Which of these new cars should I buy or not buy and why?
Posted by admin
AJ asked:
1. Ford Focus
2. Mazda 3
3. Nissan Versa
4. Toyota Corolla
1. Ford Focus
2. Mazda 3
3. Nissan Versa
4. Toyota Corolla
I am interested in manual transmission, power windows, long term reliability, safety, and performance. And of course, price.
Please don’t recommend that I test drive them because I will be doing so for each this weekend. I am interested in information not gathered during a test drive. Of course, part of the decision will be due to the test drive, but I need more than that as I want to make as informed a decision as possible.
BUDDY
January 27th, 2006 at 3:34 am
I vote for the Toyota because I own one. Mine has about 70K miles on it right now and it an automatic. I haven’t had anything done except routine maintenance. We also own a Nissan (more expensive model then the Versa) and haven’t had any issues with it either. I think Toyota’s are great cars that have proven to be reliable.
January 28th, 2006 at 3:31 am
All these models are great when they are new. You can check crash test reports at NHTSA. Buy the one that fits you the best and has the features you like. I personally like the Toyota Matrix. The rest is up to your ability to follow the guidelines in the owner’s manual. Read it from cover to cover at least 3 times. Remember, YOU MUST USE THE FLUIDS THAT EACH MANUFACTURER RECOMMENDS! For best results, use only synthetic oils (most come from the factory with it anyway). Mobil One or ELF oil. A good used Audi with an extended warranty is a better bet than any of these others. Good Luck!
January 28th, 2006 at 8:49 pm
ok, so we have this quartet:
1. Ford Focus – not so reliable, not so fun to drive, has low resale value, I would put it on 4th place
2. Mazda 3 – not so reliable, very fun to drive, good resale value but not the best, (compared to the others), I would put it on 2nd.
3. Nissan Versa – not so reliable, kinda fun to drive, not so good resale value. It will go on 3rd
4. Toyota Corolla – WE HAVE A WINNER !!!, its reliability is the best, good mileage, only thing you sacrifice is handling and it is certainly not so fun to drive. Best resale value. It goes 1st.
January 31st, 2006 at 10:21 pm
the mazda 3 looks like tha best choice but if you want power you shoul get the corvette zr1
February 2nd, 2006 at 12:55 am
You can not go wrong with any of these cars, All are modern and reliable. I would personly go for the Ford as it a good drive, I hope this helps.
February 4th, 2006 at 9:14 am
I would personally go with the Toyota – the best in reliability. Once you get your Toyota, you can actually tell it Till death do us part!. I would rate Mazda 3 2nd, Versa 3rd and Focus 4th. For more comparative information, go to edmunds.com for car reviews posted by actual owners themselves. Good luck!
February 6th, 2006 at 7:02 am
The Corolla will be the best bet. I have a prism/corolla as one of my loaner cars it is a 96 with 200000 miles and just keeps going. Of the 4 it will be the best.
February 8th, 2006 at 5:13 am
Drive all of them, but know that the Focus and Versa are disposable cars and I wouldn’t suggest either one to my worst enemy.
So it’s Corolla vs Mazda:
The Corolla is a great car. Good on gas, uber-reliable, and the 09 gets the standard ABS and side air bags that the 08 was sorely lacking. It is a more refined and smoother riding vehicle than the Mazda. The style is not bad since the retooling, but it is still a fairly bland car. Unoffensive in every way.
The Mazda3 may not rate quite as highly on reliability on some surveys, but it is still a very reliable car. Damn good lookin’ too. The safety features are similar in both cars, so that’s a tie. The Mazda is a sportier car — more road feel, firmer suspension, torque that borders on jerky-ness, and tight steering.
My pick? Well, I worked for Toyota and I own a Toyota so I’m a little biased, and my choice is…the Mazda3!
I like a sporty car, not just a basic A-to-B people mover. Even with the S trim, the Corolla feels like good solid basic transportation. That isn’t a bad thing, it’s just not MY thing. Neither is a bad choice in any way — the test drive will make up your mind in 2 minutes.
February 9th, 2006 at 10:52 am
Toyota has been suffering from failing quality.
I have not considered a Nissan after driving a Corolla for 7500 miles and driving the same price range Nissan car that had the same number of miles. Compared to the Corolla, the Nissan was loose and sloppy. While they may have improved, I just can’t feel right about doing business with someone who has had to change their name.
The Ford Focus varies so much from year to year that it is hard for me to say yes on this one too. Some are re-badged Mazda cars while others are Korean in origin. While I may be a Ford fanatic, be careful of model year on this one.
I have to vote for the Mazda 3.
Just for giggles I ran a comparison between these for 2008 models. Note how the quality rating of the Corolla is lower the any of the other models.
February 9th, 2006 at 8:19 pm
the ford focus has been redesigned and it’s bigger and not as nimble as he older ones.
the nissan versa is inferior to the Honda Fit and not recommended.
the mazda 3 is a very good car but the more expensive sport version is much more fun to drive.
the corolla is reliable and boring.
so choose between the mazda and the toyota
avoid the focus and the versa
look at the Honda Fit Sport
February 13th, 2006 at 6:16 am
The 2008 Ford Focus is a wonderfull car! in fact, my wife and I liked it so much we each got a fully loaded SES! (SHE DOESN’T LIKE TO SHARE) the fit and finish is great! No squeaks rattles or bangs to be heard. Ford did lie a little about the fuel mileage though…. the 08 Focus is rated at 35MPG but both my wife and I get 38-40MPG on ours!. The heated leather seats are comfy and the upgraded 500 watt Audiophile stereo sounds like a concert hall!. We both traded in our Toyota’s to buy the Focus and haven’t looked back!. And with the thousands of bucks we saved by not buying a Honda or Toyota , we are going on a 3 week cruse in December to a warm island in the Caribbean! By the way, I raced a kid in a Honda yesterday and left him at the stoplight! you should have seen him sitting there with his mouth hanging open LOL! and, if you go on line on the Ford Focus web sight and request a brosure on the Focus you will find a unadvertised $750.00 coupon in the brosure when you get it in the mail! with that coupon and the cash incentives we got over $4,000 off the price on each car! plus we talked the salesman down even more on the price! We paid $15,237.49 each out the door on our fully loaded top of the line SESs price including everything! A GOOD BUY! and just wait until you get to use the new Sync system in the Focus! do you have some fun ahead of you!!!! (HINT) make sure you get the anti lock brakes and traction control option! (safety first!) now hows that for a review?
February 13th, 2006 at 11:01 am
i would go with the toyota corolla myself.go with a corolla S model for performance..the only mazda i like is rx-7 twin turbo but the mazda 3 does have a sporty feel to it. and if u dont beat up the mazda and keep the oil changed ull be fine they will last.nissan versa is not attractive looking..and nissan’s depreciate so save your money..
1. corolla
2. mazda 3
versa and focus are tied for losers