Options for fuel efficient 4-door beater?

Blaze

Blaze

The Jeeper Reaper
Joined
Aug 9, 2005
Location
Wake Forest, NC
OK, need some ideas here. I have an idea what I want but want to be sure I'm not forgetting anything.

My wife and I were going over our finances last night, and while we are doing ok we could do better. With my last semester of college coming up, I really hate to dip into savings for the tuition. Plus I am driving a hell of a lot more than I expected to be when I bought the Suburban, so last month between the two of us we dropped close to $950 in gas. Ouch.

So sadly, I am going to sell the Burb and buy a beater and use the rest of the cash for tuition. Once I graduate I am going to start saving to buy a 4-door diesel truck, but for now I just need a cheap beater.

I am 6'4, 240lbs so small cars are kind of not an option. Plus I have two kids so need something they will be comfortable in.

I am looking to spend around $1000-$1500. I would prefer a manual, but it seems like the bigger cars didn't get manuals. Gotta be American, I'm from a family of steelworkers and I don't buy foreign cars.

I'm thinking:
Pontiac Grand Prix
Pontiac Bonneville
Chevy Lumina (although I don't like them)
Buicks (I owned one a few years back, not really feeling the Buick anymore)

I'm leaning towards a Grand Prix. My brothers both have them and they love them, and they are good cars to drive and I like driving them.

Anyone have any other thoughts?
 
Cant go wrong with a mid 90s honda accord. Sold mine a year ago....had 250,000 miles, ran like a champ and its still running. I bought a 2006 Honda, now has 130,000 miles, just change the oil and tires, never a problem. I am 6'4 330lbs, and I fit in it fine.
 
My folks have a 1990 Pontiac Bonneville that my father now uses as a spare car, and to pull his fishing boat. They have owned it since new, and never had any trouble from it. It has been a very reliable car, and has decent head and leg room.
 
I'm 6'7" 290-lbs & have a '08 Focus (32-35 mpg) I drive around on hot days & long trips (instead of my '66 F-85) w/o any problems.

The older Focus' are about the same size interior-wise.....something to think about.

I keep a child's seat in it for my 19-moth old & my wife rides in the back w/ him....I still have room in the front (comfortably).
 
I'd be looking at the mid-late 90's grandparent mobile sedans. Can be found with low miles and in good shape for pretty cheap...and still get low-mid 20's on the mpg side of things. My folks always liked having Caddies and Lincolns around, with the occasional Crown vic or grand Marquis. The Sedan Devilles my dad has always driven usually yielded 24-26mpg's hwy...the FoMoCo products usually in the 22-24mpg hwy range. My little Bro is currently driving a 95 Buick Lesabre and getting somewhere in the 23-25mpg range on the highway. If you look in the 10-15 year old range, you should have no issues nabbing a car with less than a 150k on the clock in good shape for less than $2500
 
Didn't you just list the same car 4 times?:lol:

Sorry nothing to add here. I only buy Japanese cars.:rolleyes:
 
Summary: I'm thinking about buying a W-body or G-body GM car.

What shape should the badges be?

:flipoff2:
 
LInda had a grnad prix we bought new in 02.
It was uhhh ok?
Other than replacing all 4 window regulators 2 times each in 65,000 miles....and the radio not working. The A/C motor thermistor switch going ou yearly. And the cruise working truly intermittently. All in all a decent car with shitty Delphi electronics.

Or I could have just said, it was a typical mid 90s-to early 00s GM car.
 
I just picked up a 86 diesel golf last week. 50MPG! No, it's not American, but neither is being financially responsible from what we've seen recently!

My wife & I also realized how much gas I was using driving 30 miles to work 6 days a week. Best of luck with your purchase!
 
Late 90s Saturn SL1 5spd? May be a bit small but the MPGs are great. IIRC the gear ratio is slightly different for SL1 vs SL2 so the mileage is even better.
Just have to add oil... every 1k...

There's a wagon model (SW1, 2), that may help w/ the space.
 
The 90s altima's are damn good cars I've had one as a dd since 07 & its been one of the most reliable cars I've ever owned. As a former W body owner I would advise against one the transmissions suck, not very reliable, and the fuel mileage isn't that great I had a Z34 Monte Carlo went through 2 transmissions numerous brake rotors no matter what rotors I got they would always warp. The Altima is made in Tennessee & is a great car very roomy
 
I don't care where it is made, I won't buy a car from a foreign manufacturer. My wife had an Altima, it was a good car. Withstood a pretty violent collision too.

We've had several W-bodies in the family, and they've been good to us. Only one we've had any real trouble with was my old Z34 Monte Carlo that had issues with the DOHC 3.4.

I'm actually kind of considering a Grand Am with the manual transmission, not huge on the Grand Ams, but I really want to drive a stick again.
 
I drive a 95 Old's Cutlas Cierra. I am 6'2" and 210, and I think you'd fit fine. 3.1L V-6, plenty of power and always gets 30 mpg. Can be found very reasonable
 
I used to buy only American But I do like VW's and Volvo's . My wife's V70 wagon get's right around 30 on the HWY and about 25 in town . If you want American Look at Saturn's or Also any GM with a 3.8 the 3.1's and 3.4's have weak intake gaskets . you can also pick up a caddie :huggy: with a northstar engine .
 
Not to hijack but you have made me think.
For years I was buy American only, and thinking back on it We have only owned American and German vehicles...having said that.

what is the less of 2 evils. Buying an American car that sends tax dolars to an Ameican cmpany but employs Mexicans or Canadians to actually build the car. Or buy Foreign where the money eventually goes over sees but locals are employed to build the car....

All that said you are buying used so there is no implication except personal preference and you seem pretty rooted there.
 
What about a Chevy Malibu? You know, the 4 door ones form the late 90's with the v6?
 
When I lost my job last summer, we needed a second car since my company had provided me a company car. My next door neighbor works at a car lot and they just so happened to take a trade in on a 1999 Chrysler Concorde Lxi with almost 200,000 miles on it. We snapped it up for $1200 and have driven it everyday since. We have put over 20,000 miles on it since and on trips to Michigan and to Myrtle Beach, we have been averaging 27 MPG. Not bad for a 12 year old car with almost a quarter of a million miles. We've put about another $500 into it, but half of that was routine maint. stuff.

I LOVE the power leather seats, climate control and the Infinity stereo. On top of all that, you can fit three car seats across the rear bench and fit enough luggage and crap for a five person, week long winter trip to Michigan in the trunk!
 
We had a 01 Tarus. Put 150k on it with no issues. They fixed the tranny problems in the mid to late 90's. Service them regular and they do just fine. Plus, there are so many out there you can gettem cheap.

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk
 
Ron said:
Not to hijack but you have made me think.
For years I was buy American only, and thinking back on it We have only owned American and German vehicles...having said that.
what is the less of 2 evils. Buying an American car that sends tax dolars to an Ameican cmpany but employs Mexicans or Canadians to actually build the car. Or buy Foreign where the money eventually goes over sees but locals are employed to build the car....
All that said you are buying used so there is no implication except personal preference and you seem pretty rooted there.
Click to expand...

I know, it is a hard line to walk. Mine is mostly from a personal experience in my life.

I grew up in a steel town and one nice cold morning when I was a kid my dad had me down at the unemployment line with him. They had just had a major layoff at the steel and there were a few hundred guys standing in the line, it went out the door and down the street. As we were there a guy pulled up in a Nissan and parked it and this line of guys went ape shit on the guy over him having a foreign car. My dad looked at me and pointed at the car and said "that's why we are standing in this line." Stuck with me ever since.

Later that after noon he said "well, that and the unions are a bunch of thieves" and that stuck with me too. :lol:
 
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