Car for the wife!

So I'm looking for a car for the wife and our lone rugrat. I'm looking at mid to full-size cars for around $4k in the Houston area. All cars with around 100-150k miles on them. Here;s the list of cars I am seeing. What would ya'll suggest?

2000 toyota camry, v6 and 4cyl. The only thing is I have heard the engine seals on those cars are weak and the engine isn't stout enough to run for anytime on lower oil. I wouldn't drive it like that but the wife isn't as detail oriented as I am.

2000 Honda Accord, v6 and 4cyl. The interference engine and having to change the timing belt right after buying worries me. I don't particularly want to put money into the car right away other than purchase.

2000 Nissan Maxima, I have been hearing that these cars have some serious computer and electrical issues.

1997 Volvo 850 turbo. It's a turbo brick! Cost of maintenance is my only worry. It's before Ford bought them so I'm thinking quality is a bit better and won't have as many electrical issues as the newer ones.

2001 S80, Very expensive to fix and some nasty electrical bugs?

1998 Jeep Cherokee. I love Jeeps always have! This would be the one vehicle I would put money into for upgrades. The only downfall is I don't feel the inside is very big and gas mileage.

She refuses to let me buy her a 2005 Ford Taurus. She won't drive a 2001 V70 because the wagon makes her look old even though the car would get lots of mods and be fast as all hell! She also won't drive a P71. What can I say Women they just don't understand the fun that can be had.

So gurus enlighten me on what other things I should be looking for/other cars and other maintenance issues with those cars. Suggestions on which car would be best would be much appreciated.

Turbo Brick. They didn't change the factory they were making them in, did they? Every car in the world will one day have electrical issues. Their safe, roomy, and its a wagon. Gotta love the wagons.

I've been trying to trade mine for a boat for some time.

Gas mileage on a Cherokee isn't bad - my wife gets around 20mpg on hers.

However I'm thinking that expecting to buy a 4k car and not put any money into it seems a little unrealistic.

4-banger Accord and Camry have the lowest ownership cost, least maintenance hassle and greatest resale potential. (Assuming of course that the prior owners haven't ruined them.)

Buy her a regular Crown Vic and add the P71 goodies :P

If you're looking for rock-solid reliability and low maintenance costs, I would suggest a GM W-body, specifically the 98-03 Grand Prix GT (3.8 Series II, no S/C). SWMBO drives an 01 GT that we've had for 5.5 years and 60K miles. Other than the normal prescribed maintenance the only things I've done to it are the LIM, UIM, and valve cover gaskets. As long as you flush the DexCool every 24 months like the damn manual says to do, they'll never fail. Super easy to work on, too.

I like the Maxima in that price range. They drive sportier than the Honda and Toyota so you won't fall asleep. They look better also. Jap car reliability and parts cost is nice too.

Another euro option is the Saab 9-3 or 9-5 but I'd rather have the Jap reliability in car used by wife.

So there wasn't any change in reliability between Ford owning Volvo and them being autonomous? I wish she would drive the turbo brick wagon. How can you beat the beauty, awd, and a turbo! She will drive a brick as long as it's not the wagon. Her hatred of the crown vic and taurus is because old people drive them.

ProTip #1: Ask the wife what she wants.

Why not the mazda 6? More fun to drive and lower resale than honda or toyota.

sanman wrote: Why not the mazda 6? More fun to drive and lower resale than honda or toyota.

Outside the price range

What about the Grand Prix?

rotard wrote: ProTip #1: Ask the wife what she wants.

Pro Tip # 2: Get the car she wants and keep enjoying living.

amg_rx7 wrote:

sanman wrote: Why not the mazda 6? More fun to drive and lower resale than honda or toyota.

Outside the price range

http://houston.craigslist.org/ctd/2777024707.html

http://houston.craigslist.org/cto/2784680536.html

Early ones are out there in that price range.

aussiesmg wrote:

rotard wrote: ProTip #1: Ask the wife what she wants.

Pro Tip # 2: Get the car she wants and keep enjoying living.

Pro Tip #3: Don't mod her car without telling her, especially if it's more boost.

+1 on what does the wife want?

btw - any car can be done over to reach coolness

oldtin wrote:

Holy mother of!!!!

We need a new thread for that, ASAP!

'95 was a good year for Volvo 850's. The still used regular fuel before '96 and newer called for premium. They also have a simpler check engine light system that lets you to check codes yourself as well as clear the service reminder yourself.
I loved my 1995 Volvo 850 wagon and it was very reliable and easy to svc.

I like the Maxima choice. If you look at these be sure to also look at the sister vehicle, Infiniti i30/i35.
Strangely, you can sometimes find the better equipped Infiniti listed cheaper than the Maxima.
I also like the Nissan Altima small version sold up till 2001. Large 2.4L engine w/ timing chain that is shared with the 240sx. This big 4cyl get mpg and delivers power more like a 6 cyl but it is very reliable.

Accord or Camry.

My wife thought my grand marquis was dorky but comfortable. Her focus was off the road for a few months and she drove the marq as a DD in that time. She did grow to like it.

I think she sort of misses having it around now like I do.

We got decent mileage with ours..got 27 mpg highway, low 20s around town.

I can't help you make up your mind, but I can address one:

"2000 Nissan Maxima, I have been hearing that these cars have some serious computer and electrical issues"

I was a moderator on Maxima.org (the biggest maxima forum) for almost 5 years. Put about 200k miles on my 2000 Maxima, including about 50 autocrosses. Pretty much tried out every mod that can be done to the car other than forced induction....multiple suspensions, multiple brake kits, subframe bracing, all kinds of fun stuff.

What I can tell you: In 200k miles of beating the hell out of the car, I had a grand total of four things go wrong in any significant way: 1. bad OEM shock at about 80k miles. The front rights are known to blow early for some reason. 2. bad clutch master cylinder around 100k miles. I never heard about anyone else on the forums having this problem. 3. blown MAF. This is the most common issue with the 2000-2001 Maximas. The MAFs are fragile and you'll have one go bad every 75k miles or so. It's a sub-$100 part, and most people would just pull a used one at a junkyard to have a spare. 4. Coilpacks. These are issues if you have the early/original coils (which, at this point, I can't imagine many running Maximas do). The dealer wants about $400 for a full set, but rarely do more than 1 or 2 go bad. There are places you can pick the updated coils up for $75 or so, and there are ways to test to find out which coilpack is bad. It's a big deal for people with no automotive knowlege who go to the dealer parts counter to buy overpriced stuff. It's not much of an issue with anyone else.

Other than that, the usual wear items....CV joints, etc.

2000-2001 Maxima engine and tranny is pretty bulletproof, especially in stock form. It's smooth, quiet, and torquey. Stock SE suspension is tolerable for sporty driving, but there are some cheap/easy upgrades. Brakes are pretty good, and the 2004+ rotors and calipers (larger) bolt right up for an easy upgrade if you want it. 2000-2001 dont' have alot of the oil consumption problems that the 2002+ VQ35 cars have.

Overall, whatever you heard about "serious computer issues" is news to me. A few guys fry their ECUs here and there, but it's always due to extensive modding. Electrical issues are limited to MAF, coils, and issues with the Bose stock stereo sometimes going in and out. It sounds like crap anyhow and aftermarket is a good option for a stereo.

In terms of room it's a roomy car front and back, with a big trunk, plenty of power, and decent fuel economy for a larger V6 sedan. And it's more fun to drive than alot of other FWD cars in its size range (Camry, Accord, others...)

Anyhow, feel free to hit me up if you have any specific questions about one. They don't seem to hold their value very well, so the 00-01 Maximas can be come by pretty cheap for what you're getting. The engines and trannies are good for 250k+ miles with little other than regular maintenance and belts.

And they can made to look pretty decent with a set of G35 18" wheels, which are a perfect fit ;)

If she's not a complete car nut, Accord or Camry are the absolute answer. With proper care, they're practically unbreakable, cheap parts, good daily drivers.

Come on guys, I thought the best time to mod your wife's car was when she was out of town, preferably as a gift for her birthday or a holiday. She just doesn't know she needs more power!

Does the 2000 Nissan Maxima have an interference or non-interference motor? I'm still new to Japanese cars. I'm a Jeep and Ford man. I would love another Focus but they are too small. Mine has made me fall in love with them. I guess 220k miles will do that.

Get the Camry.

Get her a last-gen V8 SHO