frugal car buying ideas?

I get my reliability ratings here:
http://autos.msn.com/
speciffically, here: http://autos.msn.com/home/reliabilit....aspx?src=URES

my prices here:
http://www.kbb.com/
(There's Kelly's and NADA, one is used more for west coast, one more for east coast, I can't remember which is which, but I like the kbb web format.)

I look for classified ads & local prices here:
www.cars.com

I have a personal bias for Saturns: reliable, safe, reasonably priced. Could probably get a decent mid-90's Saturn for under $2k.

(And I'm just so not into buying a hybrid bone-throw to environmentalists when they don't get much better gas milage than the Saturn I bought 10 years ago and the technology is there to do SO much better!)

Learn to drive a stick shift, it's empowering for one, but they're more reliable, less expensive to fix, better gas milage, and because there's fewer potential buyers, cheaper.

Have someone also teach you at least how to fix a flat, and check fluids, and maybe even change your oil and do your own tune-up.

When you first start up a car look at the exhaust--white indicates it's been sitting a while, condensation, probably not a problem; blue smoke, an oil leak, problem; dark grey and/or smell of fuel--probably just needs a tune up, could be bigger problem.

Check oil--two tone dipstick would indicate water in the oil if it's a really bad problem, better way to check, you can also look for oil in the water where your coolant is--big bad problem, stay away.

If oil is too dark it wasn't changed often enough, and the car in general may not have been well taken care of.

If an automatic, smell the transmission fluid, if it smells smoky that's another huge red flag to stay away.

If you learn how to do a tune-up, you might even ask the seller if they mind letting you pull a spark plug to look at it. (If someone does teach you to do a tune-up, notice the difference between the ones you're taking out and putting in.)

A lot of this stuff you can find in used-car buying books at the library. Also helps to know a little bit of terminology, especially when dealing with a dealership, so you can bluff that you know more than you do. I've been known to tke along a penis-owning friend just so I can see, comparitively, how they treat women.

There's also a way to look at the way the lines in the body line up to give you an idea if it's been in an accident before, but I don't know if I can explain it in writing. You might try one of those online sites to get the same info. Also a mechanic might look a car over for you for about $50 or so before you buy it.

I buy my cars at auctions and have had very good experiences with it, but I wouldn't reccomend it unless someone is both familiar with cars and how auction bidding works.

Good luck! (Oh, and from another northwesterner--look for water spots around doors and sunroof and take it through an intense car wash, "brushless" to make sure it won't be leaking on you come November.)

Not too steep really. Checking fluids is easy, and if you can do that you can do most everything I listed. Gas stations in OR are mandatory full-service, so that will be easier on you, and fixing a flat is simple, you just don't want to learn on the side of the road in the dark!

And hey if you see a tall dark and handsome penis-owning type, what better pick up line than, would you be willing to look at this car with me? I love Portland for it being so easy to meet new people. People in Seattle are nice, but you sort of have to have someone introduce you, they look at you weird if you just strike up a conversation. That's why I like Olympia & Portland.

The other great thing about stick-shifts... just after I learned to drive one, I was being tailgated on the highway with no place to go by this little think-I'm-cool-with-my-4cyl-Honda-Civic SOB. I waited until I got to the bottom of a steep steep hill, slowed down to 35mph, him right on my bumper, then downshifted and I was back to 65 and GONE... meanwhile the jerk in the Civic was being tailgated and honked at all the way up that long hill at as he puttered his way up going about 40. :LOL

Well, it is a steep learning curve for me, because I don't even know how to drive yet--my first lesson is this Thursday. I'm doing a package with 9 hours of instruction, and then I'll take it from there. As of right now, I sort of know that you turn the key to start the car, and I know which pedal is gas, and which pedal is the brake, and that there's another pedal down there somewhere on a manual transmission car...that's about it. It's hard for people outside NYC to understand how non-car-oriented a person can be...

I do know how to change a tire on a car. (I learned on the side of a road in the rain. Long story. At least it wasn't dark.) Checking oil and changing fluids is sort of a how-hard-can-it-be thing. My dad and my sister both drive stick shift cars, and I do want to learn myself.

I haven't really been in the market for tall, dark penis-owners--haven't got the time to think about that lately--but I do take your point.

I would never buy new! We have been very happy with our 80's volvo wagons. They are safe and have been running well for over five years(they both costed under $5000).

Hi there!
i would quitely advise if you are able to get someone who will teach you Stick shift FIRST. it is a little more complicated, but once you learn stick, driving a automatic is something you won't even have to learn, 'tho if you're anything like me you will sooo love the feeling of control/gas savings of driving a stick that you won't want an automatic at all. besides, as the OP quoted a stick can out maneuver/out accelerate most other things on the road. I would put in my vote for an older Toyota or Volvo (I'm an old volkswagen enthusiast,but I hesitate to reccomend one for a person who doesnt have fix-it ability or a topnoch mechanic). The great thing about Volvo's is they are sooo safety concious that even an older one is going to be safer on the road that a lot of newer cars. That being said, I currently have a 1984 Toyota Corolla that is an AWESOME car. We inherited it, and it was driven from Cali to Chicago on a regular basis. it has over 190,000 miles and runs like a champ. Yeah, it's not pretty but it has NEVER broken down, gets great gas milage, and is super cheap to fix because parts are everywhere for it. I LAUGH hysterically sometimes when we pass newer/fancier SUV's on the road that are broken down, but I try not to because it's not a nice thing to do.