I had a 2005 Ford Taurus with only 44,000 miles that was totaled in an accident on Saturday. My fault but thats another story. Luckily the car was paid off when I bought it. Anyways, I need another car and I found a '06 Taurus with 78,000 miles on it for 6,900. On the same lot, I saw a '03 Camry with 129,000 miles for same price. I really liked the Camry and how it drove…even more interior room than the Taurus.
So my question is, which car should I go for? I like the Camry but mileage wise the Taurus sounds good. I know the Camry gets much better gas mileage than the Taurus and is much more reliable. So what car should I get? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
And both the cars has very detailed records of maintanence and etc. Hope this helps. Thanks again!
I really like Toyotas but this is a no-brainer. Buy the much newer Taurus. If as Rusty says you get a complete maintenance and accident history (CarFax) for this car.
Oops, you are Rusty. Get the CarFax for any used car you buy. You can suscribe for a month for $30 and get unlimited number of VIN’s checked out.
I’d go with the Taurus over the camry if it checks out.
What about a Ford Fusion?
If choosing between the Camry or Taurus, take the newer car with lower miles. Recommend you have an independent mechanic check it out first. Don’t trust Carfax to report every problem.
I’d get the Taurus checked over by a mechanic and take that if it checks out good.
In terms of reliability, there is VERY little difference between these two models. The Camry is in no way “much more reliable”. Consumer Reports shows it as more reliable, but the absolute differences in the two are miniscule.
http://autos.msn.com/research/vip/Reliability.aspx?year=2003&make=Toyota&model=Camry
http://autos.msn.com/research/vip/Reliability.aspx?year=2005&make=Ford&model=Taurus
As for gas mileage, a 4 cylinder Camry will definitely get better mileage than a 6 cylinder Taurus - but not by as much as you would expect. From my experience with a 97 Taurus and a 98 Camry, the Camry averaged a tad under 23 mpg city and 32 highway, while the Taurus averaged 21 city and 30 highway.
Not that CarFax is a bad idea, but remember it can not provide data that is not reported to them. There is nothing stopping me from not reporting data to CarFax. That data is only as good as the data available. Car Fax can’t guarantee it has a complete history.
You will only know what has been reported, and most owners will only report good stuff if there was an accident that was not covered by insurance it may never be reported to CarFax.
I’d go for the Camry. Better built, solid now and will stay solid. No rattles, shakes, or looseness in a '00 Camry I bought used 2.5 years ago.
Better mpg, less depreciation as it holds value better, less repairs. The Taurus could be fine, but I’d go for the Camry.
An 03 is an older used car irregardless of who makes it. Especially without any history likely.
I would not buy any car that 8+yrs old for $7k, overpriced.