First Car

So i was planning on getting a motorcycle, but that didnt work out.

Im starting college in a little over a month, and will have a ~30 mile each way commute. 3 times a week.

I need a car that gets good gas mileage (low-mid 20's city, over 30 highway) but can still be exciting for someone my age. It must be manual (all 3 pedals) I dont need a NEW car, but a 2000 or newer would be nice.

Id like to keep my payments low, under 300 bucks so 15k or less for the car.

Cars im considering:
civic hatchback (96-00)
civic sedan (2000+ incl. 06)
miata mx-5 (99-05)
sentra SE-R spec V
mazda 6

but yeah. Please help. pros and cons of each car.

you're not gonna have much fun in the civics compared to the other 2 listed. great commuter cars to go back and forth with - great mileage, will start, stop and go all day everyday for years but that's where it ends, no fun factor compared to a miata or even the se-r. you mentioned excitement, that takes the civic off your list. do you have a price cap? the new si's are getting awesome reviews. i've yet to test drive one but they do seem quite promising.

the miata will be the most exciting and fun to drive. also gets good gas mileage but not as practical as the others. you may think that you'll never have the need to haul people or cargo, but you'll really wish you could that one time you did. what happens when your date wants to bring her "cute friend"? haha. this would be the easy choice if it weren't for the inconvenient nature of a roadster.

i would suggest the se-r in your case. has the best of both worlds. practicality and a touch of excitement. i'm not a huge fan of them but of the ones you listed, this is the best choice for what you're looking for.

good luck.

Im also open to sugestions, and just updated the list.

$15K is enough for something like say... a Toyota Yaris 1.5.
did you ever get them in the US?
great little car.
good gas milage, good compromise between passenger space/cargo space (although not as big as a civic for obvious reasons) and has all of the extras that you'd expect of a japanese car (a/c, full electrics, cd, abs) and believe it or not, fast enough to lose all but the modern 2.0 civics and it will also keep an MX-5 honest on the roads too!

i think the yaris are due for the 07 line-up.

at least i think they were a year after the fit.

I think you can do a bit better then the Yaris for $15,000. The Honda Civic DX starts just under $15,000 and the Honda Fit Sport starts just over $15,000. The Yaris starts around $10,000, so if you want more options that might be the way to go. For new cars, I wouldn't go for anything but a Honda or a Toyota in this price range because of the reliability, but you might want to check out a Chevy Cobalt, Dodge Caliber, or Ford Focus.

On the used side there are alot more options. If you are really into 2000+ cars you should look into a used Lexus IS300 with ~60,000 miles. Luxury, with pretty good performance and amazing reliability.

You also might be able to get an earlier BMW E46 325i. I personally think they are much better overall cars then the IS300 in terms of styling, drive, and performance, but they aren't as reliable and repairs might be tough on a college kid. They also tend to run for much more then KBB value. High resale makes BMWs great cars as long as you arn't trying to buy one used.

Yet another car I would look into would be an Acura RSX-S. They don't have the room of an IS300 or 3-series, nor is it RWD, but they are still pretty good cars. They start for less then the Lexus or Bimmer, so you should be able to buy one with fewer miles.

....better than the yaris?
i'm hurt....

anyway, i suggested the yaris (in a purely unbiased way....:rolleyes: ) because if you're looking for a cheap second hand car that will mainly be used as a run-about with enough poke to be fun but not too much on the insurance radar, then not much else comes close and you spend much of that £15K.

of course, my opinion is, as always, based on what's available in the UK.
if given the same situation I would probably look for an ST170 or Golf V5 because they are bigger cars and just make more sense for around £7000.

ok, so lately ive heard a lot of reliability issues with the sentra's. I think this weekend ill go to my local car dealership area and just test drive a bunch of cars. Ill post back when i do ;)

thanks so far guys!

You also might be able to get an earlier BMW E46 325i. I personally think they are much better overall cars then the IS300 in terms of styling, drive, and performance, but they aren't as reliable and repairs might be tough on a college kid.

im pretty mechanically inclined, i got a partial scholarship because of it, so pretty much whatever the parts cost is what a repair will cost me (lunch for a friend too for some things)

Ive helped my honda friends with motorswaps all the time.

what does everyone else think about the BMW 325/330i?

If i get a car like that, id get automatic, and get a bike too.

what does everyone else think about the BMW 325/330i?

If i get a car like that, id get automatic, and get a bike too.

In short, they are brilliant. The 3-series has been the best car in the class since it came out. If you can get one, go for it.

can't argue with that.
i've always been told that you should really buy the best there is instead of the best you can.
if the BMW 3 is in your list of possibilites, then it really should be a no-brainer, unless you just like another car more.

well for the bimmer, id have to stretch my price range a little bit to get on in good condition. Ive been a fan of bimmers for quite some time, so this is definatly a possibility.

My favorite suggestion so far is the Acura RSX. The 3 series Bimmers are great to drive but German cars can be a nightmare when things start going wrong. Also, with your original idea of getting a Civic, the RSX is a natural step up. Very nice interior, good mileage, rock solid reliability. Perfect for a commute.

Edit- Don't forget that prices are starting to get within reach of a 350Z or RX8.