Say you have about 5000 to buy a car...

S

Spic-N-SpaN

Active member
What would you get?

Ive been thinking

Subaru Outback Sport

VW golf or rabbit or gti

I found a few used Audis but Id be worried about the whole money pit factor those present

 
in before subaru/audi

OP there is NO luxury car out there worth buying for 5000. So get that out of yoru mind. Get a reliable japanese car. Toyota, honda, etc. You only have 5000 to spend. Trust me repairs are expensive. Just did a timing belt, water pump, 2 new tires , and front exhaust pipe on a 2004 jetta for 1200.
 
subaru is not a luxury car and it is..... jap made. also awd doesn't hurt for a ski vehiche. there are plenty of subys for sale under 5k. depending on how interested in cars he is, an audi could be a fun car to have and work on. There are many doors to be opened to upgrades in all categories with an audi. It will take more to maintain an audi, but still a very reliable car.
 
The only thing I dislike about my 96 Subaru Outback is the mileage. I get about 20 highway during the summer. A little less when it is cold out.
 
I would buy my car again. 1998 Subaru Forester. It's not the safest car in a crash but I'm so familiar with the way it drives that I'll never get into an accident while driving it through any fault of my own. Plus it's got a lot of cargo space, seats 5, gets decent mileage, and AWD. Nothing spectacular about it but nothing wrong with it either
 
i never said subaru was a luxury brand at all. I just in before every single person suggest that vehicle. I just think for 5 grand, there is such al imited market of decent vehicles out there. Its all about getting connections to people you know or talking to dealers and stuff. For 5 grand take what you can get.
 
People saying Audi I just don't get. You do not get a decent Audi on that budget. If you're buying an Audi you should be balling on it.

The Subaru love however makes good sense - and imo the best value you'll get is a Legacy wagon, they tend to go cheaper than other models I find and pretty roomy. Good ski car.
 
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you probably wont get one this clean for 5grand but if you do it yourself from used parts you could...
 
if your gunna get a truck just get a early model tacoma or another small toyota pick up truck. Same deal as the subies, they just dont die. Can be pretty awesome offroad too when set up right.
 
i got 32-34 mpg highway with my 96 legacy outback...

i would not recommend buying an audi if you have 5k to spend...unless you are planning to keep it for just a year or something. then you can hope that nothing will break in that year.

I'm in the same position...need to buy a car but don't want to spend a lot. just need something to get by for a year or two til i can buy a decent machine.
 
honda odessey with a rocket box dec gas mileage and you can carry ur whole crew. Im a fan of awd but its only nec rarely. oh and it wont die. other than that suby toyo truck, vibe awd, matrix awd
 
my mom used to have a 5 speed turbo AWD 850 wagon...that car was seriously fuckin awesome. I begged her to sell it to me for the longest time. But those specific models are quite rare, so dont expect to find one like that.
 
What? Did you go to daily tapings of the Ellen show to restore its power without actually filling up? And park it at REI overnight?

I have the exact same car and get at best 24 mpg with mine on a good day when the car gods look down favorably upon me.

This was in Minnesota where the roads are flat.

I am like the most wimpy slow accelerating, glide to a stop sign driver on the road.

I think its only rated at 26mpg highway anyway...
 
i regularly calculated gas mileage on drives home from college. it would do around 27mpg going 70-75mph. the second half of the trip it would almost always do 30+ going 60-63mph.

was yours automatic/manual? 2.4L or 2.5L?

mine was the smaller engine and manual.
 
Mine is the 2.5 and an auto, so that doesn't help.

30 mpg in an awd car that old is just amazing.
 
you should see if you can find a clean mk2 GTI VR6 swap with a rust-free body, that would be awesome.

I have an '89 GTI 16V, it's sweet.
 
Assuming you were "under the influence" the answer hinges on whether this is a "vehicle" under the statute and whether it was being operated on a "public roadway." Although the caselaw leaves some gray area in the law, a segway probably meets the definition of a "vehicle" under the DUI law. I have successfully argued that a motorized scooter was not and was not so successful trying to apply this argument to a small electric motorcycle. Probably depends on the court, but most judges will probably rule that it is covered in the statute. "Public roadway" is very broadly defined would include almost any path or roadway potentially accessible to the public. Thus, the answer is probably yes and you probably wouldn't be the first to be arrested for riding a segway under the influence.
 
check your local craigslist and classifieds, sometimes you can find some stuff for pretty cheap, some people are generous.
 
Ive got a 1999 Subaru outback.

Mine has done 230 000 Kms ( 142 915 Miles) and still going hard.

Defiantly a good car to have and super convenient.

Im sure there are a few around for about $5000 .
 
honestly, don't spend all 5K on the car. Spend about 3,000 on the car and then buy a pair of racks for it (once all done it should be about 1,000 if you get a box too).

I say this because when buying a used vehicle it is a good rule of thumb to set aside roughly a thousand dollars for various repairs or potential mishaps. This could be things like blown starters, new tires, oil, oil filters, worn clutch (if you suck at driving stick, lol), windshield repair/replacement, etc..

JUST MY THOUGHTS
 
only if you're a dumbass, I spent 130 on mine, with keys, locks, and a ski attachment. I don't have a box for it, but you really don't need one.
 
my first car was a 96 legacy. that thing rallied snow, i would recommend it to anyone. i now have a '05 civic. it does surprisingly well in snow, i've never had to use chains with it, and i have a feeling that this car will last me a very long time. a big plus is that is gets 34mpg

if i was in your situation i would try to find a nicer forester. i will have one of those at some point in my life
 
you spent $130 on the RACK itself? i can see paying $130 for the ski/snowboard clamps or an attachment. but if your vehicle doesn't have a roof rack (or it has one that isn't compatible with those attachments) then you have to buy one, and they can get pretty expensive.
however, $1000 for one is redonkulous, def wouldn't drop that on anything but like a custom made safari rack
 
Buy use racks, and simply buy the good fit kit for the car which is around 50. so 75 for racks and 50 for the fit kit is a pretty decent price. and Ski racks are not really expnsive.
 
What are your needs in a vehicle?

Everyone has different needs so just saying: get this or get that would be ridiculous.

for instance, for my needs in a vehicle, I would stick with my Durango right now that I got for 4gs because I tow. if I stoped towing boats around, I would switch over to an A4 avant and have some class back in my life and a bit better MPGs.

I don't even know what you can get for 5 grand on the market right now but if you could let us know a bit of what you need in a vehicle we might be able to help you better.

but for now. Get an e30 3 series and use the left over cash to re-do the suspension/ brakes and drop an S52 into it. That's what I would do for around 5K
 
I wanted a 1.8t B5 or B3 A4, then I realized how much I was dumping into it over the long run. I bought a 2004 Subaru Impreza RS with 160 000 KM, not a scratch on it with band new tires for 5300. And that's in Canuckistan. All cars are way fucking cheaper in the states.
 
buy a little truck, (s10,sonoma,ranger...) cheap on insurance cause theres only 2-3 seats
 
Or find an older f-150 with the 300 straight six, regular cab, long box with a topper. Topper eliminates need for a ski rack, according to the above post cheap insurance, and the ford straight six runs forever. They get mileage similar to a suby, especially if its a stick.Plus you can get them dirt cheap. I'm getting a 1990 f-150 with 100k miles for $300.
 
yep, the whole rack (bars, feet) WITH the ski attachment, locks and keys for 130 :), it was obviously used though, and took a bit of searching because it's a discontinued model by Thule made specifically for mk2 VWs. found it on kijiji in Saskatchewan, so shipping ended up being 50 bucks.
 
I had a 97 GTI before getting my outback.

The GTI was fun to drive but a bitch to fix.

I just sold my 06 impreza outback at $7,750 in need of a timing belt and new tires.

So you could probably pick up the prior body style for around 5000 with similar milage but in need of some work. If you can get a 03 with 120k or so... it would likely have a new timing belt and probably be around 5k. Such an awesome car. I was still getting 31mpg freeway at 100k.

i also looked at the audis and saabs with the similar body styles... they were just TOO expensive to maintain. The subaru engine is comparably easy to work on.

But... if you can find an old rabbit for super cheap that runs... and put the rest of the money into getting it into really good running condition, that would be pretty sick.
 
Land Rvoer Discovery Series II

its gonna break down and have issues but its the most dope ever car ever.

wont find a solid reliably gti for 5k by the way
 
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