Reliable cars for a grand?

I'm looking to get a reliable beater to supplement my V-8 cop car beater. Most likely, it'll be a 4 cylinder FWD. And about $1000.

I've been irrationally jonesing for a 5 speed Escort or Tracer. I don't know why, but those things seem to last forever but are impossible to find. I'd like a wagon, but I'm open to suggestions or specific finds. Maybe a SL2 Saturn?

I'm North of Chicago, so Milwaukee or Rockford aren't out of the question. Thanks in advance.

old corolla.....old civic.....old accord.

I sold my '90 accord EX coupe (220k miles) for $1800 and that was 5 or 6 years ago, and it was in great shape and ran like a top. I'm sure you could find one for around that range..

I sold my $50 5-speed Escort for $500. Those CVH motors get ridiculous gas mileage if you drive them right.

You're pretty close - I scan craigslist multiple times daily, I'll let you know if I find anything. FWIW I'm selling a Supra for $1250.

Maybe you can find an SW1 or SW2. They're rare, but there isn't really a premium in price for them.

For under 1K, also, don't be completely afraid of other GM FWD cars from the 90's. Not as reliable as a Honda or Toyotas, but they are cheap, and tend to be reaconably easy and cheap to maintain.

eastsidemav wrote: For under 1K, also, don't be completely afraid of other GM FWD cars from the 90's. Not as reliable as a Honda or Toyotas, but they are cheap, and tend to be reaconably easy and cheap to maintain.

Good advice, but avoid anything with a V6 for maintenance sake.

Guy at work just totalted his hundai. I looked on the local craigslist and found a 90-ish AE92 Corolla SR5 2 door coupe for $900 and a Cresida for $1200. The Rolla is like mine except not the GT-S model, has a 4AFE and gets around 40MPG. The Cresi is basically a Supra with a sedan body on it and the non-turbo motor. They are out there.

I'm also looking in the same area for a sub-$1000 car for my brother. Only if I find sumthin' I'll tell you after I buy it

Slick, you have pics of the Supra?

SlickDizzy wrote:

eastsidemav wrote: For under 1K, also, don't be completely afraid of other GM FWD cars from the 90's. Not as reliable as a Honda or Toyotas, but they are cheap, and tend to be reaconably easy and cheap to maintain.

Good advice, but avoid anything with a V6 for maintenance sake.

I had a 93 Grand Am with a 3.3L V6 (derivative of the Buick 3.8 L), that car was a great little car. The only problem I ever had with it was the AC evaporators. Sold it after 7 years and 214K km.

I only paid a grand for my 94 miata, only thing it really needed was a top

2.0dohc wrote: I only paid a grand for my 94 miata, only thing it really needed was a top

Oh believe me, I'd pee my pants if I found a $1000 Miata. I'd probably pee the seller's pants, too

Well I did find some sub $1000 5 speed Escort/Tracers. Is there anything I should look out for? Any model specific things?

Appleseed wrote: Well I did find some sub $1000 5 speed Escort/Tracers. Is there anything I should look out for? Any model specific things?

Make sure the timing belt has been done and the head gasket is AOK, other than that they tend to have issues stemmed from E36 M3ty, brittle wiring, usually in the hatch area. Take out the intake baffle, swap the throttle body from a '97-up and get 15HP. Or hog out the holes in a DSM manifold, flip it and go turbo.

hijack

Marty, I'd PM you but because of your many spaces and non-hexadecimal characters, I cannot.

/hijack

I posted a $333 eBay Miata in the for sale postings.

FB RX7s can be had under $1K, and they are fun

Anything GM

Cavalier

Sunbird

Sunfire

Grand Am

Grand Prix

Cutlass

Le Sabre

Beretta

And so on..

Parts are practically free, interchange is great, and its definitely true that a GM will run poorly longer than most cars will run at all.

93gsxturbo wrote: ...its definitely true that a GM will run poorly longer than most cars will run at all.

I hope you don't mind, but I'm gonna steal that one!

I vote escort, or any protege early enough to have a BP in it. Dime a dozen, fun, and can be fast for like, a dollar. Or b13 sentra. Will probably be all ate up with the cancer, but.... they're also fun. And sr20's fit in em.

I guess you want fwd for winter driving, but what about old school rwd Volvo goodness?

irish44j wrote: old corolla.....old civic.....old accord.

this

HeavyDuty wrote: I guess you want fwd for winter driving, but what about old school rwd Volvo goodness?

240 wagon. It needs to happen.

Escorts, Tempos with 5spds are good bets. I just got a LeBaron for $160.

The 98 Tercel that my son just picked up is supposed to be thrifty, and reliable.

Great car if you have insomnia, too. Every time I drive it, it makes me sleepy.

I've had a couple of old Hondas that would fall into this category. I wouldn't recommend buying anything like them. One I drove on a bad transmission for 20,000 miles because I was too lazy to change another transmission (I had just done this with my previous car which had just died), the other had the transmission completely die in Atlanta rush hour traffic. I won't have another Honda with an automatic if my life depended on it.

I see Escorts going for $1000 all the time in my town. People buy them for their kids, they drive them through high school and don't kill them, and they end up back on the market. I figure anything that can take the beating a high school kid hands out will be reliable. Maybe not the one the high school kid tried to kill, but there seem to be plenty to chose from.

I bought a 91 Corolla from the campus classifies from an exchange student that was headed back home. $600. 5spd, coldest air imaginable....solid runner/driver. Rusty, but functionally good.

I drove it for a few months and sold it to someone who needed a cheap car more than I did, for $900.

5 years later, she's still driving it, still happy with it, and it hasn't needed any repair whatsoever.

im not sure if Goodwill operates in Chi-town or not, but if so, theres public autoauctions in most cities that have Goodwill. You can buy cars for very cheap. Had a buddy nab a 626 with right at 100k, in good shape, just needing an exhaust (to pass then running E-check in ohio) for $800 if I recall correctly.

I also vote for a mid 90s corolla. Of the cars Ive owned, mine was one of the funnest cars to drive with the 5 spd manual. Ran like a top, but some piddly stuff (like the fuel tank ) began to malfunction, and it was nickel and dime-ing me to death. I kinda wish I woulda put a lil bit more into it and kept it.

If you could find a naturally aspirated 626 or MX-6 from 1988 to 1992 with a manual trans, they should be around a grand and be pretty reliable. They also get no attention from anyone you don't want paying attention.