Help! I might have to buy a car...

[Kooshdakhaa]

My 1993 Chevy Lumina sedan is in the shop for the fourth time in the last month. It only has 69,000 miles on it, but it is 20 years old. My job is moving across town and I need dependable transportation.

I am thinking Kia Sorrento or Hyundai Santa Fe. Either purchase or lease, I guess you can get really good lease terms on a Santa Fe. Could be brand new or slightly used.

The reason I am zeroing on these cars is their awesome warranty, 10 years/100,000 miles on the power train. The Santa Fe also has a concurrent 5 year bumper to bumper warranty on all the electronics, etc. - not sure if the Sorrento also has that, but I'll be checking. And I like these tough looking little SUVs.

I've never financed a car before! Always bought older ones and paid cash, but now I want something very dependable.

Any tips or warnings of things to watch out for? Are they going to try and trick me or take advantage of me?

 

[Politico]

You never financed a new one before no need to start now.

 

[DGS49]

Essentially all new cars are pretty good, and the nature of major failures is that they will probably occur in the first year, so they will be covered under warranty regardless of which one you choose.

Leasing will put a limit on the number of miles you drive, so keep that in mind as you decide. The only time it is smart to lease is when the manufacturer is desperate to get its cars on the road, and is offering exceptional rates. They do this by using "optimistic" residual values on their cars. But if you are leasing, you don't care, it works to your benefit. The cars in this category right now are VW and especially BUICK. If you can live with a small car, and the restrictions of a lease, the Buick Verano is an exceptional value right now. Or any VW.

If you are leaning to a small SUV, the best one, all things considered, is the Honda CRV. It is reliable, economical, nice looking, and has the best resale value. The Subaru Forester is also a good choice (there are no BAD choices in this segment). The sportiest one is the Mazda CX5, but be sure to get the 185 HP engine, the other one is a pig.

Just for fun, you might want to have a look at a Buick Encore. It is tiny but relatively luxurious and economical. And being a Buick, you can probably lease one at a very good price.

One additional point: note: if you don't NEED 4WD or AWD traction, then don't buy a small SUV or "crossover." They have relatively poor economy, they don't handle as well as a car, and in fact they are not as comfortable. Don't buy one just because they are fashionable right now.

Any of the small and mid-sized sedans out right now should be an economical and reliable car. If you are OK with the size of your Lumina, my top recommendations would be the Kia Optima, VW Passat, Honda Accord, or (I hate to even type this), Toyota Camry. They will all be fine for you.

If you are in a position to buy a car without trading your Lumina (sell it on craigslist), you are in a GREAT position to get a good deal, so don't waste it.

Decide what you want by looking and driving different vehicles, but don't make any commitments after the test drives. When you have decided which car you want, go to Edmunds.com and spec out that car, asking for bids from all of the local dealers. When you do that, you will get priced bids from the "internet sales managers" of those dealerships. Imagine that: they will be competing for your business! All of the prices will be low and competitive, so your final choice should generally be based on the location and reputation of the dealers. But remember that if you get a much better price from a distant dealer it's OK to buy it there and then have it serviced by the dealer closest to you. Believe me, they will be happy to work on your car.

Happy hunting!

 

[Pop23]

^^^^^Great advise^^^^^^

 

[Mr. H.]

My 1993 Chevy Lumina sedan is in the shop for the fourth time in the last month. It only has 69,000 miles on it, but it is 20 years old. My job is moving across town and I need dependable transportation.

I am thinking Kia Sorrento or Hyundai Santa Fe. Either purchase or lease, I guess you can get really good lease terms on a Santa Fe. Could be brand new or slightly used.

The reason I am zeroing on these cars is their awesome warranty, 10 years/100,000 miles on the power train. The Santa Fe also has a concurrent 5 year bumper to bumper warranty on all the electronics, etc. - not sure if the Sorrento also has that, but I'll be checking. And I like these tough looking little SUVs.

I've never financed a car before! Always bought older ones and paid cash, but now I want something very dependable.

Any tips or warnings of things to watch out for? Are they going to try and trick me or take advantage of me?

Kia/Hyundai - good warranties, crappy cars.

Told to me by my friend who's worked at a Toyota/Kia/Hyundai dealership for 25 years.

 

[Pop23]

My 1993 Chevy Lumina sedan is in the shop for the fourth time in the last month. It only has 69,000 miles on it, but it is 20 years old. My job is moving across town and I need dependable transportation.

I am thinking Kia Sorrento or Hyundai Santa Fe. Either purchase or lease, I guess you can get really good lease terms on a Santa Fe. Could be brand new or slightly used.

The reason I am zeroing on these cars is their awesome warranty, 10 years/100,000 miles on the power train. The Santa Fe also has a concurrent 5 year bumper to bumper warranty on all the electronics, etc. - not sure if the Sorrento also has that, but I'll be checking. And I like these tough looking little SUVs.

I've never financed a car before! Always bought older ones and paid cash, but now I want something very dependable.

Any tips or warnings of things to watch out for? Are they going to try and trick me or take advantage of me?

Kia/Hyundai - good warranties, crappy cars.

Told to me by my friend who's worked at a Toyota/Kia/Hyundai dealership for 25 years.

I've had a Kia for 3 years now. Other than normal maintenance I've had very good experience.

 

[YWN666]

My 1993 Chevy Lumina sedan is in the shop for the fourth time in the last month. It only has 69,000 miles on it, but it is 20 years old. My job is moving across town and I need dependable transportation.

I am thinking Kia Sorrento or Hyundai Santa Fe. Either purchase or lease, I guess you can get really good lease terms on a Santa Fe. Could be brand new or slightly used.

The reason I am zeroing on these cars is their awesome warranty, 10 years/100,000 miles on the power train. The Santa Fe also has a concurrent 5 year bumper to bumper warranty on all the electronics, etc. - not sure if the Sorrento also has that, but I'll be checking. And I like these tough looking little SUVs.

I've never financed a car before! Always bought older ones and paid cash, but now I want something very dependable.

Any tips or warnings of things to watch out for? Are they going to try and trick me or take advantage of me?

My wife is driving a Santa Fe (the second one she's owned) and she loves it and neither one gave her any trouble whatsoever. As with any car salespersons, you have to do your homework and not let them sell you anything you don't want or need. I know that some of the larger Hyundai dealerships can get incentives from Hyundai for the number of cars they sell in a certain time period so they might be willing to sell you a car at a low profit just to boost their sales numbers.

 

[waltky]

Ask an auto repair person if they know of any good cars for sale...

... it works for me...

... usually get a good used car in good shape...

... and you can name your price range...

... stick with domestic cars...

... repair bills on foreign cars will eat you up.

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

Essentially all new cars are pretty good, and the nature of major failures is that they will probably occur in the first year, so they will be covered under warranty regardless of which one you choose.

Leasing will put a limit on the number of miles you drive, so keep that in mind as you decide. The only time it is smart to lease is when the manufacturer is desperate to get its cars on the road, and is offering exceptional rates. They do this by using "optimistic" residual values on their cars. But if you are leasing, you don't care, it works to your benefit. The cars in this category right now are VW and especially BUICK. If you can live with a small car, and the restrictions of a lease, the Buick Verano is an exceptional value right now. Or any VW.

If you are leaning to a small SUV, the best one, all things considered, is the Honda CRV. It is reliable, economical, nice looking, and has the best resale value. The Subaru Forester is also a good choice (there are no BAD choices in this segment). The sportiest one is the Mazda CX5, but be sure to get the 185 HP engine, the other one is a pig.

Just for fun, you might want to have a look at a Buick Encore. It is tiny but relatively luxurious and economical. And being a Buick, you can probably lease one at a very good price.

One additional point: note: if you don't NEED 4WD or AWD traction, then don't buy a small SUV or "crossover." They have relatively poor economy, they don't handle as well as a car, and in fact they are not as comfortable. Don't buy one just because they are fashionable right now.

Any of the small and mid-sized sedans out right now should be an economical and reliable car. If you are OK with the size of your Lumina, my top recommendations would be the Kia Optima, VW Passat, Honda Accord, or (I hate to even type this), Toyota Camry. They will all be fine for you.

If you are in a position to buy a car without trading your Lumina (sell it on craigslist), you are in a GREAT position to get a good deal, so don't waste it.

Decide what you want by looking and driving different vehicles, but don't make any commitments after the test drives. When you have decided which car you want, go to Edmunds.com and spec out that car, asking for bids from all of the local dealers. When you do that, you will get priced bids from the "internet sales managers" of those dealerships. Imagine that: they will be competing for your business! All of the prices will be low and competitive, so your final choice should generally be based on the location and reputation of the dealers. But remember that if you get a much better price from a distant dealer it's OK to buy it there and then have it serviced by the dealer closest to you. Believe me, they will be happy to work on your car.

Happy hunting!

Wow! Awesome information! Thank you, DGS49.

I do live in Alaska, so the AWD or 4WD could be jusified. Although my old Chevy Lumina is front wheel drive and with studded tires all around it handles just fine in the winter.

I don't like cars that are too small, I don't feel safe. So that is a consideration.

The Hyundai dealer told me that I can get a very good lease on the Santa Fe right now because it has the best residual value of any other car. A lease might be good for me because I want my monthly payments as low as possible, and I don't drive much, just to work and back and to the store once a week, mainly. Probably well under 10,000 miles per year.

Just got the word that my car is repaired, forget what it was, but it was minor, $129 total. We'll see if it's really fixed this time. Meanwhile, I will take a step back and utilize this great information you've given me to reassess my options.

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

My 1993 Chevy Lumina sedan is in the shop for the fourth time in the last month. It only has 69,000 miles on it, but it is 20 years old. My job is moving across town and I need dependable transportation.

I am thinking Kia Sorrento or Hyundai Santa Fe. Either purchase or lease, I guess you can get really good lease terms on a Santa Fe. Could be brand new or slightly used.

The reason I am zeroing on these cars is their awesome warranty, 10 years/100,000 miles on the power train. The Santa Fe also has a concurrent 5 year bumper to bumper warranty on all the electronics, etc. - not sure if the Sorrento also has that, but I'll be checking. And I like these tough looking little SUVs.

I've never financed a car before! Always bought older ones and paid cash, but now I want something very dependable.

Any tips or warnings of things to watch out for? Are they going to try and trick me or take advantage of me?

My wife is driving a Santa Fe (the second one she's owned) and she loves it and neither one gave her any trouble whatsoever. As with any car salespersons, you have to do your homework and not let them sell you anything you don't want or need. I know that some of the larger Hyundai dealerships can get incentives from Hyundai for the number of cars they sell in a certain time period so they might be willing to sell you a car at a low profit just to boost their sales numbers.

Yeah, you can hardly go wrong with that warranty. The Santa Fe is definitely on my list of "possibles."

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

My 1993 Chevy Lumina sedan is in the shop for the fourth time in the last month. It only has 69,000 miles on it, but it is 20 years old. My job is moving across town and I need dependable transportation.

I am thinking Kia Sorrento or Hyundai Santa Fe. Either purchase or lease, I guess you can get really good lease terms on a Santa Fe. Could be brand new or slightly used.

The reason I am zeroing on these cars is their awesome warranty, 10 years/100,000 miles on the power train. The Santa Fe also has a concurrent 5 year bumper to bumper warranty on all the electronics, etc. - not sure if the Sorrento also has that, but I'll be checking. And I like these tough looking little SUVs.

I've never financed a car before! Always bought older ones and paid cash, but now I want something very dependable.

Any tips or warnings of things to watch out for? Are they going to try and trick me or take advantage of me?

Kia/Hyundai - good warranties, crappy cars.

Told to me by my friend who's worked at a Toyota/Kia/Hyundai dealership for 25 years.

I've had a Kia for 3 years now. Other than normal maintenance I've had very good experience.

Thanks, Pop! My boss bought his wife one in 2007. He was skeptical but the fantastic warranty made him decide to go with it. She has never had to have any repairs done on the car to this day! I hear a lot of good things about those cars lately.

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

You never financed a new one before no need to start now.

But I'd sure like to have that "new car" experience for once in my life! Not to mention...warranty.

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

My 1993 Chevy Lumina sedan is in the shop for the fourth time in the last month. It only has 69,000 miles on it, but it is 20 years old. My job is moving across town and I need dependable transportation.

I am thinking Kia Sorrento or Hyundai Santa Fe. Either purchase or lease, I guess you can get really good lease terms on a Santa Fe. Could be brand new or slightly used.

The reason I am zeroing on these cars is their awesome warranty, 10 years/100,000 miles on the power train. The Santa Fe also has a concurrent 5 year bumper to bumper warranty on all the electronics, etc. - not sure if the Sorrento also has that, but I'll be checking. And I like these tough looking little SUVs.

I've never financed a car before! Always bought older ones and paid cash, but now I want something very dependable.

Any tips or warnings of things to watch out for? Are they going to try and trick me or take advantage of me?

Kia/Hyundai - good warranties, crappy cars.

Told to me by my friend who's worked at a Toyota/Kia/Hyundai dealership for 25 years.

That used to be the reputation, especially for Kias, but from everyone I've talked to, that has changed. My boss bought his wife a Kia in 2007, the fabulous warranty made him decide to risk it. Nothing has ever gone wrong with it...and still four more years of warranty left!

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

Ask an auto repair person if they know of any good cars for sale...

... it works for me...

... usually get a good used car in good shape...

... and you can name your price range...

... stick with domestic cars...

... repair bills on foreign cars will eat you up.

But just for once I was hoping for something new or nearly new! With a warranty.

 

[Toronado3800]

My 1993 Chevy Lumina sedan is in the shop for the fourth time in the last month. It only has 69,000 miles on it, but it is 20 years old. My job is moving across town and I need dependable transportation.

I am thinking Kia Sorrento or Hyundai Santa Fe. Either purchase or lease, I guess you can get really good lease terms on a Santa Fe. Could be brand new or slightly used.

The reason I am zeroing on these cars is their awesome warranty, 10 years/100,000 miles on the power train. The Santa Fe also has a concurrent 5 year bumper to bumper warranty on all the electronics, etc. - not sure if the Sorrento also has that, but I'll be checking. And I like these tough looking little SUVs.

I've never financed a car before! Always bought older ones and paid cash, but now I want something very dependable.

Any tips or warnings of things to watch out for? Are they going to try and trick me or take advantage of me?

Kia/Hyundai - good warranties, crappy cars.

Told to me by my friend who's worked at a Toyota/Kia/Hyundai dealership for 25 years.

I've had a Kia for 3 years now. Other than normal maintenance I've had very good experience.

My 98 MarkVIII has gone 30,000 mile periods with no problems also but I hardly recommend it.

As I get older I understand the desire for a warranty and new car. If you are making the money to take the financial hit then go for it.

I propose that if you are leasing a vehicle it just plum doesn't matter how reliable it isn't since all new cars should have 100,000 miles in them.

Please consider an.American made/American built vehicle if any fits your needs.

Thanks and good luck with the salesmen.

 

[Pop23]

You never financed a new one before no need to start now.

But I'd sure like to have that "new car" experience for once in my life! Not to mention...warranty.

The wealthiest man I've ever known (filthy rich) has never owned a new car. Amazing to me, but he calls cars a horrible investment.

That's just him though. I think his rich because he's a huge tight wad.

Just sayin

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

Kia/Hyundai - good warranties, crappy cars.

Told to me by my friend who's worked at a Toyota/Kia/Hyundai dealership for 25 years.

I've had a Kia for 3 years now. Other than normal maintenance I've had very good experience.

My 98 MarkVIII has gone 30,000 mile periods with no problems also but I hardly recommend it.

As I get older I understand the desire for a warranty and new car. If you are making the money to take the financial hit then go for it.

I propose that if you are leasing a vehicle it just plum doesn't matter how reliable it isn't since all new cars should have 100,000 miles in them.

Please consider an.American made/American built vehicle if any fits your needs.

Thanks and good luck with the salesmen.

Yes, but if I get a new Kia and it has a problem, I just take it into their shop and they give me a loaner while they fix it, at no charge to me. So not only do I feel the reassurance that there won't be problems, at least not for a few years, IF there are problems all the burden is not on me.

My car is 20 years old, so even if the mileage is low (59,000) the car is aging. Rubber gets old, stuff wears out, low miles or not.

It's making a nervous wreck out of me. My stomach is starting to hurt. Ulcers?

I don't have a lot of money to spend right now, but I have good credit. And dependable transportation is a necessity, not a luxury. My job, currently right across the street from my house, is moving clear across town. So that's why either leasing or buying a car with one of these great warranties is appealing to me.

 

[Toronado3800]

I understand.

To clarify, my feelings are that any leased vehicle should be reliable for the three years you have it and any dealership should offer you a loaner if it breaks in that time period.

You are also correct in assessing your old car. I wonder if it has more value as a spare vehicle or a trade in. Probably a trade in for your situation since the dealer should offer you the spare or loaner vehicle.

If you buy a vehicle then all the extended warranties and reliability estimates come into play. In that case five or ten years from now you may still be using it for transportation and reliability very much matters. My MarkVIII is very much a labor of love. I do not think you should be one if that is what it sounded like I was saying.

Heck, when I have done the math on leasing I even consider presumably unreliable vehicles and those with low projected resale like Volts and Leafs. My thought being "at least I will be driving something DIFFERENT than my past cars". Once again thinking any new vehicle has to be fairly reliable and come with a loaner if it goes down for maintenance.

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

What I've heard about older cars like mine is that you can usually get more out of them if you sell them yourself rather than trading them in. It's 20 years old, I don't know if they'll be interested in it as a trade-in.

 

[Toronado3800]

Thats probable.

And you can use your car as bait. Let the dealer set a price for the new car thinking they will get yours as a trade in they can sell for profit after only giving you a grand for it. Then go sell yours for two grand and try to get them to honor the previously given price for the new car.

I hate buying and selling cars btw.