which would you recommend?

I'm buying a used car soon and after going to every lot in town I've found about 10 in my price/year/mileage range.
These are the top four. All are automatics in great condition and good on gas in Canadian $.

1. 2002 Chevy Cavalier, 90,000km for $7000.
2. 2001 Pontiac Sunfire, 80,000km for $7500
3. 1996 Dodge Neon, 130,000km, new front brakes, tires, timing belt and (I think) head gasket for $5800.
4. 1996 Geo Tracker, 90,000km unknown price, currently getting serviced before sale. Comes with both soft and hard tops.

Which would you recommend or should I keep looking?

deffinitely not the neon. check out the cav and see if you like it.

Those prices seem high, because I sold my 2000 Neon for $6000 a few months ago and it only had 70,000 kms. And I had to wait a long time to find someone willing to give me that much.

Is the Cavalier a Z24 or the Sunfire a GT? If so then I would recommend it, as the base model 2.2 engine in the Cavalier/Sunfire is not very fast. However, it is very reliable.

Out of the 4 options the only one I would buy would be the cavalier. Whether it's base or not it's the newest period less likely to have problems with it than the neon or tracker as they are both very unreliable and prone to problems. If you are deadset on a car also look into a monte carlo or lumina. If you are going for suv then I would look at a Jeep wrangler or Cherokee, if you look at Cherokee make sure it's got the inline 6 cyl. 4.0HO engine as the engine is virtually indestructible when running well. Living in Canada I would definately look into a 4 wheel drive suv instead of a front wheel drive car.

Avoid the Geo and the Neon if you can. The Cavalier and the Sunfire are pretty similar cars so just take the one you like more.

I'd keep looking around for a Honda Civic or a Toyota Corolla, both are far better cars for this class.

I disagree, the Cavalier is better than a Civic/Corolla.

Honda's aren't really in my price range ($4000 - $7000). Only the old ones would be but I don't want anything older than a '96.

What about a
1999 Mercury Mystic, 110,000km for $4900?

Go to a library and find any year Lemonaid Guide. The author is much harsher and more picky than Consumer Reports, so you'll really know what you're getting into with just about any vehicle.

id get the cavalier or sunfire, good cars mechanically. boring to drive, low resale, interior similar to a hospital imho. but it will last a while.

In all honesty, I would steer clear of most if them. I"ve had poor experiences with both the Neon and the Cavalier/Sunfire. The Neon has a weak transmission and a 1995-1999 has frameless windows which let in a lot of wind noise at high speed. And it's very easy to break into. The Cavalier/Sunfire is not bad but check the front struts because they don't last long. Also, stay away from the 2.4L twic cam as it isn't nearly as reliable as the 2.2L (though it is quicker).

I would say you're best bet is to move into something slightly larger like a Camry, Accord, Maxima. You'll have to get one with more Km's but if it's properly maintained it'll last a lifetime. They'll all do well over 300K with proper care.

If I were you I would shop around a little bit more. Definately stay away from that neon thats the worst deal I have ever seen. I agree about getting a larger car they seem to last longer than cars like cavaliers and neons. Also if you look into 6 cylinder cars you dont have to worry so much about kms. Hondas last a long time though. good luck. out of that list I could go with the cav for 7000

Thanks for your input everybody. I found a new car yesterday and bought it. A 2000 Neon with 140,000km at only $5200 (4500 with trade in). Whether or not it ends up being a good car is yet to be seen, but I only plan on keeping until I finish college and get a good job. I think it will last though, my other car (that I traded) was a '92 Corsica. I had it for roughly 3.5 years and I barely put on 25,000km.