Hi Everyone,
I am thinking of buying a used car. I haven't had a car in several years and have had some bad experiences with used cars in the past, mainly though due to buying things that were too junky, not checking them out well enough and not trusting my intuition, so now I am trying to be smarter.
I did read MMM's article, 10 Cars for Smart People, but the article is 5 years old. I did watch some Dave Ramsey videos on YouTube and have read a few posts here.
The car will mainly be for weekend recreational use, grocery shopping, visiting friends, going places not accessible by mass transit, etc. I will not be driving the car to work or using it on a daily basis. I spend quite a bit of money on ZipCar so the monthly expenses won't really be costing me anything additional as the ZipCar expense will go away.
I just really want something simple, very small, reliable, automatic transmission, the less electrical stuff the better, and I don't really care what it looks like. I am thinking a Honda or Toyota, maybe something like a Fit, Civic, Yaris or Corolla. I would like to spend around $3K, cash. Do you think I can get something decent and reliable for this amount or am I being too unrealistic and fooling myself? If so, what is the minimum I should plan on spending? I am in San Francisco. I am in an area where there are some streets with abundant, easy parking so paying for parking won't be an issue. Are there any other cars you would suggest I consider? Thanks.