He has seen a few Ford Focus' but is apprehensive thanks to that ****ing Explorer. He isn't too high on Ford right now and I can't blame him.

Focus is a good car.

Huge difference between early 00's Fords and post-08 Fords.

Ford and GM both really got their shit together when they both almost went under. They finally moved on from the "If we build it, they will buy it." model to one focused on higher quality and actually competing with foreign manufacturers.

Yeah but honestly I told you that car was going to be a P.O.S at the time. I own a Mustang. I'd buy a Focus. It was just bad luck. Choose wisely. Used cars are always a crap shoot!

Yes sir. It's why I chose a Mustang made in 08 vs one earlier.

The big jump was in 05. Now the 99-04 cars are solid too just not as nice as the 05+ cars. The 99+ GT's will run forever and look decent too.

My 05 Mustang has 144K miles and no issues.

The Mustang is like the F150 to Ford. They usually haven't ****ed that one up. The other models are where they applied the "If we build it, they will buy it." mantra.

Explorers are notoriously junk. Focus is a good car. Every car company has poor cars. Just some have more than others. Don't let the Ford name scare you away. They do make solid vehicles.

Yup. My 2003 F150 is still going strong. :thumb:

Have heard nothing but good about the more recent Focus and the smaller Fiesta.

A dealership in Lawrence is going to bring a Focus to Topeka for us to look at. The salesman lives in Topeka. Pretty kind of him. It is the third link in the OP.

http://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/de...4780/overview/

EDIT

I wonder if the front grill appearance allows insurance to slightly raise rates on it

Used Subaru's might be something in this range if he is looking for something more interesting but likely at the sacrifice of insurance costs for his age.

As others have said a newer car that started as a more practical/less expensive car new is probably the best route. Also agree with what others have said that a more budget economy car can be made more interesting with a manual as well. Newer car may have some warranty and loan will be cheaper/easier as well.

Well, where's he work?

Why no Civic?

Most of the ones we have found already have much more than 100k miles on them and still pulling $8k. The one things that annoys me about toyota and honda is the ridiculous resale prices. Its great if you are looking to sell but crap if you are looking to buy a car to drive till it drops.

And they're not w/o their issues. No car is repair bill proof no matter how much Car and Driver wants you to believe that.

The first Honda i ever owned was an Accord with 80K on it. Two weeks after i took it off the lot, my wheel fell off from a bad CV Axle.

What I found with insurance while looking for a car for my son is that it isn't the type of car that matters but who typically buys it. A Civic is very expensive to insure while a CR-V isn't because kids are more likely to buy a Civic. Pretty much any "cheap" car - Civic, Focus, Sentras, etc - are more likely to be expensive to insure when compared to cars more typically owned by adults.

The cheapest cars to insure are those typically owned by older people like Cadillac and Buick. That said, the car we settled on - a 2000 Impreza - wasn't too bad, though no insurance for a 17 year old male can ever be called cheap.

I love my focus guru. In fact, my wife is driving mine while it's in the shop, while I am stuck with a Mazda2 which makes my focus seem like a luxury vehicle. I do encourage you though, grab the 5 speed manual if you can find one. The Dual Clutch Autos will almost all enevitably have to have the clutch replaced. Mine did at 26,000 miles, or just hope it's still under warranty.

well, looks like he will have to look at older cars. His insurance rates for the 2012 Focus would be over $400 per month. JFC Even liability only is at $250 per month.

Thats highway robbery no matter how you look at it.

67-69 VW

LMAO Liability would still be over $200.

Hell, I would get me a old Bug before him. I love those things and really regret selling my Super Beetle.

Now I really wish I hadn't gotten rid of it.

http://www.carsforsale.com/Search?Ma...mageless=false

Ouch.

That's brutal. Through which carrier?

I remember my first car.....the major insurance companies wanted $300 a month for full coverage....i believe i was 19 at the time.

I was able to find a smaller company, i think it was Viking or Infiniti insurance, and it dropped to around $200.

Thats through our carrier Liberty Mutual. Others wanted $500 per month.

Been real happy with this 04 mustang I got my kid. Cheap, runs great, looks great. I had to fix a few minor things, but I was all in for 3 grand.

Holy absolute ****! That sounds way too high. Quotes from other insurance companies might be a better start.

Lewdog will give you one hell of a deal on a car he needs to sell. New brakes, tires, had transmission serviced and 90k tuneup all within the last year. Never a problem with the engine. It's been maintained meticulously over the past decade by me and in great shape for an older car.

I think if I quit my day job I might start selling cars too.

You have left out some important details.

Kids man.

Insurance companies rape kids. I remember when I went to college, my parents booted me off their policy and on to my own and it more than doubled the bitch. And that was 15 years ago. I'm sure it didn't get any better.

They rape dudes worse anyway. My wifes insurance for a crappier car was less than mine when we got married. And she's a terrible driver. Neither of us had any tickets or wrecks, and they just bent me over.

If I were to do it again, I'd wouldn't owe money on the car until I was married and just run liability.

2001 Audi A4 for 6000 only has 63k miles on it. Anyone know anything about this car?

http://www.carsforsale.com/vehicle/details/4272925

Pretty sure it's due for a timing belt/ water pump. Some bucks there.

My nephew had one for about six months and it was like a hole he would just throw his wallet at...

Sweet interior. Turbo? Hmm.

I'd suspect the cost of ownership is going to be above average on that.

It's been hit in the front, but looks clean.

The front bumper doesn't fit right either, betting it's been hit at some point.

It was in some sort of accident for one, you can tell that right off the bat from the picture.

63K miles on a 2001 is a red flag for me. Those two numbers don't match up. That car should have at LEAST 150K+ miles on it, which means it was never driven....because reasons....or it sat around for a long period of time, possibly for mechanical reasons.

I'd hope for the best, but i'd do a massive amount of homework on it. Maybe you found a diamond in the rough, maybe you found a real PoS that someone finally got up and running.

Also, it's still German, so it'll still cost a bit more to replace parts that are destined for failure.

Also keep in mind that its a turbo, which means it has more moving parts that can break.

Do some strong, strong research on that one.

I Hope it works out for you.

Lol you saw it too.

Also, if you decide to go see that car in person, i'd look around to see if it's been repainted.

Check the wheel wells and the trim around the windows for overspray. Check the gaps for any white residue from being buffed. Those are all signs that that part of the car had been repainted, meaning there might've been damage there that was repaired.

Then you'll need to find out what kind of dmg it had.

Also, the gaps on the rear bumper cover aren't right either.

It could be just the pictures, but i swear i can see white residue on the trunk gap as well as where the black plastic at the bottom meets the bumper cover.

It could just the pictures though, but make sure you check for that when you see it in person, assuming you decide to dig further.

I think so too. Hell the whole car has been buffed by someone who didn't really know what they were doing by the look of the swirls, and the hood looks to be ****ed up too but it could just be a bad pic

Also, it's being sold by an auto repair shop, so that could mean a lot of things, good and bad. They do mechanical work and body repair.

Yup. Im pretty confident that this car was in a somewhat significant accident and sat around waiting to be fixed.

The mileage is 1/3 or what it should be for a daily-driver type car of that age and judging by the paint and poor gaps on both bumper covers, i seriously doubt it has low mileage because some enthusiast loved it to death, garaged and babied it.

It has all the signs of a car that sat around for repairs.

Now that doesn't mean it's a bad car or not the right car for your son, but it does mean you need to approach it with quite a bit of extra caution and attention to detail.

yep auto doctor on Merriam lane...they are a pretty good shop. I'm betting he bought it as a fixer upper...

One last thing, if you're financing, you're going to have a really hard time financing that car due to its age.

The banks will hike up the APR on you and force a short term loan. Unless it's you financing it and not your son, then you may have an easier time with it assuming you have good credit.

Yup. Shop right next to me does it all the time.

Hell I pick up cars all the time that need a motor or something... If it's cheap and fixable I buy them.


I've got seven or eight at the moment. Sold 4 in the last couple weeks and need to get some of these others done and moved soon lol.

Hell I had a lady blow the motor up on her 2007 Malibu and then say she was just gonna junk it.

A hundred bucks bought it, now if she will ever bring by the title I could put in the motor that sitting there lol.

Ad says it has a warranty lol

And supposedly had the timng belt replaced at 59k.


It HAS to be done every 60k in that thing and is probably 800-1000 in your area.

Like what?

Well in that post you left out make and model...

LMAO.

Oh I thought he was following my other thread where I was asking for car advice.

LMAO

$3,500 get you this. She's in great shape for being 15 years old. I'll even throw in the Royals license plate.

Just saying.

http://i.imgur.com/EX77Yp6.jpg?1

That's a good looking car.

That's a way better deal than that Audi that's full of question marks.

Don't see very many of those around.

I've had it 10 years. 99k miles. Taken very good care of it. People comment all the time how great it looks because they know it's old. I planned to drive it a few more years since it's got new tires and brakes. But won't keep three cars. Someone who buys it, is getting a great car.

Shit guru. There you go.

Hmmm, looks like a good car for me.

PM sent

Looks like a good deal

Help finding my son a new car
 

The Planet helping brothas out.

Brings a tear to my eye..

Of course, I have no idea where Lewdog lives. For all I know its Arizona, though I am assuming its KC.

He lives in Arizona...

well shit

Still worth it

What an adventure that could be!

Perhaps a few z man sammiches and a plane ticket to deliver lololol

Wish I hadn't shown it to my son now. I don't have the time available nor the funds to go all the way to Arizona just to get a car. Oh well, back to searching though all the shit cars.

3500 + flight + gas < a Volkswagen

the time involved that kills it for me. Plus we need those airline miles for the kids trip to disney this summer. Been saving 4 years for that.

Meet halfway... Wichita-ish ROFL

heh, now that I could do.

Is that where he really lives? I can never truly tell when my chain is being pulled on this site.:hmmm:

Ship it for around a grand
http://www.vehicletransport.com/

I think he is in Arizona I was joking with the Wichita being half way thing lol

I knew one or the other was a joke. Was hoping Wichita wasn't. LMAO

ITs typical though. Great deal falls in my lap and I can't take advantage of it.

Yeah you can always have it shipped. If it's as in good shape as Lew says it is, even at $4500 w/ shipping it's still a good deal. Downside is you don't get to see it first, that's always dangerous, no offense to you, Lew.

Any opinions on these sub $5000 cars? Probably be checking this place out this weekend.

http://www.tcmotors.com/inventory.as...sc&ordby=price

There are a few in that price range that have under 75k miles on them

http://www.tcmotors.com/2002_Ford_Fo..._250912677.veh
http://www.tcmotors.com/2002_Hyundai..._252200874.veh
http://www.tcmotors.com/2002_Nissan_..._251047210.veh
http://www.tcmotors.com/2007_Chevrol..._250720093.veh
http://www.tcmotors.com/1999_Saturn_..._250088813.veh
http://www.tcmotors.com/1998_Audi_Ca..._240864022.veh

http://www.tcmotors.com/2002_Nissan_...252242992.veh#
It's 6 but it's hawt

We will probably look at that one too. Definitley in better shape than the SEntra