He said the most bang for the buck so that would not be a Toyota or Honda. I suggest a compact size Focus or Cavalier around 1990 or newer. Cavalier for one had been around for a long time before that and the bugs are mostly gone.
Re-read my responce. I NEVER siad what car was better…Just what was recommended MORE by this community. Ranck made the statement that the Crown Vic was the most popular car in this forum…and I DISAGREED.
Being a Buick driver, and also in college, I’ll join the Crown Vic/Buick ranks. But I’d also like to venture in a Cadillac too. There are alot of 93-95 range Caddy’s that are not too expensive and still in not half bad condition. Buicks, Crown Vic’s and Cadillacs are all GREAT highway cars, and handle trips like few others. Don’t go for the smaller cars if you plan on taking friends with you. Having grown up riding in my mother’s Prisim, and Storm, I will advise you against those cars if you plan on putting more than one passenger in the car at any given time. My worst memory was in the storm. I was sitting in the back and my mother had to take evasive to avoid a crash. The low roof and small size forced the trunk lifters to be exposed and in the passenger cabin, right at head level. During the maneuver, I was thrown sideways, coliding my temple with the trunk support gas-tube thingy. I was very barely able to maintain consciousness and had to be taken home immediately. Bottom line: stay away from small cars. You’re in college, you have friends, you like to go out on Friday nights and forsake the studying, or on any night after any major exams to celebrate and compare how miserably you all failed. =P You will need the room. Stick with the boat cars.
-Matt
"Honda or Toyota are by far the most reliable cars and if they break down they are pretty cheap to fix. They also have high resale value. "
Why would anyone want to buy a high resale used car. Its only advantageous for the new car buyer. Its a bum deal for the used buyer…
There are lots of Buicks and Fords on both coasts. In the larger cities, there are loads of everything in this class.
Not trying to derail the topic too much, but would new corvettes be considered geezer cars? About the only people I’ve seen are gray haired men driving them. 
New corvettes are “viagra cars.”
But stay away from big honkin useless SUV’s!
-Matt (again)
Pretty much old Corvettes, too. 
LOL, true enough.
I’d have thought they’d be "herbal ‘enhancement’ " cars. Or would that be reserved for Porsche?
I could probably afford a new Corvette in a couple years, but that’s a purchase if I sell the Chevelle and let the money from the sale accrue interest. No way it’d be a daily driver for Ohio weather. I can kinda see a Miata, but not a Vette.
I know younger men with Corvettes, but I’ve never seen anyone under 50 with a Viper.
Well, when you can afford a new vette you will also be able to afford an old vette (and they are much cooler).
I don’t know anyone under 50 with a viper either, a friend of mine sold his a while ago to buy a 911, he called the viper a “carton car” because of the overdone styling. They are a little “over the top,” but not as bad a the prowler.
BTW, the boxster definitely qualifies as a “viagra car” too.
You can’t say Grand Marquis without Grandma!
These are really the perfect, reliable, inexpensive vehicle if you are not going to pack on the miles. Crown Vic are a close second, but they are not on top of the least often stolen list like their Mercury brothers.
Well, a Viper is about twice the cost of a Corvette(and a Miata is about half the cost of a Corvette :P). Save for Mercedes(and the Vette), the looks of anything over $50k is proportionate to it’s cost. Just look at Lamborghini and Ferrari as examples(especially the Enzo).
Another plus is that a Crown Vic (especially a white one) resembles a detective’s car. The local thugs at the college may choose to bypass the Vic and concentrate their stereo and CD stealing abilities on the Hondas and Mustangs!
And put the following phrase on the car.
In case of emergency dial 911. Some guy in NH did that…and was arrested for it. Went to court and it was thrown out…It was deemed perfectly legal.
Well, I probably should have said “a perennial favorite” and not “the perennial favorite.” The Crown Vic/Grand Marquis is always mentioned when someone wants bang for their buck. The steep depreciation curve means they can probably get a newer and less used Crown Vic compared to a Honda or Toyota for the same amount of money,especially in the under $5,000 range.
Unless somebody specifies “small” as a criteria it always gets a mention.
I’d put the $5000 in a money market at 5%, use the account to pay monthly payments of $149.99/month for a new Hyundai (sp?) or something similar, drive it for the 2-3 years of grad school . . and trade up after grad school. Even if you went as high as $200 a month, you’d only spend $2400 a year and have a new car with a waranty for 2 years of grad school. Eliminate the car worries and STUDY HARD! Good luck! Rocketman
For a basic transportation car in that price range I like the prizm, the focus, or Regal/Century (in that order).
I would set aside $1000 to fix/bring the car up to specs maintenance-wise. You would be very lucky to find a car in that price range that didn’t have something wrong with it and/or overdue maintenance. As others have said, the timing belt is a big one here. If this means your purchase budget must be reduced by $1000 so be it.
Try to find one where you can get the maintenance history at least for the past 3 or 4 years.
Pay to have a good inspection before you buy.
As others have said, it’s maintenance history is probably more important than the make/model.
If you are really going for low cost, it should be some or all of the following: smaller, boring, and less expensive when new.
Lee
