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Low End Sedans (under $16k)
3871 messages, Last post on Dec 30, 2011 at 10:54 AM
You are in the Sedans Forum.What is this discussion about? Toyota ECHO, Chevrolet Aveo, Kia Rio, Nissan Sentra, Honda Fit, Hyundai Accent, Toyota Yaris, Kia Spectra, Suzuki Forenza, Sedan
#2333 of 3871 Speaking of Kia of Canada...have you read 'The trials by iluvmysephia1
Sep 05, 2003 (7:15 am)
and tribulations of a Kia Sorento owner' in the Kia Sorento thread here on Edmunds? If you have time go to post# 2703, 2771, 2780 and 2816 and read of mikesf's troubles after he tipped over his 2003 Kia Sorento in icy conditions near Montreal. Oh, what a story...he includes all the gory details of what fun dealing with service departmnets can be like when problems mount during the investigation period and what types of parts should I order time frame. Sounds like he has a legitimate complaint with Kia Montreal and Kia Canada on this one. He was without his rig for WAY too long and talk about the runaround...it can get ugly when tech.'s are stumped, ya know? Then the Service Advisor has to bluff out answers to you to just stall you, etc. He's got his rig back and it's running but is suing those two entities...that was about 2 weeks ago and I haven't read anything from him since...I'm sure that part just kind of adds to the frustration of it.As far as true low-end cars go I must say that Hyundai's Accent is evolving into a much better looking little car and they are offering them now for as little as $8500 in US funds. As far as I know they are not trouble prone in their mechanicals either.
#2334 of 3871 iluv by dunworth
Sep 05, 2003 (9:51 am)
Poor guy with the Sorrento. Kia's dealer body up here is pretty poor (though my local one is very good) and the Canadian importer does not seem to have its stuff together. I know people who have bought the vehicle and got the run around from the dealer and no follow up from head office. Fortunately the cars themselves have been pretty good.You make a good point about the Accent. It really is a great little car. Very solidly built and nice looking. I am not crazy about the 5 speed manual but I could live with it. It offers good value for those not keen on the Echo sedan's styling. Here's a recent review.
http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/hl/03accentgsi.htm
#2336 of 3871 Yes (literally) by backy
Sep 09, 2003 (5:23 pm)
Maybe just not to talk about right now. But there will be soon with the nearly-here Mazda3, Aveo, Forenza, and redone Civic and Elantra. I am especially interested to see the upgrades on the '04 Elantra, including the VVT engine. I am also holding out hope that the BMW 1 Series is in low-end territory, but I think I remember seeing it would be closer to $20k. I saw a photo of the 3-door today and it's gorgeous (as gorgeous as a stubby 3-door hatch can be that is).#2337 of 3871 by coolguyky7
Sep 09, 2003 (6:52 pm)
The 2004 Civic has the headlights of a Camry! (I can hear your gasps.)I swear I saw an odd-looking Elantra last weekend. It had to be a 2004. Its tail lights had a circle design thing in them or something, that or I just never noticed it ever before.
#2338 of 3871 That must have been the '04 Elantra by backy
Sep 09, 2003 (10:53 pm)
Did you see the front? You would have noticed a different front end, especially the grille.#2339 of 3871 that's better..... by dunworth
Sep 10, 2003 (5:23 am)
So does the new Elantra look better or worse than the existing one?Generally, I like Korean car designs but I have found their refreshes often look worse than the original design. The otherwise attractive new Kia Optima/Magentis's front grill looks garish compared to the older one. The 1999 refresh of the Elantra with the small grills did not suit the original more organic look of the 1996-8 version. Ditto with the second generation Sonata or at least the second body style which I believe came out in 1994. It looked like an Accord but a few years later the front end was restyled with an Edsel-like grill yuck!
Mind you the most recent refresh of the Sonata makes it one of the nicest looking midsize cars on the market, just behind the Mazda6 and the outgoing Mitsu Galant.
#2340 of 3871 dunworth-I DO like Hyundai's recent refresh of the by iluvmysephia1
Sep 10, 2003 (1:48 pm)
Tiburon, though. It looks like it has a more bold and aggressive stance now. Before it looked too unusual for it's own good. Too many twists and turns-now it's more angular. A handsome update! It's not a low-end car though so let's kick back to low-enders.#2341 of 3871 Re Tib refresh by backy
Sep 10, 2003 (7:27 pm)
That was really not a refresh but a generational redesign I think. A refresh is more like what Hyundai did with the Sonata for '02, the Accent for '03, and the Elantra for '04.#2342 of 3871 by dunworth
Sep 11, 2003 (6:00 am)
The Tib was a redesign but the platform and engine are carryovers. I never really liked the original Tib's melted cheese look (the Celica had the similar appearance several generations ago). The current Tib is arguably the best looking coupe on the market and actually it is pretty cheap for what it is. Base price in Canada is mid-grade Civic sedan territory (just under C$ 20K).So iluv, Cheapest high quality wheels in Canada is now the 2-door Echo hatchback. It is the Euro/Japan model sold as Yaris and Vitz depending on market. This is an awesome car for the money - less than C$13K base price with a 5-speed and stereo. It has no toys but neither does the Accent or Rio and the Echo is more refined mechanically. If that's too small, I saw an ad for a base Saturn ION here in Toronto for C$13,500. Anyone say deal?
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