Saw a Volkswagen Eos in a parking lot yesterday... Now she's obsessed with them... They aren't terribly far from our price range. Well see what we can find. VWs are reliable, yes?

 

Eos is nothing more than a more pricey GTI.

I would stay away from German cars, especially if they don't have warranty.

 

Impulsive obsessions about anything generally lead to bad things. But there are exceptions to everything. My best friend has a thing for BMW 135i convertibles. I warned her against it, but she bought it anyway, and so far, she has proved me wrong. So go figure.

 

EOS would be a nice car to own but not a daily driver.

 

New? Yep, very reliable. But as they age their wear and tear can (And does) get costly. When German cars break, which thankfully isn't all that often, they try to break you

 

Volvos can be good cars but I would shy away from them after they hit the 13 year old mark.

 

That^^ my GFs 97 was rock solid reliable up until a couple years ago and 200,000

 

Codeman - Here has been my experience with our 04 Sebring and I'm not recommending it. I just want to let you know that I've not had the same issues as others, and maybe I'm the exception. Up until 2 years ago I was/am a Mopar guy, so the comments hit home. We own an 04 Sebring, 10 Fusion, 07 Jetta, and my 13 Mustang.

I have never had the best of luck buying used so I tend to buy new and keep for several years, and my recent luck with used confirmed that for me.

We have an 04 Sebring sedan, that we bought new, and it now has 135,000 on it. For the past 2 years it has been the Teenager car, they are beating the snot out of it so I'm expecting problems. Thankfully, we have not had any major issues(engine or tranny problems), mostly crappy rotors warping, and water pump in there some where. I planning on it lasting 2 more years until my daughter graduates HS.

I have read about problems people have had with the 2.7L engine, and knock on wood no problems yet. With that said I do have to take the car in I think the oil sending unit needs replacing.

Before that an 01 TC Minivan no major issues but was totaled 2.5 years ago at 115000 or I'd still own it. I've not been left stranded, or had any worries about any Chrysler I owned from 94 on from a reliability point of view.

We usually trade around 8 years, the Sebring is the longest we've owned a car, closing in on 10 years. With our cars we did not experience any serious issues. I dont know if we were lucky or what. I dont think I'm that lucky. I do keep my vehicles maintained. I've never thought they wouldnt last until 100,000, and by the time they hit 130-140,000, I'm beyond ready to get a new car. So I cant tell you beyond 140,000-ish what to expect.

We also own an 07 Jetta Wolfsburg edition that we bought used with 75,000 - super nice VW. Great German engineering, also super expensive to repair as I found out. Ouch! In addition to the 2 weeks they had the car...

Anyway good luck on your car search.

 

Thanks everyone. We' wont be buying until mid October, maybe later as we'll try to squeeze every mile we can out of everything. Owning two high mileage cars has helped me appreciate how long cars can actually last, so I'm encouraged. We'll continue to search for what will work the best. I have found out that you can pretty much buy anything you want for $13-$15k, but going cheaper than that gets tough.

Does anyone have any experience with "rebuilt title" vehicles? Re-sale wont matter to me, If I can get a nice car for cheap that runs strong for another 3 years/100,000 miles I could care less if it was once totaled.

 

Just to toss into the convo. My Si just passed 100k a few weeks ago. I've had it for 3 yrs and 70k miles. Still on the original clutch. It's a great car. It comes with just about the right amount of everything but torque. No NAV, I added blue tooth, has a mechanical torsen, an 8k redline, six gears and double OD. On paper this car is fantastic. I gripe about parts of it but when it shines its quite a great car.

But even I want more sometimes and kind of wish I could pony up for a Focus ST but I will probably get my wife's Focus as she wants an Escape.

 

Plenty of great cars out there less than 10k. Rebuilt title cars I would be afraid, but then I wouldn't pass one by. A long test drive is in order here. Bumpy roads smooth roads all accessories on and off in both conditions.

 

Yep.

 

Noooooo. Not the Sebring, nice looking but poorly made car.

 

Afraid I gotta agree. Sebring build quality is terrible.

 

Well, finally. We have a "lifeboat" car that will serve as the Heir to which ever of our cars dies first. We decided to go for something cheap, and think we found something we can both live with. It's a 2003 Pontiac Bonneville SLE. Well equipped with heated leather, moonroof, climate control, and 172,000 miles. Cross your fingers it lasts us! Thanks for your help!

 

too bad its not an SSEi

But still, nice pickup . Fingers crossed!