best car new or used for no more than 20000 dollars
 

im seriously considering getting a solstice this winter when it comes out. my dad works for gm so i can get the gm discount, plus as one of his perks, he can drive it for three months then buy it at a "used car" price along with the discount. and obviously no one has driven it yet so im not asking for comparing car to car; id just like some more ideas of a reliable yet fun car new or used to be had for 20000. i dont want anything older than say 5 years though. for example, im thinking about the audi tt, but then again, it is an audi so repairs wont be as cheap as a gm car. thanks.

personally i would opt for a 2001 Honda S2000. they are Honda so they should be really reliable. the pricing is around 19-20K. you might be able to find a good 330CI Coupe for around that price as well. earlier in the 2000 range of course. personally i dont like GM cars except for the Hummer. everything is just too expensive.

That's going to be one high mileage 330CI. a CPO will still run you about 32K, maybe 28K for a non certified. There is an E46 around here, private seller, for 14,500. Probably what they owe on it.

well excuse me for not being a BMW worker :lol: :lol: :lol: ! as usual it was a good idea in the head.

I would test drive the solstace. I dont know how they would be on reliability. American cars tend to suck with reliability. Even our $150,000 Ford GT has been recalled for suspension parts breaking. Aside from questionable reliabilty, it would be a good buy. Possibly a used WRX, or S2000

yea, s2000 would be nice, not much low end grunt though... as much as i love winding an engine out, i also love feeling it pull from 2000 rpm... yea i will definitely test drive the solstice. im not worried about gm reliability. the only thing i would be worried about is it is its first year run so there are going to be problems. doesnt matter who makes it, first years always have them. as much as i like the bmw 3 series, there are just way too many of them. id like something that is at least somewhat eye catching. the solstice certainly will be.

how can you not be worried about an american car's reliability? I say S2000 if you dont mind a 2 seater. I was going to get one of those, but my father didnt want me getting a 2 seater (which basically is what I have lol, rarely ppl sit behind and well only midgets could fit for a longer than 10 mins ride)

american cars had higher reliability ratings than european cars in the last consumer reports reliability ratings. they are getting much better, still slightly behind japanese though. and none of my family's cars have ever had problems so first hand experience is fine. so i guess all anyone can come up with so far is the s2000? theres gotta be more than that :lol: .

there are a bunch more Japanese cars in the mid 90's that are nice but not sure if they would be the best choice because they are so old.

I don't really know how used cars are priced in the USA, but with that money I would buy a 2003-2004 jetta gli or golf gti, of course here in mexico. After owning a stratus 98, I seriously doubt I'll buy another chrysler or almost any american car

how much an mr2 is worth down there?

but... we could help you more if you give your ideas of what a car should be. ie. fast, reliable, good looking, with booth, cheap repair and parts. You will carry more ppl than your girl/boy friend and a couple of backpacks.
a sporty coupe, family sedan, comfy big sedan, etc

Do you want a RWD car? Or it does not matter? Im not sure on the prices of these cars so dont flame me.

GTO, LS1 model
Mach 1
SVT Cobra
Camaro
Trans Am
350 Z
RX8 ?
Miata :?

of all those you listed, i think the Trans Am is the only one i've seen for less than 20K. I think i have seen them for 18K.

not counting the Miata of course :lol:

here you can buy a 95' camaro for 8k :mrgreen:
I'm seriously thinking in buying one

Cool thanks, I was going to try autotrader.com to look at prices to be of more help. But then didnt know any of your zip codes. After trying a few random numbers I gave up.

Nemisis8u a lot of those cars are worth over 20k. not flaming just saying. but most are close by barely. like the 350Z if he sqeezed out about 3-4k more he could get a good one maybe.

Antonio are you talking about the SW20 or the MR2 Spyder? the SW20 is around 10k in the US its a nice car and there is one with a turbo. the Spyder is a shitty ass car at 138hp and 125 ft-lbs of torque. but a 2004 is 20k.