[jt1990]

I'm buying a used car. The one I'm seriously looking at right now is a 2004 Chevy Cavalier. 5 spd manual transmission, 59K miles on it so far, and they're asking $6,788 for it. Kellybluebook values the car at $6,730, so I guess they're not asking an outrageous price. Does anyone have any good or bad experience with a Cavalier? I'm looking to spend around $6,500 max, but this car looks nice enough I'd be willing to pay the extra $288...

Edited by jt1990, 25 August 2008 - 07:16 AM.

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personal opinion is that MOST american made vehicles are less than desirable as used cars....i've driven a few cavaliers and they're ok....

i tend to lean towards toyota (maybe a little biased as i technically work for them), or nissan.. when i was in junior high/highschool we had a nissan sentra (89 i believe) that my parents bought new...they sold it when it hit 200,000 miles on it (this was probably in about 2,000)...this last christmas when i went home for a visit i saw the car driving around town...surely the thing's got about 300,000 miles on it or more by now and it's still running like a champ...also nissans and toyotas actually retain their value A LOT longer than other vehicles...so if you go to resell the car later you'll get more money for it

[dsenette]

personal opinion is that MOST american made vehicles are less than desirable as used cars....i've driven a few cavaliers and they're ok....

i tend to lean towards toyota (maybe a little biased as i technically work for them), or nissan.. when i was in junior high/highschool we had a nissan sentra (89 i believe) that my parents bought new...they sold it when it hit 200,000 miles on it (this was probably in about 2,000)...this last christmas when i went home for a visit i saw the car driving around town...surely the thing's got about 300,000 miles on it or more by now and it's still running like a champ...also nissans and toyotas actually retain their value A LOT longer than other vehicles...so if you go to resell the car later you'll get more money for it

[jt1990]

Interesting. Well, I'm looking for something that gets *really* good gas mileage, like 35-40 MPG, and the cavalier is the best one I found in my price range (well, I found a Toyota Corolla, but it was a 1998 and I'm not getting something that old.) I found a 2003 Dodge Neon, but it's an automatic and I'd rather go with a standard.

[jt1990]

Well, bought it two days ago. It drives *real* nice, I just need to learn how to drive a stick properly... I paid $6500 for tax, title, documentation and the car, so I'm very pleased.

[james_8970]

Stick is fun, it just hurts the pocket book when you burn the clutch out. Did this on the farm on a 3 ton truck carrying a 40,000 pound load of grain. Stick is easy to try when you don't have an EXTREMELY heavy load on, once you get a heavy load on, I find myself in trouble. Either way, enjoy the new car
James

[jt1990]

Thanks!

[Troy]

I often drive one similar to the picture below at work sometimes (but the work truck is much more of a heap...). It's got a great V8 in it, awesome note, and the boss is a madman, he likes us "using" it instead of driving too slow.

(not driving dangerous, of course)

I love driving manual, it's great. You Americans call it "stick", huh? Never heard that one before.

[jt1990]

eh, we call it stick, manual, standard, any of the three.

[BHowett]

I drove manual for years in my Jeep wranglers and I liked it back then, but I can't say I miss now in my automatic Jeep Liberty

[jt1990]

lol. Once I got the hang of driving a stick, this has turned into the nicest car I've ever driven. The sound system is amazing too

[warriorscot]

Stick is better for performance and fuel economy than automatic transmission. The Volvo I drive now is automatic and I hate it, it actually managed to lose 5-10 mpg compared to the old manual version of the same car we used to have it sucks.

In the UK its mostly manual and you have to learn on a manual in order to drive one, if you don't sit your test in a manual you can only drive automatics after you pass.

Looking forward to going back to driving a manual car.

Edited by warriorscot, 12 September 2008 - 02:32 AM.

[sari]

I drove manuals most of my life, but I hate them around where I live because traffic is so bad. When I used to commute to Washington DC in my manual Acura Integra, my left foot would sometimes get numb because I'd get stuck in traffic jams and only move a few yards at a time, so I'd have the clutch in all the time. You couldn't really put it in neutral, because it was roll...stop...roll...stop all the time, so it was easier to keep it in gear.

I'd drive a stick now, except my husband constantly corrects when I shift - it's quite annoying.

[dsenette]

*dsenette can barely drive a manual

never learned as a kid...because i didn't have to...i can sort of do it now but there are some stalls here and there and i usually grind third pretty bad...

[warriorscot]

You do need to practice it to do it properly, its also easier when you know a few tricks.

Like you don't grab the stick and then move it into position you just push it and it goes in automatically e.g. you push straight up from Neutral is 3rd, left and slightly up is first, left and slight down is second etc. and learning to balance a clutch is something that is a bit of an art and take a while for most people to learn.

I remember my driving instructor went totally yoda on my when I was learning to do hill starts, he stuck his notebook over the speedo and rev counter and turned on some death metal full blast on the Stereo and told me to "feel the car, know the clutch" it was hilarious and it actually worked.

It is something that is good to know though, cars are more fun in manual the better response and actually being able to decide the best gear for yourself is good. Nothing like dropping down a gear and giving it the welly as you come out of the corner. And nothing is better than pulling a james bond by dropping two gears and putting your kidneys on the back seat.

Edited by warriorscot, 12 September 2008 - 08:29 AM.

[dsenette]

I remember my driving instructor went totally yoda on my when I was learning to do hill starts, he stuck his notebook over the speedo and rev counter and turned on some death metal full blast on the Stereo and told me to "feel the car, know the clutch" it was hilarious and it actually worked.

i had a crazy driving instructor too...less yoda....more...hmm who's a fitting analogy? i know...jigsaw from the movie saw....he was a torturer for sure....he had these sunglasses in his car that had to have been smeared with Vaseline or something and when you were driving into the sun he'd trick you into putting them on...or he would fill his zippo lighter while you were driving and intentionally cover his hand in lighter fluid...then light his hand on fire while you were driving....absolutely insane