What kind of car should I get?

My current car is is a 21 year old Nissan Bluebird, proudly made in Australia (that means a couple of the panels aren't properly aligned). Now my poor old car which has taken me to many parts of Oz will not survive another hot Australian summer unless I spend mega bucks on it.

I don't want to get/need a big 6 or even V8, nor SUV 4Wheel Drive etc.

I have tested a Toyota Corrolla and a Nissan Pulsar (may be called differently overseas). Of the 2 the Corolla has mightly impressed me. What a rocket.

The Nissan although a bit slower also is a very nice device.

Although I am reasonably wealth these days, it still pains me to spend $25.000 on a car on the road.

Another option is to pick up a 2-3 year old example at the government fleet auctions for around 16-17 grand. Actually I'm tempted to do this.

Any opinions.

But seriously, how's the price of gas there?

i own a saturn SL2 and i'm very pleased with it. it handles impacts well (i rear-ended a truck in a stupid accident that was all my fault. thank god the other driver was nice because his truck suffered more damage than my car), and the dealership is great with maintenance--very courteous and fast.

bLuE oRdEr wrote: But seriously, how's the price of gas there?

Its getting close to $1.30 a liter, and rising. I have no idea what that is per gallon.

Ronald Kirsch wrote:

bLuE oRdEr wrote: But seriously, how's the price of gas there?

Its getting close to $1.30 a liter, and rising. I have no idea what that is per gallon.

there are about 4 liters in a gallon, i think.

Ronald Kirsch wrote:

bLuE oRdEr wrote: But seriously, how's the price of gas there?

Its getting close to $1.30 a liter, and rising. I have no idea what that is per gallon.

But is that expensive? I don't know the conversion rate from Aussie to US, let alone metric to US.

The reason I ask is because diesel engines get better fuel economy, last two or three times as long as a petrol car, and I think diesel is cheaper as well. Plus you can run on biodiesel, which is the most ecological way to go right now. Plus you guys have some great choices available to you that we don't have:

Alfa Romeo

Audi

Volkswagen

Volkswagen

But I think they may be priced higher than what you're planning on spending.

AgentWood wrote:

Ronald Kirsch wrote:

bLuE oRdEr wrote: But seriously, how's the price of gas there?

Its getting close to $1.30 a liter, and rising. I have no idea what that is per gallon.

there are about 4 liters in a gallon, i think.

No, it's somewhere between 3 and 4 per gallon.

One of our South Pacific Pesos is currently about 75 US cents. Much better than a couple of years ago when we dipped below 50cents US.

Our petrol is still cheap compared to europe. We pay in dollars about the same what they pay in Euros. One Euro is about 2 of our dollars. So, they pay double the price we do. But I know we still pay more than you citizens of the USA.

any car that runs really

bLuE oRdEr wrote:

AgentWood wrote:

Ronald Kirsch wrote:

bLuE oRdEr wrote: But seriously, how's the price of gas there?

Its getting close to $1.30 a liter, and rising. I have no idea what that is per gallon.

there are about 4 liters in a gallon, i think.

No, it's somewhere between 3 and 4 per gallon.

Hmmm, AgentWood was awfully close, though. Aprroximately 3.8 liters/gallon.

bLuE oRdEr wrote:

Only if he wants the car asking him "What is it, Michael?" all the time.

bLuE oRdEr wrote:

Only if he wants the car asking him "What is it, Michael?" all the time.

Ronald Kirsch wrote:

bLuE oRdEr wrote: But seriously, how's the price of gas there?

Its getting close to $1.30 a liter, and rising. I have no idea what that is per gallon.

$3.72 per gallon...

bLuE oRdEr wrote:

Ronald Kirsch wrote:

bLuE oRdEr wrote: But seriously, how's the price of gas there?

Its getting close to $1.30 a liter, and rising. I have no idea what that is per gallon.

But is that expensive? I don't know the conversion rate from Aussie to US, let alone metric to US.

The reason I ask is because diesel engines get better fuel economy, last two or three times as long as a petrol car, and I think diesel is cheaper as well. Plus you can run on biodiesel, which is the most ecological way to go right now. Plus you guys have some great choices available to you that we don't have:

Alfa Romeo

Audi

Volkswagen

Volkswagen

But I think they may be priced higher than what you're planning on spending.

Diesel cars here are not very popular yet. Diesel usually costs the same if not more than petrol here. Plus diesel powered cars are probably 25% more expensive here than normal ones, so you'd have to do many ks to get your money back. Also we don't have any dedicated car diesel filling places, so you have to do it where the trucks do it, ie in a dirty smelly spot.

I know about the economy, and yes I have been in one of these modern turbo diesels, and I know they have plenty of get up and go.

bLuE oRdEr wrote:

Ronald Kirsch wrote:

bLuE oRdEr wrote: But seriously, how's the price of gas there?

Its getting close to $1.30 a liter, and rising. I have no idea what that is per gallon.

$4.10 per gallon...

So what's the price in the US of A?

bLuE oRdEr wrote:

Ronald Kirsch wrote:

bLuE oRdEr wrote: But seriously, how's the price of gas there?

Its getting close to $1.30 a liter, and rising. I have no idea what that is per gallon.

$4.10 per gallon...

So what's the price in the US of A?

I made a mistake-- it's 3.72 per gallon. That's still higher than here. I think people are paying about $2.50 or $2.60 per gallon.

Buy Burnout 3 (or 4 when it's released) and test drive some of those beauties...

How about one of these bad boys......

http://www.fpv.com.au/index.asp?link_id=2.455

I'm jealous of the cars you guys get and we don't. (Unless you're a Holden Monaro fan. It's badged as a Pontiac GTO here in the States.)

a hybrid

Spotnick wrote:

I love 1987 wrote: If I could afford the gas, I'd be looking at the new Dodge Charger R/T...

Your country invaded Iraq to make sure the price of gaz would continue to be half of what they are elsewhere and you still can't afford it?

Oh my............

It's possible I'll needing a replacement car thanks to the ass that decided the red light wasn't for him. Still waiting to hear what the insurance company decides.

FAC 51 wrote: It's possible I'll needing a replacement car thanks to the ass that decided the red light wasn't for him. Still waiting to hear what the insurance company decides.

Hey buddie whats that grab rail thing stuck on the trunk? :D

How about a Mustang?? or are they expensive to run..

How about a Mustang??

Respectfully, I HATE Fords. Even more now that I know W drives one.

I'm gonna wait to I know if the car is a write-off or if it's gonna be repaired.