Thoughts and suggestions for a good daily driver
 

Hey guys,

Recently been looking around for a new DD. Kinda have some in mind, mainly leaning towards automatic imports such as '03-06 Lancers, '01-05 civic si's, '00-05 jetta/golf and '01-05 acura EL's since they meet my budget.

I'm fairly familiar with the older Honda's as the last few of my cars have been Honda but don't really know too much about Mitsubishi and VW. I've heard some good and some bad about it but it's not a car i'm familiar with. I know this gen of civics and EL's often get a bad rap for shitty suspension but asides from that, they seem decent. I'm really looking for some input on which of the four would be ideal for a daily. And any potential problems i might face down the road that's common with these models. If anyone has a suggestion for a good DD, i'm open to that as well.

Thanks in advance!

I've owned a Honda and Mitsu and never had any problems. To be honest the condition of the used car you're buying will probably have a bigger impact on reliability. I'm a bit biased with my Japanese cars so I won't give my negative rant about VWs.

Owned a 02 Civic Si and I enjoyed it. The Canadian Si is the American Ex and Canadian SiR is American Si. SiR is manual only. The hp difference between the Si and lower models is quite small so I wouldn't just look at Si. It's a bit slow but it's fun and makes you feel faster than you're actually are.

My Mitsu was an 08 and it's quite different from your 03-06s. Never ran into problems but I felt the Honda was better built.

Not sure what your price range is but I'm a big fan of the Subaru Legacy from the mid 2000's (the sedan not the wagon). I drive a Toyota now and they're reliable :)

thanks for the input, haha wouldnt mind about a negative rant
every make has its downs
price range i'm looking at is most likely 6-6.5k max though something below that would be ideal
not really looking for hp, more for reliability and fuel efficiency at this point as its a car that i'm gonna be sharing with my gf...so the manuals are out of the picture as well lol


i've thought about toyotas...but its tough to find the models with a sunroof in decent shape and would really prefer a car that came with one since the last few cars i've had didnt have em.

get a lancer and do the evo conversion...fuel efficient evo right there

Scion IQ, cheap, looks different, fits 3 adult and awesome on gas
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We had an 01 si, it was reliable and really good on gas, under 7l/100km, so we were quite disappointed when our Fit used 20% more.

That civic's suspension was ok stock as a dd. The bad suspension wrap was mainly from tuners and aftermarket support. When we sold ours, the fact it was a loaded si added only about 5-700 to the price so you can find a solid deal pretty easy. It wasn't fast or powerful, but did the job as a dd, and cheap too operate

It all depends on how it was maintained.

I daily drive an EL, and like you said, the suspension isn't the greatest. The car feels like it's gonna crumble everytime you drive over slight bump lol. But it's not like you're gonna take it to the track or off-roading anyway. It's a solid A to B car with more little luxuries than a Civic. Sunroof, leather, heated seats, power everything.

However, if I could choose my DD again, I would go with a Mazda 3. Pretty much same price range, but they just feel like more solid cars, and have a bit more pep to the engine. If I didn't get such a ridiculously good deal on the EL, I would've gone with the Mazda.

As long as you maintain it properly, they should be fine. Parts for these cars are inexpensive and widely available anyway, so you can't really go wrong.

Protege 5 - very reliable, fun to drive. A bit stiff and noisy but that comes with the price range. You can find one with low mileage for under $6k. I sold mine 2 years ago with 70k for $7300.

CHEAP??? :suspicious:

Scion iQ
$17,070
https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/i...BcnBxkgdHrMN-g

Chevrolet Spark
$11,845
http://www.auto123.com/ArtImages/146...k-2013_i04.jpg

Ford Fiesta
$12,749
https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/i...YADGnp7420dqyQ

Nissan Versa
$ 11,898
https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/i...mh3bP3oD095UTo

Fiat 500
$13,495
https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/i...7VX2OmZ4a5Uheg

the iq is over double OP's budget ...

I've had a few VW's. If you want an automatic, only consider either an 04 or 05 Jetta, or newer City Jetta. They have a triptronic transmission that is much better than the 01M auto transmissions in the earlier models. Also, the wiring harnesses and electrical gremlins were largely addressed starting 03. Parts are cheap and they are easy to work on.

thanks for the input on the VW's, good to know which model year would be ideal

lol i can't afford anything new at this point

Been driving my Acura RSX for the past 2 weeks as my DD, and i REALLY enjoy it. Its reliable, powerful enough, decent fuel economy, and suspension and braking is superb.

Really you can't go wrong with a honda or toyota product. Just my $0.02

I enjoyed my 5th gen (2000-2001) Nissan Maxima when i had it... Really was a great car and would be my suggestion. I'd shy away from the 5.5 gen however, (2002-2003) they had oil burning issues aswell as fuel economy suffered.

DO NOT GET 01-05 AUTO Civic/ Acura EL 1.7. bad transmissions. mine started to die at around 70,000 kms. another friends same gen el had transmission problems too. whats your budget? you plan on modding or keeping it stock?

Get a TDI.

interesting. I knew some honda's had problematic transmissions but i thought the EL's were solid. My family had a 2004 until 80,000kms. No problems. We've had plenty of different year 2001-2004 EL's in our shop with over 200,000kms with again, no transmission problems. Servicing also is a big factor here too.

^ dunno about auto tranny but Honda's has horrible OEM manual transmission fluid.

That's why people get Amsoil synthetic MTF.

Suzuki has some pretty underrated cars. Maybe you can get a kizashi or sx4 for cheaper when they pull out of Canada?

OP's budget is ~5,000...

I was pretty anal about the maintenance on my car. I probably had 2-3 transmission fluid changes during the time I owned it? from 45,000km to 90-100,000kms? I remember selling it close to or just under 100,000kms

We sold our 01 Si at 120k km's, no indications of any tranny issues whatsoever, I don't recall having to change the tranny fluid either at that point. Only issue was a headlight relay that would randombly go on fits, relatively minor issue though

If you're looking for a DD just to get around

Corolla

that is all

DO NOT!!! Go for the Fiat 500. A close friend of mine works at a Fiat dealership (somewhere in Canada) and even he tells me to stay away from them

^^ any particular reasons why? the god damn abarth is so tempting.