Work Vehicle

Seems like every vehicle/motor thread on here there is solid advice given so I thought I’d see what direction I get pointed in.

In the near future I’m going to be in the market for a new to me vehicle for commuting back and forth to work. Commute round trip is roughly 80 miles. Current vehicle is a 2006 Grand Prix with roughly 230k and has really started to show its age the last couple months. A couple small things have now added up to me not being sure how much longer I want to limp it along.

Looking for something at $10k or less, decent gas mileage, reliable and since I do a majority of my own maintenance ease to work on would be a big plus. Would prefer a 1 owner if possible but at my budget that’s going to be few and far between. A giant bonus if it has enough space for the 4 of us to run back and forth to the lake for a weekend trip.

I’ve been eyeing up Subaru Outbacks but would like to hear what others have to say.

I would be checking out civics or camerys. Tough to find a decent one for 10k though.

You may not want to hear this but a mini van is really versatile. You will get great milage, they can haul people and cargo. They generally aren’t beat on. I think they would be affordable if you don’t get a loaded up one.

Dutchboy wrote:

You may not want to hear this but a mini van is really versatile. You will get great milage, they can haul people and cargo. They generally aren’t beat on. I think they would be affordable if you don’t get a loaded up one.

Before I got a company vehicle I drove mini vans for work vehicles. My favorite was a Toyota sienna. Tons of room great on gas and was super comfortable.

Anything Toyota or Honda would be top my list. But like mentioned might be hard to find in your budget. The Subaru can be hit or miss, some people love them. We recently added a Ford Escape in the role your talking about. We got it with a bad transmission as there known for that, so be cautious about that. So far I like driving it more than I thought I would. Whatever you chose even if its a good deal get an inspection prior to purchase it is worth it.

I love my Subaru! I have a Forester and used to have two older Outbacks and they have all been wonderful vehicles for me!! They don’t get the best gas mileage in town, but I do love not getting stuck in the winter and they’re great handling on snowy roads. I like the body of the Forester better, as it’s more SUV-like than the Outback which is lower and more stationwagon-like.

I’ve got a little Hyundai Elantra and it has been pretty solid. I’ve got 120k on it and it gets about 38 mpg. Its primary use is a commuter back and forth to work. The only problem I have had so far is an ignition coil. I’d buy another and can generally can be found cheap.

My brother and sister in law have had several Subarus over the years and they have loved every one. I think they were Foresters like Sharon said. Definitely not an Outback.

I just got rid of a 2010 Mazda 6. I bought it on a whim in 2017 not planning on keeping it for too long, but that was a damn good car. Took me 8 hours from listing it till the new owner drove it off . It was our first Mazda, but we were so please with it that we replaced it with a new CX-5.

Ralph Wiggum wrote:

I just got rid of a 2010 Mazda 6. I bought it on a whim in 2017 not planning on keeping it for too long, but that was a damn good car. Took me 8 hours from listing it till the new owner drove it off . It was our first Mazda, but we were so please with it that we replaced it with a new CX-5.

What did you like about the cx 5. My lady really wanted one, then we test drove it and that idea was out the window before we got 2 miles down the road.

Bearcat89 wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Dutchboy wrote:</div>

Before I got a company vehicle I drove mini vans for work vehicles. My favorite was a Toyota sienna. Tons of room great on gas and was super comfortable.

Trying to convince my wife to get rid of her 2006 Sienna, non-starter. Original owner, only 160k miles and still runs like a champ. Hard to be the value and reliability.

Trying to convince my wife to get rid of her 2006 Sienna, non-starter. Original owner, only 160k miles and still runs like a champ. Hard to be the value and reliability.

[/quote]

I would buy another sienna in a heart beat. I keep telling the lady we need one in our household. Which might happen if we keep adding little ones.

As to the mini vans I would also look at the dodge caravans. We do body work for a local transport company that only runs caravans. They keep them until 500k then they usually sell them to their drivers. The highest I have seen so far was over 400k with over 200k being the norm.

Stanley wrote:

As to the mini vans I would also look at the dodge caravans. We do body work for a local transport company that only runs caravans. They keep them until 500k then they usually sell them to their drivers. The highest I have seen so far was over 400k with over 200k being the norm.

Do the front shock housing still rot away on those ? Back in the day every one we looked at had a shock tower that the top mounting plate was gone.

Minivans fit 4×8’ sheets better than most pickups. Siennas run forever

Bearcat89 wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Stanley wrote:</div>
As to the mini vans I would also look at the dodge caravans. We do body work for a local transport company that only runs caravans. They keep them until 500k then they usually sell them to their drivers. The highest I have seen so far was over 400k with over 200k being the norm.

Do the front shock housing still rot away on those ? Back in the day every one we looked at had a shock tower that the top mounting plate was gone.

Not that I have seen. This company has at least 20 caravans and they have a in house mechanic. I’m sure they are not problem free but they seem to work well for them.

Have an 2010 Dodge Caravan Taxi that comes in regular for oil changes… he goes 7k on oil changes and has over 516,xxx miles as of a month ago.

The rusting shock tower was 2007 and older style.

The rusting shock tower was 2007 and older style.
[/quote]

Makes sense, that was the era I was looking at them.

Bearcat89 wrote:

What did you like about the cx 5. My lady really wanted one, then we test drove it and that idea was out the window before we got 2 miles down the road.

My wife was convinced that she wanted a CX – 5 as well. After test driving one and trying to work out a deal on one, we decided to take a look at the Hyundai Dealership across the road. Ended up buying a Hyundai Tucson Instead. The deciding factor for us was the ride and the fact they were far more willing to work on the price with us than Mazda was. 3 years in and the Tucson has been nothing but great for us.

I’ve got a 2014 RT Caravan coming up on 200,000 miles. It’s been a great car, starting to get some cosmetic rust.

We bought it barely used back in 2015, it was a dealership test drive/runner.

If you’re interested lemme know. I’d sell it for $4,000. As mentioned they’re know to be extremely reliable and this one has been great to us.

I’ve been keeping it around to keep miles off my truck, but just don’t use it enough to justify tabs/insurance.

fishthumper wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Bearcat89 wrote:</div>
What did you like about the cx 5. My lady really wanted one, then we test drove it and that idea was out the window before we got 2 miles down the road.

My wife was convinced that she wanted a CX – 5 as well. After test driving one and trying to work out a deal on one, we decided to take a look at the Hyundai Dealership across the road. Ended up buying a Hyundai Tucson Instead. The deciding factor for us was the ride and the fact they were far more willing to work on the price with us than Mazda was. 3 years in and the Tucson has been nothing but great for us.

That’s pretty funny because she ended up with a 23 tucson as well. The Hyundai was a much better purchase then the cx 5.

Go to CarGurus.com, select 100 mile range from your location. Max $ type in $10,000
Then you can add a max mileage number your comfortable with. The results will get you everything you can afford at that price. Then narrow it down with the options on the left side to narrow it down more. That will give you a good idea of cars in that price range you have to chose from.

The best thing is to have enough cash available when the right deal comes along. Make car payments to yourself to build up a reserve.

Do you have any buddies with a car dealers license? Offer to give them $200 – $500 to take you to a car auction. You’d be surprised how much cars actually cost.

Another option could be a used police car, half a pack of cigarettes’ and wear dark sunglasses at night

Check out The Car Wizard on YouTube. He recently posted a video about vehicles between 6 and 8 grand that are good choices. He’s posted a number of these over the past few years.

bigcrappie wrote:

Go to CarGurus.com, select 100 mile range from your location. Max $ type in $10,000
Then you can add a max mileage number your comfortable with. The results will get you everything you can afford at that price. Then narrow it down with the options on the left side to narrow it down more. That will give you a good idea of cars in that price range you have to chose from.

Having a budget and trying to buy low miles is almost always going to lead you to a pile of not the most reliable domestic vehicles.

I bought a Honda Fit back in 2007 and I put 225,000 miles on thing. Hit 5 deer with and it still ran great. Moved closer to work so didn’t need it gave it to friend now thier daughter drives and she put it the ditch like 5 times in the last 2 years and its still going.

Both my kids have Toyota Corollas LE. 2005 and 2013. Both run great. Good mpg. Just regular maintenance stuff.

I bought a 2013 Impala in good shape, runs great, 110k miles, gets around 28 mpg for $5500. I had to shop around but kept watching the ads until I found what I thought was a fair price.
I talked with a small car lot dealer, old friend and he expected the used car prices to settle back more like pre-covid but never happened yet. He gave up going to the auctions. The somolians starting bidding over what his high price was right from the start.

I use it as my grocery getter, beater, haul the dog and all around whatever vehicle to keep the miles off my new truck.
It does sit low for me so that’s a little tough to get used to.