Need a New Car D:<

[Kazuki]

The other day my Volvo's brakes failed while I was trying to come to a stop on the highway. Worst possible situation. Long story short, in an attempt to avoid hitting the cars in front of me head-on, I drove my car against the concrete barrier to my left side. The damage wasn't too terrible to the body, but the wheels and brakes / brake lines need to be replaced. Instead of paying for heavy repairs on an old Volvo, I decided to just leave it at the towing lot and look for a new car.

So right now I'm looking at two different cars. I don't really like the choices too much because I'm sure I can find a cheaper Honda or Toyota or something with similar specs, but my parents are all "WE NEED IT TO BE SAFE SO YOU DON'T DIE" about it. So here they are:

1994 Mercedes-Benz S-Class
Link: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280637049637
Expected price: ~$6,000

2003 Audi A4 Quattro
Link: http://www.carfax.com/viewEmailReport.do?a=JWoZG7RktyRqchSmdUQisbuI7p0XZ%2Bd05RDR4pEGYZlHsIWeJnMg3tbDgDaCTSi3&language=en
Expected price: ~$6,500

Both of 'em have their pros and cons. I would definitely go for the Mercedes if it wasn't in mo-effin' Orlando. It looks like it's been taken care of extremely well. Everything about the car looks brand new.The Audi, on the other hand, is a more sketchy buy because it's had so many repairs ("checkups") and the person I'm buying it from has apparently only owned it for 4 months. But on the other hand, if we buy the Audi, I start driving it right away. Won't have to pay ~$500 to have the car delivered across the country.

I'll get to take a look at the Audi tomorrow morning. The seller is a friend of a mechanic who is a close friend of my parents'. The mechanic says that he was considering buying the Audi for himself after driving it and inspecting it because it's in great condition. I'm willing to trust him on that, but I'm still not sure. Plus I hear that I'll end up eventually paying the same amount of money for the Audi in repairs as I would pay to buy it, essentially doubling the price.

So yeah. Looking for opinions here from people who know what they're talking about, because I definitely don't.

[jrgp]

Were you injured at all?

I don't really have much to say car wise, only that toyotas last forever. If you can find an ancient but well-maintained (as in regular oil/fluid changes and stuff of that nature) camry/corola/avalon/etc, you can't go wrong.

if it wasn't in mo-effin' Orlando.

You saying that makes me want to go on a road trip by driving it up there to you then taking a plane back.

[filip2322]

You shouldnt go for the mercedes,hear allot bad things about it (expensive repairs/parts,fuel eater..)
and im not an Audi fan,but if thats all you can choose from then the Audi
I for myself love my Seat (have it around 20 mths and no bigger repairs for now)

[demoniac93]

Mercedes are never worth it, they'll eat your pockets on fuel costs alone, let aloen the maintenance.
The decent one to get would be the Audi, but then again, they are somewhat spoiled as well.
Do you have any Hyundai's around you? I hear the Avante is pretty decent for it's price.

[DarkCrusade]

Get an Audi. If possible, a TT. It's the fckn best

[Kazuki]

Unfortunately, after lots of searching around in my immediate area, I wasn't able to find anything worth looking at. Anything remotely decent is way out of my price range, especially if looking at a dealership. I'm really hoping that this Audi turns out to be good when I take a look at it tomorrow, because if not I'll have to go buy some piece-of-crap-mobile that I'll only use for a year or two.

Were you injured at all?

if it wasn't in mo-effin' Orlando.

You saying that makes me want to go on a road trip by driving it up there to you then taking a plane back.

I'm perfectly fine, no injuries whatsoever. And that would be awesome if there weren't so many factors that could foil that plan. ;P For one, I don't think they would let you pick up the car since you're not the new owner.

[a-4-year-old]

Any repairs on either of those choices is going to be expensive. And the price of that audi raises some serious red flags unless they are just letting it go cheap because you know them.

[Guile]

Japanese cars. There's no best combo than high quality and cheap price.

[Kazuki]

Any repairs on either of those choices is going to be expensive. And the price of that audi raises some serious red flags unless they are just letting it go cheap because you know them.

They're letting it go cheap because the lady wants to buy herself a brand-new Audi and the dealership won't give her more than $4,500 trade-in for her Audi, so she's trying to sell it for a couple thousand more. I was supposed to test drive it this morning, but the lady's son never called me to ask for directions to my place, so I'm not sure what's going on. After thinking about it some more, I don't want to buy it anyway because I'm really afraid of it being a money pit.

The eBay auction on the Mercedes closed yesterday night and my dad didn't manage to get the final bid, so that one is gone, too. I'm thinking I might just bite the bullet and buy a new Mitsu Lancer from a nearby dealership. $15,500 with 0% financing, 5-year bumper-to-bumper warranty and 10-year powertrain warranty. I only have about $1,500 to put down, so monthly payments would be about $225 or so, which isn't that bad.

[vehicledestroyer]

glad your ok!! 

Cars lose 20% of their value the moment they're driven off the lot and 65% in the first five years. Used models can be a real value because you can get a car that's still in fine working order for a fraction of the new-car price. And you'll pay less in collision insurance and taxes, too.

[Kazuki]

I've looked around for a few days but I couldn't find anything that wasn't a potential money pit. Anyway, I got a new Lancer, so this thread is void.

[RafiPZ]

How's the Lancer
I'm hoping to get one as my next car.

[Mexer]

german cars are best cars.

[demoniac93]

german cars are best cars.

If you're a filthy rich bastard.
The maintenance and gas usage is a torture.

[Mexer]

If you're a filthy rich b*****d.
The maintenance and gas usage is a torture.

I'm pretty poor here in romania and i have a '99 diesel vw passat. 5.5 L / 100 km

[demoniac93]

If you're a filthy rich b*****d.
The maintenance and gas usage is a torture.

I'm pretty poor here in romania and i have a '99 diesel vw passat. 5.5 L / 100 km

Not talking about you...
I mean that Mercedes are only "best" when you have very deep pockets.

[PANZERCATWAGON]

just for future reference kazuki

toyotas are definitely the most reliable of cars ive worked on. if you dont want to die due to brake failure then get a toyota

[Guile]

If you're a filthy rich b*****d.
The maintenance and gas usage is a torture.

I'm pretty poor here in romania and i have a '99 diesel vw passat. 5.5 L / 100 km

Yeah, what is it? 1.5 liter or 1.6 liter?

I could overtake you with a bicycle. No wonder that thing takes 5,5 liters per 100 km. And it's a diesel.

[Mexer]

If you're a filthy rich b*****d.
The maintenance and gas usage is a torture.

I'm pretty poor here in romania and i have a '99 diesel vw passat. 5.5 L / 100 km

Yeah, what is it? 1.5 liter or 1.6 liter?

I could overtake you with a bicycle. No wonder that thing takes 5,5 liters per 100 km. And it's a diesel.

its a 1.9 tdi , 110 brake horse power.

we were talking about fuel consumption btw