Ye Gods...yet another what car thread

Looking for something that gets good mileage, is still fun to drive, and is most likely a five-door hatch of some kind. Must have an actual manual transmission, 33+ highway MPG, and I need to be able to find an example with less than 75k on it for $8,000. Must be reliable with low maintenance costs. Must hold at least two 6'1" people comfortably. Everything else is negotiable. This is going to be my daily driver/appliance vehicle and I'm actually going to have a loan on it, so it's gotta last at least three years at 20k miles per year.

Frontrunners so far:

Chevy Sonic turbo - Seems to be the newest/most feature-rich vehicle I can find at my price point. Car mags seem to like them, but I'm a little hesitant to buy what's basically an Aveo. Anyone have one or spent any time with one?

2nd gen Honda Fit - Great cars, but really hold their value...8k doesn't buy as new or nice a Fit as it will pretty much anything else. Probably a reason for that.

2nd gen Mazda3 - Great car, but my God that grill is hideous.

Others in the hunt: Kia Soul, Suzuki SX4 (if I could find one), later Matrix/Vibe, etc.

Interested in input regarding other options I may have missed, or input on the stuff I'm looking at now.

Vibe or 3. Spent a bit of time in both, and neither are a penalty box. Have no idea on the rest of the list.

I did drive a sonic turbo manual trans. It was a fun penalty box. Don't know if I could dd one.

You could probably nab a 75k mile 2012 focus hatch for 8k. Mine was quite fun even with the dual clutch trans. With a manual i'd think it would be great.

rcutclif wrote: You could probably nab a 75k mile 2012 focus hatch for 8k. Mine was quite fun even with the dual clutch trans. With a manual i'd think it would be great.

2012+ Focus would definitely be a contender if I could find one at that price. Have had a couple friends who've owned and liked them.

Also, neglected to put Fiesta on the list, but it's on the list.

If you are in salt country beware the Mazda. They rust like crazy!

Kia Rio5 of Spectra5 plenty of headroom good on gas. My Spectra5 is hoot to drive. I did the Tail of the Dragon and it handled great. Solid top half in HS.

Is age an issue? SVT Focus. 3 or 5 door, bonus for EAP with the Recaro seats

psteav wrote:

rcutclif wrote: You could probably nab a 75k mile 2012 focus hatch for 8k. Mine was quite fun even with the dual clutch trans. With a manual i'd think it would be great.

2012+ Focus would definitely be a contender if I could find one at that price. Have had a couple friends who've owned and liked them. Also, neglected to put Fiesta on the list, but it's on the list.

65k miles, $8,990 ask. I bet you could find 75k for 8.5 ask and get down to 8 out the door (if you wait long enough).

Adrian_Thompson wrote: Is age an issue? SVT Focus. 3 or 5 door, bonus for EAP with the Recaro seats

I was going to say the same thing. But most of them are probably getting to the point where annoying little things start to break so it depends how much of that a person is willing to put up with in a car they use everyday.

My dad's SVT is a fun car but it's got some issues (things like an obnoxiously stiff shift linkage and the white backing up lights don't work.) He's had that car it's whole life so I've seen up close how it's started to get old.

Avoid the auto Fords if you can. That was the one part that I really hated on my 12 Focus. Same transmission in the Fiesta auto. Useless in the snow.

What about the Mazda2? If you can find a manual, it should be cheap.

BlueInGreen44 wrote:

Adrian_Thompson wrote: Is age an issue? SVT Focus. 3 or 5 door, bonus for EAP with the Recaro seats

I was going to say the same thing. But most of them are probably getting to the point where annoying little things start to break so it depends how much of that a person is willing to put up with in a car they use everyday. My dad's SVT is a fun car but it's got some issues (things like an obnoxiously stiff shift linkage and the white backing up lights don't work.) He's had that car it's whole life so I've seen up close how it's started to get old.

Also, now that I think of it. The SVT Focus never was known for stellar gas mileage, especially for a small car.

singleslammer wrote: Avoid the auto Fords if you can. That was the one part that I really hated on my 12 Focus.

Seconding this. Sucked the life out of what otherwise seemed like it could be a fun to drive car. I'm not always 100% against automatics either.

Edit: My girlfriend has a new-ish feeling 2012 Focus with ~40k miles on it and plastic trim pieces are already starting to fall off the exterior. So there's that too.

1st or second generation Saab 9-3 seems to meet your criteria. 1st gens would probably be hard to find under 75k miles, but they would cost 1/4 of your budget.

seems like the Ford DCT experience varies for everyone.

Ours did have the TCM replaced under warranty, It has driven much better since, I quite like it. We have 135k miles on it at this point. Suspension wise, it still feels like a new car. I dont think surpassing 200k with basic maintenance would surprise me.

Mazda2. It's basically a FWD NA Miata. They're very reliable, incredibly simple to work on.

I went from an 09 Mazda3 to a 2011 Mazda2 because its exponentially more fun to drive. FWIW I put 500 miles on my 2 per week and average 35+MPG normally 37-38 if there are no seriously awful traffic jams. I usually sit in creeping traffic for 15-20min per day. Google Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel traffic to get an idea.

My '05 Scion xB just turned 90k. Otherwise, it would fit the bill entirely, and a couple thou under what you want to spend :(

If you don't care about performance - Versa Hatch. Those are supposed to have tons of room. I am in the minority that actually dig the French styling on that car, shoulda make a SE-R version. On same lines Soul, Cube maybe Lancer Sportback hatch (not older wagon) or Elantra GT (might be too $$ too new.)

I haven't lived with any of your options, but I have test driven a new Sonic LT or LTZ with the 1.4T and a new 1st gen Soul (a few years apart). I was very impressed with the Sonic. It was more comfortable, solid feeling, and more quiet than I expected. It also handled better than I expected and was a lot more fun and enjoyable to drive than I imagined a car at that price point could be. I drove an FR-S that same day and because I didn't "need" the practicality of the Sonic I eventually bought an FR-S.

The Soul was far less satisfying. Less comfortable, noisyer, didn't handle as well, and the cargo space was far less useful than I expected. It felt far more appliance like, but much less useful functionally considering the difference in outer volume. Box wise a Honda Element seems much more functional than the Soul.

fwiw I'm 5'7" and thought driving as a passenger in the fiesta was extremely uncomfortable after about 50 feet.

Fits are great. I went with a mazda3 hatch over it, but ya pay for that.

The Sonic and Aveo are totally different cars. You do want a turbo manual if going this route.

I'm going to suggest an xrs corolla. you didn't state no fwd and I've owned a new manual corolla since 01. just an S. here's the caveat. Add koni yellows. more fun than a mark 2 GTI. I can just imagine the xrs which is only available with a manual anyway would meet all your criteria.

Update: Drove a '12 Sonic hatch with the 1.4t/six speed. Nice little car. Spunky enough. Love the interior and the instrument panel. Seats are GREAT. Mileage is good. Should I decide it's not fast enough, moar boost is cheap and easy. This is the frontrunner at the moment.

The other contender at the moment is an '04 RX-8 (yes, I know that fails on both the reliability and fuel economy criteria) with 46k miles for $8,500. I've always wanted one. Just having a hard time justifying it past "I've always wanted one".

Mazda2 is definitely in the hunt. Little smaller than I want, little less powerful, but the biggest knock is finding one that has cruise control (only available on the Touring, IIRC). I should have mentioned that I drive a lot on the interstate, cruise is almost a necessity for me.

Versa - sorry, no thanks. I've not read a single positive review about them from actual automotive enthusiasts. Balls-out performance is not something I'm requiring, but I at least want it to be somewhat enjoyable to drive.

Elantra GT- If we're talking the newer five-door hatch, then yes, I would definitely give it a shot. Haven't seen one in my price range yet.

1st gen xB would be great, having a hard time finding any around here that aren't either automatics or have high mileage. (I'm aware that they run forever, but if I'm spending this much money, I want under 75k).

That price on the RX8 sounds high by about a factor of 2.

psteav wrote: Mazda2 is definitely in the hunt. Little smaller than I want, little less powerful, but the biggest knock is finding one that has cruise control (only available on the Touring, IIRC). I should have mentioned that I drive a lot on the interstate, cruise is almost a necessity for me.

I feel your pain. I do 100mi/day and wish I had cruise.

Just saying there IS this kit if you want to add it without buying a new steering wheel and airbag: http://www.thecruisecontrolstore.com/250-9601-mazda-2-2010-2014-complete-rostra-cruise-control-kit/

I have no experience with that myself, but IIRC Andy Hollis used it on his STF 2.

bgkast wrote: That price on the RX8 sounds high by about a factor of 2.

Hell S2 models are getting in that range now...

Op, take a look at protege5's, you can find them all day within your budget, but keep in mind if you can find a MZ3 I personally would get that before another P5.

Have you looked at midsize wagons? (ie e46's, Mazda 6, jetta all had wagon variants)