Article Comments - The 10 Best Used Cars for Less Than $5,000

34 messages, Last post on Apr 26, 2009 at 1:30 PM

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What is this discussion about? Acura Integra, Chevrolet Camaro, Chevrolet Corvette, Ford Mustang, Honda Prelude, Mitsubishi Eclipse, Mazda MX-5 Miata, Nissan 240SX, Subaru Impreza, Car Buying

The 10 Best Used Cars for Less Than $5,000 - A dealer lot is the wrong place to get a deal on a used car. Check out Autotrader.com, eBay.com, craigslist.org or a local paper. (more)

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#15 of 34 Extremely helpful by CarPro21 Feb 05, 2009 (1:37 pm)
Thanks for the article post. I've been searching a long time for the perfect kind of starter car for myself, Stick obviously, and I know there were places to find them cheap but I had no foundation and no one to say "ok, here's a list of good, decent cars and with budget you can't beat ay ANY dealer". I agree Prelude's are the most underrated car I've ever seen but that makes me chase them because I want a car that rarely anyone would see or drive. All I see is Civics, Camrys, Corollas, etc. the normal average cars.
#16 of 34 top ten used cars by forddude2 Feb 05, 2009 (2:56 pm)
I don't think that you should overlook the Ford Contour SVT as a best buy for under 5k. It has as good or better performance as some of the cars listed, plus it has four doors for hauling the kids too. It also sounds awesome and is a ton of fun. Replies to this message: fezo (Feb 05, 2009 3:35 pm)
#17 of 34 Re: top ten used cars [forddude2] by fezo Feb 05, 2009 (3:35 pm)
Replying to: forddude2 (Feb 05, 2009 2:56 pm) Good candidate. That's indeed a fun car and in teh right price range.
#18 of 34 Top ten used cars by torque1788 Feb 05, 2009 (4:05 pm)
Another good one would be the 89'-94' Ford Taurus SHO with 3.0 and 3.2 and 5 speed...the v6 throws out 220 hp and 200 lb-ft...I had one and the yamaha built v6 sounded really good it has plenty of interior room and 4 doors definitely cheap too Replies to this message: lokki (Feb 06, 2009 7:29 am) torque1788 (Feb 08, 2009 6:49 pm)
#19 of 34 Re: Top ten used cars [torque1788] by lokki Feb 06, 2009 (7:29 am)
Replying to: torque1788 (Feb 05, 2009 4:05 pm) How are those old SHO's on maintence? I'm not talking about door knobs and that kind of little stuff.... Is that Yamaha still a pretty good engine when it gets old? How about the 5-speed? Since they're speciality items, the general rule says that they're either going to be really good.... or really bad. I had a friend who had an SHO when they were still new; it was a really nice car. Then he got married, and traded it for a - wait for it - Chrysler mini van to haul the kid around. Sic transit gloria mundi, is it not so? Replies to this message: torque1788 (Feb 08, 2009 6:49 pm)
#20 of 34 Re: Top ten used cars [lokki] by torque1788 Feb 08, 2009 (6:49 pm)
Replying to: lokki (Feb 06, 2009 7:29 am) The 89' sho used a cable shifter which wore out after a while and would kink up and cause shifts to be hard but in 90' ford switched to rods which held up good...they make a kit to put a rod shifter in the 89'...the engine is amazing and sounds good...mine had 150,000 miles on it and ran like the day it came out of the factory...you can get a low mile sho in really good shape for 2-3 grand...parts are a little expensive but no more than some imports...maintence is no more than any other car except for a 100,000 mile tune up that was kind of expensive
#21 of 34 Re: Article Comments - The 10 Best Used Cars for Less Than $5,000 [athakur999] by sloshman Feb 09, 2009 (12:10 am)
Replying to: athakur999 (Feb 04, 2009 12:42 pm) I also think the 5g prelude to be good looking so you're not alone . The article was talking about getting an SH and I wondering if you can tell by the VIN number if you can't tell from the owner and symbols and I'm guessing you couldn't get ATTS on base models right? Replies to this message: gearhead1977 (Feb 10, 2009 4:53 am)
#22 of 34 Re: Article Comments - The 10 Best Used Cars for Less Than $5,000 [sloshman] by gearhead1977 Feb 10, 2009 (4:53 am)
Replying to: sloshman (Feb 09, 2009 12:10 am) I thought that the Prelude SH was an actual model, like LS,SE,etc. I might not be remembering correctly, but I think the Prelude SH had it as maybe a sticker on the back. I imagine you could learn from the VIN and I'm sure a Honda specific forum or website could help you. Not sure about ATTS, but again, I don't think that this gen Prelude ever came as a "stripper". Even the base car was pretty well loaded (for a Honda)
#23 of 34 Prelude? by kyfdx HOST Feb 18, 2009 (9:07 am)
Compared to the other cars listed, finding one for $5K would seem to be a real stretch... Plus, any decent SH is probably going to be twice that... For my money, the first one listed... the Acura GS-R would be my choice.. As they say, though... most have gotten the full "treatment" by now...
#24 of 34 99 Miata by chrisa222 Feb 25, 2009 (3:48 pm)
Replying to: gearhead1977 (Feb 05, 2009 12:55 pm) Great article. I picked up a 99 Miata last year in very very good condition...I definately reccomend one as a fun second car. There is a ton of aftermarket support on this car too...this summer I am going to turbocharge my car. A reputable company that specializes in Miata upgrades offers a turbo kit for $1800 for a 99-2000 Miata. They claim a minimum of 160WHP which I would say is comparable to about 190HP at the crank. 190HP in a 2200lb convertible??? I can't wait. I won't lose to a minivan