Comments on: Best Used Cars for College Students

By: Matt

Matt — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:55:12 +0000

Watch out for salvage titles. Bad news a few months/years down the road when critical components start failing

By: fdfsd

fdfsd — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 19:29:45 +0000

my first college car will be a 2006 savlage titel BENZ C230 SPORT SEDAN…beat that suckers

By: Barry

Barry — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 21:04:44 +0000

I had a 97 discovery that I took excellent care of until I left for college. younger sibling promptly rolled it… i feel your pain

By: Aunt Alma Richards

Aunt Alma Richards — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 15:57:32 +0000

I never had a car until I was married, but the two cars I got for my kids had to have one requirement. WHEN they are in am accident I want the kid to walk away unhurt. I got MaryEllen a subaru to drive in Michigan so that she could get around in the snow and also it was big enough to protect her in a crash. The car and MaryEllen made it through many small “accidents.” The first cause of death for a young adult is car accidents and the parent part of me wants to do everything to avoid it. I have a neighbor who took a cadilac and put a little 4 cylinder engine in it. His sons drove it happily. It could get up to 40 on the down hill. Saving money is not #1 here it is safty.

By: T-R-A

T-R-A — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 06:46:50 +0000

It’s not uncommon for earlier Saturns to get better mileage than was originally advertised when they were new. My ‘95 SL1 averages around 42 (and I “stretched” that last summer to 46 when gas was $4/gal). And after a ring-job, the engine seems to last forever. Mine also has 208,000 miles and is a daily driver (102mi./day)

By: SB

SB — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 14:58:34 +0000

My son just bought a 98′ Ford Escort SE with 150k on it for $600. We put new wires and a battery in it. He’ been driving it for 3 months with no problems. The insurance costs are less than $40/m.

By: Brianne

Brianne — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 23:29:59 +0000

My first car was my mom’s old 1987 Toyota Corolla hatchback when she bought her new Toyota Tercel in 1995. I still see them on the streets here in LA so I know they were pretty dependable little cars, with lots of interior space. (It got totalled in 1999.) I drive practically the same car now since I have a Toyota Matrix.

By: MAC

MAC — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 20:32:57 +0000

I doubt it would get that high of mpg if I were driving in a city. 50 out of 60 miles every work day are on the interstate (plus I drive 60 and not 70). And every other weekend, it’s 90 out of 100 on the interstate. I drive a lot! And I am saving for the next car – but this one has definitely lasted a lot longer than I thought it would.

She’s definitely not the best looking car out there though.

By: Patrick

Patrick — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 20:19:08 +0000

I used to have a 97 Lumina in college that was given to me by my parents. I just recently got a new car but it had 150+k miles with little or no problems.

By: Jim

Jim — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 19:52:44 +0000

200,000+ miles wow, that’s awesome, you could be in a Saturn commercial with that longevity. It’s amazing that a car from 1997 gets 39 mpg too!

By: MAC

MAC — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 19:40:07 +0000

I’m also still driving my first car, a ‘97 Saturn SL. Stick, no power steering, it’s awesome! I drive almost solely on the interstate and average 39 mpg. It also has just over 205,000 miles on it! I am hoping that Saturn will become an independent company so that I can buy another when the time comes.

By: Jim

Jim — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 19:04:36 +0000

Six accidents in 10 days….

By: MissMartha

MissMartha — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 18:50:28 +0000

The first car that I drove at college for a summer was my parent’s ‘94 Saturn SC2. It was a great car; especially good for the *few* (cough) accidents I had that summer.

By: Ethan

Ethan — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 18:30:45 +0000

I have a ‘98 Saturn SL. It’s really loud inside as saturn didn’t bother with any sound proofing and it’s mostly plastic. But I still get about 30 mpg and it gets me where I need to go.

I think something comparable is all a college student really needs. Nothing frivolous and you don’t really have to worry about small dings / scratches.

By: MissMartha

MissMartha — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 16:02:59 +0000

Yes, it was a great car for me! It only had 50k miles on it when I got it. I miss that car… its was a lot more fun to drive than my current Honda Civic.