Help me decide on a beater

You’d save $2,783 a year if you drive 50/50.

Cheers

 

You're out in the Pacific Northwest? I've seen a few nice and relatively low mileage first gen Toyota Siennas out your way. Old school charm and big utility imo.

When adding vehicles to my stable I typically consider costs... depreciation, maintenance, property tax and insurance. I enjoy finding old(er) gems and enjoying them for a few years at little expense.

 

You can find Subaru BRZ, Toyota 86, Scion FRS for cheap(ish). Really fun to drive. I was averaging about 33 mpg (mostly hwy) before all the work from home set in. But yeah, for 1.5 mile commute, just walk or bike

 

I'm pretty close to the same boat you're in OP. I work down town and we have a parking garage with a max height of 6'7". I ended up picking up a Subie WRX just as a fun little putz around town car, and it was nicer driving through downtown traffic. I ended up selling it as I've been working from home the past year now. I broke even on selling it, which was all I really cared about, kind of miss having it. Once we are start to go back into office, I plan on either getting another subie, or trying to find an older 4Runner (more space for the dogs).

 

Pick up an old beater 99 Corolla, or 96 Legacy. Put some swamper tires on it, lift it, give it a snorkel and take it on a Gambler 500 rally bud

 

Get a moto to commute..

 

I still drive my '03 Acura RSX, which has 198K miles, burns a little oil, leaks a little oil, and qualifies as a beater. That said, its fun as hell to drive and gets 29-30 MPG (worse in winter). 600 bucks a year for insurance and plates plus a couple oil changes. To me its worth saving a little wear and tear on the Tacoma. Plus, driving a beater from time to time makes getting into the Tacoma that much better. That said, I would take a hard look at either a Mazda3 or Mazda6. We have a 6 and its great.

 

I've owned a Honda Fit and it was a decent car, with Honda reliability but I did not enjoy driving it, particularly on the highway (loud and under-powered). They can be found relatively inexpensively. I've owned and currently own a VW Golf and have to say a hands-down better vehicle. VW has, in my opinion, an un-warranted reputation of being unreliable. I've owned 5 VW's and found them to be just as reliable as Toyotas I've owned. Due to the TDI "scandal", they can also be bought dirt-cheap.

 

Volkswagen's ALH diesel 1999-2003. Cant go wrong with the all mighty ALH engine with the O2J 5spd.

 

Miata. Hands down. End thread. I'm actually looking at a newer one to pick up as a weekend car, daily driver myself.

 

A car for 10 grand shouldn’t need any work. The last 2 beaters I’ve bought were less than 2500 each and needed nothing. This is my current one. 2007 Jeep Liberty 4x4. $2100.