We said goodbye to our Honda yesterday. I’m feeling a little sad about it because it has served us well. But I just have to keep reminding myself how mad I was at that car for breaking on the way to St George and how I wanted to just abandon it right then and there. We made some money off of it and are hoping to find a new car soon.
It is so hard shopping for a car. I would never have thought it would be so un-fun. I really like the idea of a brand new car or a car that is a 2009. Everyone we talk to has their own strong opinions about how and what to buy. Some people insist on a specific brand name, some people think we would be crazy to buy a brand new car. Some say, “Why not. Buy a new car–that would be fun.” Some say buy something based on its re-sale value. Some say quality over cost, some say cheapest is best. Seriously though, everyone we talk to is very opinionated about how to buy a car. Why does everyone think they know? At the same time, everyone is right. But we want to be somewhere in the middle.
We want a car that will be a good car for the next 4 years maybe, or longer (unless we feel like trading it). We want to spend as little money as possible, but I don’t want to spend thousands of dollars on something I don’t even like to drive. I hope we can find a beautiful, shiny black thing to drive that just has all the sweet features I want, that is comfortable, and that is going to drive well. I want to make long road trips without any fear of breaking down. I want warranties, I want it all. Oh, and I want it to be cute and to have really great AC. Is that so unreasonable?
Here’s what we’ve looked at.
Ford Focus
Toyota Camry
Chevy Cobalt
Kia Forte
Hyundai Elantra
Honda Civic
Are you sensing a pattern? They all look about the same, they are all in the same price range. I just want to find some dealer that’s gonna give us the best deal of our lives.
We are currently driving Raimo’s little black low-ride truck from high school, lovingly called the beaner. I am hoping it holds up long enough for us to figure something out!!!
So This Is Love 
I've been really happy with my hondas…both the civic and the accord. I've never had a break down and they each lasted forever! I've had my 2002 accord now for 5 years–129k miles. It's still running strong! I'm a believer in Honda. Good luck though! Buying a car can be FUN!
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Good luck…i know how bad car searching can be..you want to find a deal but you want it to be a great car too…then your like ” i dont care, just get anything!” well, thats how i am 🙂 James and I always find cars on autotrader.com or craigslist. it saves money to buy from a private seller then a dealer ship, but then you dont get the waranty…so its up to you..i agree with tracy..hondas are pretty good. again, good luck 🙂
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Because you asked for advice . . . I don't think I'll ever buy a brand new car and drive it off the lot – you can save SO much money even if the car is only a year old, or even was leased for a year. My vote is for the honda, toyota or the Hyundai (pretty sexy looking car). Good luck!
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Is part of the pattern a black car? If so I will warn you about a black car. . . they are cool . . . but they are always so hot in the summer. They are hard to keep clean also. But other than that I really don't know much about cars. . . even though it was my job for 4 years to know everything. Kind of funny how like you said it is all just opinion and experience. The beaner is still running eh? I loved how it fish tails in the snow. Had a few white knuckle experiences in that one.
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