Your first car...

I wanna get one of the old AWD tercels like the dude frm Breaking Bad had. They look fun!

 

Yeah I don't really believe in taking a car to a mechanic unless its something really complicated. My brothers always worked on my car as a teenager and my boyfriend has saved us both thousands of dollars over the past few years by doing all the labor himself. I guess if I ever find myself single again I'll have to start forking out money to a mechanic or learn a few things myself.

I do agree with what fairlight was saying earlier in the thread. Cars are a huge blight on the world. I was reading recently about all the rails and subway lines that were abandoned throughout the rust belt when Detroit really started pumping up its production. Its kind of depressing to think how different the US could have been if cars had never gained popularity.

 

I'm worried some of you may have missed the pic pork posted because a new page was started so I'm gonna quote it.. because it's absolutely necessary that everyone see this photo.

 

Yeah, Ford trucks are a different story. They're built pretty well, their cars don't last as long. With the exception of the Crown Vic. Tempos were pretty damn good too.

 

Haha I do like that pic. Porkstock looks freakishly like someone I dated when I was a teenager, especially in this photo since he is closer in age in this picture to my ex as I remember him.

 

yeah, i've heard someone else say this too. like the F-150 is ford's "thing" so they do it well.

but that ford taurus was a pretty good car. i've known a lot of people with a ford taurus that were happy with it. i might even buy another one, except my wife wants to get a small SUV like the honda CR-V that she drives now.

 

'53 Willys Jeep pickup truck. Inherited it from grandpa in 2001.

Great primitive car to learn with:

23" steering wheel
No power steering
No power brakes
No radio
No turn signals
No seat belts
3-speed stick shift
2 piece windshield
Top speed 60mph

Yeah it's a great learning vehicle

 

First car was a 1994 Bmw 325i convertible black with a tan top. I got it at age 16 in 1999. I've had quite a few cars (newer and better models with more power), this is still my all time favorite car
It looked just like this:

 

My first was a 84' Jeep Cherokee XJ, First year for the mid size suv and had no insulation, Metal roof and no heat! Outside looked good though lol.

Currently we have a 05' Nissan murano, 01' ZR2 s10, 97' Jeep Cherokee and a 95' Jeep YJ. I also have a 00' Honda 400ex.
I prefer older vehicles, Drive by wire sucks and is dangerous in some cases. But that's all you can get anymore or restore a classic.

 

Glad i saw the uncropped one pork. I was wondering if that pic was a selfie or not. It looked like it could have been with the way your arms were.

My mom didnt want me to get a ford when i got my last car because she had problems with a taurus. I think its a bit different though because i was looking for a new car and could only afford a fiesta or focus if i got a ford.

 

Crv's are fantastic vehicles. Might I recommend you guys look into the Toyota Rav4. Very comparable size and price. I don't think anyone will ever go wrong with a Toyota.

 

yeah, my parents were looking at buying a new car, they had always bought american made cars. but a used ford focus cost more than a brand new foreign car, so they ended up buying a new suzuki something.

i'm glad that the CR-V gets a passing grade from you

i have been considering quite a few different makes, including the Rav4.

the main three i have been looking at are Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, and Kia Sorento. what do you think about Kias?

The Honda Pilot looks pretty nice too.

and then i have a bunch of other SUVs written down on a list:
Chevy Equinox
Subaru Forester
Mazda CX-5
Nissan Rouge
Nissan Murano (how do you like that, yogi?)
Hyundai Tucson

 

I currently have a '03 crv. it comes with a pull-out picnic table that is hidden beneath the carpet in the back end. Never seen any other crossover that has something like that! It's a great little rig. Compartments for everything! But I'm not sure if the newer CRVs past 2006 have 'em. Because thats when they became more city-boy/grocery-getter vehicles that lost a lot of their go-anywhere character.

Sounds ok. But sometimes they come with only FWD. Which means they becom heavy pieces of shit that can't haul heavy loads and get stuck when taken off the pavement. Make sure it's AWD or RWD (RWD or 4WD would be more fuel efficient)

 

our CR-V now is a 2000, got over 150k on it.

i thinks it's front wheel drive, though i'm not positive.

i always thought front wheel drive handled better in the snow than rear wheel drive, at least for cars?
and i feel like i've heard bad things about all wheel drive. like since they are made to handle well in all conditions...that they end up not handling really well in any condition.

 

Icy roads are the only proven advantage that FWD has. Along with turning sharp corners up steep hills. The main reason most passenger cars have it is because assembly line engineers in the 70s figured out a way to cut manufacturing costs by making all their fleets with FWD.

Then again I'm biased because I'm an outdoorsy guy and I think vehicles with higher ground clearance with front wheel drive is ridiculous.

 

alright that makes sense. when i lived with my parents, it was on a hill with a dirt road that doesn't get plowed. front wheel drive helped me get up the hill in the winter.

so just to be clear - it's ridiculous because they get stuck more easily in off-road conditions and can't haul heavy loads?

 

Kia and Hyundai have both stepped up their game a lot. Which is nice. My mom bought a brand new 2010 Hyundai Accent hatchback and it's been a great care. Mind you it's grandma driven.

That being said, I would still stay away from Kia until they've had more timeto develop their products and takes themselves a little more serious. No offense intended to Kia owners.

I see it this way, Honda and Toyota have fantastic track records, superior products, and proven reliability. Stick with what works. There's a reason I replaced my Tercel with a Tercel. It proved itself by taking me and my family over 850,000 kms.

You guys thinking of having kids anytime within the next five years? Think economic, safe, and good resale vale. You won't get that with a Kia and perhaps nt a Hyundai.

They're pretty great. I dated a girl who's dad drove nothing but Hondas for a couple decades. He swore by them. I'm that way with Toyota. You find what is good and you stick with it. Keep this in mind because it is the most important thing to remember, especially regarding the whole foreign vs domestic debate...

Japanese auto builders build their vehicles to last a very long time because Asian countries do not have the space or the means to dispose of old vehicles. They literally build them better to last longer so that they're less of an economic liability.

Chevy's (modern ones) are crap. Simply put. GM is plagued with chronic (persisting consistently throughout numerous models/model years) problems that they know about and do not address or fix. They expect to sell based on reputation and nationalism. Why invest your money and the well being of your family in an inferior product?

Don't know much about Mazdas except that they're super trendy, got big really fast and have chronic rust problems. Google the words "Mazda rust". It's a term.

Subarus are fantastic apparently. I came real close to buying an outback before I bought my second Tercel. They have some rust issues on the underside of the rear. They're AWD like many suvs and are about an inch higher off the ground than most cars. Apparently they're fantastic handlers in the snow.

As for AWD being somewhat questionable in some conditions, I've read that as well. All I can honesty say about that is I have heard nothing but good things about awd Subarus and awd CRVs in the snow. I've known people who drive both in our Canadian climate and have ridden in both in bad winter conditions, sum mer conditions, etc. and I felt perfectly safe.

 

Honestly, when buying a vehicle, the best thing to do is to look into the (if any) chonic problems of a make or model. Combine that with something that has served you well. A vehicle is like any other relationship. If it has proven itself to you for years as something good and reliable and it is meeting your needs, you can't go wrong. Maybe get a second to replace the old one, you know?

 

Most vehicles are no longer RWD?

 

Oh, about Suzuki, as of this year they're no longer selling them over here. No market for them anymore unfortunately. Which is too bad.

Forgive the random editing, doing this on a phone is difficult sometimes..

Escapes and Explorers are decent. But like many Fords over the last twenty years, they're plagued with tranny problems.