Best commuter car?

[Turf1600]

Hyundai elantra

they are actually really nice cars and the warranty is the best I've ever heard of. 10yrs/100k miles

I just saw one like 15 minutes ago and was amazed at how good it looked.

[James Crivellone]

as much as you want to appreciate the,"I'm not going to work on it deal", you should really look at e28's.

For under $5000 my e28 will have a brand new motor, low mileage transmission, and completely new suspension. This is to allow me to park my warranty equipped 2007 Nissan Xterra and actually enjoy some comfort commuting over 100 miles a day to the office.

Economy cars are good at one thing, getting you to a place, however if you are driving that far on a daily basis you really need to ask yourself if you want to sit in a crappy Japanese econobox, or a nice comfy German sedan.

Frankly, I'd rather save the 10 grand (following your 15k rule), and pay somebody else to work on it if I was REALLY against working on my daily driver, and I'll still have leather seats, and incredible ride quality.

my

[delatlanta1281]

Agreed James. If I didn't have to have a car that was younger than 5yrs and under 100,000 miles, I would sport an e28.
Turf, are you leasing or buying? I am going to lease. I am getting either an Impreza, or another Jetta. They are both sticks, and with the mileage upgrade (20k) I will be just over $250 for 36 months. Then I will trade up and start all over again. My company does however give me a great monthly car allowance and mileage (22 cents), so it works out for my situation.

[BimmerTom]

Well, the whole point of a new or slightly used car is so you DON'T have to work on it. As a commuter car, reliability trumps comfort, etc...

As my suggestion... Go with a Toyota certified used vehicle. You got a longer warranty and a good deal to boot. I'm considering a 2005-2006 4-door Tundra as a replacement to my truck.

Tom

[SamE30e]

Get a hummer... and not the suv..

But seriously, James has a good point.

On another note, the girl at work has a Yaris and it's pretty baller. She drives about 25 miles each day and fills up like once every 2 weeks if not less.

[Huff]

Honda Fit..

[gearheadE30]

Honda Fit sports are nice, the older Hyundai Elantra GTs are okay, an older Celica ST would work although they don't look that great IMO, or get a 318ti. I underwtand where you're coming from with the not wanting a car that would be good to modify, though...

[Erik]

Smart Coupe. But you can only bring a large wallet with you. I saw one this morning and they are badass. Either that or a Mini Cooper NON S. That way you won't mod it.

[e34john]

Hyundai elantra

they are actually really nice cars and the warranty is the best I've ever heard of. 10yrs/100k miles

Was going to suggest that, newer Hyundais aren't that bad looking and come with all the comfort features. JUst beat the crap out of it and bring it in if it ever does die on you.

We had a rental Yaris once and got clipped by a CBR on the freeway. The bike kept going but our front bumper got ripped off and jammed into the front end of the car. Plus a few other cosmetic damages.

[Bimmerista]

Fit or Smart

I'd also consider a Mini too.

[Farbin Kaiber]

I will agree, in the past 10 years, Hyundai has really raised the bar for Korean vehicles. Daewoo really failed and left a sour taste in the US markets mouth. I had a 1996 Elantra w/2.0l, and, a 1997 Accent w/ 1.8l, and then as I worked on 2004-2006 Hyundai's in my last shop and all my complaints, gripes, qualms, and issues had been resolved. In the next 3-5 years they will be making another large jump on the ladder. Wait til the Genesis and it's derivatives hit the market soon.

[scabzzzz]

Hyundai makes awesome riding, driving cars. No joke. I used to valet some really often and was always impressed.

With that being said, I'd buy a Fit. Japanese econoboxes are just as comfortable as an E30 sport seat is.

[jflip2002]

The hyundai coupe (coop-ay, I dont know how to do the apostrophe over the e) looks like it'll be the thing from korea since byung hyung kim.

[equate975]

Diesel is still cheaper to drive, do the math for cost per mile. TDI Golf can easily get a shade of 50mpg on the highway. Yes it will be more expensive to fill up, but in the long run cheaper to drive. Those TDI's will run for fucking ever too.

IIRC when I was debating about getting a mk4 TDI, my mk3 I think was 9 cents per mile, and the TDI was 6.5 cents.

[Erick]

Honda Fit Sport. That'd be my purchase if I had to get a new commuter.

I would take a Mini, but they carry a higher price. It'd be nice to have some extra handling here and there and some extra fun out of your commuter, but I'm pretty sure the Fit can be fun as well with very light work (if even necessary, at the end of the day I still have a boosted e30 parked right next to it).

- Erick