Corolla v Civic v Hyundai/Nissan moeds Group: alt.autos.toyota Date: Mon, May 12, 2008, 12:16pm (EDT-1) From: snipped-for-privacy@null.void (RPS) Our old Camry is showing its age (~12 years) and we have decided to look for a new car but budget down to "Corolla level". I said "level" as I am open to competing models from Honda, Hyundai, Nissan, etc. I would appreciate your help in choosing the model, as well as the "sub-model" (CE, LE, DX etc.). Most of our driving is city or regional: round trips to places 10-50 miles away. A few times a year we drive 300-500 miles trips. I would like basic safety features (line anti-lock brakes) and comforts (4-door, AC). Very high priority running cost (mpg, reliability). I can live with manual or automatic. I would consider new, or low-mileage dealer demos etc, but not "really used". (Like everyone else, I thought about Prius but it looks too expensive.) A few questions:
- Which make/model would be the best fit?
- What is the best site for reading up on these and well as comparison reviews? (Bought my last car 12 years ago and online resources must have come along since then.)
- Would you go to a local dealer or Carmax, Carsdirect etc?
- At this point would you buy a 2009, or 2008?
- When is the best time of the year to get good deals on last years models, dealer demos, loaners and like? (These I'd imagine are only available from dealers.) Thanks for all help. ================= Edmunds is the best site for vehicle research..
Christmas is a good time to buy as is the end of a model run. I purchased my 01 camry in April of 01 after they announced what the redesign would entail. I didn't like 02's and got a great deal on my 01.
This year I went through the current market in trying to decide weather to keep my 8 year old camry or buy a new car. I did a 24 hour test drive on a couple of vehicles and the 2009 corrolla was one of them.
I tried mazda, subaru, hyundai and nissan. I decided a 2009 corrolla S would be the best value considering fuel economy and available options and reliability.
But I decided to keep my Camry another several years given the quality drop off of newer cars across the board.
Corrolla S actually delivers the same fuel economy as the yaris and XA...So, it doesn't make sense to buy a smaller car in those comparisons unless you want to look 'trendy' like the prius owners..
The prius was never a consideration for me. And after very little research, I found that to be a good instinct since it has (on top of the battery issues) safety issues, such as the brakes wont work if it doesn't power up. Or it wont come out of park if it wont power up..
Tow truck drivers just love prius'.