Car purchase advice needed
 

OK, I KNOW this si a Mercedes forum, but...

My son, the musician finnaly got a (parttime) teaching job, so now he needs a better car. He's been driving a hand-me-dowm '96 geo Metro. He says his budget is $11,000. Remember, he is a Tuba player and need to trandsport his horn, and often a passenger. He drives in downtown Philly and NYC to various gigs.
His list pasic parameters:
30+ mpg
reliable
< 30,000 miles
model year 2003 or newer
Sedan vs. Hatch back--either body style has some advantages and other liabilities, so thats a wash.

OK, what would you fine members of the mercedesshop Open Discussion suggest?

Thanks for any help. ( Anxious to see how this thread gets hi-jacked....)

Ford Focus wagon. :) Musicians love stationwagons. He might have to carpool.

I want through a series a questions on cars.msn.com, entered the informationon for the kind of car your son is looking for and they came up with:

2004 Ford Focus Wagon
Blue Book Value: $10,050 - $11,100
Pricing & Specs
Search used car listings

2004 Kia Rio Cinco
Blue Book Value: $8700 - $8975
Pricing & Specs
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2004 Mitsubishi Lancer Sportback
Blue Book Value: $10,950 - $14,100
Pricing & Specs
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2004 Pontiac Vibe
Blue Book Value: $11,550 - $13,100
Pricing & Specs
Search used car listings

2004 Saturn L300 Wagon
Blue Book Value: $12,350 - $14,750
Pricing & Specs
Search used car listings

2004 Suzuki Aerio SX
Blue Book Value: $10,200 - $10,550
Pricing & Specs
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2004 Toyota Matrix
Blue Book Value: $12,700 - $14,500
Pricing & Specs
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2005 Chevrolet Aveo
Blue Book Value: $8400 - $10,400
Pricing & Specs
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2005 Ford Focus Wagon
Blue Book Value: $11,350 - $11,900
Pricing & Specs
Search used car listings

2005 Kia Rio Cinco
Blue Book Value: $9825 - $10,100
Pricing & Specs
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2005 Suzuki Aerio SX
Blue Book Value: $11,550 - $11,850
Pricing & Specs
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2006 Chevrolet Aveo
Blue Book Value: $10,100 - $12,250
Pricing & Specs
Search used car listings

Golf didn't make the list?

Sixto
93 300SD 3.0

The questions only allow you to choose a car that's "nearly new".

I guess 2004 is the cut-off and a 2004 Golf is still above his budget.

A nice Mercedes Diesel wagon, refurbished (sp).

What about the Honda CRV? I have heard good things about them.

Scion xA or xB?

Sixto
93 300SD 3.0

How big is a tuba anyway? I assume it fits in a Geo Metro. I can fit a Geo Metro in the trunk of my SD which isn't worth $11K, ergo... :)

Sixto
93 300SD 3.0

Thanks for all the replies.
He isn't me--he is musically talented; I am mechanically talented. The two may not be mutually exclusive, but he also has no garage, and no tools to maintain a Mercedes. If he were handy, and had a place to do normal maintenance, I'd recommend the 300TD. But he needs a car that is a turn-key.
I'll send him the list.
Thanks again

Honda Element.

I've had a 1990 and a 1993 Chrysler mini van. I put over 200k on both and aside from the expected transmission troubles, which they claim to have fixed now, they both gave excellent service. My family and I took them all over the States a number of times. They are good for kids because you can take out the middle seat, I guess the newer ones fold down, and they can play/sleep in the middle area. The 3.3 Mitsubishi engine is the best I have ever seen. In all those miles I NEVER touched the engine. A couple of water pumps and some belt tensioner, but never any repairs to the engine.

I'm probably going to catch a basket of rotten tomatoes, but my oldest kid just bought a 2nd-hand Toyota SUV. Something named for a tree (I don't know SUV's, okay? But I am a botanist). It is a 2001 ( think) with a bit under 100K miles, all records (dealership maintained), loaded and in extremely good condition. Her BF is a mechanic and owns the pick-up version, which he swears is the best pick-up ever.

She paid $10K incl TTL.

That big-assed MOFO will hold a raft of tubas, and the horse they rode in on.

B

Sequoia. Sort of a clone of a Ford Expedition.

Perhaps a used Subaru Outback wagon would be worth a look. They are quite reliable, get decent mileage and aren't a bad choice for ordinary driving, and the AWD feature is handy in rotten weather and light snow.

Good choice. Subaru makes great cars, but I'm afraid he won't be able to find a 2003 Outback with less than 30,000 miles for $11,000.

a first year dodge magnum with 2.7 motor will be near 30 highway. and probably can find one at or near his budget.

tom w

PT Cruiser
 

Personally wouldn't know but have friends with a band and they swear by the PT Cruiser for storing like 1/2 the band instruments in the rear.
I think it may all fold flat??


Are they good cars?



....

It's basically an overweight Dodge Neon. A Corolla is more entertaining to drive.

my wife drives a pt. she loves it but she is not responsible for keeping it driving.

at 40k we had to do a head gasket. (POS).

and shortly thereafter we did struts and shocks, i put gabriels on and less than a year later i had to do it again. this time i put on bilsteins. so far so good.

they use a lot of gas though. 13 and 14 around town and it takes a good long trip driving 65 or less to top 20 mpg highway.

it is easy to get in and out of and very handy for garage saleing and such because the seats flip this way and that.

tom w