Hello all,

I am a collge student at Florida State University. I am going to be buying a car within the next 6 months and I have already started research the used car market for a vehicle which will suit me.

First, I live in Kansas City, Missouri, so I'll need a car that is very dependable and likes highway miles for a 1050 mile trip each way (at least twice a year). The cars that I am looking at include:

99-00 Pontiac Grand Am
99-00 Oldsmobile Alero
00-01 Nissan Sentra
98-01 Saturn SC or SL
00-01 Ford Focus
97-98 Honda Accord
96-00 Honda Civic

My budget is absolutely no greater than $11,000. Reliability is a must, and to a lesser degree, fun to drive and sporty. Thanks in advance.

-Joshua

The Saturn or Civic will give you the best value for your money and be the cheapest to insure.

Hey, thanks for the response:

Although I have several GM cars listed, further research has told me that Saturns have poor reliability and are expensive to maintain (my primary source was ConsumerReports.org). I have begun to give to Ford Focus some serious consideration, as I have always been fond of the ZX3 hatchback. I've found several used vehicles with low miles and many options, most importantly, a great price.

What is your opinion on the Focus?

-Joshua

I'd say Focus,Sentra or Civic

Focus's get really good gas mileage, as do Civics. And both are fairly peppy and fun to drive. Can't beat Japanese cars for reliability though.

:alien2:
I am paritial to the Focus ZX3 as well. They are suppose to be a good car. Aother good choice are they Cavalier and Sunfire from GM. Everyone around here seems to put them down. They are good cars!!!
:alien2:

civic all the way man, fun to drive, got some nutz, reliable and good with gas