# Recommendations for older car buying

**URL:** <https://community.cartalk.com/t/recommendations-for-older-car-buying/51923>\
**Category:** Buying/Selling\
**Tags:** used, selling\
**Created:** [July 16, 2010, 2:02pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/recommendations-for-older-car-buying/51923 "2010-07-16T14:02:36Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![sbgquilt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aca169/32.png) [@sbgquilt](https://community.cartalk.com/u/sbgquilt)\
**Post date:** [July 16, 2010, 2:02pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/recommendations-for-older-car-buying/51923/1 "2010-07-16T14:02:36Z")

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I need to buy a car that will be reliable for commuting about 25 miles each way to work. Looking for something kind of small but need 4 doors b/c I have a kid who sits in the back still. Want good fuel efficiency (prefer 35+ highway). Need something in the 5-7K range. Old, not-pretty, is fine. Looking for recommendations on make/model/year/mileage to look for. I’ve been buying Hondas for some time, but I think I won’t be able to get into one at the price point I need so open to alternatives. TIA

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**Author:** ![Joseph\_E\_Meehan](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/joseph_e_meehan/32/21_2.png) [@Joseph\_E\_Meehan](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Joseph_E_Meehan)\
**Post date:** [July 16, 2010, 2:15pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/recommendations-for-older-car-buying/51923/2 "2010-07-16T14:15:35Z")

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An older car needs to be carefully checked by a mechanic you trust. An abused car that was not properly maintained can turn into a very expensive choice.

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**Author:** ![eraser1998](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6de8d8/32.png) [@eraser1998](https://community.cartalk.com/u/eraser1998)\
**Post date:** [July 16, 2010, 2:15pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/recommendations-for-older-car-buying/51923/3 "2010-07-16T14:15:54Z")

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Your best bet for that price range, IMO, is probably a Ford Focus. You can get 2004-2006 models for that price range fairly easily, and they’ve been reliable cars since the 2003 model year - the earlier ones weren’t horrid, though they had a lot of recalls, but definitely not as good as 2003+, which have been reliable and nearly recall-free.

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**Author:** ![Caddyman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/caddyman/32/23_2.png) [@Caddyman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Caddyman)\
**Post date:** [July 16, 2010, 8:57pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/recommendations-for-older-car-buying/51923/4 "2010-07-16T20:57:42Z")

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Nissan Sentra, Altima…Focus, Cavalier…Try to find a stick shift…Take your time shopping…

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**Author:** ![Goldwing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@Goldwing](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Goldwing)\
**Post date:** [July 16, 2010, 9:14pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/recommendations-for-older-car-buying/51923/5 "2010-07-16T21:14:49Z")

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There are millions of Hondas around, many of them in your price range. Have you looked on Craigslist?

You can get a newer, lower mile Chevy Impala compared to a Honda, but you might only get 30 mpg on the highway.

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**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\
**Post date:** [July 17, 2010, 2:21am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/recommendations-for-older-car-buying/51923/6 "2010-07-17T02:21:44Z")

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Look at a 2004/2005 Chevy Malibu Base model or LS model. It’s plain-looking and reliable. You can get better than 30 MPG on the highway, but 35 might be a bit high.