If the main thing you are looking for is reliabilty, a car that wont break down and if it does wont cost much to repair and your budget is under $13,000 , either a small of medium sized car, no older then 15 years and no more then 200,000kms and l live in a rural area and do 15,000 kms a year, assuming the car was well looked after , l want a car that will last alteast 5-7 years without any serious problems
whats the best car to buy
Whats Most Reliable Used Car under $13,000
cranswick on 28/02/2023 - 08:13
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Toyota Corolla.
But I would just stick with your old Camry.
A 10 year old Corolla will give you years of trouble free service.
Can confirm. Mine made it to 11 before it got written off
11 years for a Corolla? It's barely started to be worn in at that point.
I know. Could have easily gone another five if it didn’t get T-Boned.
Anything Kia/Hyundai/Toyota.
I have a 300,000k 2011 Kia Sportage i picked up for $5k, never skipped a beat.
I have a 2010 i30 crdi turbo with 378,000km on it. The only thing I've changed are the wheel bearings and the alternator brushes.
Service interval of 25,000km
what about a mazda 3 compared to toyota coralla is one more reliable , is one a better car overall
Mazda had a purple patch the last decade with reliability being dubious (especially their diesel engines). Toyota still trumps them.
Admittedly Mazdas are better equipped and look a bit better.Agreed. We had a 2009 Mazda6. It never had a failure that left us stranded, but little things wore out here and there, before it got to 100,000 km. We also had a Mitsubishi Lancer, and that had no issues.
Toyota make good transport appliances, some of which look good and are fun to drive.
Go with a Japanese or Korean car because neither country is currently threatening to invade a neighbour, engages in genocide, supports Russia or sponsors cyberwarfare on our government and companies.
Older Mazda 3's were infamous for bad road noise. This combined with rural roads might make for some extra cabin noise.
Alternatively, just turn the volume up.
Looks forward to OP's next thread about why tyres for alloys cost so much
Mazda 3 around 2010 gen had issues with the melting & warping dashboard, mostly around clock area. No big deal, but looks really bad.
what about Kia sportage, that looks affordable and looks good, would for example a 2008-2013 kia sportage thats done 150,000 be reliable
I bought a used during covid, 2011/180k Kms, tons of issues like valve noise, transmission issue, random leak in trunk, worn out bushing. I heard the engine in those are part of a class action law suit. Good car to drive and practical but reliability is a bit questionable.
Japanese cars are the safest. Are toyotas the best - not necessarily; once you knock the more risky cars off your list, it really is far more dependent on the car than the brand or model. You can have a terrible camry and a great mazda. My subie from 2001 ran beautifully for 19 years up until a hail storm brought it to a premature end.
Sinnerator had a good list. Then pick the actual car carefully.
Although have said Japanese, later model (post 2015ish) Koreans are ok. Kia has a 7 year warranty so if you can manage a 6year old Kia, you get a one year warranty. A kia Rio is pretty small but fits into your budget for a not that old car
Anything Suzuki.
Swift Sport ;)
Any old toyota/honda cars at that price you can find in good condition
Most small "Japanese" cars in Australia are of course not Japanese at all - they were made in Thailand. I reckon all the Asian brands, and surprisingly many Euro ones, are about as reliable as each other up to about 200k kms (beyond that, yes Toyotas do seem to wear out more slowly).
The big difference is how hard/expensive it is to get it fixed when something goes wrong, especially if you are rural. That in turn is largely a function of how many of the model were sold in this country so whatever you buy make sure it was a popular model when new.
mazda 3, made in japan.
Corollas are also made in Japan (with the exception of the 11th gen sedan)
Most small "Japanese" cars in Australia are of course not Japanese at all - they were made in Thailand.
It's about 50/50:
Made In Japan
Toyota Yaris
Toyota Prius/Prius C
Toyota Corolla*
Mazda 2 2002-2015
Mazda 3
Mitsubishi Lancer
Subaru ImprezaMade in Thailand
Corolla Sedan 2013-2018
Honda Jazz
Honda City
Nissan Micra
Mitsubishi Mirage
Mazda 2 2015-
Don't think you want to buy a small car if you're doing mainly highway driving. I find they don't sit on the road as nicely as medium size cars
No idea why your comment is down voted. I too find medium to large car to be far more stable in highway.
Depends more on the model of the car more than the size or weight, that's why. There's no significant reason a heavier car should be 'more stable' (depending on how you define that).
There's no significant reason a heavier car should be 'more stable'
Weight isn't the factor, size is. A larger car will have a longer wheelbase which allows more time for the front suspension to compress and decompress when hitting a bump before the rear suspension hits the bump.
Also small cars usually have horrid short travel torsion beam suspension at the rear to save space whereas larger cars have room to fit superior long travel multi-link suspension. It's no accident that Camry's, Commodores and Falcons have always had better ride quality than Yaris size cars.
@Dogsrule: Suspension isn't the main reason a longer wheelbase is more stable, but regardless, you're right and what I said was a bit misleading. Longer wheelbase does provide additional stability at speed.
Still, a lot of other factors to into it so nobody should assume a larger car is more stable on the highway just because of its size. A Hilux is going to be much less stable than a Yaris, for example, thanks to the high centre of gravity and longer suspension travel.
Still, a lot of other factors to into it so nobody should assume a larger car is more stable on the highway just because of its size.
Oh for sure, light commercial vehicles have terrible handling and ride quality due to high COG and stiff rear leaf springs. You're right that weight isn't the determining factor either, but I think we can agree that all other things being equal, a large passenger car (e.g large sedan) has the potential to offer better ride quality than a smaller car because of these factors.
That being said, good design makes a huge difference. I've been in a current Corolla sedan and it rode very comfortably (the current Camry is even better again). I've also been in a 2013 C Class and it was so harsh that my breath was puffing out of my lungs every time we hit a decent bump.
Yeah but given that the majority of recommendations have been Japanese/Korean cars 8 plus years old I think the statement holds true (Yaris vs Corolla, i20 vs i30 ect)
Lexus IS250. Made in Japan
this is the way, if you can find out without the crumbling dash and door cards, 09+
Toyota thing or maybe a Honda thing. I like Honda better.
Honda Accord Euro, Made in Japan (last model in Honda range to be made in Japan). Done over 260,000 and still going mechanically strong although seats and leather are starting deteriorate. At this rate the interior will start to deteriorate faster than the mechanical aspect. I just want the car to die so I can justify buying a newer car.
All Honda’s now come out of Japan.CRV Hybrid when released later this year will also be sourced from Japan.
Good to know that they’ve moving back to Japan. My dads 2015 CRV was built in Thailand.
The current generation still is, but that is all about to change later this year.I had a 2019 CRV VTI-LX AWD, no issues at all.Build quality was fine.
Mine is 285k and still kicking. Interior is still good but my red paint started to fade.
Corolla or Camry is your best bet, but make sure it's new than 2006. Some of the previous models, only have 3-star safety ratings.
if OP is in a rural area, high mileage cars that have mostly been driven on the highway allowing the car to warm up properly are often less worn than city-short-trip driven engines that can be subject to much more wear and tear.
as I read it, in the US where highways rule, cars regularly get 500K kms without major problems.
in Sydney city, as the OP says I'd be looking under 200K.
so if you can buy a rural car that's mostly only seen highway kilometres, that could be a good buy.
Not my choice, but Oldhens and Foulcans were built for bumpy stray lion roads - but fuel consumption proly more than your Camry unless you lead foot it.
The most fuel I've used in one day was a rental Camry from Dallas airport - those 70mph highway miles between distant suburbs sure burned through a tank of fuel alright !
I highly recommend Lexus IS250.
I bought a second hand at 150,000km. Now almost hitting 300,000km and the only thing I had to change was engine oil, brakes & tyres.
It won't have the power of an Aurion, but in terms of comfort, reliability, maintenance… its totally worth it.
Considering you could get 1 for roughly $8000, you've got $5000 budget for a major service + upgrade if you like.
Is the Lexus quiet inside. I find Toyotas to be a bit loud in terms of road noise when driving.
I find it quiet enough. If the environment outside is slightly noisy, i forget the engine is on. I end up "starting" the engine again. lol.
road noise is fine. also depends on the tyres you put on. and with music, it wouldn't be an issue. :)
Direct injection = carbon build up
yeah, seems like a common issue especially with the is250. but i've never had any issues with it.
apparently the way to solve it is rev it up once in a while. sorts the problem.
easy to do it with the paddle shift on 1st or 2nd gear. or neutral if parked. lol.
Do not buy a Camry
When the motor goes, and it will go, you will have the biggest headache/regret going
Just buy a Honda, trust a former mechanicWow. Someone is looking to get banned.
And why is that
For insulting Camry.
You’re not new here. You should know that as OzB’s favourite answer to what car should I buy is “Camry”. I was under the impression it’s a rule you are not allowed to say they aren’t good.
@Euphemistic: I was a Holden dealership mechanic & I will tell u
Camry is crap because of the motor!
R U a mechanic as well? I did not think so
What car do u drive? Is it a Camry? Why not?
I drive a 2005 Honda
My memory is crap due to being king-hit
Trust me!!!!!!!!!!
I've got an 05 Honda jazz manual, picked it up for $1500. Car is mechanically solid, no leaks and no oil burning, ac is ice cold. Recently changed the spark plugs. Efficient as well, 35L goes a about 600kms.
kia rio baby
2012-2016 i30
Theta motor?
Honda accord euro. My 2005 is still fine. Only notable repairs I've done is coil packs, starter motor (to be expected after 17 years) and a power steering pump that leaked.
A stolen brand new one
Why pay $13,000 for then
Free is under 13k
+1 for the Corolla club… reliable, easy to maintain… get a 14mm spanner for the sump plug and your good.
If you're under 5'10 - Toyota Corolla
If you're over 5'10 - Toyota CamryI'm country based and bought my 08' Camry in ~2014 with ~110,000kms. Just went over the 200,000kms mark.
IMO look for the best deal with 100-120,000kms. Should be able to pick up something in the 2010-2012 range.
Key reasons:
1. Super reliable and hasn't had any major issues, get her serviced every 15,000 or so.
2. As is unavoidable with enough late-night country driving when you clean up a kangaroo and mess up a pannel or two, repairs are far cheaper/easier as there are so many of these around to be pulling spare parts from. The same goes for getting it serviced etc. every mechanic has worked on a thousand of these before so knows what the go is and spare parts if needed will always be in stock and fairly cheap. You won't have these perks with less common cars.P.s. if you buy a Camry don't forget to put a box of tissues behind the back seat. Helps catch the tears of the drivers you cut off ;)
2004 Kia Sorento for $5000. V6, done 250,000 km. Never had a problem after 2.5 years.
Cant go wrong with a Corolla
A motorbike might suit your needs if you're after cheap transport? Many great bikes under 10k that are reliable and have great fuel economy. Certainly different but a good consideration in these times.
If not, a Toyota with a good service history
In a rural area?
they call motorbikes coffins on wheels , my next door neighbour lost his leg on one, no thanks
Honda Jazz no?
Toyota Camry/Aurion hands down (even though it will be the most boring car), the 2.4 (2AZ) or the 3.5 (2GR) are indestructible as long as you do routine servicing
Another vote for Honda Euro.
We've seen examples with big milage and they still feel great. The interiors are bulletproof, very unlikely to find squeeks or rattles.
The K series engines are reliable
The manual transmission models in particular are fun and engaging.
And imo, they look great
Not a 2007 Camry, they blow radiators
My mate has a Nissan pulsa that run on LPG hit 500k. He's hoping to do the same with his Nissan 2nd
Maybe I am one of the unlucky ones but our 2018 Mazda 2 had a number of issues (fuel pump failure, side mirror failure, etc) they were replaced and fixed under warranty but it was annoying having to take it back
was it new? maybe the previoys owner didnt look after it
We bought it brand new and serviced it every 6 months
So just 2 issues? You say that an older car has had any manufacturing faults rectified as they likely failed during warranty. It’s moving into worn out territory.
2 major ones. It also had loss of torque, which waa sorted after onboard computer reset, cigarette lighter causing no key fob issue, transmission not gearing down
Bought a 2011 Mazda 3 for my daughter around 2 and a half years ago for $8,500 (pre covid used car price surge), only had 79k on the clock. Its been excellent.
anything toyota, corolla, camry etc
I'd not get too caught up on the specific model of car - rather pay more attention to the service history, specifically the major services/replacements having been done. And also the condition of the car itself - they're often tarted up for sale but a keen eye can spot one thats had a tough life.
Your usual reliable suspects with this done to them should give good results.
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Toyota Hilux N70 or older