Hi, I just recently got my license and I'm looking for a decent car, I will be traveling from Rotorua to Auckland regularly and would like to get some suggestions on a reliable and economical car, price range approx 4 grand :)
tgray,
May 14, 8:15am
Toyota, Nissan, Mazda.
magicmat,
May 14, 8:16am
Honda. nanna type model. I actually regret getting rid of my 90's Honda Integra. That car never let me down, always flew through warrants and was cheap as dirt to run. As long as you get regular servicing such as oil changes these cars are bullet proof and I was not exactly kind to the Integra I had (the 'Vtec' had to kick in every day of its life).
There are Honda haters out there but my experience has been the body falls to bits around the engine.
fordcrzy,
May 14, 8:18am
nissan pulsar/sentra/lucinois without doubt the best choice.sure they are boring as a toaster but they are reliable as a japanese watch
hippygal,
May 14, 8:22am
Okay, thanks for the suggestions :) Im quite interested in Honda integras but i'm not sure about the gas, because my mum has one and she says its a quite expensive to run, but then my friend has one and he said it's good on gas. So I got confused.
fordcrzy,
May 14, 8:27am
no no no to an integra! they rust out real bad.have all been raced. and need to have cambelt and water pump replaced on or before the recommended time which is usually about 500km after the guy is selling it.
magicmat,
May 14, 8:27am
My Integra was only a 1800cc and I drove 200km daily for work and was very happy with the gas usage. It really was an amazing little car, very plain, but so reliable and quite grunty considering. Though the other cars suggested above are not bad options either. It seems people want a bit more $$ for their Hondas, but I can see why after owning one! Damn. I practically gave mine away.
pollymay,
May 14, 8:29am
Yeah nah the old ones rust like hell. The later ones the spot welds can pull out of the rear subframe. Also interference motors which can end badly if the seller is dishonest about when it was done. They are a solid car but meh
hippygal,
May 14, 8:32am
Are Nissan Bluebird Sylphy's any good! Im not sure if i'd be able to find one in my price range, but I quite like them.
magicmat,
May 14, 8:34am
Yea I know they get slammed, but my experience was absolute reliability and an absolute pleasure to run. I was lucky and got it with relatively low K's and a maintenance history. I was quite mean to that little car too, it seemed to love being revved. I honestly never had a single issue with it at all. I took it for a warrant and it needed nothing. Next warrant a park light bulb had blown which the guy kindly replaced so I could drive out legal. In fact the only issue I ever had was a battery that died, but that is nothing to do with the actual car. Damn. I really do miss that little car.
deviant.s,
May 14, 8:35am
Does no one here care about safety! If you are new to driving and going to be on the open road regularly you might want to consider something more solid than a 90s Jap car. Bigger cars from safer companies basically. BMW, Volvo, Saab.There are plenty of safe jap cars out there but not for $4k.
pollymay,
May 14, 8:36am
I thrashed ours to death, then my sister put it into a bank putting it back the windscreen so we entered it into a destruction derby. That fixed it
sw20,
May 14, 8:37am
Yes generally good cars. Can probably get a higher milage one (200,000+ km) for around $5000.
fordcrzy,
May 14, 8:45am
im sure the OP will feel great about having a safe euro car when they are stranded on the southern motorway in the rain in july at 6pm.
trdbzr,
May 14, 8:46am
A mate of mine just sold his 98 nissan pulsar 1.5 auto 105,000km (same as early bluebird sylphy and sunny) for $3450 today, so look around, theres bound to be good deals that pop up but they get snapped up pretty quickly.
ninja_man,
May 14, 8:46am
there are heaps of possible cars. 1) get a jappa 2) get one with a service history/well looked after 3) dont rule out the integra's. they hold their value very well and are super reliable
fordcrzy,
May 14, 8:55am
bingo! they are super reliable and cheap to fix.who cares if they arent cool. your mates wont be too cool when thier boy racer mobile is up on blocks because they cant afford to rebuild the engine.etc
pebbles61,
May 14, 9:00am
I don't really care about 'safety' features in cars myself.then again I ride a motorcycle everyday lol.
michael.benn,
May 14, 9:02am
Honda Accord CD5 :)
jmma,
May 14, 9:04am
You forgot VW and Fiats, Jazz (o:
gunhand,
May 14, 9:06am
Hmmm she wants a cheapish reliable car and you offer SAAB lol.And people die just the same in those cars as well and probably because they think there safer etc they can take more risks because the saftey devices will sort them out. a 100kph crash is a 100kph crash and chances are you will die just the same.Those companys like most only crash there cars at slowish speed not what they are capable of doing or 100kph. And yes there are plenty of good we cars out there for 4k with airbags and abs etc if you look.
hippygal,
May 14, 9:22am
Awesome :D thanks heaps for all the options and opinions
outbidyou2,
May 14, 9:24am
Combi of course
pebbles61,
May 14, 9:28am
Na.Mini!
hippygal,
May 14, 10:11am
Are Mitsubishi lancers and Mitsubishi Mirages any good! And also Mazda Familia's!
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