"responsible" 5k to spend

mazda6 mazda 626 mitsubishi galant. before it became a boat.

The 626 V6/5 speed is a lot faster than most people realize.

another vote for a maxima and against the P71

I wouldn't worry about mileage until you are talking 200k+. Having had lots of high mileage cars, there are rarely any issues with things wearing out that were intended to last the life of the car until more like 300k. I bought my daily driver with the odometer stopped at 376k (no idea of how long it was broken before that) and other than a front suspension rebuild it doesn't really have any mileage related issues.

http://boston.craigslist.org/nos/cto/2792467069.html

Went up today, act fast.
'03 SVT 5 door w/ 116k miles asking $3,500

z31maniac wrote: Since no one else has................why spend the money on another vehicle to move 5 people when you say in the first post you've already got a minivan?

Not to speak to the original poster but I have to have 2 car seats in my car even though I almost never use my car to haul the kids. Sometimes the wife gets stuck at work and I need to pick the kids up from daycare, sometimes our kid hauler needs to go in for service and we need to move the kids around, sometimes we need to have kids going to two places at the same time and it is easier to not have to remove and re-install car seats all the time.

z31maniac wrote: Since no one else has................why spend the money on another vehicle to move 5 people when you say in the first post you've already got a minivan?

Good question... But I have a good answer... I need the ability to drive my entire family around in case the van needs work or most often, when I need to pick the kids up because my wife is busy at work. Plus it's nice to cruise to the mall in something BESIDES the minivan once in a while!

Ooops, looks like rusnak above already said it best.

I ended up buying the Mazda Protege5 that jrw1621 posted last night. The guy selling it was super anal about maintainance and keeping records on just about everything but gas purchases. Oil changes done on time. New plugs and wires. New brakes, new tires, great new audio, great clutch, new upgraded struts and springs. Bronzoil bushings in the shifter and the factory shop manual on CD. Plus he was very obviously obsessed about Mazdas and THIS car specifically.

Everything about the sale told me it was right. And it was nice to deal with a professional, knowlegable family guy and not some ricer kid where you wonder about the abuse the car may have taken.

So thanks you guys so much for your help. I think I was kept from making a mistake by reading this thread!

ebonyandivory wrote: I ended up buying the Mazda Protege5 that jrw1621 posted last night. The guy selling it was super anal about maintainance and keeping records on just about everything but gas purchases. Oil changes done on time. New plugs and wires. New brakes, new tires, great new audio, great clutch, new upgraded struts and springs. Bronzoil bushings in the shifter and the factory shop manual on CD. Plus he was very obviously obsessed about Mazdas and THIS car specifically. Everything about the sale told me it was right. And it was nice to deal with a professional, knowlegable family guy and not some ricer kid where you wonder about the abuse the car may have taken. So thanks you guys so much for your help. I think I was kept from making a mistake by reading this thread!

Great buy! Sounds like it should fit the bill perfect. I love finding a solid owner to buy from. Any car can have problems, but just knowing it was actually loved can make things so much easier from the get go.

I don't see any decent SVT Focus for 5 grand. Also, the man wants 4 doors. I like a Focus though.

I'm going to check out the Vibe GT and G20 myself. My 78 year old mom has a normal '05 Vibe though, with only 60k miles. I drove it last week, and it is getting kind of loose and sloppy feeling. She bought it new.

My daughter's '98 Cabrio is tighter.

I agree on the P71. Its a fine appliance, but 281 cubes of small-bore V8 makes for a mighty boring boat. I got a kick out of the Impala SS copies they tried for a few years. It only took them 7 years to come up with a car that was heavier, made the same power with less torque, and fit it with the worlds worst-matched suspension bits I've ever seen.

... and people bought them like hotcakes. Now that they can't get those anymore they're buying up P71s.