Buying daughter a car

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Kidd-7

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I’m looking to buy my daughter a used car or small SUV. I don’t really know anything about newer cars. Any suggestions on what to look for? I want to get her into something that’s relatively cheap to maintain, reliable and will last a while.
 
If you’re looking for something newer, my recommendation would be a Mazda. It doesn’t really matter which one as they all have the same engine and trans, but I only see them come in the shop for basic maintenance stuff. My mother has a 2020 Mazda 6 with 75k on it and all I have done on it is oil changes, brakes once, and tires once.
 
MadMikeyL said:
If you’re looking for something newer, my recommendation would be a Mazda. It doesn’t really matter which one as they all have the same engine and trans, but I only see them come in the shop for basic maintenance stuff. My mother has a 2020 Mazda 6 with 75k on it and all I have done on it is oil changes, brakes once, and tires once.
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I'd second this. I've owned five Mazdas between model years 2012 and 2021 with naturally aspirated "SkyActiv" engines, all exceptionally great cars.

Some of the later SkyActiv engines are equipped with cylinder deactivation which adds unnecessary complexity. There's an infotainment screen showing the status of that system. I would pick one without.
 
I’m thinking 10 years old or less. My dailies are currently a 96 & a 2000, while great vehicles and mostly reliable they need work regularly. I’m trying to get away from that for her. Cylinder deactivation & CVT are not on the list for sure, id like to avoid a timing belt also.
 
Kidd-7 said:
I’m looking to buy my daughter a used car or small SUV. I don’t really know anything about newer cars. Any suggestions on what to look for? I want to get her into something that’s relatively cheap to maintain, reliable and will last a while.
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Hard to go wrong with a toyota camry. Look for a 4th gen

Edit: aside from that i know little about newer cars
 
Ornery said:
Dodge Charger, or Challenger v6 ?
Its rebuildable. Maybe one day put a v8 in it ?
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Absolutely not! Chrysler’s 3.6V6 is complete garbage. Failed lifters, failed camshafts, failed timing chain tensioners, failed head gaskets, failed oil coolers that cross-contaminate oil and coolant, and that’s not even getting into all the electrical nightmares or transmission problems.
 
MadMikeyL said:
If you’re looking for something newer, my recommendation would be a Mazda. It doesn’t really matter which one as they all have the same engine and trans, but I only see them come in the shop for basic maintenance stuff. My mother has a 2020 Mazda 6 with 75k on it and all I have done on it is oil changes, brakes once, and tires once.
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My dad’s got a 15 Mazda 6 and I agree. Reliable, simple, shockingly efficient and It’s actually held up well corrosion wise(older Mazdas were terrible!)
 
XR7-4.6 said:
My dad’s got a 15 Mazda 6 and I agree. Reliable, simple, shockingly efficient and It’s actually held up well corrosion wise(older Mazdas were terrible!)
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The “shockingly efficient” is a good way to put it. She typically gets 38mpg in hers. I actually took her car on a road trip to West Virginia last summer, and even cruising at 90+mph, I was still getting 36mpg!
 
MadMikeyL said:
The “shockingly efficient” is a good way to put it. She typically gets 38mpg in hers. I actually took her car on a road trip to West Virginia last summer, and even cruising at 90+mph, I was still getting 36mpg!
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Yep, same! For a car as big as it is with decent enough power there’s no other word than I can think of other than impressive. My Focus isn’t even that good
 
I'm happy to hear this consensus; my sis bought a Mazda as her retirement car, and it's perky as hell. We took it up the mountain, and I was impressed. It felt as light as my old Subaru thru the curves, but has power that car never dreamed of.
It also looks pretty good.
 
Side note: one element of the SkyActiv brand powertrain is the 6-speed auto, which is a Mazda in-house unit. At launch (2012 MY), it was quite special because it locks the TCC at all speeds above...some very low threshold; I think above 5 mph. That makes it feel very connected and crisp.
 
Kidd-7 said:
My dailies are currently a 96 & a 2000, while great vehicles and mostly reliable they need work regularly.
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I can relate to this sentiment. I love my car, and when people ask me for car advice, there's a strong temptation to recommend a 90s rwd Ford. It's a lovely daily driver.

But then I have to admit that I've had a few malfunctions over the three years of ownership, some completely disabling the car until diagnosis could take place, and I realize that 99% of drivers would hate this car very quickly.

I think you're on the right track with something up to 10 years old.
 
In the used vehicle market, the GOAT for reliability goes to Toyota. If performance is important, anything with the 3.5 V6 will haul ass and be amazingly reliable. That engine has been around for a long time, has timing chains, and it didn't get direct injection early on like other car companies went with.
Camry or Highlander are great options, if you want fancy Lexus used the same engines and chassis but they cost a bit more. Used Toyotas go for a higher price compared to other brands but it's for a reason
 
Don't anyone throw anything... But the Impala of the last generation was a great car. I'd spring for the V6 tho as the 4 was so slow it was unsafe. Also see lots of fusions of that era driving around, but I have no experience with them. My son is driving his mom's old 09 sonata. 155000 and going pretty strong other than normal maintenance and Iowa rust.
 
I borrowed a 7th gen 08 Malibu for a couple of months. Was not a fan of the visibility. I think I was going to replace a headlamp bulb for the guy while I had it, but I think it involved removing engine parts to access it
 
I have to ask, what kind of car does your daughter want? I know you are trying to get her the best possible car with least amount of work.... but..
 
Kidd-7 said:
She doesn’t care, I’m saddened to say that I have not properly instilled the car bug in her. :(
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WHAAAATTTT!!!! It skips a generation I am told. Since she does not car, get her a bus pass then, it will cost less in insurance... :P (just kidding)
 
Yeah they're a thing in the UK. How widespread the public transit infrastructure is over there is quite astonishing.

On topic, I don't really have any complaints with our Fusion. I don't have much experience with the various engines found in the platform, but overall all I've needed to do to ours is change/rotate tires and change the oil. Excluding the 3G-4G modem upgrade from a few years ago, anyway.
 
My opinion would be to find the least expensive, lowest miles, lowest insurance cost that is rated highly among consumers of the said vehicle. White is easiest to take care of and stay looking clean, dark interiors are crap in hot climates and large tires cost a lot more than small tires.

I was going to say a Honda, but I have not heard much about their ratings in years. The two Korean cars have good reviews and are not that expensive, have good crash ratings, etc, etc...

Take her with you and see what she takes a fancy to. The more a teenager likes their car, the less likely to let their new found boyfriend drive it....
 
White Lincoln said:
Take her with you and see what she takes a fancy to. The more a teenager likes their car, the less likely to let their new found boyfriend drive it....
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And the more likely they are to actually care enough to maintain it properly, avoid the classic
"when did you last change the oil?"
"before I bought it?"
its a very real thing said by people lol
 
Whatever you decide on, please check the carcomplaints dot com to make sure the year doesn't have a weakness. True delta also lists common issues that we may not have heard of.
 
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