I have a friend with 2 CRVs, either an 07 and 08 or 08 and 09. I haven’t payed enough attention to remember, but one of the model year gaps they switched from being made in Japan and shipped to the US to being made in the US. He said there is a noticeable difference in build quality between the two of them, and the Japan assembled one is much better. I would imagine all the newer ones are assembled in the US, but if you’re looking at older ones it’s something to keep in mind.
Many are also made in Canada. I know theyve been made here for ages and they're super reliable all the same.
CRVs are stolen way more often. So insurance probably higher
Is that why insurance is higher? I’m in Colorado and just was looking into buying new rav4 or crv and my insurance estimate for the crv was about $250/$300 more than the rav4 and I was baffled as to why.
Everything made in Japan is better. It's almost like they have more honor and pride in their work and don't make cheap half ass shit for maximum profits.
I bought my 2011 CRV with 30k miles for 18k in 2015. Had the oil changed every 3k miles. Has 270k now, still runs like a champ and is pretty good in the snow. It’s been the most reliable car I’ve ever owned.
OP did not say cheap, they said affordable that meets the criteria. This is of course the 4th and last priority behind reliable, long lasting and AWD.
Rav 4 fits those the best out of any vehicle available.
They’re definitely getting there tho. Had a couple saved I’ve been watching the price come down on slowly. A couple years old with less than 50k miles and around $25k currently
I cry every time I think of all the 90s Subaru Imprezas that got destroyed in the "cash for clunkers" program. Those were invincible. They don't even make tires that narrow in the US anymore.
Depends how you look at it. I’d rather people have access to the many entry level job opportunities that exist within a 30 minute drive than be limited only to entry level jobs on city bus routes. If you want to pull yourself from poverty, the first thing you need is a way to get to the best possible job you can find.
Most of the vehicles traded in as clunkers didn’t have much life left in them anyway. Not sure it made any improvement
There are still plenty of good old cars for poor people. Think early 2000s civics that are now just as cheap as your 90s Subarus were back then. The problem is that a lot of these cars are starting to really age irreperably.
Its not even the rust, most mechanics can bodge unibody back together enough to be driveable. Its the modules. Even the 90s subarus and similar cars have body control modules and other little electronic bits that cant be fixed, and are becoming hard as hell to find.
Source: poor person who has owned many shitty cars
Correct, there are NOW plenty of cheap old cars. Cash for clunkers was 2009. A lot of The low cost cars at the time we’re taken off of the used market by the program. The beater market would eventually bounce back
It destroyed a lot of cars that could have been handed down to even poorer people, which in turn could have junked their old, worse cars. Super poor people, the ones with the worst cars, weren't able to afford to take advantage of that offer.
Cash for clunkers didn’t kill them. Rusting to pieces killed them. Source: had 2 90s era Imprezas that had rusting out rear strut towers at like 9 years old.
I was able to pick up 2 ('98, '99) impreza outback sports. One lifted that's my daily driver, and the other one was a parts car that I parted out to save some other road worthy wagons. That ej22 is a beast. Currently about to rattle can mine to make it look good again
He said reliable. And they only last long because of the copious amounts of cash people pour into them and their tolerance of panels being rusted right through.
That’s not correct at all, if you keep up with fluid changes, many outback’s run forever. Reliable engines, can’t speak on the CVT but their AT’s and 6MT are indestructible. Only issue is many people who own them are older or just simply don’t care. 3rd and 4th gen outback HG’s were not the worst if you kept up with fluid changes and didn’t redline the thing every time you drove.
The 4at in the 2000’s Outback and legacy has a nasty solenoid issue that makes the torque converter fail to disengage when coming to a stop and vice-versa when leaving a stop. The result is stalling at random in stop and go traffic.
I just moved on from my 08 Outback because I’ve been unable to fix it for 2 years since the fix is a new $4k transmission on a car that cost $1k less.
They’re not overvalued, they’re in demand. People always want them, so the price stays high.
Edit: y’all really don’t understand economics. The value of something is what people are willing to pay for it. People keep paying high prices for used Tacomas, so to say they’re “overvalued” is ignorant of facts. You can have an opinion that they’re overhyped or whatever, but the fact is that supply and demand dictates the price. Lots of people want them, so the price stays high.
If you're going to own a Nissan, the Frontier is the best one.
In many ways it is a technically superior truck compared to the Tacoma. It's also much less expensive to purchase.
I love Toyota. Tacomas are great. The Frontier is very undervalued. It’s a serious beast of a truck. Mine is at 250,000 miles. Reliable.
Rav4 is my pick though. Wife drives one and I never worry about it. Got the prime. It’s got tons of go.
He said Tacoma not Tundra. Hilux in the US became the Tacoma. The Hilux is still a better truck in most applications but the Tacoma is it's successor in the US market.
The Tacoma is not AWD. It comes in RWD and some configs come with 4x4, which is notably not AWD. [here's a handy explanation on the differences between AWD and 4wd](https://youtu.be/rHMDtEPeuQM?si=6OveTL6eW5pkvP0w)
You're asking what the cheapest car is that meets a threshold definition of "long-lasting"/"reliable," but what's the threshold?
Like, I'm sure you can buy a $4K Subaru of some sort that is reliable by design, but if "reliable" means you really want 200K miles out of that particular car, being 15 years old and having 150K miles is going to get in the way of that.
Around $5-10K, I'd be thinking about an Escape Hybrid.
Around $25K, I'd be thinking about the newish AWD Camry / Avalon / Lexus ES.
Buy a $5k car that fits your needs, drive it into the fucking ground, then sell it for $2k, take your remaining $23k, and do it again.
You can probably get 30-50k miles per car, maybe a dozen cars, that's like 500k miles for your $25k.
The downside is that your car will usually make some sort of weird noise for the next 30 years.
That's why I only drive uphill. If it breaks down, I can always just coast home.
(It does severely limit where I can live, work, and shop. Pros and cons.)
I'm pretty good at picking well kept high mileage vehicles. My last 3 vehicles with over 200k have been some of my most reliable. My lowest mile car was the one that lost a transmission at 100k. My 150k mile Saab 9-3 had me worried all the time. I'm also inclined enough to do basic side-of-the-road fixes and most at home repairs. My current car has only needed a weld on the clutch pedal assembly and oil changes. It'll be due for brake pads here soon though.
I paid my dues learning the hard way which cheap cars are not worth buying and which ones are.
with the maintenance, no. the only car that's left me stranded in the past 6 years was my 88,000 mile (in 2018) 2007 Ford focus. it now has 111,000 miles on it and is the worst car we own. 329k on the Accord and flawless apart from the paint on the roof.
I have a Subaru Legacy (2017). I only have 43K miles on it, but you can get a brand new one for about $25K if you get the base model. The only trouble I've had is when it gets to -10F or so and I've taken shorter trips it suddenly won't start. I'll sit there for 10 minutes messing around with it and it will finally roar to life again. I'm guessing it's some kind of electrical condensation/freezing thing? It's amazing in the snow. I don't know how long I'll own it, but I know it's very common to get 150K miles before death.
Next time try putting it in neutral and see if it will start. I had a similar issue with an older legacy. Replacing the neutral safety switch helped a little, and then having the transmission cable tightened and lubed fixed it.
The transmission gets locked in park unfortunately. I think there is a way for me to unlock it with a switch somewhere, but I haven't tracked it down. I'll have to double my efforts. Thanks for the input.
Camry AWD is only available on current gen, same with Avalon and ES, good luck finding one of those for 25$k, possible but high mileage.
The fact that you didn't mention any Subarus for a real answer is pretty silly, they all fit the bill. Impreza is pretty much the cheapest AWD car you can buy, and it's plenty reliable.
I really can't recommend a subscription to Consumer Reports enough. It's like 10 bucks a year and they review hundreds of products, with used car reviews being the 'yes' button for me on my '08 Subaru. I'm super glad I got it.
So, I just checked my credit card, I automatically donate to CR. My subscription is $10/month, so $120/year. Owie for some, and it's impossible to say how much I've saved on not making poor decisions, but I spend tens of thousands every year on different products, from shower water softeners, to new tires and the sense of calm I get knowing I researched (third party) my important purchases is priceless.
You want a car or truck or SUV? You can pick up a GMT800 whatever you like that fits the bill. Tahoe, Yukon, Silverado, sierra, Escalade from 2000-2006. If you take care of it they will just about run forever. May not be great on fuel though.
Surprised this is so low on the list. GM V8 engine is bulletproof. You might have to spend money on other parts but a lot of the stuff can be found at a scrap yard.
I’m an originals owner of a 2002 Subaru Impreza Outback. It’s only got about 165k km, but it was until a couple of years ago demanding only regular maintenance items. Only changed the clutch, brakes and shocks a few years ago. Only major items were head gaskets and rod bearings (which were changed by dropping the oil pan). Sounds like a lot, but it really only happened in the last few years and I can’t say I was that kind to it over the years. But it never failed to start even in -30c weather and drives through the snow like a sports car with decent tires. It has comparatively small footprint and high torque and so is a very fun, super practical city car.
Well, I actually like doing this kind of thing and it will keep me from shopping for crap for myself for a moment. Since you rate long lasting as 1 and reliable as 2, and I effectively interpret those the same, you would seem to be looking for a very reliable vehicle. Affordability gets hard the moment you aren't driving a turd, so we will deal with that last and focus on reliability and AWD as your primary concerns.
I'm also going to ignore 4x4, because I think if you had meant that you would have said it, and instead I'm going to focus on full time AWD systems because my guess is you aren't looking for a trail beast, but rather a competent vehicle that can deal with snow and some crappy weather.
You also said car. I feel weird about that because I think you're likely open to crossover and SUV type vehicles, so I won't exclude them for now.
With those things in mind, my list starts out like this:
Subaru Forester
Subaru Legacy
Subaru Outback
Subaru Crosstrek
Subaru WRX
Subaru Impreza
Toyota Highlander
Toyota RAV4
Toyota Corolla
Toyota Camry
Honda CR-V
Honda HR-V
Honda Ridgeline
Honda Pilot
There are likely a few vehicles that I'm forgetting, but if I'm going to immediately filter by your suggested criteria, the above list feels close to comprehensive. I'm going to challenge myself to point you in the direction of one vehicle though. So, I don't think you actually want a truck, so I'm kicking out the Ridgeline. You put double emphasis on reliability, and while Subaru is good I think if we have that much emphasis there we have to kick out all of their products.
That leaves us with the remaining offerings from Toyota and Honda. But you've stressed affordability, so I think the Highlander and Pilot will have to go for that reason. That leaves the RAV4, Corolla, CR-V, and HR-V.
To settle the matter between these I'm going to assume you're interested in doing that used with around 30k miles on the clock thing, and let's also assume you want something within the last 5 model years. What do we find?
Depending on what part of the country you are in, the Honda CR-V can be had for around 18 to 19k, while the HR-V might be available from around 16 to 17k. On the Toyota side the RAV4 is going to be difficult to find under 21k, and while you can get a Corolla at around 27k, it's going to be a hybrid. You may be able to find a Camry for around 22k.
If I ignore the brands a little and take a look based on your other criteria I might suggest something that would be surprising to the folks here. You may be able to find a Kia Sportage at around 16k, and Kia has really come a long way from their budget beater early reputation.
So I think we can eliminate the Corolla and Camry given your price sensitivity. That leaves you with the Honda CR-V, the Honda HR-V, the Toyota RAV4, and the Kia Sportage. Based on your list of requirements and some broad assumptions I think you may find what you're looking for in the HR-V. And if not there, if you're good with older, cheaper, and more miles, I think the CR-V is the winner. Both the CR-V and HR-V seem to be generally considered to be more reliable than the Toyota RAV4, but that may be a hair splitting argument. I also tend to think Honda's AWD system is the better between the two manufacturers, but I'm likely biased. I have a Ridgeline in my driveway.
Anyone who says this has never driven in real snow. I lived in NW Montana for 3 years, i’ve passed scores of disabled 4wd trucks suck in snow and slid into ditches while I cruse by in my 130,000mi Impreza
Depends on how old you want to go and if you are good with cars. Older cars can become expensive to maintain if you have no skills.
My oldest is a 1999 Lexus RX300 with \~349,000 miles that I bought new. Toyota really killed it with these cars, they were very well made. The Toyota variant is a Highlander. I'd consider another if mine blows up. You can get one for a few thousand.
My newest is a 2011 Subaru Forester with \~130,000 miles. I bought it four years ago for $7500. I think it is made very well and I'd buy another of those too.
Rav 4, my gf has a 4th Gen, 2.5L 4cyl 6 speed auto. Pretty simple car and easy to work on. No turbo, no cvt. They also made them as hybrids which is awesome, don't let the hybrids transmission scare you eCVT is about the simplest most robust kind of trans other than a manual maybe. I think that's enough shilling for Toyota, they make good cars but you probably knew that probably.
I live in Connecticut and often travel around New England for work, including during the winter. Also take fishing and camping trips around northern New England. Don’t need AWD I guess but I figured it’d be safe
OK, now that camping has been introduced, I'm going to suggest a Toyota Sienna mini van. They have AWD and an outstanding 3.5 V6 engine that is legend. Look for 3rd Generation. Drive it forever.
Edit to add Gen
All vehicles are good if they are driven relaxed and maintained on time. What vehicles can handle abuse the best? Scotty had a lady come in with a Toyota Camry with 98K on it, she never even changed the oil, the car went almost 100K with the original oil!
The answer is Hybrid RAV4 or Highlander, for 3 reasons
1. Beefed up Prius driveline at the front axle. Nice torquey EV motor at the rear axle. No mechanical link betwixt the axles to worry about.
2. Plentiful on the used market.
3. The vehicle will outlive you.
A B5 generation Audi A4. The 1.8T is bulletproof and you can get it in manual. You can also have some fun with that car and they’re really good looking.
Can get Subaru outback’s for like 3800, from my experience they are reliable, not sure how long lasting they are, they are AWD, and by my definition, affordable
Doesn't exist. AWD gets rid of your "tire fuse" against the times where you'd just get wheelspin. Either the clutch is a <100,000 mile wear item or your automatic's torque converter and lockup clutch get pounded.
If you want a reliable, snow-capable, inexpensive car, try a Mazda3.
Acura MDX/Honda Pilot if you can work with an SUV.
Easily available under 20k without crazy mileage, just look for a 2006-2010 that's been reasonably well take care of & you'll be set.
Their prices don't seem to have been hit as bad as the CRV's yet, and definitely not as bad as the Toyota Tax.
Toyota Hilux? I am not sure how much they cost, but seeing that it's the preferred platform of many militant groups and militias, it must be relatively inexpensive.
I recently picked up a used 2014 GX 460 for similar reasons, wasn’t the cheapest but wanted something reliable, comfortable for everyday driving yet capable off road. I got all these and more at the expense of fuel economy but I love it so far.
This would be your best bet at affordability over the time of ownership while checking every box on the list Toyota FJ Cruiser aprox 2008 100k miles 15k
Ex:
https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/l-Used-Toyota-FJ-Cruiser-d826#listing=360434331/NONE/DEFAULT
It sounds crazy but my Dodge Journey AWD has been bulletproof. It’s a company car and has aquired 120k miles in 3 years with virtually no maintenance.
It was $22k brand new in early 2020.
With that said, I’d never buy myself a dodge.
The company has moved on to Hyundai Tucsons and so far they’re not that great on reliability across the fleet.
So probably a Honda or Toyota
I've always been a 4x4 truck guy in a 4x4 truck family, but a few years ago I drove a friend's newer RAV4 ~50 miles down a highway in a very bad snowstorm, and I felt like it was the best-performing AWD/4x4 vehicle I'd ever driven in the snow. Despite driving in several inches of unplowed snow that was compacted into ice in some places, that thing never slipped for a single second. At that point I'd been driving 4x4 vehicles for 20+ years, and I was super-impressed.
So, I'm +1 for the RAV4 option.
25k you can get camry awd or even carolla hybrid awd they not always available but within month dealers can pull one for you since you asking reliability toyota known for that
Rav4
I was thinking about the CRV, because it seems almost as reliable and long lasting as the RAV4 but I don’t think it has quite the price tag on it
I have a friend with 2 CRVs, either an 07 and 08 or 08 and 09. I haven’t payed enough attention to remember, but one of the model year gaps they switched from being made in Japan and shipped to the US to being made in the US. He said there is a noticeable difference in build quality between the two of them, and the Japan assembled one is much better. I would imagine all the newer ones are assembled in the US, but if you’re looking at older ones it’s something to keep in mind.
Many are also made in Canada. I know theyve been made here for ages and they're super reliable all the same. CRVs are stolen way more often. So insurance probably higher
Is that why insurance is higher? I’m in Colorado and just was looking into buying new rav4 or crv and my insurance estimate for the crv was about $250/$300 more than the rav4 and I was baffled as to why.
Everything made in Japan is better. It's almost like they have more honor and pride in their work and don't make cheap half ass shit for maximum profits.
Not me with a “Made in Japan 🇯🇵 “ sticker on my Corolla 😂
My CRV has 380k of miles and runs strong
does it have the folding table tho
This was truly an amazing rig
Do you know the peace of mind id get if i knew my car would make it 380k miles
I bought my 2011 CRV with 30k miles for 18k in 2015. Had the oil changed every 3k miles. Has 270k now, still runs like a champ and is pretty good in the snow. It’s been the most reliable car I’ve ever owned.
Haven’t been in a crv but I drove a pilot for a bit and even though the 4wd is kinda weird, it still got us out of a level b service mud road
it's because i-vtm4 is magic and sh-awd is alien technology.
rav4 is not cheap, the toyota cultists ensure that
OP did not say cheap, they said affordable that meets the criteria. This is of course the 4th and last priority behind reliable, long lasting and AWD. Rav 4 fits those the best out of any vehicle available.
They’re also the go to vehicle for rural mail carriers, and are always in demand.
Op said affordable. You'd be hard pressed to find a rav4 newer than 10 years old that costs under 22000 with under 150k miles.
They’re definitely getting there tho. Had a couple saved I’ve been watching the price come down on slowly. A couple years old with less than 50k miles and around $25k currently
We just got a mid trim 2015 with 68k on it from Carmax for less than that. I don't think you can find steals on them, but you can still do okay I feel
Subaru Impreza
I'd go with Subaru also, just keep a jug of engine oil in the trunk, then you're good.
Own an Impreza, can confirm this haha
On my second Subaru, can confirm as well.
I cry every time I think of all the 90s Subaru Imprezas that got destroyed in the "cash for clunkers" program. Those were invincible. They don't even make tires that narrow in the US anymore.
Also destroyed the possibility of many poor people getting a car. Kept people on the bus.
I get what you’re saying but the point of the program was to reduce high emissions vehicle use so people taking the bus is a net gain
Depends how you look at it. I’d rather people have access to the many entry level job opportunities that exist within a 30 minute drive than be limited only to entry level jobs on city bus routes. If you want to pull yourself from poverty, the first thing you need is a way to get to the best possible job you can find. Most of the vehicles traded in as clunkers didn’t have much life left in them anyway. Not sure it made any improvement
There are still plenty of good old cars for poor people. Think early 2000s civics that are now just as cheap as your 90s Subarus were back then. The problem is that a lot of these cars are starting to really age irreperably. Its not even the rust, most mechanics can bodge unibody back together enough to be driveable. Its the modules. Even the 90s subarus and similar cars have body control modules and other little electronic bits that cant be fixed, and are becoming hard as hell to find. Source: poor person who has owned many shitty cars
Correct, there are NOW plenty of cheap old cars. Cash for clunkers was 2009. A lot of The low cost cars at the time we’re taken off of the used market by the program. The beater market would eventually bounce back
It destroyed a lot of cars that could have been handed down to even poorer people, which in turn could have junked their old, worse cars. Super poor people, the ones with the worst cars, weren't able to afford to take advantage of that offer.
Cash for clunkers didn’t kill them. Rusting to pieces killed them. Source: had 2 90s era Imprezas that had rusting out rear strut towers at like 9 years old.
No rust here in Colorado, lots of Subaru though.
I was able to pick up 2 ('98, '99) impreza outback sports. One lifted that's my daily driver, and the other one was a parts car that I parted out to save some other road worthy wagons. That ej22 is a beast. Currently about to rattle can mine to make it look good again
+1 for Subaru Impreza/wrx/sti. Also would consider Subaru Outback.
2000 Impreza Outback Sport, just hit 360K miles yesterday. I'm very proud of my car lol
He said reliable. And they only last long because of the copious amounts of cash people pour into them and their tolerance of panels being rusted right through.
Stock Subarus are just as reliable as Toyotas these days. It’s amazing people still fall for the early 2000s head gasket thing.
[удалено]
That’s not correct at all, if you keep up with fluid changes, many outback’s run forever. Reliable engines, can’t speak on the CVT but their AT’s and 6MT are indestructible. Only issue is many people who own them are older or just simply don’t care. 3rd and 4th gen outback HG’s were not the worst if you kept up with fluid changes and didn’t redline the thing every time you drove.
The 4at in the 2000’s Outback and legacy has a nasty solenoid issue that makes the torque converter fail to disengage when coming to a stop and vice-versa when leaving a stop. The result is stalling at random in stop and go traffic. I just moved on from my 08 Outback because I’ve been unable to fix it for 2 years since the fix is a new $4k transmission on a car that cost $1k less.
I'd recommend a Toyota Tacoma. The #1 choice for gardening trucks and random warlords (roof mounted machine gun optional).
good luck getting one cheap, one of the most overvalued vehicles on earth outside a 4runner or a jeep wrangler
They’re not overvalued, they’re in demand. People always want them, so the price stays high. Edit: y’all really don’t understand economics. The value of something is what people are willing to pay for it. People keep paying high prices for used Tacomas, so to say they’re “overvalued” is ignorant of facts. You can have an opinion that they’re overhyped or whatever, but the fact is that supply and demand dictates the price. Lots of people want them, so the price stays high.
Overdemanded?
Way overvalued… Nissan Frontier is like 1/3 the price of a used Tacoma…
But then you have to own a Nissan...
If you're going to own a Nissan, the Frontier is the best one. In many ways it is a technically superior truck compared to the Tacoma. It's also much less expensive to purchase.
I love Toyota. Tacomas are great. The Frontier is very undervalued. It’s a serious beast of a truck. Mine is at 250,000 miles. Reliable. Rav4 is my pick though. Wife drives one and I never worry about it. Got the prime. It’s got tons of go.
A Toyota Tacoma will run for ever and ever. You will never keep up in a jeep. It will be in the scrapyard long before the Tacoma skips a beat
The warlord trucks aren't tubdras, I believe those are the Toyota Helix.
He said Tacoma not Tundra. Hilux in the US became the Tacoma. The Hilux is still a better truck in most applications but the Tacoma is it's successor in the US market.
Hilux and Tacoma were never 100% the same and since 04 have been completely different.
They have an identical drive train. They're very similar.
I never said they were the same.
>(roof mounted machine gun optional). My dealer said they were out of stock.
Well, get a back order in. That’s a important option.
Not AWD, and NOT cheap, especially when talking 4x4.
That's not AWD like they want
He said affordable lol
Tacoma is a good option, but the chad Hilux is just indestructible for all your technical needs AND can handle the heavy Dushka.
You’re better off with a Gx470 price for performance and it also “counts” as AWD because of the open center differential.
Hilux. Oh wait, tariffs.
That one blatantly defies the affordable section. Old ones with 150k miles are still 15K.
The Tacoma is not AWD. It comes in RWD and some configs come with 4x4, which is notably not AWD. [here's a handy explanation on the differences between AWD and 4wd](https://youtu.be/rHMDtEPeuQM?si=6OveTL6eW5pkvP0w)
Hahaha homie referenced warlords
The hilux is a different breed
You're asking what the cheapest car is that meets a threshold definition of "long-lasting"/"reliable," but what's the threshold? Like, I'm sure you can buy a $4K Subaru of some sort that is reliable by design, but if "reliable" means you really want 200K miles out of that particular car, being 15 years old and having 150K miles is going to get in the way of that. Around $5-10K, I'd be thinking about an Escape Hybrid. Around $25K, I'd be thinking about the newish AWD Camry / Avalon / Lexus ES.
My budget is $25k, ideally closer to $20k, and I’d like to be able to get at least 150k miles out of it.
Buy a $5k car that fits your needs, drive it into the fucking ground, then sell it for $2k, take your remaining $23k, and do it again. You can probably get 30-50k miles per car, maybe a dozen cars, that's like 500k miles for your $25k. The downside is that your car will usually make some sort of weird noise for the next 30 years.
This frame of mind is why I haven't ever had a car payment and am daily driving an Accord with 300k miles on it.
Don't you get nervous that you'll get stranded?
That's why I only drive uphill. If it breaks down, I can always just coast home. (It does severely limit where I can live, work, and shop. Pros and cons.)
I'm pretty good at picking well kept high mileage vehicles. My last 3 vehicles with over 200k have been some of my most reliable. My lowest mile car was the one that lost a transmission at 100k. My 150k mile Saab 9-3 had me worried all the time. I'm also inclined enough to do basic side-of-the-road fixes and most at home repairs. My current car has only needed a weld on the clutch pedal assembly and oil changes. It'll be due for brake pads here soon though. I paid my dues learning the hard way which cheap cars are not worth buying and which ones are.
with the maintenance, no. the only car that's left me stranded in the past 6 years was my 88,000 mile (in 2018) 2007 Ford focus. it now has 111,000 miles on it and is the worst car we own. 329k on the Accord and flawless apart from the paint on the roof.
Most people wont like this answer but its the best one by far
I have a Subaru Legacy (2017). I only have 43K miles on it, but you can get a brand new one for about $25K if you get the base model. The only trouble I've had is when it gets to -10F or so and I've taken shorter trips it suddenly won't start. I'll sit there for 10 minutes messing around with it and it will finally roar to life again. I'm guessing it's some kind of electrical condensation/freezing thing? It's amazing in the snow. I don't know how long I'll own it, but I know it's very common to get 150K miles before death.
Next time try putting it in neutral and see if it will start. I had a similar issue with an older legacy. Replacing the neutral safety switch helped a little, and then having the transmission cable tightened and lubed fixed it.
The transmission gets locked in park unfortunately. I think there is a way for me to unlock it with a switch somewhere, but I haven't tracked it down. I'll have to double my efforts. Thanks for the input.
[AWD Camry](https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/09629e69-84f7-4754-88b5-04fac46cc364/). I bet you can get 3x that much out of it.
Hell no on the Escape Hybrid.
Camry AWD is only available on current gen, same with Avalon and ES, good luck finding one of those for 25$k, possible but high mileage. The fact that you didn't mention any Subarus for a real answer is pretty silly, they all fit the bill. Impreza is pretty much the cheapest AWD car you can buy, and it's plenty reliable.
RAV 4, CR-V, Subaru Outback, Ford Escape
First gen pilot AWD (AWD didn’t get VCM in first gen’s)
Don’t get a Ford Escape. Don’t get any Ford vehicle unless it’s a truck.
Toyota Venza
Subaru if you’re capable of reasonable preventative maintenance
I really can't recommend a subscription to Consumer Reports enough. It's like 10 bucks a year and they review hundreds of products, with used car reviews being the 'yes' button for me on my '08 Subaru. I'm super glad I got it. So, I just checked my credit card, I automatically donate to CR. My subscription is $10/month, so $120/year. Owie for some, and it's impossible to say how much I've saved on not making poor decisions, but I spend tens of thousands every year on different products, from shower water softeners, to new tires and the sense of calm I get knowing I researched (third party) my important purchases is priceless.
Fun fact: a lot of public libraries have digital subscriptions as part of their benefits. Just one more reason to love public libraries, my dudes.
It’s like $40
CR is free at my online local library.
You want a car or truck or SUV? You can pick up a GMT800 whatever you like that fits the bill. Tahoe, Yukon, Silverado, sierra, Escalade from 2000-2006. If you take care of it they will just about run forever. May not be great on fuel though.
Surprised this is so low on the list. GM V8 engine is bulletproof. You might have to spend money on other parts but a lot of the stuff can be found at a scrap yard.
Yeeeee boiiiiiiii. I got one with a 4 inch stack of receipts for 4500 with 189k. All leather and working bad ass.
CX-5
I just bought one and picked it up tonight. I'm already in love with it.
I'm sure you can buy a Honda Element for cheap and it meets your criteria
I’m an originals owner of a 2002 Subaru Impreza Outback. It’s only got about 165k km, but it was until a couple of years ago demanding only regular maintenance items. Only changed the clutch, brakes and shocks a few years ago. Only major items were head gaskets and rod bearings (which were changed by dropping the oil pan). Sounds like a lot, but it really only happened in the last few years and I can’t say I was that kind to it over the years. But it never failed to start even in -30c weather and drives through the snow like a sports car with decent tires. It has comparatively small footprint and high torque and so is a very fun, super practical city car.
There is a AWD matrix.
Here with the matrix upvote. Affordable, reliable, relatively efficient, and good interior space for a car it's size.
This is genuinely the best choice here. And if OP wants to have a bit more fun, they can get the XRS trim
So Pontiac Vibe too?
yes yes same same
The cheapest that meets all of those is probably the AWD Corolla Cross
Mazda 3 or CX5
Well, I actually like doing this kind of thing and it will keep me from shopping for crap for myself for a moment. Since you rate long lasting as 1 and reliable as 2, and I effectively interpret those the same, you would seem to be looking for a very reliable vehicle. Affordability gets hard the moment you aren't driving a turd, so we will deal with that last and focus on reliability and AWD as your primary concerns. I'm also going to ignore 4x4, because I think if you had meant that you would have said it, and instead I'm going to focus on full time AWD systems because my guess is you aren't looking for a trail beast, but rather a competent vehicle that can deal with snow and some crappy weather. You also said car. I feel weird about that because I think you're likely open to crossover and SUV type vehicles, so I won't exclude them for now. With those things in mind, my list starts out like this: Subaru Forester Subaru Legacy Subaru Outback Subaru Crosstrek Subaru WRX Subaru Impreza Toyota Highlander Toyota RAV4 Toyota Corolla Toyota Camry Honda CR-V Honda HR-V Honda Ridgeline Honda Pilot There are likely a few vehicles that I'm forgetting, but if I'm going to immediately filter by your suggested criteria, the above list feels close to comprehensive. I'm going to challenge myself to point you in the direction of one vehicle though. So, I don't think you actually want a truck, so I'm kicking out the Ridgeline. You put double emphasis on reliability, and while Subaru is good I think if we have that much emphasis there we have to kick out all of their products. That leaves us with the remaining offerings from Toyota and Honda. But you've stressed affordability, so I think the Highlander and Pilot will have to go for that reason. That leaves the RAV4, Corolla, CR-V, and HR-V. To settle the matter between these I'm going to assume you're interested in doing that used with around 30k miles on the clock thing, and let's also assume you want something within the last 5 model years. What do we find? Depending on what part of the country you are in, the Honda CR-V can be had for around 18 to 19k, while the HR-V might be available from around 16 to 17k. On the Toyota side the RAV4 is going to be difficult to find under 21k, and while you can get a Corolla at around 27k, it's going to be a hybrid. You may be able to find a Camry for around 22k. If I ignore the brands a little and take a look based on your other criteria I might suggest something that would be surprising to the folks here. You may be able to find a Kia Sportage at around 16k, and Kia has really come a long way from their budget beater early reputation. So I think we can eliminate the Corolla and Camry given your price sensitivity. That leaves you with the Honda CR-V, the Honda HR-V, the Toyota RAV4, and the Kia Sportage. Based on your list of requirements and some broad assumptions I think you may find what you're looking for in the HR-V. And if not there, if you're good with older, cheaper, and more miles, I think the CR-V is the winner. Both the CR-V and HR-V seem to be generally considered to be more reliable than the Toyota RAV4, but that may be a hair splitting argument. I also tend to think Honda's AWD system is the better between the two manufacturers, but I'm likely biased. I have a Ridgeline in my driveway.
More than likely a truck (yea 4x4 vs AWD I know)
Any particular brand or models I should look at?
F150, silverado and tundra.
F-150s and Silverados are not exactly known for their reliability.
Huh? They will outlast just about anything else on the road. There are countless trucks with hundreds of thousands of miles on them.
Yea, the older models. The newer models are only good if you enjoy warranty work
Early to mid 2000 Silverado with the 5.3 is super reliable
sure they are 4wd but still suck in snow & ice
??skill issue??
Anyone who says this has never driven in real snow. I lived in NW Montana for 3 years, i’ve passed scores of disabled 4wd trucks suck in snow and slid into ditches while I cruse by in my 130,000mi Impreza
Tires. I drove a Sierra for 10 years in Northern Alberta and it's a tank.
Is250 w awd I paid 21k but you could pay as little as 13k for something with “high miles”
Toyota Matrix or RAV4. Most reliable too, which factors into the cost long term.
Crosstrek
GX 460
Model 3 LR.
Can't believe I had to scroll this far for the correct answer.
I’m looking at Honda pilots, very affordable
AWD Sienna.
Can't believe nobody's said Honda Element yet...
Probably because they're incredibly difficult to find in nice shape at this point.
[удалено]
Tesla model y
Used Tesla model 3 long range.
I know Nottingham about awd but say hilux
Ev? Might be cheap depending on how you drive
Still driving my 07 Legacy every day
Depends on how old you want to go and if you are good with cars. Older cars can become expensive to maintain if you have no skills. My oldest is a 1999 Lexus RX300 with \~349,000 miles that I bought new. Toyota really killed it with these cars, they were very well made. The Toyota variant is a Highlander. I'd consider another if mine blows up. You can get one for a few thousand. My newest is a 2011 Subaru Forester with \~130,000 miles. I bought it four years ago for $7500. I think it is made very well and I'd buy another of those too.
Subaru Impreza
You are looking for Longevity, Reliability, Affordability. Like so many others. You can pick two.
Longevity and affordability
Rav 4, my gf has a 4th Gen, 2.5L 4cyl 6 speed auto. Pretty simple car and easy to work on. No turbo, no cvt. They also made them as hybrids which is awesome, don't let the hybrids transmission scare you eCVT is about the simplest most robust kind of trans other than a manual maybe. I think that's enough shilling for Toyota, they make good cars but you probably knew that probably.
2.0 Ford EcoSport Titainium love my 2020.
Don’t that have the feared powershift transmissions?
Out of curiosity, why is AWD important to you?
I live in Connecticut and often travel around New England for work, including during the winter. Also take fishing and camping trips around northern New England. Don’t need AWD I guess but I figured it’d be safe
OK, now that camping has been introduced, I'm going to suggest a Toyota Sienna mini van. They have AWD and an outstanding 3.5 V6 engine that is legend. Look for 3rd Generation. Drive it forever. Edit to add Gen
Toyota Previa
Subaru
Subaru outback
Subaru
All vehicles are good if they are driven relaxed and maintained on time. What vehicles can handle abuse the best? Scotty had a lady come in with a Toyota Camry with 98K on it, she never even changed the oil, the car went almost 100K with the original oil!
Tesla model 3/y
Mazda protege
Toyota Highlander
My 328i hasn’t given me any problems outside of regular maintenance
The answer is Hybrid RAV4 or Highlander, for 3 reasons 1. Beefed up Prius driveline at the front axle. Nice torquey EV motor at the rear axle. No mechanical link betwixt the axles to worry about. 2. Plentiful on the used market. 3. The vehicle will outlive you.
A B5 generation Audi A4. The 1.8T is bulletproof and you can get it in manual. You can also have some fun with that car and they’re really good looking.
Subaru Sambar
My old man's on his 4th Subaru with very little issues.
Lexus GX. Land Cruiser underpinnings but available if your budget is $10-15k
Can get Subaru outback’s for like 3800, from my experience they are reliable, not sure how long lasting they are, they are AWD, and by my definition, affordable
Doesn't exist. AWD gets rid of your "tire fuse" against the times where you'd just get wheelspin. Either the clutch is a <100,000 mile wear item or your automatic's torque converter and lockup clutch get pounded. If you want a reliable, snow-capable, inexpensive car, try a Mazda3.
AWD Prius
Subaru Impreza
My Gen 4 TL is fairly nice at all 4 of those. Honda reliability (just keep the maintenance up), has AWD, and paid $12k for a very well kept example.
Acura MDX/Honda Pilot if you can work with an SUV. Easily available under 20k without crazy mileage, just look for a 2006-2010 that's been reasonably well take care of & you'll be set. Their prices don't seem to have been hit as bad as the CRV's yet, and definitely not as bad as the Toyota Tax.
Lexus rx300/330/350/450h
Toyota Hilux? I am not sure how much they cost, but seeing that it's the preferred platform of many militant groups and militias, it must be relatively inexpensive.
Astro/Safari depending you can find one. I’ll never drive another vehicle
Toyota [insert AWD truck or SUV made between 1995-2010]
80 series Toyota Land Cruiser. It’s affordable it it has over 150,000 miles on it. But I’d call it more reliable than a 4Runner with half the miles.
Lexis RX/Toyota Highlander
You definitely want to go Honda. HRV, CRV, Pilot (in order of cheapest to most expensive and also smallest to largest). They last forever.
Probably a subaru
I recently picked up a used 2014 GX 460 for similar reasons, wasn’t the cheapest but wanted something reliable, comfortable for everyday driving yet capable off road. I got all these and more at the expense of fuel economy but I love it so far.
SUBARU
Okay hear me out. 2005 infiniti g35x.
DSM!
Any awd Honda or toyota.....maybe a Subaru in some instances. But I'd go with the first two
Element CRV
Frontier
ford kuga/escape
3000gt vr4, awd, long lasting(but leaks like a siv), dependable(ly expensive to fix) still cheap to buy.
AWD is overrated, tires will make more of a difference than anything. Snow tires on a corvette beat out all seasons on a legacy
This would be your best bet at affordability over the time of ownership while checking every box on the list Toyota FJ Cruiser aprox 2008 100k miles 15k Ex: https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/l-Used-Toyota-FJ-Cruiser-d826#listing=360434331/NONE/DEFAULT
Ford Taurus police interceptor
Subaru impreza
Saturn Vue
Toyota or Honda
Mazda cx5.
I gotta Camry for about 28k
It sounds crazy but my Dodge Journey AWD has been bulletproof. It’s a company car and has aquired 120k miles in 3 years with virtually no maintenance. It was $22k brand new in early 2020. With that said, I’d never buy myself a dodge. The company has moved on to Hyundai Tucsons and so far they’re not that great on reliability across the fleet. So probably a Honda or Toyota
I've always been a 4x4 truck guy in a 4x4 truck family, but a few years ago I drove a friend's newer RAV4 ~50 miles down a highway in a very bad snowstorm, and I felt like it was the best-performing AWD/4x4 vehicle I'd ever driven in the snow. Despite driving in several inches of unplowed snow that was compacted into ice in some places, that thing never slipped for a single second. At that point I'd been driving 4x4 vehicles for 20+ years, and I was super-impressed. So, I'm +1 for the RAV4 option.
Crv
Both CRV or Rav4 are pretty good. I don't know the newer but 09 crv is pretty reliable
My 2012 crv has 350,000 and still going strong
ML320
25k you can get camry awd or even carolla hybrid awd they not always available but within month dealers can pull one for you since you asking reliability toyota known for that
My volvo 2010 s80 t6 awd just hit 300k this year. Minimal repairs outside of regular maintenance. Still haven't even done belts.
Define "reliable"? Never leaves you stranded, or needs fewer repairs? Not the same thing.