Car For College and Beyond

Hey, I just had a quick Which car question for you.

I am headed to college in a year, and I need a new used car. I have 15,000 to spend.

I am a rock climber, backpacker, and kayaker, and so need something that will not only carry the outdoorsy image, but be able to hold a fair amount of gear. Also, I'm not a truck guy, or a "mom SUV" guy, so no F-150s or Nissan Rogue looking SUVs.

But keep in mind that these will be some of the poorest years of my life, and so the car needs above average gas mileage, and high reliability.

I realize what I'm asking for might be impossible, but I'd like to get close. Thanks in advance for the help.

Jeep Grand Cherokee, reliable, safe, good amount of room and it can tow if you need it to.

I would go for a 2005-2007 Ford Expedition. It has more towing power at 300 horsepower and 365 torque. You will definitely have lots of space. It is not a "mom SUV" as you call it. It can go along with your outdoor, adventure-packed lifestyle. Not to mention, it is the safest vehicle awarded in 2007 by the Federal Government after it passed all their crash tests. Plus, the roof area can accommodate your kayak pretty well.

I would honestly avoid both of the cars above. Just buy yourself an 03-04 Subaru Outback Wagon or a Forester that is pretty much a wagon as well IMO. Shop for something one owner or with all the maint. records and you should be fine with all your requirements. The gas mileage should be in the 20th instead of 15 or less with the Jeep and/or Expedition.
If the AWD is not a must for your rock climbing expeditions you could look at a Civic or Corolla with a roof rack. Both are reliable and rear seats fold down so you can fit pretty much anything you need in there, plus they'll have much better mpg. Don't spent all 15k on the car. Spend 10-12 and the rest of it set aside for unexpected (and believe me, nobody has that crystal ball) repairs and maintenance, you will appreciate having a buffer later.
Good luck,

I would honestly avoid both of the cars above. Just buy yourself an 03-04 Subaru Outback Wagon or a Forester that is pretty much a wagon as well IMO. Shop for something one owner or with all the maint. records and you should be fine with all your requirements. The gas mileage should be in the 20th instead of 15 or less with the Jeep and/or Expedition.
If the AWD is not a must for your rock climbing expeditions you could look at a Civic or Corolla with a roof rack. Both are reliable and rear seats fold down so you can fit pretty much anything you need in there, plus they'll have much better mpg. Don't spent all 15k on the car. Spend 10-12 and the rest of it set aside for unexpected (and believe me, nobody has that crystal ball) repairs and maintenance, you will appreciate having a buffer later.
Good luck,

Better if he doesn't need to tow anything at some point.

Grand Cherokee'll get 18-20 depending on the year and model....

Which wont go up a hill if it has to much dust on it....

This is a good idea.

Thanks for the help!

Its kind of ironic that you would mention a corolla, nmikmik, because that's actually what I'm driving right now. But its a '96 with lots and lots of miles and broken parts. Repairing everything that was broken would cost much, much more than the car is worth (1.5 to 2 grand tops).

I do like the idea of a Subaru Outback, and I've been kind of leaning that way for a while now. I'm not a huge Jeep fan, just because I don't really trust Chrysler all that much. And the Ford would be good if it wasn't a school bus that gets 12 mpg... :p

So yeah, thanks again!

I've known a lot of very happy Subaru owners. You mentioned not being a truck guy, but considered a full sized truck. have you considered the smaller trucks like a Tacoma, Canyon or Ranger. A two wheel drive will get you better mileage than a 4x4. A truck bed is always handy to have!

Just was wondering what will have to be replaced/repaired on the Corolla to cost more (twice more) than 2k? & what do you consider to be lots & lots of miles? :naughty:
These cars a bulletproof if maintained of course. I'd still advise against the Pup truck, because the mileage is still not that good (depending on how U drive of course) and if U get the 4x4 it's even worst. If you get the truck you need to worry more about the stuff stolen from the bed even if you have a tonneau cover. At least more so than from the car... IDK, just like the idea of the Outback i guess :rolleyes: You just need to evaluate all pros and cons nobody is gona be able to decide for U.

nmikmik, The air compressor and radiator no longer work, which are 1000 and ~500 dollar repairs each. Tires are bald and slide on wet roads, brake pads need replacing, and back speakers are blown out. All total over 2000 dollars worth of repairs.

The radiator is the only thing that really has to be replaced to make the car work, but it was borderline scary driving the thing in its condition before the radiator leak. So I might just screw it and buy a new car.

"Lots of miles" in this case is like 360k. I see you have a Camry with 2.2 million miles on it though, so I should probably stop talking. haha


Oh and I have considered a small truck, but around Nashville, trucks=redneck, and I'm pretty far from it.

Yea, you do look like a good candidate for new(er) car hey. And I sure don't blame you for wanting to have the A/C in Nashvile. It does not look like you are very much willing to work on your own cars so be double carefull choosing the one you buy. I'd highly recommend paying some reputable (prefrably from a referring friend) mechanic to inspect the vehicle top to bottom to avoid any surprises and of course maintain it like your own :iceslolan
Good luck!

Thanks! What are yalls opinions on the Toyota FJ Cruiser? It seems to be exactly what I want, but I'd like to hear anything you have to say about it.

Toyota is Toyota - I know someone will probably bring up the acceleration problems etc. but I'll take Toyota over any domestic brand still. FJ is a very nice automobile, but unless you go with 2wd you'll get 15-19 mpg and in my book it's poor mileage. Even if you get a 2wd, still you get 19-21 mpg and my Lincoln get that easily. Unless you can tell :rofl: i am not a big fan of SUV vehicles or alike (watch my next to be an SUV)
I doubt you'll get an FJ for anything less than 18-19k and that’s clean wholesale and avg. miles, if it's not clean that you probably don't want it anyway. So rite there, you are outside your budget and have no money to spare, have higher maint. cost (just tires alone will cost you a bundle) and it seems to be more of the car than you actually need. Don't get me wrong, there's no limit to "more" :naughty:

Toyota is Toyota - I know someone will probably bring up the acceleration problems etc. but I'll take Toyota over any domestic brand still. FJ is a very nice automobile, but unless you go with 2wd you'll get 15-19 mpg and in my book it's poor mileage. Even if you get a 2wd, still you get 19-21 mpg and my Lincoln get that easily. Unless you can tell :rofl: i am not a big fan of SUV vehicles or alike (watch my next to be an SUV)
I doubt you'll get an FJ for anything less than 18-19k and that’s clean wholesale and avg. miles, if it's not clean that you probably don't want it anyway. So rite there, you are outside your budget and have no money to spare, have higher maint. cost (just tires alone will cost you a bundle) and it seems to be more of the car than you actually need. Don't get me wrong, there's no limit to "more" :naughty:

You do some meth before posting that? The hell was that even sposed to say?

From the words I could pick out
The Fj's have frame problems, cracked frames are no good for off-roading :P Anohter bad mark for Toyota. And the FJ didn't have accelerator problems, so I don't think anyone planned on bringing that up.

And just gonna say this, I don't distrust some of the newer Toyotas because of their accelerator problems, or their brake problems, or their frame problems....... or their idle problems. But because EVERY issue they had, should easily have been noticed during testing, which they obviously didn't do.

Thanks! What are yalls opinions on the Toyota FJ Cruiser? It seems to be exactly what I want, but I'd like to hear anything you have to say about it.

I highly doubt you'll find one within budget, and I'd say its nearly impossible to find one within your budget that hasn't been abused.

Other than that its not a bad small SUV. Decent power, decent mileage, and alright off-road capabilities.

Best advice I've seen so far is not to spend all your 15k on the purchase, but to put some back for those unexpected expenses that will come up.
I'll suggest a Honda Civic or Accord. Get a roof rack for them and you are set to haul a kayak or whatever to your next adventure will be. If a tow vehicle is needed hopefully one of your friends will have one and be paying the price all during school (low gas milage and higher maintenance as a rule).
Right now you need dependable transportation that will allow you to have some fun but also get decent gas mileage and won't cost you an arm and a leg to drive. Honda fits that bill.

I would suggest a truck as well but I understand your dislike for them. I have had several cars in the past 15 years, so I can say a have experience in car buying. My wife currently has a Subaru Outback and it is a great car. It is fuel efficient, has a fair amount of space, it is very comfortable and auto parts are not hard to get or that expensive. We bought ours through these guys: http://www.25bestnewcars.com/ the quotes are free, make sure you pass the first 2 pages on new cars, then you can check out used cars. It helped for me, hope it helps you.
Good day!