1st Car for the Kiddo

Transmission control modules seem to be a recurring failure on the 3, from my research.

Another issue with the 3 is the AC compressor is on the bottom of the motor and subject to road grime/salt (if you’re in the northern climes).

In their defense (again, as a point of research only, I’m not an owner and have never been in one for a test drive), they are the only ones out there to my knowledge still using a legitimate automagic transmission instead of a snowmobubble drive, AND they still have real live legitimate three pedal and wiggly stick units in a hatchie.

 

Well, if you have to work on it yourself, Toyota Camary

 

I thought Grom was always the answer here...

 

Obviously you don't personally know me, but I've had a 17 Mazda 6 since new and it's been completely reliable. I do have a manual 6 speed though...

 

Whatever you buy, Get them THEIR OWN INSURANCE POLICY, IN THEIR NAME, NOT YOURS. You will thank me later. Yes, it will be more money up front but, when the inevitable happens, your rates are not affected. Ski

 

I don't know if this applies to the OP, but in GA all cars at the same residence have to have coverage that applies to all licensed drivers that live there.

 

What does she want?
What can she afford?
The Prius will limit her driving other kids around, cause they won't want to be seen in it.

 

I told my wife exactly this before we started looking.

 

She can't afford anything, lol. I like the prius but I was concerned about the batteries eventually. But I can do an extended warranty...

 

I got a cx30 and it’s my favorite car I’ve ever had.

 

NO small Fords or Dodges. Too suspect. IN fact no small cars from any domestic.

Go Japanese or Korean, 100%.

Prius sounds like the winner.

Also what is the budget? If your its into the $14-15k you can get a 1-2 yo all electric car from Hertz car sales right now as they blow out a bunch of their inventory.

 

Bought my daughter an '05 escape in 2018 for college. It was completely reliable....She traded it in this year for a new Rav4.....month later, bought a new constructed house for $500k.

Dealer gave her like $1000 for it and she literally cried about getting rid of it. 1st car from dad sentiment ya know.

 

Maybe so but, the Named Insured, on the policy, will get the rate increase, no matter who is on the policy so, if the person on the policy has the accident, they are charged. Getting penalized for another driver is never fun. You also can "opt out" of the all people in the house policy, by making them a named excluded person. Can you imagine, if someone in your household has a dui, lots of tickets, etc... and paying their surcharge on YOUR policy? Nope, You just cant drive my cars. Ski

 

The 08 Prius is a safe pick. Check on whether the battery has been changed or not. Only real issue you'll run into there. They also have front cover gaskets that leak, but usually not bad enough to bother repairing, and it's not a hateful fix anyway. The batteries can be fixed cheaply by replacing individual cells instead of the entire battery, but the safer solution in your case would be swap it out for a new one if/when needed.

A gas Corolla is also an excellent choice. They really don't have any issues and are rock solid.

 

good luck always a tough task....i wanted a bit more metal around my girls. Budget is tough too.

we went with 8+ year old Accords then ('11 and '12), which both are up to 200k - have only done brakes, tires & oil chgs

 

If you're going to buy a car for her, then I'd try to find the newest example of that vehicle that you can afford. Older vehicles lack side impact, curtain, and other airbags that newer vehicles have and 2018+ vehicles will have back up cameras. Additionally, I'll echo the other posts in saying that I'd avoid the small econobox domestics. With that, I'd be partial to a newer Toyota Corolla or Honda Civic (both of which can be found with manual transmissions to boot).

Having said that, I think the truck scenario makes a lot of sense. It's newer, you know the history, and you already own it.

 

Just went through this also. I found a very well taken care of 2008 Buick Lucerne with < 80,000 miles for $9,500. Needed to replace a fuel pump and alternator (known weak points), but now should be good to 150,000 miles. Actively searching for unpopular vehicles can help - everyone wants a Honda or Toyota, from what I could tell nobody is looking for a Buick, Lincoln or Volvo 4 door sedan…

 

Shit, it was 2014 when I bought her the escape. Kept it for 10 yrs.

 

Prius or Corolla. Neither will ever leave her stranded. Even if they have issues they will still drive. The hybrid battery on the prius isn’t that big of a deal. My wife has an 07, and has had it for around 8 years. We have replaced the hybrid battery twice, but there is a guy here in MN that will replace your battery in your driveway with one that he rebuilt for $850 including tax. One thing to note about a Prius though, they still have a regular 12v battery too, and even if the hybrid battery is good, if you drain the 12v battery, by leaving the dome light on, or the battery just goes bad, you still need to jump it to get it running. But, in 8 years, and over 100k miles, (its now at 260k) it has never broke down and left her stranded. The only maintenance that it has needed was spark plugs, and batteries. Anyways, no matter what kind of car, Id still get her a little jumper pack, and make sure that she knows how to use it.

 

So, any German car?
The answer to this question is always Toyota. I don't know why anyone even thinks twice about it.