Im a college student in need of a reliable car. Which one?

Question

Im currently have 3 semesters left of school and my current pontiac is not going to make it. Its been a decent car for the past 6 years but i need to get something else. I really like Nissan and im trying to decide whether i should go for that or another pontiac. For 8000 i can get a very low mileage 2002 nissan maxima, but for the same price i can also get a lot newer pontiac. My dad has always worked on my cars but if i get a foreign car i might no longer have that luxury...yet nissan is supposed to be good car so i should need it worked on?? im not sure what to do...any suggestions?

Answer 1

losing your mechanic could cost you a lot of money.

look at the Pontiac Vibe

it's the mechanical twin to the Toyota Matrix.

Ford Escape, Focus, Crown Vic.

Answer 2

Jeremy Clarkson said  "If Honda made people no-one would ever die"  However over here in Europe Nissan is extremely reliable and i have owned 3 that only had to go to the boneyard well after 200,000 miles. My attitude would be that the Nissan may well be more expensive to repair if it were needed but it would be far less likely to go wrong in the first place. My guess is that the Nissan is likely to give you a better MPG and that that in itself might be a good reason to choose it at a time the price of petrol(gas) is rising fast. Basic maintenance for the Nissan is the same as any other vehicle and im sure your dad would have no problem. In fact i have only had to look under the bonnet once in the last 2 years on my current car (75000 miles and climbing) and that was to check the oil.

Answer 3

I'm not sure which Pontiac you're referring to, but I second the previous answerer and highly recommend the Vibe.