poll first car

[seerose92]

If you had to choose between these few cars which would you choose for your first car, and money would be no issue.

Honda Accord, Honda Element, Toyota Corolla, Rav4, Toyota Camery

[gmofftarki]

How old is the person getting their "first car"? 16? 18? 22?

To be entirely honest, I'd probably go for something with a bit of storage space to it for someone that's going to be moving into and out of college every year, then finding a new job/apartment, picking up new hobbies (skiing, golf, mountain-biking), etc.

I hate.hate.hate.hate.hate the Element's styling, boxy, the gray plastic crossbars look hideous.

What about something along the lines of a Passat/Mazda/Dodge wagon? You'd be hitting about the same price point (15-20k, I think that Dodge's base line Caliber is ~17), but you'd be picking up something much more usable. If you like the Element's styling, the Nitro has a similar, if somewhat more rugged styling without the gray crossbars, and a competitive price.

My first car was a 95 Passat VR6 wagon. Surprisingly fast, handled well, and the storage space I needed for my little brother's string bass.


Nissan Versa or Murano would have the same storage as the element with better styling.


Mazda 5 or even the 3 Hatchback would be nice.

Subaru hatchback in the legacy style would be very safe, AWD, pretty fast, and fun.

Honestly, though, price no object? If I had a choice on a "first car" today? VW Touareg, '04. HUGE depreciation the first second it touches asphalt without a salesman in the car. But it seems to be relatively sturdy afterward, it's fast, and it seems to be very durable. Plus, you could tell all your friends "Yeah, I have a Porsche" and it would only be a medium-sized lie.

KBB says 23k excellent, 22k good, 20k fair at 49,000 miles for the V6.

[Tony Stewart Fan]

Rav4's are pretty cool