https://losangeles.craigslist.org/lgb/cto/d...6544813626.html



Im buying a new car for my grandma

Her 1996 toyota tercel cannot pass smog

And it leaks oil, shocks are blown ,interior is crap etc

So any suggestions on what is a good replacement

Car will never be driven on freeways . And see extremely little use in general

This golf seemed great , small like a tercel but i know nothing
About water pumping modern volks wagens

So thought id check here 1st

Bought a new 2002 VW Jetta w/1.8T engine and all options. Loads of problems, sold it after 2 years fed up of being stranded with young kids.

Bought a used Toyota Corolla and just put gas year after year.
VW never again, except for air cooled of course.

That looks like a darn good car for the money. Thats probably a 2.0 motor which is rock solid but boring. Boring is good for grandma..

I would consider a buick lesabre though, they can be had for like price for like condition. Aside from an oil leak from the intake manifold they are stupid rock solid cars. Comfy as can be, Huge, and get good gas mileage for having such a big motor.

Yeh its a 2.0 boring ass motor

But like you said boring is good . And a buick would never work
Its too huge , grandma wants something small that " turns on a dime"


And im curious about Montreal914s bad experience with the 2002
1.8 turbo,let me get this straight you got a jetta brand new ??? And it was a pos . That speaks volumes too me
im steering clear of turbos because dont need em and assume they are more trouble .

Its hard for me to ignore toyotas as she has had 3 toyotas in a row .

But it has come to my attention they redesigned the golf in 2007

So the 2006 might be the last of the simple basic transportation
Cars before ever thing is all about performance



Edit add


What is the best basic small car ?

I personally love mazda proteges
But the damn a-c is super unreliable so id never get another

If she liked her Toyota get her another Toyota.
Their dependable and fairly cheap to repair and lots of places know how to work on them.

I have a 2014 Jetta TDI that I bought new with an extended warranty. When I bought it the salesman said 2005 was the year VW improved their quality. I bought it for the fuel mileage with the diesel engine (50+ on highway) and I have only done routine maintenance and 1 repair in the 4 years 50K miles I've had.

The repair was a retainer for the window to the window regulator, a plastic pin.
It was just 1400 miles out of Factory warranty and VW would even talk to me about helping since I bought an extended warranty, I didn't really need help. It was a design problem with a Service bulletin for the repair the applied all the way back to 1999 model year Jettas.
I was irritated with them but it only cost me $100 and they gave me a loaner to use.

My daughter's 2001 Beetle eats a water pump every 2 years, had radiator failed, coolant flange and expansion tank, window switches, door panels, glovebox door, auxillary fuse/relay panel and fuel flap release servo all needed repair or replacement. Key broke off the key fob, key fob has a rfid chip in it and the car wont start without it. It was $200 to get a key cut and reprogram the car to accept the new key. The car had about 135K miles on it when I gave it to her but she only drives about 7k miles a year.

Jim

[quote name='jcd914' date='Mar 27 2018, 09:54 PM' post='2593375']
If she liked her Toyota get her another Toyota.
Their dependable and fairly cheap to repair and lots of places know how to work on them.




My daughter's 2001 Beetle eats a water pump every 2 years, had radiator failed, coolant flange and expansion tank, window switches, door panels, glovebox door, auxillary fuse/relay panel and fuel flap release servo all needed repair or replacement. Key broke off the key fob, key fob has a rfid chip in it and the car wont start without it. It was $200 to get a key cut and reprogram the car to accept the new key. The car had about 135K miles on it when I gave it to her but she only drives about 7k miles a year.










Yeh looks like another toyota might be the way to go

The problems you talked about above just scream to me
That the quality is shotty .


I dont mind paying a little more for that


And why in the hell ,do they think they need a 200$
Microchip key ,


Just give a set of keys . Where the metal key go's in the medal ignition

Nah low rent model,better around,shame you don't live in my country used cars are worth peanuts,this car in my country is worth little,nothing wrong with Golfs its more about how PO's have looked after or neglected them,thats the catch.

I've got an 06 GTI. I'd only recommend it to a mechanic and if you loved it. Everything is a PITA and parts are rarely cheap. Neighbor has an 02 Jetta TDI, a bunch of little things have broken or quit or act weird like the sunroof opening itself.

For Grandma I'd go with a Corolla as the Tercel has been dropped. Or if she doesn't mind quirky one of the Scions, like the xB that sits a little higher. My mom actually likes the Highlander as she can easily slide in and out.

The Honda Fit is a nice little car too.

Just stay away from a CVT... most self destruct by 100k.

Honda fit is a great choice! Scions are likely to be beat to crap and never maintained. Fit is likely to be owned by a old lady/middle age woman who pays people to do the little things.

Well, I guess I’m the one with the opposite luck of everybody else. We had two 2002 Golfs and a 2003 GTI 1.8T and had good luck with all three. We gave the GTI to my oldest son. We never had to do much to any of them except normal oil and belt changes. Also, the 2000 and later VWs hold up well in our saline environment in Vermont, much better than any of the Asian cars.

I worked on anything and everything when I had the garage. I totally agree with the Buick observations. Great, dependable, reliable cars where everything still works at 300,000 miles. Toyota’s and the like are good, reliable cars. They make good appliances and have the personality of one. They are cars for people who hate cars and driving.

Charlie

Last three car's have been 2002 or 2003 VW's, I gave my problem free TDI to my older daughter, I've been driving. 2003 Jetta 1.8t since November. Knock on that wood, minimal issues, although it did need a rear alignment that was tricky with the shims.

TDI was a real efficient vehicle, the Jetta, not quite. Of course, it's gasoline, and feels like a rocket compared to the diesel...

Is this better bang for the buck

Tdi ,


https://losangeles.craigslist.org/wst/cto/d...6487489407.html

For an older person ease of entry and exit is crucial. Low slung driver's seat might pose a problem now or in the future.

Right the tercel had this issue ,very low ingress and ergess

Is the golf low slung also ???


Rav 4 's are plentiful should i go in that direction?

2002-2004 Acura RL.

Heck, 2002-2004 Acura anything.

I have had 3 GTI/golf and for the most part they are reliable and decent MPG. They are easy to get in and out of and spacious enough for even taller folks. I like them but I always had a manual trans, not sure how reliable auto trans are on these.

Is that a 6 cyclinder because
Im trying to stay with 4 bangers

It will have to be a automatic

The Jetta was re-designed in 2006 and afaik they got much more reliable. We have a 2008 Jetta in the family bought new and have only had 1 minor problem in 10 years with it. Also its the car we typically use to pick up grandma, it has the perfect seat height and they are easy to drive.

I have also heard anything in toyota/lexus or acura realm is very reliable, Honda is up there too. Hyundai Elantra is another good option.

When my wife stopped driving her 911 as a daily driver she went
through a couple of money pit Audi A4’s that were a financial disaster.
In late 2015 she bought a new Honda Fit automatic for 15,800.00
At this point it is nearing 80,000 miles and not a single issue.
It asks for an oil change around every 10,000 miles and gets
Mid 40 mpg. Can’t beat a Honda....
CVT is transparent when you drive the car and there is a
ton of room inside depending on how you configure the seats.
She wants to buy another one and not drive it much and pay it off
before she retires so she use it daily as a retirement car. Without her 100
Mile a day commute that one should last pretty Much forever.
I’ll get this one as a daily and buy a pos Tacoma for when a Truck is needed.

Is it just me but seems like all acuras have leather interior. ?

Ok because honda fits seem to be commanding a pretty penny
But if its worth it then im cool with that

Maybe I am the exception

But our 07 Jetta 2.5 has been hands down the most reliable car I have ever owned. It now has almost 130k miles (bought new) and I have only fixed 3 issues (myself, of course, so cost is parts):

1. Air Recirculation Flap Motor - $100
2. Crankshaft Position Sensor - $100
3. Auto Trans Valve Body - $800

The trans valve body (slip - bang shift) is a known issue - thanks to VWs recommendation of "lifetime trans fluid". yeah. nope. fool me once. all gone now.

Aside from routine maintenance/care (by the book) - that really is ALL!
Very refreshing compared to my LR3 haha - now THAT is a labor of love.

So not all water pumpers are bad!

Truth be told automatic transmission s
Scare the s#it outta me

The term that comes to mind is
Second s from diaster

But thats the cards ive been dealt

I still can’t wrap my head around people that buy older
luxury type vehicles at the bottom of their depreciation cycle
With prices for parts And service still sky high. WHY..
Because it looks good..??
If reliability And cost to own and Maintain are an issue at all buy a
Honda or a Toyota ... Not impressive to be seen in, but reliable
and easy to live with.
Any expensive car out of a Warranty is a potential disaster and
money pit waiting to happen. Even if you work on your own cars,
I certainly got sick having my wife’s Audi’s break down and my having
to go get her and get the car towed home.
Honda never failed to get her to work and home again.

Im planning on buying an Acura MDX 07-14 in the near future. I've had 2 Audi's and loved loved loved them as cars however the maintenance was insane. I dont mind it for a toy (read my 1.8T engine in the 914) but man oh man are they expensive to keep going.

I think all acura's of newer years have leather. 90's maybe not so much.


IMHO one of my favorite cars of all time was the 2000's Audi allroad. I had one for a couple of years and it was such a great car, super comfy, great power, adjustable air bags to lower the car or raise it if your going offroad. But man oh man was it maintenance heavy. I went through 3 air compressors with the car and 2 sets of bags before converting it to coil springs. The fan went out and I converted it to an electric fan (BIG MISTAKE). Killed a fan controller and some wiring doing that. The 2.7 motor was bulletproof but all the things attached to it were just maintenance killers. I sold it when I determined that I didnt want to deal with a transmission going out (It was shifting great, but a ticking time bomb).
Bought my Fiesta ST and have done nothing but tires and oil in 80k miles. Now my back is killing me because of the rough ride and I already have 2 toys.

I will always be a Manual Trans guy - have only ever owned manuals (except the LR3 and Gwagen that didn't come in stick) but my cars are gone an I inherited her jetta.


but alas my wife can't drive stick (i tried teaching her - ack)
first time in my life i have NOT had at least 1 manual!

point being - some autos can be bulletproof - with care!
CHANGE THE FLUID EVERY 30k-50k (regardless of what the book says)

looking forward to getting a 914 (someday) to take me back tho!

I liked the golf because they are inexpensive, and a little more passionate driving then a fit or a corolla

But im not trying to have any mechanical issues crop up in exchange

So looks like a corolla will be my next path

She loves toyotas so its a win win i guess .

But refuses to drive a prius said its the most boring pos ever .

yep, a bunch of hondas in our driveway, except for my 914's. Boringly reliable. Minimal maintenance, cheap to own if you keep them for a while.

https://inlandempire.craigslist.org/cto/d/2...6542873161.html


And body driven or own one of these ????


I know most of us around here have low iq's

My 84 year old mother had a Toyota Tercel back in 1997 drove it till 2010 great car in 2010 she bought the Toyota Yaris and it's been a great car for her so stick with Toyota

Water cooled VW's have always been ok up until 100,000 miles, and then they un-ravel. Friends that still drive them say not much has changed today.
Unluckily for me, back in the day, all mine were well into un-ravel territory.

If you need a dependable car, buy asian, my wife only drive's Hyundai's and Kia's.

Yeh as alway the advice i get here always pays off for me



I think yaris will be the smoothest transition

So im checking this one out on sat.


https://losangeles.craigslist.org/lac/cto/d...6542454704.html

Put gas, oil change per mileage, tires and brake pads. Done.

Current family car, 07 Sienna with 195k mi, still on the original spark plugs. We have replaces an oil hose, the brake fluid, and the serpentine belt, tires, brakes and battery. Done.

Don't want it to break down because it's a heavy pig to put on jack stands...

Good luck with your search/purchase.

Can't beat Honda or Toyota. I got 190k out of my Acura RSX. We have 225k on our Toyota Sequoia. Nothing ever went wrong but wear items. Brakes, tires, battery and front shocks on the Acura. I've also had several Honda Civics over the years and they never had issues. I currently drive a Toyota 86 aka scion FRS aka subaru brz. Love it!! Not recommended for seniors... I would rather own another Porsche or VW, but no time or energy to work on them.

You might want to put Mom in a Honda CRV. Very dependable and at a decent price. The other over looked car that has stepped up to be a decent vehicle is the Chevy Equinox. I dumped our VW Tiquan that was full of problems and got an Equinox this year. Not a high performance car but well built and very economical and gets great reviews.

I do like crv but my friends blew his engine do to a slipped timing belt

Needless to say that had a negative effect on reliability from there on out

/6

The only problem I have with the CRV is you pay a premium for one, over a Hyundai Tuscon, or equivalent KIA. The guy that works for me only drives CRV's and my wife only drives the Korean cars, they are very comparable but the Korean ones are 20-25% cheaper to buy. Side by side neither breaks down, both very dependable. But saving several thousand on buying one can really go a long way.

We drove older Mercedes for a bunch of years with generally great luck. We still have one but it does not get a lot of use anymore, it is just not worth selling. We also kept my brides 04 Volvo S60 when we replaced it with a new daily driver. Why? It has a stick shift. I bought my daughter a 1990 300SL when she was a senior in high school. She would leave the house at 4:30 am for morning swim practice, then to school, then back to evening swim practice and home at 10 pm every day. It was a 125 mile round trip and I wanted her in a safe car. It did not go with her to college. I didn’t want to see it parked in a college parking lot in Minnesota. In five years of ownership and 60,000 miles, I replaced the brake pads.

I drove a 1990 300 D 2.5 turbo at the time. When I sold it at 260,000 miles 5 years ago, I replace the brake pads and tires once in the 100,000 I owned it. That’s it.

The reason that we drove old used cars is that there is little depreciation. That is the largest cost in car ownership. I was commuting 80 miles/day, my wife 100, my daughter 125. If we drove new cars, they would all be worthless by the time we paid them off!

I owned a garage so labor (mine) was free and parts were at cost but I had little to replace. The problem with Asian cars is the cost of parts. They can be more expensive than Benz parts and the dealers lock out the aftermarket until the car is 5 years old. Oh, the Asian dealer would cut me a generous 10% discount on retail on parts if I was forced to buy from them. I was never thrilled to work on them.

Charlie

Honda Fit.
Honda Civic.
Toyota Camery.

Boring cars that will more or less run forever. Cheap, but hold value.

Zach

I will never own a MK4 VW. They are absolutely terrible.

Even the high end Iridium plugs wear past spec around 100k. I know the back 3 are a bitch but it would be worth it. Flex joints required.

I'm a true lover of Mercedes, I currently own two a 99 C43 and a 14 E350, great cars, but avoid anything made during the Chrysler years, they are junk. I bought an 07 CLK, looked great, smelled like a Benz. It was the biggest POS! In the year I had it is was in the shop 4 times, and I luckily dodged the bullet on having one of the motors that chewed itself up. I think the CLK was basiclaly a LeBaron with a Benz grill. I had 60,000 miles on mine and it drove like it had 300,000. This was a dark period for Mercedes.

I've got a mitsubishi owned by my MIL and previously my mom from new. Changed out the front plugs a few times but on the original rears. Seems to be running OK after 130k miles

Im waiting for the car to die before shoving a buick Lesabre in her hands.

What year a4? Since 2009 Audi has been on a huge upswing in reliability and is now more reliable than Honda.

Reliability may be on a upswing but once you get burned with
A unrealiable car i would assume all brand loyalty to the audi
Is no longer

is now more reliable than Honda.
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Thats a bold statement "

Vincent vega