poorest person on the planet, what car would you buy?

"traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn" (el-peasant) 07/29/2016 at 20:07 • Filed to: None

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I mean one that’s like $3000 or less, one that can go thousands of miles without breaking one of its $5 parts, and gets like 30 MPG or better.

Something like a ‘91 Civic or Corolla or Geo Metro comes to mind.

interstate366, now In The Industry > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:11

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90s Civic or Accord. There are always around 20 of each at the junkyard.

aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:12

1

A bike.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:14

3

If I were the poorest person on the planet, I would be more worried about food and water.

My X-type is too a real Jaguar > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:14

0

You go to your local self service junkyard look at what they have a lot of and buy one of those.

BJ > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:15

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I live in a big city where small cars are king. There is no shortage of cheap cars like this 2001 Corolla for less than $1500 Canadian.

http://m.autotrader.ca/a/5_27988378?m…

Spridget > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:15

1

Renault Le Car

In a Mini; let them mock me as My Mini Countryman is higher than you > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:15

0

THE

ANSWER

IS

ALWAYS

MIATA

OR VW BEETLE

XJDano > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:16

1

Are poor & cheap the same thing?

I’ve had my 98 metro for 9+ years. Bought for $800, put about $2,000 into it for tires, Maintence & repairs. (Estimated) I think I’m doing alright. Although it needs another trans swap and I don’t way to.

That's a newer app, I had a lot more miles tracked but switched phones and crap and it all got lost.

RallyWrench > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:19

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I’d buy a ‘98 or so Corolla, no questions asked. Maybe an old Camry wagon so I could sleep in it.

G_Body_Man: Sponsored by the number 3 > XJDano 07/29/2016 at 20:21

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1996 Toyota Tercel.

The only thing cheaper to buy, maintain, and insure than a Geo Metro.

MultiplaOrgasms > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:22

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Leg day bro

duurtlang > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:25

0

A Peugeot 106 (or Citroën Saxo), preferably not from the last few years of production when quality decreased. I’d spend a few hundred extra on one that has been excellently maintained.

Very cheap to buy/run/maintain/repair/tax/insure, yet still good to drive. That $3000 budget will get you a decent one with loads of cash left to keep it running (other than fuel/tax/insurance) for many years to come.

XJDano > G_Body_Man: Sponsored by the number 3 07/29/2016 at 20:26

1

http://stlouis.craigslist.org/cto/5676377363…

This guy thinks they can increase in value. I think they were $8-9,000 new.

mazda616 > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:26

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Because I want to drive a big, comfy couch even in my poverty.

http://owensboro.craigslist.org/cto/5673469009…

And a couch powered by the 3800 will be reliable.

for Michigan > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:31

0

I bought my Fiero for $1100, did the brakes, and drove it for two-and-a-half years with nothing but regular maintenance. It currently needs about $200 worth of parts to be a reliable DD again. Would get 30+ MPG if it were a manual, but it still manages mid-to-high 20s as is.

In contrast, I bought my 98 Civic for $1100, put a head gasket in it and barely kept it on the road for nine months with $3000 in parts and labor. That got about 27 MPG average because all I used it for was pizza delivery.

To be entirely fair, if I used the Fiero for pizza delivery I doubt it would’ve lasted any better than the Civic.

gmctavish needs more space > XJDano 07/29/2016 at 20:36

1

Yeah but his was in an element control room

Alfalfa > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:37

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I’d probably find a ratty CRX. In my area you can usually find one pretty much unmodified but beat up.

RT > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:43

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Be poor with style, and with a 2.0 V6 manual with leather under your belt.

Or if you’re just being poor, this is the dependable option.

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:45

1

tada

S65 > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 20:45

1

Geo Prism

JRapp: now as good as new again > for Michigan 07/29/2016 at 21:11

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The Fiero is not a reliable car at all. Everything that breaks is relatively cheap, but you’ll be constantly replacing something. I’ve owned mine since 1997 and I’ve replaced more or less everything that’s not the body at least once. And economy.. I’ve maybe gotten up to 22MPG on the highway at best with the 4-speed manual attached to the V6.

JRapp: now as good as new again > mazda616 07/29/2016 at 21:14

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Unless you’re replaced the gaskets, the 3800 leaks like a sieve out of the factory. Properly rebuilt, they’re bulletproof though.

TylerLinner > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 21:17

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Lol. Raise your hand if you’ve never bought a car for over $1500.

for Michigan > JRapp: now as good as new again 07/29/2016 at 21:28

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Well 20 years is a very long time to own a car. I know very few people who have had the same car for that long. To have replaced a significant number of the components of any car in that time period is unsurprising.

boxrocket > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 21:55

0

Ford Ranger/Mazda B2300 with the 2.3L I4.

Good-ish on gas, stupidity easy to fix, lots of parts available, lots of room under the hood to work. Holds its value.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/29/2016 at 22:04

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I don’t know about ALL of those things, but for cheap, simple to maintain and entertaining:

FIAT 126p :P

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > Spridget 07/29/2016 at 22:07

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They are supposed to be surprisingly reliable! I would say a beater 2CV, but I think even those are going up a lot in price now :/

traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn > XJDano 07/29/2016 at 22:29

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This is the first time I emitted an audible laugh when I saw the price of a car.

bhtooefr > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/30/2016 at 01:01

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If I were the poorest person on the planet, it wouldn’t be a car at all, it’d be a bicycle like this Flying Pigeon if anything:

For lower-class in America, though... $3000 is a far, far too high number to think of for “poorest person”, even in America. Let’s set $1000 as the limit, shall we?

And, the trick is that it doesn’t necessarily need to be bulletproof, if it’s cheap to buy and fix.

It’s really worth learning how to properly drive a manual - it makes more (less valuable) cars available, it increases reliability, and it increases efficiency.

Geo Metros are good choices if you’re not in a rust-prone area, although when gas spikes they get expensive, because they’re what everyone thinks of when they scramble for a high MPG car to save money. Civics and Accords can sell for too much, as can Corollas and Camrys... but Geo Prizms are the same thing as a Corolla, just with an American badge.

The 91-96 Escort is utterly worthless resale-wise, but if you can replace the suspension yourself, they’re cheap to run, the 1.9 liter’s efficient, and there’s even a wagon available. (The 2.0 liter is terrible about dropping valves, which is why I said 91-96.) And, it’s a Mazda 323/Protege chassis underneath, so some fun can be had on the cheap.

Not happening in my stricter $1000 budget, but an early hybrid is not a good idea if your goal is saving money (they fit into the $3k budget nowadays) - prepare to drop $3-4k on a battery especially if it’s a Honda, but even older Toyotas are needing them with increasing regularity, and rebuilt packs are no longer the way to go for those it seems. If it’s a Gen 1 Prius, prepare to drop another $1k on an MG1 stator.

Same goes for any VW TDI (but even worse, because the rest of the car is a VW, not a Toyota or Honda, so everything nickel and dimes you in ways that those cars don’t), prepare to drop $1k on a timing belt, $1k on a turbo, $1k on an injection pump if it’s pre-2004 or $1k on a cam and lifters if it’s 2004-2006, $1k on a clutch+flywheel job or $5k on replacing the automatic transmission.

Wagon, semi manual, not brown, turbo because volvo > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/30/2016 at 01:08

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Either a honda of late 80s to early 90s vintage with a d16 or b18 for general frugality, or for cheap as f parts with a bit of grunt a gm platform with a 4.3l 262ci v6. If I wish to neglect until stuff starts flying off Hilux with 22re.

CaptainSlower > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/30/2016 at 03:36

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My $1550.00 Prelude is probably disqualified for taking premium gas, isn’t it?

ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable) > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 07/30/2016 at 07:54

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Probably a mule.

Sure it's not as fast, but it would last longer and need less maintenance.

cluelessk > XJDano 08/01/2016 at 01:09

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I’d like to think he meant $1500.

Some people.

Aaaron > traderQAMobileTestAutomationMobileBoostOn 08/01/2016 at 19:26

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I’d go back to an air cooled VW. I know they aren’t the most reliable engines, nor are they known for their longevity (pretty much any old VW you see on the road is likely on its 2nd or 3rd engine, I think mine was on its 3rd), but I know a guy who can adjust my valves for like 20 bucks and I already know what to expect from it.

I think I just miss my VW...