Buying a new car----------HELP

I am looking at getting a new car. I have narrowed down what I want and what is available locally. I have several gas hogs around and want to get one dependable affordable--reliable- fuel effecient vehicle to drive for a year or two and then give to one of my boys.

Now it looks like I am asking for a lot but really not--- I am trying to stay under 20K and have narrowed down the search. In my area their is a GM/CHEVY/Pontiac and Honda dealerships. Now I am in Michigan--- the former capital of the auto industry and hesitate with a Honda but I like the price and mpg.

I am deciding on the 2009 Pontiac Vibe. (Auto -loaded etc) and the Honda Civic Ex--- auto etc---

Does anyone have thoughts--- opinions on either vehicle? Is the Honda that much more reliable?

According to Honda the civic gets 36 on the highway--- the vibe gets 30 or maybe 31.

Compare this to what I drive most of the time -- Ford Excursion (V-10) which gets 10.4mpg-------------ICK! and you see why I want something with more mpg. I am going to keep the Ford---for when I need to hall my 4Kids around and 3 dogs--

I can get 40 mpg highway with my 97 honda civic ex. I think the newer ones don't get quite as good mileage (due to larger engines/heavier cars), but they will do better than the pontiac for sure. No problems with mine after ~20k miles I've put on it (90k-110k). Just had to replace an o2 sensor.

I would go with the honda, I don't like pontiacs. They definetly are not as reliable either.

I would definitely go for Honda, that particular Pontiac is made by Toyota BTW. (it is the same thing as the Matrix)

I have a 2007 Civic, so I have some experience, I LOVE MY CAR! Seriously though it is a great car, I get about 25 MPG city (I have 18" wheels and tires, so it is a little lower than it should be) and highway I get anywhere from 38-42 MPG.

I am leaning towards the Honda---I have this midset that Honda is boring to drive---- but I really want this to be a cheap car to drive and maintain. You are right Brooke the Vibe is the same as the toyota matrix-----the matrix is built in Canada and the Vibe is built in CA. The Civic is built in Ontario Canada.

Has anyone had a bad expereince with Honda? I have really heard nothing but good things about them.

I LOVED my Honda. The only bad thing I can say about it was that I sold it.

I wish I still had it. It was a blast to drive as well as being a great litle car.
It was a 1988 Accord 2 door with a 5 speed, and I still see it out on the road today.

stathunter wrote in post #5381114
I am leaning towards the Honda---I have this midset that Honda is boring to drive---- but I really want this to be a cheap car to drive and maintain. You are right Brooke the Vibe is the same as the toyota matrix-----the matrix is built in Canada and the Vibe is built in CA. The Civic is built in Ontario Canada.

Has anyone had a bad expereince with Honda? I have really heard nothing but good things about them.

Go drive one of the new Civics they are really fun to drive IMO.

Have you even seen them? This is what the dash looks like.... Everyone of my friends that gets in my car for the first time comments on this first thing.

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^ I am going to drive one later today--- I do like the high tech looking dash they have on them. My wife wants a sunroof no matter what I get so I will have to look at the EX--- I like the fact that the Honda Civic is a pretty darn reliable vehicle and that the mpg is higher on them.

Even my 97 civic is pretty nice to drive. A lot better than the fords/GM cars of similar age.

Well i'm a little biast... But still I have had 3 hondas. My family has had about 10 differnt Hondas. My 1986 Accord was a great car even though it needed some work when i bought it at 120k. Brakes,a broke spring... Muffler. I had the car until 180k, it needed a clutch (its first) and it started to leak Antifreeze thru the heatercore... and i did not want to be bothered with fixing the car has i had just bought my 1997 Prelude. (I bought it at 30,000 miles) The car now has 145,000 miles. I have Raced (Autocrossed) the car for the last 6 years, and most of that time the engine is spent at redline and often bouncing off it. The car still gets 27-30 mpg (depending on my right foot ) The only stuff that has "failed" on the car was the clutch and the radiator. The rad went early with ~70,000 miles... But they are "cheap" and easy to fix, i did it in the driveway and for around $80. The clutch went at 100k. They are "known" to go out around then... But i had also raced with it and i'm sure that was most of the reason for the early changing. I just bought another 1989 Accord with 170,000 miles.... It needs a Powersteering line and a few suspension bits... but what do you expect with a car with 170k on it?

I would NOT hesitate buying a Honda, in fact i encourage it. I just talked my co-worker into a Fit, from a Hyundai, and he is SO happy that he went that route. I also shopped a Acura for my sister, last fall and again she is very happy so far. The wife and i got a Subaru Forester last summer, wile i'm mostly happy with the purschase, i wish that honda sold a Turbo motor in the CRV (that was the main deciding factor the extra 50+hp) over the honda... and i should have NEVER fell into the hp war... oh well i know that the FXT will be a good car for us.

If you are just looking for a small run-about i would look into a Fit, yes they are small, but they get almost 40mpg and only cost $15k!

I can ramble on this topic for days.... So if there are any spific questions PLEASE let me know.

Good luck on your purschase
Ken

Ken,
Thanks for your insight. Here in Michigan---the first hesitation is "foreign" car---- that is probabaly the hardest thing for me to get over. I do think that the Honda is probably the best buy for me and probably will have fewer problems than the others.

I am really getting this car to give to my son---so what he likes factors into this. I spoke wtih a good friend of the family yesterday who is a mechanic. He recommended the Honda and personally he cant get one because all of his customers are Auto Factory Workers---. I asked my son this am if he liked the Honda--- to my suprise he said "absolutely".

We drive Hummers, Trucks, Muscle Cars so going to a Honda Civic is culture shock. I personally want to drive the others less and put more miles on a car like the civic which is almost 4X's better mileage than my excursion.

I'd second the fit, my dad got one about a month ago and loves it. It looks (and is) small but there is a LOT more room on the inside than you'd expect. The back seats can fold down into the floor of the car so you can really get a lot in there. Plus, it is only 15k and gets close to 40mpg.

stathunter wrote in post #5381990
Ken,
Thanks for your insight. Here in Michigan---the first hesitation is "foreign" car---- that is probabaly the hardest thing for me to get over. I do think that the Honda is probably the best buy for me and probably will have fewer problems than the others.

I am really getting this car to give to my son---so what he likes factors into this. I spoke wtih a good friend of the family yesterday who is a mechanic. He recommended the Honda and personally he cant get one because all of his customers are Auto Factory Workers---. I asked my son this am if he liked the Honda--- to my suprise he said "absolutely".

We drive Hummers, Trucks, Muscle Cars so going to a Honda Civic is culture shock. I personally want to drive the others less and put more miles on a car like the civic which is almost 4X's better mileage than my excursion.

I understand the hesitation on getting a "foregin car" But this is a global economy, and just look and whos building factories where... I just read a article that Ford is moving jobs to Mexico and canada (and GM), and Toyota is moving jobs to Kentucky(amongst other Jap companys)... Umm now whos a domestic manf? But whatever, that can turn into a heated debate.

I STRONGLY think that the Hondas will give you less issues over time... And just do some reading from reputable books and sites (Consumer reports and ect). I have owned a few domestic cars and they don't hold up the same. My dad just bought a F-150 BRAND NEW, and driving it home from the stealership the doors rattled... He went right back and told them... they just told him "yea they do that" Umm if that is a new car build quality how will it be in 10yrs and 100k later?

Yea MPG is getting more and more important these days... So when buying a new car the MPG is something to take into account.

Good luck and i hope that you buy Honda

Later
ken

If I didn't drive a Toyota, I'd drive a Honda. Heck, I've been driving Toyota's for 22 years. Both companies build quality vehicles with a long record of customer satisfaction. Besides, as KENLUDE posted, we live in a global economy today and most Toyota's and Honda's are built in the US.

Step outside of the box and enjoy the Honda.

Ive got an 03 civic and I love it, got it to drive to & from work as it's 50 miles one way and i'm getting between 38 and 40 mpg as well as with the vtec engine it's real quick and a blast to drive. you can't go wrong with a Honda BTW my wifes Pilot is also a great SUV

KENLUDE97 wrote in post #5382790
I understand the hesitation on getting a "foregin car" But this is a global economy, and just look and whos building factories where... I just read a article that Ford is moving jobs to Mexico and canada (and GM), and Toyota is moving jobs to Kentucky(amongst other Jap companys)... Umm now whos a domestic manf? But whatever, that can turn into a heated debate.

NOT trying to turn this into that heated debate, but even Intel is building a factory in China (and taking away U.S. jobs in the process).