My beloved 10 year old kia Rio is reaching the end of its life and it’s time to start looking for a replacement.
We really just need a small, fuel efficient car that does ok in the winter.
We have the new rogue that’ll be the primary baby car so while we’d need it to fit a carseat, we don’t need room for a ton of baby stuff.
We always buy certified used or used with a dealership warranty. No interest in new or leasing.
Other than that, not really picky. Cost and safety are the two top priorities. I am aiming to keep it under 15k and ideally under 12k. But I’ll pay more for longevity and low maintenance costs.
So I really, really want a Subaru but I can never find them used! People really do have them forever it seems. Ideally, my next-next car will be a Subaru when we’re a bit more financially set.
I have some time to look. Do you guys have any recommendations for models you really like?
You aren’t interested in replacing it with the same car, @romanigypsyeyes ?
My niece really likes her Suburu Forester, but it’s still very young (maybe a year old) so no idea on reliability. For reliable, my mechanic swears by a TOYOTA and Honda. We have preferred TOYOTA. Sometimes rental car companies have recent models for sale with extended warranties. My relatives have purchased many cars this way.
I’m a fan of my Prius Prime, but it and the Forester are above your desired price range.
Or install all season tires that have the snowflake-in-mountain mark (instead of only the M+S mark)?
If you are buying used, consider models where the depreciation off of the new (after typical rebates and discounts) price is high. Cars that hold their value well (i.e. not much savings to buy used) may be better bought new.
My youngest D bought a new Subaru Crosstrek a year and a half ago and loves it. She doesn’t drive in snow regularly since we live in Southern California, but will be taking it up skiing in February.
I haven’t any specific model recommendations. My mechanic only recommends Honda, Toyota, and Subaru. He says everything else spends too much time in the shop and costs the owner too much money.
I am a Subaru owner and supporter. What kind of mileage are you looking for on a car - in other words do you want a car with under 50K miles? Less? Willing to go more?
I’m just saying that I think it will be difficult to find a Subaru 12K ish without LOTS of miles on it. You might check the Subaru Impreza COUPE or Legacy with more luck than one of their SUV’s. All Subarus have AWD.
This is the reason that I plan on our next-next car being a Subaru. I think it’s one that I’m just going to have to bullet and buy new lol. That’s just not in the budget right now, unfortunately
Another vote for a Subaru, but it could be challenging to find a low mileage one within your budget. Check out the Impreza or Legacy as suggested above. An older Forester might work too as they’re smaller than the newer models. We drove our Outback wagon into the ground and my mom is on her third Forester. Our family loves Subies!
I’ve been looking with a friend. Subaru is a great recommendation for someone with a much bigger budget. She has not found any Honda or Toyota’s under 12,000 that don’t have over 100,000 miles.
When our neighbors were car shopping, the found the Honda Fit cheaper new than used. It is quite reliable but they didn’t like the large blind spots and said they really wouldn’t recommend it tho they were usually Honda fans. Their S bought Kia Rio.
Subaru. I personally know people who have walked away from very serious car accidents unscathed, thanks to how well they are engineered to withstand crashes.
I just checked Carmax’s inventory on line and saw a few 2014 Imprezas with less than 50K miles for 13-17k. Many of the Subarus listed are located in western states but could be transported to your market for what appears to be a reasonable fee.
