23rd Jul 2014, 17:14
Good advice, generally, for the impecunious motorist. However, the ultimate cheap-motoring car of all time - between very cheap to buy used, quite good fuel economy, and great durability/reliability was not in fact a full-sized car (though those are excellent), and certainly not a Japanese car. It was the Buick Century/Olds Ciera of the late 80s-early 90s.
We used to use those old Buick Centuries as taxi-cabs, back in the late 90s/early 2000s, and they were unbelievable. We had one '88 or '89 Taurus in service, and the thing was in the shop more than on the road - really a nightmare. The taxi company boss at the time became maniacally anti-Ford due to that car.
The only cars we ever had that came close to the Century/Ciera in profitability over time were the Plymouth Acclaims.
21st Jul 2014, 17:53
That's actually not true. If you can pick up a car for $500 that someone has just put a ton of work and money into, that's a good car to buy. All that means is that someone else got stuck with the repair bills, which is unfortunate for him, but fortunate for you.