Rep Power: 397

Yesterday I spoke to my friend at the honda dealer and he said he could hook me up with a lease on the civic. I know I have a civic, why would I get rid of my car to lease the same car....Well I will tell you, I need a car with a lower payment so I can save money and I need a car with an automatic transmission because I have problems with my back and the clutch is a pain in the azz.

So he told me 2 lease specials. One being the civic lx automatic for no money down and $159 a month, and the other being $2200 down and $169 a month for a civic ex automatic. If I get a honda, I am getting the LX and trading in my civic...My car is worth $10,000(SAD), and I gotta pay off the loan of $7800. So I will have $2200 in pocket. The LX is fine for me, Automatic, airconditioning, and new for 2003 a CD PLAYER.

Next I went to the local toyota dealer to look at the corolla. I love the look and the ride and the comfort of the corolla. The car seems to be made really well, Im ashamed to say better than the civic....Even though the car didnt have the flat floor in the back seat area of the car, the back seats had plenty of leg room, and very comfortable seats.

The model of corolla I looked at was the Corolla S...It had a leather wrapped steering wheel, and auto shift ****, white faced gauges, very nice sounding cd player, 15 inch wheels, fog lights, rear spoiler, and body kit. The salesman wouldnt give me a price, so I cant tell you what the deal is, but I can tell you that I drove the car....and I loved it. It is powered by a DOHC 1.8 VVTI and it drives very smooth. One thing I didnt like about the car is that the motor is very loud, if you are sitting in the car you can hear it running.

Saturday, I am going to go to the toyota dealer that is a friend of my dad and talk to him about leasing a Corolla, or even the MAtrix....If the price isnt good enough for me then I will be getting a Radiant Ruby Civic Lx Sedan...

What other cars do you think are in my price range? I am looking for a car between $139-$180 a month with no money down....Lease for 3 to 4 years...

 
Rep Power: 413

That is exactly what I thought of the corolla too. It was nice and all, but the engine was so loud! The matrix is going to be too expensive, why not get a pontiac vibe instead? It is the same car with a different shell, but cheaper because it is an "American" car. Do you not like the Nissan Sentra??

 
Rep Power: 397

I was thinking about the vibe....I like it....I wonder what the lease would be on that. The sentra is ok, but a little small for me on the inside....Maybe im spoiled cause the civic has plenty of inside room.

 
Rep Power: 311

Direct competitors to the Civic

 
Rep Power: 413

That's a good post flotsam, but the only ones I would consider buying are the corolla, the sentra, or the protege. The sentra, he said, doesn't have enough room. I personally would look into the vibe if you want something bigger. Or maybe even a Honda Element DX (but add the AC). I am sure you can find 2002 Accord LXs for cheap too.

 
Rep Power: 397

The price I am looking for is cheaper than what the Accord or the Element go for. Too bad I would like an ELEMENT. I got a price of the accord LX for $219 a month but that was with $1500 down and I dont want to spend that much. I want a cheaper payment so I can save money for an engagement ring and other things....Im not going to mod the car, just drive it.

 
Rep Power: 373

the elements are bad ***!!! i seen one the other day with rims on it and system, blah blah etc. it was pretty nice

Injen

 
Rep Power: 0

Mazda Protege

 
Rep Power: 373

mazda speed protege!!!!

Injen

 
Rep Power: 397

No thanks, Too small. Im not looking for a fast car so I wouldnt get a Mazda Speed Protege....

 
Rep Power: 413

If you can wait a few months, the Scions are coming out!! I don't know if you want one of those, but they look cool. The only thing is that they are new, but they are toyota's so it shouldn't be a big deal.

 
Rep Power: 349

I'd go for the Corolla or the Protege. I don't know why you say it's too small when it's the same size as our vic's. Are you sure you want to lease? I think you should look into it here and then decide if it's better or not.

Leasing gives you a lower monthly payment but there are too many penalties, like every excess mile, and stuff like that. I hate leasing, it's a house bet if you ask me. I'd rather buy it. Your payments never end if you lease and if you decide to buy after then you overpay for the car.

 
Rep Power: 397

Well i am trying tog et my monthly payments down. That was the whole point of me leasing. I dont know what to do. Now I find out theat insurance has gone up alot especially for the civic. I dont know what to do.

 
Rep Power: 397

Thanks for the info....I cant afford any new cars if I choose to buy. I can only afford to purchase a year old Elantra or a New Hyundai Accent, or maybe even a KIA....Im not sure if I want to do that. Some people say they love to lease and then other people say to stay away from leasing. Maybe I should buy a used Corolla or a used civic.....then I would get a lower payment, but I dont want to get stuck with a bomb....Im confused.

 
Rep Power: 0

Actually my neighbors Mazda Protege is bigger interior than my civic is.

 
Rep Power: 318

why not look at some used cars? i'm not talking early 90's models with 80k+ miles, but something thats a few years old, civic, corolla, heck even a 4cyl camry or accord, i bet you can end up with one of those cheap. i saw a fully loaded, 2001 accord coupe V6, less than 30k miles for $19k, and thats a loaded V6, just imagine how much cheaper a decent LX 4 cyl accord would be. just a thought.

 
Rep Power: 349

Well, dude, are you planning on driving more than 12,000 miles in a year? If you are, and are going to turn the car in after the lease then you'll get charged. Also, they look for all the wear and tear items and charge you for those as well. However, if you plan on having enough money in 3 or 4 years, when the lease is up, to buy that car, you'll only end up losing about 2-3 grand over buying it outright now.

 
Rep Power: 0

If i were in your position, i would just get a used car. You will definitely have low monthly payments. oh i did a comparison on progressive.com about insurance, and it seems that the older the car the cheaper the insurance. I based this on the insurance price of a '94 integra GSR and a '01 GSR. The number were hundreds apart. So your best bet is to get a used car, just make sure it's certified my the manufacturer. That's just my thought.

 
Rep Power: 0

People worry too much about leasing. If you care for your car and are careful with it wear and tear isnt an issue (my family has leased cars for years). My new car is leased as well. If you think you'll go over 12k miles a year you can always buy more miles per year up front. Leasing really isn't a bad deal. It gets rough when you get down to options (if you finance a car for 5 years the option cost gets spread over 5 years. If you lease a car for 2 years the cost of the option is spread over 2 years, then you trade the car in, they short change you a bit). But look your already looking to cahnge your car. Guys he doesnt wnat a racing car or a modding car. He doesnt want an Integra GSR. He wants a car thats comfortable and practical. He wants cheap luxary. Your best bet there is leasing a new car.

 
Rep Power: 397

I was actually thinking about getting a used car. I have been talking to a few people and also reading all the helpful posts here and I think that Leasing may not be for me. On my way to my girlfriends house we stopped at a local car dealer. He had on the front line a 93 accord anniversary edition with 68k miles....original owner and in excellent shape. He said he would sell it for $6800, but that was too much for that car. I then told him that I wanted to trade in my car and pay off the loan and get something else, and he told me he had a 2000 Chevy prizm LSI....fully loaded, even a power moonroof. The car was in pretty decent shape. He wanted $7800. He said he would install new tires, new brakes, oil change, tranny service, change the timing belt and do a full detail, with even wet sanding the paint and shampooing the interior. He has an excellent reputation as selling quality used cars. The car sounded good to me, but it has 68K miles....It is an off lease....For those of you that dont know, the chevy prizm is a toyota corolla....Toyota 1.8VVTI dohc motor...everything is toyota except the chevy bading. I dont know if I should get this car.....because im sure I can find something else for less money...but I could have that car for $120 a month with no money down....Im sure I can find a used Altima, or a Camry for that price....

 
Rep Power: 397

Im going to look at a 2000 Corolla tommorow with 30k miles on it for $8,995. My friend knows the salesman, so I can probably get it for alot less.