Used car recommendations?

[Paddington79]

Hello All,
We're in the market for a certified pre-owned vehicle.
Here are our requirements:

MUSTS:
Looking for something with mileage under 40,000
Looking for something 2009 or newer
Would like to pay $18,000 or less
Well-rated/ranked

NICE:
Good gas mileage
SUV or wagon-SUV hybrid
Ample trunk space

We are mainly considering Subarus (Outback or Forrester, people have recommended them to us), Prius, or Toyota RAV 4. We have kids, so a family car (ie, not a minicooper!) is essential. Would love recommendations. Thanks!

[chaz]

The Toyota RAV 4 is a great car for your needs.

[coachz]

Honda, Nissan, Toyota == Be happy.

[Toons]

Start with CarMax to get an estimate of what the car you are looking for will cost you ,use your zipcode. I was checking out Honda Crv

http://www.carmax.com/enus/search-resul ... b8c396be1c

[maroon]

Wow, lots of car recommendation threads recently...

I recently bought a certified 2010 Subaru Forester 2.5 X Premium with All-Weather Package (and a few other extras) with <25K miles for <$18K. So something like this could be in your budget. I really like my Forester, am so pleased with it. Huge sunroof! Great visibility! Hauls lots of stuff! Note that the Forester seats five, but the person in the middle back seat better be small. Hope this helps.

[MoneyMythsSolved]

Hello All,
We're in the market for a certified pre-owned vehicle.
Here are our requirements:

Bought a Prius that fits your requirements.

MUSTS:
Looking for something with mileage under 40,000 45,000
Looking for something 2009 or newer 2010
Would like to pay $18,000 or less $16,900
Well-rated/ranked It's a Toyota

NICE:
Good gas mileage So far on the most recent tank of gas I'm averaging 51.1 mpg. I put $30 in every 7-10 days, and I drive quite a bit (your experience may vary). During times where I'm not actually trying to maximize gas efficiency and just accelerating with a lead foot, I average 47 mpg.
SUV or wagon-SUV hybrid It's wagon-ish. Seats 4 adults comfortably - just went out to lunch with coworkers, we're all over 6 foot 1, and worked out just fine.
Ample trunk space No complaints, it has two levels of trunk space, and if that isn't enough then the seats can always fold down.

We are mainly considering Subarus (Outback or Forrester, people have recommended them to us), Prius, or Toyota RAV 4. We have kids, so a family car (ie, not a minicooper!) is essential. Would love recommendations. Thanks!

My comments above are in blue, I put the stats of a used Prius I just recently purchased from Carmax. They gave me more for my trade-in than anticipated, and I paid cash for the rest so cannot comment on their financing. Total process was around an hour, no pressure. Very happy with the purchase. If I had to do it again the only thing I'd do different is getting one with a sunroof.

[mike143]

If those are my choices I would choose the Prius.

[Dave76]

Wow, lots of car recommendation threads recently...

I recently bought a certified 2010 Subaru Forester 2.5 X Premium with All-Weather Package (and a few other extras) with <25K miles for <$18K. So something like this could be in your budget. I really like my Forester, am so pleased with it. Huge sunroof! Great visibility! Hauls lots of stuff! Note that the Forester seats five, but the person in the middle back seat better be small. Hope this helps.

$18k for a used Subaru? That's awful. I paid $900 for a 23 year old car and it runs great. I've had it for nearly three years.

A 2011 Kia Sportage might be worth a look. It's too bad that late model cars are so overpriced. All that money for cheap plastic junk.

[YttriumNitrate]

We are mainly considering Subarus (Outback or Forrester, people have recommended them to us), Prius, or Toyota RAV 4. We have kids, so a family car (ie, not a minicooper!) is essential. Would love recommendations. Thanks!

It depends on how you are going to use the car. If you're in an area with lots of snow, the AWD of Subaru/Rav 4 will come in handy. If you're planning on taking National Lampoon style cross country trips with the kids, the Prius will be a bit tight. However, if the car will primarily be used to commute to and from work, the gas mileage of the Prius will be a big plus.

[tadamsmar]

You should get a car with ESC:

http://epicurusgarden.blogspot.com/2011 ... h-esc.html

Given your specs it's unlikely you will miss getting ESC even if you are unaware of it, but it's just possible, since it's optional on the 2009 Prius. It would be a shame to shell out $18,000 for a used car and not get this feature.

[maroon]

Wow, lots of car recommendation threads recently...

I recently bought a certified 2010 Subaru Forester 2.5 X Premium with All-Weather Package (and a few other extras) with <25K miles for <$18K. So something like this could be in your budget. I really like my Forester, am so pleased with it. Huge sunroof! Great visibility! Hauls lots of stuff! Note that the Forester seats five, but the person in the middle back seat better be small. Hope this helps.

$18k for a used Subaru? That's awful. I paid $900 for a 23 year old car and it runs great. I've had it for nearly three years.

A 2011 Kia Sportage might be worth a look. It's too bad that late model cars are so overpriced. All that money for cheap plastic junk.

While you might be happy with a 23-year-old car, I would prefer driving children around in newer vehicle. Safety advances, you know.

Yes, used cars are expensive these days.

[Peter Foley]

To reduce some of the anxiety with regards to buying a used car you might consider a Kia Sportage or a Hyundai Tuscon. Both come with 5 year 60,000 mile factory warranties. You should be able to find a 2010 or 2011 with some warrantee remaining that is in your price range.

[Dave76]

Wow, lots of car recommendation threads recently...

I recently bought a certified 2010 Subaru Forester 2.5 X Premium with All-Weather Package (and a few other extras) with <25K miles for <$18K. So something like this could be in your budget. I really like my Forester, am so pleased with it. Huge sunroof! Great visibility! Hauls lots of stuff! Note that the Forester seats five, but the person in the middle back seat better be small. Hope this helps.

$18k for a used Subaru? That's awful. I paid $900 for a 23 year old car and it runs great. I've had it for nearly three years.

A 2011 Kia Sportage might be worth a look. It's too bad that late model cars are so overpriced. All that money for cheap plastic junk.

While you might be happy with a 23-year-old car, I would prefer driving children around in newer vehicle. Safety advances, you know.

Yes, used cars are expensive these days.

Advancements/improvements in safety have been marginal at best. Some vehicles today do not perform as well as they did 25-30 years ago.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNBSuNrU9UI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBxfxvpg8TA

[JupiterJones]

How good is "good" gas mileage?

I ask only because I'm a Honda Element owner and absolutely love the thing. It would meet most of your criteria, although mileage (around 22 mpg) isn't stellar compared to many other choices. And it's only a four-seater, so if you have three kids, someone's going on the roof rack.

Still, it's a good, solid car with an enormous amount of room. The rugged interior makes it pretty much kid-proof.

Cars.com is currently showing 17 of them for sale at $18,000 or less, with 40,000 miles or fewer, and that are 2009 or newer.

[Toons]

Wow, lots of car recommendation threads recently...

I recently bought a certified 2010 Subaru Forester 2.5 X Premium with All-Weather Package (and a few other extras) with <25K miles for <$18K. So something like this could be in your budget. I really like my Forester, am so pleased with it. Huge sunroof! Great visibility! Hauls lots of stuff! Note that the Forester seats five, but the person in the middle back seat better be small. Hope this helps.

$18k for a used Subaru? That's awful. I paid $900 for a 23 year old car and it runs great. I've had it for nearly three years.

A 2011 Kia Sportage might be worth a look. It's too bad that late model cars are so overpriced. All that money for cheap plastic junk.

While you might be happy with a 23-year-old car, I would prefer driving children around in newer vehicle. Safety advances, you know.

Yes, used cars are expensive these days.

Advancements/improvements in safety have been marginal at best. Some vehicles today do not perform as well as they did 25-30 years ago.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNBSuNrU9UI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBxfxvpg8TA

I am driving a 2013 Honda CRV and a 2012 Honda Fit,,, Enjoying both to the max all systems Go,,,,5 star

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJFsuPV43h4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=er47Z8CGBx4

[MnD]

2009 Subaru Outback (4th generation)
The last year before they turned it into an ugly generic-looking tank-like crossover that looks like every other ugly tank-like crossover on the market.