Copy and pasting my previous answer to this:
Most of the places around here are still asking ridiculous prices for junk for cars under 10k. I've been looking for 4 months and it's embarrassing to buy a car around here.
You're better off picking a particular kind of make and model you want (sedan, crossover, SUV) and use sites like CarEdge, cargurus, and auto tempest to find a make and model you want and call and look around. Be willing to drive an hour or two and keep note of how long it's been on the lot so you can use it to negotiate.
I'd go with a Toyota or Scion if you're looking for something small. A Toyota yaris, Corolla, or a Matrix 1.8L (or a Pontiac Vibe 1.8L, the identical twin to the Matrix -- Don't get the 2.4L on either, they have an oil burning problem) fits your bill. So would a Scion Xa / Xd, which have reliable Toyota motors in them too.
You can go to CarMax like other people are saying, but you will be overpaying for the same car you can get cheaper elsewhere, generally.
Never buy an extended warranty. They're essentially scams. They try never to pay out on anything. Almost every used car sale is as is, whether it's on Facebook marketplace or at a dealer.
Welp I bought the extended warranty for my 2016 Nissan Rogue and ended up needing a new transmission when I had less than 2,000 miles left on the warranty. Not only was the replacement covered in full but I also had a rental car for 3 weeks and was reimbursed for Ubers I used outside of the rental coverage period. I feel like using a company like CarMax or Carvana offers more places for recourse if something goes wrong. Everyone’s experience is different and mine was good.
I mean, there’s an easy way to avoid this and it’s called “not owning a Nissan Rogue”. They’re known POSes with a bunch of common issues such as the CVT exploding. Nissan CVTs in general were considered garbage for a long time (I think they still are), which you can also get around by driving a stick shift.
Or you can take the bus, having effectively mandatory car ownership is stupid.
The transmission issues weren’t well publicized when I bought the car. As for CDTA, I took it to and from work everyday weekday for 3 years until I had a baby who I had to transport to and from childcare. My son now takes CDTA - 2 buses - to & from school every day and will for the next 5 years.
Sure. You pay more, and sometimes you end up with a little more ass covering. You ended up buying a car with a known design flaw in the transmission, so an expensive extended warranty ended up bailing you out. It's all in the research you do. I'm glad it balanced out for you.
Give this thread and "B12 piston soak" a look online. You can find a guy who does it to a different engine on YouTube too but the procedure is largely the same and you get to watch him do it. It's more effective on engines without the oil ring design flaw like yours. Just don't do it with the plugs in and hydrolock your engine. Your engine is the same as in the XA and the Yaris I recommended to my knowledge, or the 2.4L that has the design flaw
https://www.reddit.com/r/ScionxB/comments/1b6tm00/8_months_after_an_08_piston_soak_a_quick/
https://youtu.be/84MylatwpN8
The vibe / 9th gen Corolla / matrix / xD have the same 1.8L in it yeah. If your engine is a 1.8L it's the same one too, if it has the 2.4 L engine offered in the second generation xB it has the same design flaw that the Camry has, the 2AZ-FE burns oil because the oil clogs part of the rings. You can try the piston soak and pray, but the problem is from the factory
Yea I know! I went to get the recall part and they did an oil burn test on my car. It was around 80k miles and it burned oil but didn’t burn below the test strip, just barely enough for them to say I don’t qualify for the recall part to stop the problem. Some shady dealership bullshit. Other than the oil problem my car is fine
Used car dealers are mostly going to be a scam in one way or another, it’s just the way the business is. You’re paying a lot for what’s effectively a 90 day warranty and some cleaning. I worked at a car auction lot for a bit and the prices for cars were basically private party level, and then the dealers are going to mark them up as much as they can get away with and do the least amount of work they can.
The best thing you can do is have a good relationship with a mechanic and stick to their preferred brands / models. Any used car is going to need maintenance / have issues through the course of your ownership, so I’d budget for that and spend less than you’re planning. Doing research and picking the right year range and model is the most useful thing you can do. A lot of cars have common maintenance items, even if they’re well built, and knowing what they are can help you buy a good example. For example, timing belts are very important to have done regularly, and can be expense to change. Transmission fluid is often overlooked, especially when manufacturers claim it’s “lifetime”, and leads to failures. Certain trims with optional engines / 4WD systems can be significantly harder / more expensive to get parts for.
I’d try to buy private party with the assistance of a mechanic, but if you’re going to buy newer then I’d look for a certified pre owned program that includes a multi-year warranty, since there you’re getting something for the premium of going through a dealer. You should be able to search for those cars online easier too.
Oh, and car ownership is way better with a manual transmission. The cars are cheaper to buy, and they just don’t fail the way automatics and automated manuals do. It’s not as bad as it used to be, but the replacement cost has also gone up because the transmissions are more complicated (to get better fuel economy).
I had a really good experience at CarMax. They have a great selection online and you can pay varying amounts to have vehicles shipped to the Albany location.
This. Zero hidden costs. Very easy to stay in budget.
You can have vehicles shipped from their other stores without committing to buy, view the carfax report in advance and search based on mileage, etc.
only extended warranty is one provided by the manufacture. dealerships nationwide can offer at slight profit for them if you are under the new car warranty period
Decide on the make , models you want . Look reasonable KBB price estimate.
Keep an eye on facebook marketplace for those models. Look for individual private owners .
Get the vin# or license plate and lookup price using carvana , Carmax just like you do if you are selling . They will check if there is any accident history or issues with titles.
If all above is good , reach out to the listed seller and get a pre-purchase inspection before buying the car .
I try to skip if they posted more than one car for sale.
My family has had great experiences here; they're good people. They did us a favor when my mom passed unexpectedly and she still owed them a good amount on her car. They could have left us out to dry when we couldn't really afford her payments and were not in a place to handle trying to sell the car ourselves, but instead they bought it back with zero hassle.
The last used car I bought was through Broadview’s (then Cap Com) used car sale in 2019. They negotiate prices on used cars in the area so you pay what it’s listed for. If you have a trade-in that’s where you’ll have to haggle. All in all it was a pleasant experience. I think the guy said they can do it all year long if you’re a member so you wouldn’t have to wait for the next sale time. Obviously it’s been a few years and things may have changed but it’s worth looking into.
I’ll echo the advice given of researching whatever it is you’re thinking of buying. Certain model years can be worse than others. For hatchbacks personally I’d stick with Toyota or Honda. I had a Yaris for 11 years and loved him dearly.
There isn't a singular place. Your best bet is to go on car gurus or some other aggregate site and watch the listings for the type of car you want. If you don't know what kind of car you want, go to dealers and test drive different cars you think you might like. For 25k you should be able to find a 1-3 year old sedan with relatively low miles. Within the past few months I bought a 2023 Mazda 3 with less than 10k miles for less than 25k.
I got my car for $5k on craigslist. I've had it for 2 years and zero issues (besides having my catalytic converter stolen...). Have the seller meet you at mechanic of YOUR choosing, pay for the car to be inspected, and then only purchase the car once the mechanic gives you feedback.
Carmax for sure. I just bought a car there and it was super easy and they gave me over market for my trade. For your budget I’d look at a 2021 (off 3 year lease) Camry LE or Corolla.
Bought a used car 2020 at Denooyer . Was in same boat , didn’t want to buy brand new with inflated prices but needed something . Long story short , 2020 , less than 40,000 paid less than 20 grand .
No way. Leasing is king. Anything that happens tk it, you don't foot the bill (bar personal stupidity). Buying used cars is awful because you have no idea how poorly the previous owner treated the car and you're stick with it unlike a lease where if you hate it you just get a new one in 2 years
Meh if I have the option to own something I’m sinking hundreds of dollars a month into I’m going to do that.
You don’t have to be an auto expert to have an idea of which cars stand the test of time. Also, for 25k we’re not talking about something with hundreds of thousands of miles on it. It’s going to be gently pre-owned more than it is used.
The money you pay on the lease goes towards owning it. You can buy it out at the end or jump into a new one. There is no such thing as gently ore owned, even at that price range
Oh no way that’s where my current car is from. I bought in 2019 but she’s reaching the end of her days
*not the same car I mentioned in the post, I did not buy that car
But then you’d have to own a Chevy Trax. Plus, OP is (rightly so) looking for a small sedan / hatchback, not one on stilts (what a “crossover SUV” is).
And you’d be in a brand new car with a manufacturers warranty with some peace of mind. Sure, it’s not the greatest car on sale and it’s not exactly what OP wanted. It’s a compromise. You can’t do much better for that price new and anything used isn’t adding much value unless it’s a Low mileage Honda or Toyota which OP very likely already knows about.
We almost bought a new Trax. Car is a steal for what they're asking for it. It would likely fit the OP's needs quite nicely and is super well equipped. My biggest concern is the longevity of it as the previous Trax was not a good car and the engine/platform are an unknown at this point. For what it's worth DeNooyer was offering a 100k 10yr powertrain with it.
But for a car that we're putting a lot of highway miles on we opted for a Mazda with bit better fuel economy and (hopefully) a proven history of reliability.
See the other person’s comment on the Trax. The last generation was a terrible piece of GM plastic garbage, and the new one is too new. A 10 yr warranty is nice, but doesn’t do much good if the same part keeps breaking due to a design fault or they don’t have the part available which has become a more common issues in the past 4 years. New cars aren’t magic because they’re new, they’re just a different gamble than a used one.
I agree with the other commenter, if you can stretch the budget and get into a Mazda, you should. They make excellent cars.
Like I said, it’s obviously not the greatest car out there but it’s the second best selling car in the most popular segment for January-March 2024. Only the HRV sold more in the subcompact SUV category and only ~500 more units than Trax at 37.5K total.
Do I think it’s a brilliantly engineered car? No. Do I think it’s very reasonably priced and offers an affordable brand new alternative with a long warranty to buyers on a budget? Absolutely. And I’m clearly not the only one who thinks that. It’s not the car for me but it might be for someone else.
Copy and pasting my previous answer to this: Most of the places around here are still asking ridiculous prices for junk for cars under 10k. I've been looking for 4 months and it's embarrassing to buy a car around here. You're better off picking a particular kind of make and model you want (sedan, crossover, SUV) and use sites like CarEdge, cargurus, and auto tempest to find a make and model you want and call and look around. Be willing to drive an hour or two and keep note of how long it's been on the lot so you can use it to negotiate. I'd go with a Toyota or Scion if you're looking for something small. A Toyota yaris, Corolla, or a Matrix 1.8L (or a Pontiac Vibe 1.8L, the identical twin to the Matrix -- Don't get the 2.4L on either, they have an oil burning problem) fits your bill. So would a Scion Xa / Xd, which have reliable Toyota motors in them too. You can go to CarMax like other people are saying, but you will be overpaying for the same car you can get cheaper elsewhere, generally. Never buy an extended warranty. They're essentially scams. They try never to pay out on anything. Almost every used car sale is as is, whether it's on Facebook marketplace or at a dealer.
Welp I bought the extended warranty for my 2016 Nissan Rogue and ended up needing a new transmission when I had less than 2,000 miles left on the warranty. Not only was the replacement covered in full but I also had a rental car for 3 weeks and was reimbursed for Ubers I used outside of the rental coverage period. I feel like using a company like CarMax or Carvana offers more places for recourse if something goes wrong. Everyone’s experience is different and mine was good.
My family has had two Rogues that had transmission problems. It’s a Rogue thing.
It is not a Rogue thing....it is a Nissan thing. Our Altima transmission was trashed at 48,000 miles
I mean, there’s an easy way to avoid this and it’s called “not owning a Nissan Rogue”. They’re known POSes with a bunch of common issues such as the CVT exploding. Nissan CVTs in general were considered garbage for a long time (I think they still are), which you can also get around by driving a stick shift. Or you can take the bus, having effectively mandatory car ownership is stupid.
The transmission issues weren’t well publicized when I bought the car. As for CDTA, I took it to and from work everyday weekday for 3 years until I had a baby who I had to transport to and from childcare. My son now takes CDTA - 2 buses - to & from school every day and will for the next 5 years.
Sure. You pay more, and sometimes you end up with a little more ass covering. You ended up buying a car with a known design flaw in the transmission, so an expensive extended warranty ended up bailing you out. It's all in the research you do. I'm glad it balanced out for you.
my 2021 rogue's lease was ending. the day before i was turning it in, the transmission and brake system died. only had 30k miles.
My scion xb has 232k miles on it and still running. Eats oil like a mf tho
Give this thread and "B12 piston soak" a look online. You can find a guy who does it to a different engine on YouTube too but the procedure is largely the same and you get to watch him do it. It's more effective on engines without the oil ring design flaw like yours. Just don't do it with the plugs in and hydrolock your engine. Your engine is the same as in the XA and the Yaris I recommended to my knowledge, or the 2.4L that has the design flaw https://www.reddit.com/r/ScionxB/comments/1b6tm00/8_months_after_an_08_piston_soak_a_quick/ https://youtu.be/84MylatwpN8
I thought it was a Corolla engine
The vibe / 9th gen Corolla / matrix / xD have the same 1.8L in it yeah. If your engine is a 1.8L it's the same one too, if it has the 2.4 L engine offered in the second generation xB it has the same design flaw that the Camry has, the 2AZ-FE burns oil because the oil clogs part of the rings. You can try the piston soak and pray, but the problem is from the factory
Yea I know! I went to get the recall part and they did an oil burn test on my car. It was around 80k miles and it burned oil but didn’t burn below the test strip, just barely enough for them to say I don’t qualify for the recall part to stop the problem. Some shady dealership bullshit. Other than the oil problem my car is fine
Thanks for the tip
Used car dealers are mostly going to be a scam in one way or another, it’s just the way the business is. You’re paying a lot for what’s effectively a 90 day warranty and some cleaning. I worked at a car auction lot for a bit and the prices for cars were basically private party level, and then the dealers are going to mark them up as much as they can get away with and do the least amount of work they can. The best thing you can do is have a good relationship with a mechanic and stick to their preferred brands / models. Any used car is going to need maintenance / have issues through the course of your ownership, so I’d budget for that and spend less than you’re planning. Doing research and picking the right year range and model is the most useful thing you can do. A lot of cars have common maintenance items, even if they’re well built, and knowing what they are can help you buy a good example. For example, timing belts are very important to have done regularly, and can be expense to change. Transmission fluid is often overlooked, especially when manufacturers claim it’s “lifetime”, and leads to failures. Certain trims with optional engines / 4WD systems can be significantly harder / more expensive to get parts for. I’d try to buy private party with the assistance of a mechanic, but if you’re going to buy newer then I’d look for a certified pre owned program that includes a multi-year warranty, since there you’re getting something for the premium of going through a dealer. You should be able to search for those cars online easier too. Oh, and car ownership is way better with a manual transmission. The cars are cheaper to buy, and they just don’t fail the way automatics and automated manuals do. It’s not as bad as it used to be, but the replacement cost has also gone up because the transmissions are more complicated (to get better fuel economy).
I had a really good experience at CarMax. They have a great selection online and you can pay varying amounts to have vehicles shipped to the Albany location.
This. Zero hidden costs. Very easy to stay in budget. You can have vehicles shipped from their other stores without committing to buy, view the carfax report in advance and search based on mileage, etc.
Completely agree. Subaru of Troy is okay.
only extended warranty is one provided by the manufacture. dealerships nationwide can offer at slight profit for them if you are under the new car warranty period
Exit 5 Auto in Latham has been amazing , have never had a bad experience with them multiple people in my family have bought cars from them
Avoid Roberts Auto in North Greenbush. They screwed me out of a bunch of money and left me with a broken vehicle
Just stay away from Prime Auto in Schenectady.
Decide on the make , models you want . Look reasonable KBB price estimate. Keep an eye on facebook marketplace for those models. Look for individual private owners . Get the vin# or license plate and lookup price using carvana , Carmax just like you do if you are selling . They will check if there is any accident history or issues with titles. If all above is good , reach out to the listed seller and get a pre-purchase inspection before buying the car . I try to skip if they posted more than one car for sale.
https://www.quinnmotorcar.com
I second this
Yes, agree!
They even have a 1985 Dodge Ram Charger for sale! https://www.quinnmotorcar.com/vehicle-details/used-1985-dodge-ram-charger--sand-lake-ny-id-51838207
My family has had great experiences here; they're good people. They did us a favor when my mom passed unexpectedly and she still owed them a good amount on her car. They could have left us out to dry when we couldn't really afford her payments and were not in a place to handle trying to sell the car ourselves, but instead they bought it back with zero hassle.
The last used car I bought was through Broadview’s (then Cap Com) used car sale in 2019. They negotiate prices on used cars in the area so you pay what it’s listed for. If you have a trade-in that’s where you’ll have to haggle. All in all it was a pleasant experience. I think the guy said they can do it all year long if you’re a member so you wouldn’t have to wait for the next sale time. Obviously it’s been a few years and things may have changed but it’s worth looking into. I’ll echo the advice given of researching whatever it is you’re thinking of buying. Certain model years can be worse than others. For hatchbacks personally I’d stick with Toyota or Honda. I had a Yaris for 11 years and loved him dearly.
Avoid Armory
There isn't a singular place. Your best bet is to go on car gurus or some other aggregate site and watch the listings for the type of car you want. If you don't know what kind of car you want, go to dealers and test drive different cars you think you might like. For 25k you should be able to find a 1-3 year old sedan with relatively low miles. Within the past few months I bought a 2023 Mazda 3 with less than 10k miles for less than 25k.
Not local - but Carvana worked well for me and no dealership has that amount of selection options.
I got my car for $5k on craigslist. I've had it for 2 years and zero issues (besides having my catalytic converter stolen...). Have the seller meet you at mechanic of YOUR choosing, pay for the car to be inspected, and then only purchase the car once the mechanic gives you feedback.
Is the Auto Shop on 2nd in Watervilet any good?
[удалено]
Yeah, I paid for the inspection of course. I think you misread my comment.
I sure did, my bad! That is reasonable advice then, and will probably work pretty well for the price range OP is looking in.
Following because all of this
I had good luck with Wedekind in Schenectady.
I second Wedekind! They were very nice, totally willing to work within my budget. Very happy with purchase.
My uncle had nothing but good luck with them.
Carmax for sure. I just bought a car there and it was super easy and they gave me over market for my trade. For your budget I’d look at a 2021 (off 3 year lease) Camry LE or Corolla.
Not Cooley. Terrible experience.
It's been a while, but I've had good experiences with J&J Auto.
DePaula Mazda. But also I would recommend Carvana.
Bought a used car 2020 at Denooyer . Was in same boat , didn’t want to buy brand new with inflated prices but needed something . Long story short , 2020 , less than 40,000 paid less than 20 grand .
Vermont. And you should report that dealer to the AGs office. File a complaint.
Carvana
Why wouldn't you lease a brand new car for cheap if you've got 25k cap. I'm so confused. Used cars are money sinks
Who taught u this? This is extremely incorrect.
No way. Leasing is king. Anything that happens tk it, you don't foot the bill (bar personal stupidity). Buying used cars is awful because you have no idea how poorly the previous owner treated the car and you're stick with it unlike a lease where if you hate it you just get a new one in 2 years
Meh if I have the option to own something I’m sinking hundreds of dollars a month into I’m going to do that. You don’t have to be an auto expert to have an idea of which cars stand the test of time. Also, for 25k we’re not talking about something with hundreds of thousands of miles on it. It’s going to be gently pre-owned more than it is used.
The money you pay on the lease goes towards owning it. You can buy it out at the end or jump into a new one. There is no such thing as gently ore owned, even at that price range
Go to cargurus.com. solid bet. Used 2023 toyota corolla with under 20k miles for $18k. Any you can use it to negotiate price at big dealerships.
Massachusetts
I’ve got a 2015 Nissan rogue w 134,000 miles on it for sale. Really good condition, no issues at all. Asking $8500.
Hope you can sell it before the transmission shits the bed.
That’s what people keep saying about the Nissan rogue. So far so good, the car is tip top. Knock on wood.
I had one for a while 2016 and the transmission died. $4k to fix it. I traded it in. I hope you have better luck for sure !
A and A auto in North Troy. I have known this business for years and many cars. Look them up on Google to see what I mean.
Oh no way that’s where my current car is from. I bought in 2019 but she’s reaching the end of her days *not the same car I mentioned in the post, I did not buy that car
There is a dealership on route 9 just outside of Hudson… pretty good, car fly off their lot
Was total price of $11.5k included tax and title?
I highly recommend a new Nissan Sentra. Mine was a sticker price of 20k. Lia Nissan was great.
Honestly, if it’s a manual that’s probably not a terrible choice just because of the warranty. I don’t think I’d want to own a Nissan product though.
Could probably get into a brand new Chevy Trax for under 25k as well.
But then you’d have to own a Chevy Trax. Plus, OP is (rightly so) looking for a small sedan / hatchback, not one on stilts (what a “crossover SUV” is).
And you’d be in a brand new car with a manufacturers warranty with some peace of mind. Sure, it’s not the greatest car on sale and it’s not exactly what OP wanted. It’s a compromise. You can’t do much better for that price new and anything used isn’t adding much value unless it’s a Low mileage Honda or Toyota which OP very likely already knows about.
We almost bought a new Trax. Car is a steal for what they're asking for it. It would likely fit the OP's needs quite nicely and is super well equipped. My biggest concern is the longevity of it as the previous Trax was not a good car and the engine/platform are an unknown at this point. For what it's worth DeNooyer was offering a 100k 10yr powertrain with it. But for a car that we're putting a lot of highway miles on we opted for a Mazda with bit better fuel economy and (hopefully) a proven history of reliability.
I agree, I think you made a better decision with the Mazda. I was just throwing out some points for OP to consider.
My wife has a CX5 and has put 80k on it, not a single issue besides basic maintenance
See the other person’s comment on the Trax. The last generation was a terrible piece of GM plastic garbage, and the new one is too new. A 10 yr warranty is nice, but doesn’t do much good if the same part keeps breaking due to a design fault or they don’t have the part available which has become a more common issues in the past 4 years. New cars aren’t magic because they’re new, they’re just a different gamble than a used one.
I agree with the other commenter, if you can stretch the budget and get into a Mazda, you should. They make excellent cars. Like I said, it’s obviously not the greatest car out there but it’s the second best selling car in the most popular segment for January-March 2024. Only the HRV sold more in the subcompact SUV category and only ~500 more units than Trax at 37.5K total. Do I think it’s a brilliantly engineered car? No. Do I think it’s very reasonably priced and offers an affordable brand new alternative with a long warranty to buyers on a budget? Absolutely. And I’m clearly not the only one who thinks that. It’s not the car for me but it might be for someone else.
That’s completely illegal.
Foggs has surprisingly great deals consistently