Recommend a car

Simon

I hate cars. They just cost money and eventually rust away.

However, given that it's pretty difficult to do anything without one in North America and that we now need another because Angharad got a job (yay), does anyone have any good suggestions?

Things I want:

Safe (ABS, Traction control, etc)
Probably AWD ('cause the snow was scary and it's bound to come back)
Not tiny (part of being safe) but we don't need a monster truck
Economical(ish)
Reliable

Cars we're looking at / thinking of:

Subaru Impreza (AWD)
Ford Focus (cheap)
Ford Fusion (AWD and I like the idea of v6 3.0l although it's dearer)
Nissan Versa (economical, not too small)

What others should we be looking at? We're hoping to spend under $28,000 CAD if pos (else I'd have a Scooby Doo WRX STI ) and it will be mainly highway driving commute (30 mins each way) but it needs to cope with snow.

averyniceguy

Honda is my number one choice, they have been good to me for almost 20 years.

Brother Apostate

Subaru Impreza (AWD)

In your price range, that (or the Legacy) would be my recommendation.

If you are willing to spend a little more:

Infiniti G35

I would not put my money into any of the US big three. Terrible quality, imo.

BA

JH

Things I want:

Safe (ABS, Traction control, etc)
Probably AWD ('cause the snow was scary and it's bound to come back).......That will make it harder on gas, and to IMO not needed. With 4 good winter tires, that should be fine.
Not tiny (part of being safe) but we don't need a monster truck.......mid size Japanese car
Economical(ish)..................Japanese Cars are the most economical, especially Toyotas
Reliable..............................Japanese Cars

I'd go for a Corolla 36MPG city and 51 MPG highway, with the automatic....

Starts at 16,700 $

add $1000 for automatic

add $2000 for AC and automatic doorlocks, with remote

And you get a good trade in value

Nathan Natas

Congrats to Ang!

How are you guys adjusting to the "Great White North'? Any language difficulties, eh?

You may want to also consider having two sets of tires; one set for the snow season (August thru June) and the other set for the remaining 8 weeks of the year.

If you have two sets of tires, you may want to have the second set mounted on rims so you can change them yourself and be ready-to-go.

Are studded tires legal where you are? Studs are a very practical way of vastly improving the tire's grip on the road. At the end of each season you will need to have those studs that have popped out of the tire replaced. I don't think that will be many, but if they aren't there they can't work.

SacrificialLoon

Mazda3 hatchback, while not AWD it would be something to look at. Edit: Maybe a Mazda6 too, but I don't know the prices in CAD. I think the Mazda Speed 3 & 6 are AWD, but not very economical.

Warlock

Honda or Toyota.

Warlock

notperfectyet

Hi Simon and family,

I just sold my suv and bmw coupe which I LOVED for a Subaru wagon..had one a few years ago and loved it. Love this one, AWD and seat warmers too!!!!

Good gas mileage also.

horrible life

Before you buy any car, learn from my mistake. On a whim, we looked at a car. Got sticker shock, and the salesman showed us a cheaper car. Gave us a great deal, and we drove away in it.

When we went to insure it, we found out our cheap brand new cars insurance rate, was twice the rate of my 1 year older 2005 Chev. Tahoe, SUV. Now I am stuck with a cheap car, that I found out has a very high crash rating. I bought it for my daughter, age 15, and I get to drive it for a year, to save money on gas. Do I now give her dangerous car???

Compare insurance rates on cars, and crash ratings. You don't have to buy the best, but I bought one of the worst.

restrangled

Anything by Honda or Toyota. We've had both. The Honda we put 250 thousand miles on and sold it still running strong and the Toyota we traded in with 158 thousand miles and it was still running strong. All the money we ever spent on those cars amounted to oil changes, tires, and brakes.

We currently own a Ford 2006 F150 and a Ford 2005 Mustang GT, both not old enough to say whether they will be here for the long haul. The Mustang sure is a lot of fun though!

r.

Recommend a car

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