The length difference between a Ford Fusion and a Honda Civic is about 14 inches .
Toyota Corollas, and their offspring, are inexpensive to maintain, and they last a long time.
For starters, she needs to find a very good and honest mechanic she can trust. Sometimes it is just a ripoff mechanic than the car, that may be the problem. American cars are still not as good or reliable as the foreign cars. My sister had a Jetta. She loved it as a fun car. But being German made, it was expensive to repair. Toyota and Nissan cars are superb new or used. But they retain premium prices as used cars. I have driven or have owned just about every foreign and domestic vehicle there is…over the years. Hands down (and probably the best kept secrets in car ownership) are the fine quality and most reliable cars from Hyundai. I went from American early in life to the foreign cars later. I then went from Toyota to Nissan. Then finally found Hyundai. I have a 2002 Hyundai Accent with over 300,000 trouble free miles; only routine and MFG scheduled maintenance being required (won JD Power award). I also have a 2015 Hyundai Sonata SE, which has been flawless and a joy to drive (won top 2 spots in Consumer Reports as most reliable among all cars in the market). My mechanic continues to rave about how good these car’s engines are. These cars are inexpensive brand new or used. If you can afford it, you must buy a brand new Sonata SE. If not, then a used one would be the second best thing.
I agree with exactly 1/2 of your statement . . . the part where you said Toyota are superb new or used
The other 1/2 of your statement . . . not so much
As for the Hyundai Sonata . . . I’m not of the same mindset as your mechanic 
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IMO, quality differences have compressed so much that most vehicles will be good choices as long as they were maintained properly. I’d look for proper care above brand. I have owned mostly Hondas and GM cars, and while the Hondas have been more reliable, that didn’t make up the savings I got when first buying the GM cars.
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Having 2 Nissan CVT transmission failures in my family over last 2 years, I support @db4690 on not supporting the second 1/2 of your statement.
I had both Nissans from new.
Gently driven.
Did not even cross 100K miles.
Both were over-maintained, CVT fluid was replaced on the most conservative 30K schedule.
I strongly believe that “black sheep” like Nissan have inherent flaws of the kind taking it from my “could own” list.
Actually . . . I wasn’t thinking of the cvt transmissions when I said I didn’t think Nissans were superb
It was the entire vehicle . . . front to back
And I mean the brand itself, not just individual models and/or transmissions 
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Well, before CVT disaster, my take on Nissan was closer to what @jtsanders said about “if you maintain it well, it is more or less average quality and reliability”, but they definitely rolled downhill last decade or so.
Like stated, I have driven, evaluated, compared, and have tested many many models of foreign and domestic vehicles over time. Most of these cars have had high ratings in unbiased reports for consumers; these were also the ones I wanted to try out for myself. So, I don’t put out recommendations lightly. My recommendations do come from my own rigid criteria and driving experience over time. As far as your mindset being different than my mechanics…that’s fine. But are you a mechanic? I have owned cars (except my first) which I have thoroughly researched for driving advantages and reliability. And if I thought the mechanic was wrong about my 2015 Hyundai Sonata SE (or the Accent), I would have told him. But instead, I smiled in agreement. How much experience have you had, or what knowledge do you have of the 2000 Hyundai Sonata through the present Hyundai Sonata SE? Try researching and comparing it to other cars in the same price range or class. But best way is to test drive one thoroughly against others in price or class. BTW, consumer reports for 2015 new cars (a reputable report…and unlike motor trend or the like) on quality, mechanical, dependability, drivability, and mileage repair had a higher overall score than the Mercedes models, BMW models, and all American models. In fact it lost to just one car by just a slim margin; that car was the Toyota Camry. So it is not just my or my mechanic’s opinion. This decision also comes from people who rate cars for a living. Note: Someone mentioned that it is very important on how well you pay attention to routine maintenance and preventive maintenance care. Do that, and almost any car nowadays will treat you well. I agree. However, I would not trust a used car owner’s upkeep…unless he has receipts. Instead, I would research on what to look for when buying a used vehicle…if you don’t have that knowledge already. Most things are just common sense anyway…like oil leak signs under car…uneven/cup-pie worn tires (indicating alignment/shocks or struts problems)…high mileage…bad engine or transmission sounds should cover most lookouts.
I understand you have had very good experiences with Hyundai cars. That is great but your total is two. Not exactly a good statistical sampling.
I’d suggest you search the CarTalk site for Hyundai and Kia cars. There are a LOT of posts about engines that self-destructed (or in some instances - were killed) at low miles. Far lower than your 300K. Other problems as well. Lots of electrical and software issues the dealers have trouble fixing. Seems like they tend to burst into flames quite a bit as well.
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Answering for Mr. DB4690 . Yes he is a mechanic and would be rated in the top 10 percent of mechanics class .
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I presently own the two Hyundai cars that I specifically stated by me as being owned now. However, I have owned/rented several Hyundai vehicles in the past…including the 2000 Hyundai Sonata. Those lawsuits and recalls are for the Tucson and Kia. Though Kia now uses the Hyundai manufacturing plant, I myself, still prefer to stick with Hyundai’s. And also, just the Accents and Sonata’s…they had the best in class reviews which caused curiosity and incentive to buy one. Getting back to the lawsuits: They were brought by two people…both of whom had not experienced problems…but nevertheless brought lawsuits because they were not duly notified of the recalls. A little history review on the Hyundai cars in general: Before 1991, these cars were indeed not very good and somewhat a joke. But after 1991, Hyundai undertook a mission to make their cars to compete with the best in class for their models. Since then, their Accent models have been given a lot of rave reviews by no-adds consumer review magazines. I owned a 1991 Excel (now the Accent) that won the JD Power award for best car new and used. As of this writing, the Hyundai Accent is the number one selling car in Australia. Hyundai’s goal is to be the #1 selling car (in the world) for subcompact and compact, and eventually taking over that spot from Toyota. The recalls are something, that every car maker experiences. I would suggest experiencing the cars that I bought first hand. Also read the car makers dedication to providing a car that is safe, comfortable, easy to drive, and with lots of amenities that you will only find in much more expensive cars. They are indeed committed to excellence now. I used to think, why buy a Mercedes, when you can have a Lexus with same class quality but more amenities at half the price. Now I think that of the Hyundai Sonata SE in reference to the Lexus.
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CMATL1 . . . plus a few others
yes, to answer your question
@db4690 and others:
So we found a few options (I thought.) We saw a 2011 Kia Optima (54,000 miles - $10,500), a 2017 Hyundai Accent (42,000 - $10,200), and a 2018 Kia Forte (17,000 - $13,000). But reading through these posts has me nervous. I planned to take the Optima to my mechanic but will he see anything that can tell him if the engine may seize? I’ve seen many complaints at the NHTSA about the Optima engine seizing. The Accent and Forte both have minor complaints there. I am very good with maintenance but I cannot afford to make the wrong decision. Should I scrap these and hold out for a Toyota or Honda? The Consumer Reports mag from April rated Hyundai and Kia higher than Honda (I read it at the library so I think I have that right.) Does it just depend on year not necessarily make/model? I am trying really hard to make an informed decision. Besides Consumer Reports, are ther any other reliable sources of info? Thanks!
Lisa , as concerned about making a wrong decision about a used vehicle why not just take that out of the picture. I assume you may have about 10000.00 to spend without a loan. If so put 5000.00 down on a low priced new vehicle and use the other 5000.00 for payments until your daughter can pay for it herself. That way you will have at least 3 years of warranty . Besides many new vehicles have zero percent loans or almost nothing .
@VOLVO_V70 I never thought about that. I may look into it. She is heading to law school so maybe once she’s settled there (3 years from now) she can take it over. Thanks for that suggestion! I’m also considering a lease which I know is not necessarily the best use of money but I could get a nice vehicle that, if it has issues, will be returned. If she loves it, she could buy it at the end. She won’t put too many miles on it because she’ll park it once she gets to campus.
If you’re considering a small car . . . don’t get a Hyundai Accent or Kia Forte
Get a Civic or Corolla
Hyundai and Kia have come a long way since the 1986 Hyundai Excel . . . but Honda and Toyota are still slightly better, and they also hold their value better
I agree with @db4690 based on my experience about 50 years ago. I went to my second round of graduate school with a 4 year old 1965 Rambler. Unfortunately, the town where I went to graduate school did not have a Rambler (American Motors) dealer. A snap ring broke in the transmission that allowed a synchronizer to slip out of place. The main drive gear and main shaft in the transmission were damaged(it was s manual transmission). The parts had to be shipped in from a dealer 60 miles away. The parts were shipped as package delivery on an intercity bus (UPS and FedEx didn’t exist back then). The independent transmission shop had to charge me the cost of having the parts shipped. Another time, the gas tank developed a leak. Again, I had to pay to have the part shipped from an out of town dealer. A mechanic friend recommended to me in buying a car to “stick with the Fords and Chevys”. I think today that same mechanic would say “stick with your Corollas and Civics”. Toyota and Honda dealerships are common. I live in a city with a midsize state university. There is no Hyundai dealer, no Subaru dealer, no VW or Nissan dealerships. The Mazda dealer folded.
Wherever your daughter is going to college and wherever she goes to law school, there will be service available for the Civic or Corolla. From my experience, this is important. When I was in graduate school, I would have been better served with either a Ford or Chevy rather than a Rambler. The popular vehicles today are the Honda and Toyota makes.
Even today, even though I am retired, and would like an exotic car, I drive a Toyota Sienna minivan because there is a Toyota dealership about a mile from my residence.i had colleagues who owned BMWs and Mercedes Benzs. The closest dealer for these makes is 60 miles away. I didn’t have time as a faculty member to drive 60 miles to have the car repaired. I have become so busy in retirement that I still don’t have time to travel 60 miles each way to have a vehicle serviced. For a student, time is even more valuable. I recommend going with the Civic or Corolla.
Consumer Reports and JD Power are the only two I use for honest evaluations. And mostly Consumer Reports. Consumer Reports because it is ad free…meaning they are not beholding to car ads for their rent. Like said, I really do recommend the 2 Hyundai cars (Accent and Sonata SE). Refrain from getting sucked in to people’s biases on these foreign imports (being Korean made). They are in my opinion, one of the best kept secrets in car value buying. A used 2015 Sonata SE can be had for $15,000 or less. I mentioned the 2015 model specifically…because that’s when a lot of refining was done then to make it one of the best and most enjoyable cars on the road. But as mentioned before, you can not go wrong with earlier and cheaper priced of the same two models. What you want to look at is repair and reliability record of any car that you are considering. The complaint board of any car is not too helpful for me. All cars (even Mercedes or the big BMW’S) will have complaints of some sort or another. Unless more is given (other than the complaints) you can not just rely on that. Toyotas are great. But you are paying for the name in a large part.