mommy with 3yo son buy a car - city or accent or mirage or avanza?

**mommy** · March 20th, 2013 09:01 PM

hi! i don't know how to drive, turn on the engine, atras abante sa garage namin ang alam ko palang gawin. my hubby and i thinks that it's abt time we buy a car. we're choosing from honda city, hyundai accent, mitsubishi mirage and toyota avanza. which would you recommend considering we have a kid. actually, dahil din sa kanya kaya kami bibili kasi he'll start pre-school in june.

btw, i'll be the one driving it most of the time.

**mda** · March 20th, 2013 09:10 PM

Hi. We need a little more information to help us help you:

1. How much do you plan to spend?

2. What do you need in the car? Is space more important than fuel economy? How many people will frequently ride in the car? May mga yaya ba na sasama, in-laws? etc.

3. Do you require an automatic since you will be the one driving / don't know how to drive?

4. Are you limited to those 4 choices / willing to consider other options?

Looking outside buying the car -

Off the bat, I'd suggest you enroll in a driving school. Personally went to A1. Okay naman sila.

**stickers** · March 20th, 2013 09:10 PM

Originally Posted by mommy

hi! i don't know how to drive, turn on the engine, atras abante sa garage namin ang alam ko palang gawin. my hubby and i thinks that it's abt time we buy a car. we're choosing from honda city, hyundai accent, mitsubishi mirage and toyota avanza. which would you recommend considering we have a kid. actually, dahil din sa kanya kaya kami bibili kasi he'll start pre-school in june.

btw, i'll be the one driving it most of the time.

automatic transmission ma'am para po di ka mahirapan magdrive.

**kenzie** · March 20th, 2013 10:04 PM

From the choices given id take the Avanza family friendly , fuel efficient , madali pyesa and chempre Toyota

Thats just me lang naman ;)

Sent from my iPhone 5 using Tapatalk 2

**dr. d** · March 20th, 2013 11:13 PM

growing family? get an avanza!
AT? i suggest MT. from my observations among my kakilalas, those who learned to drive on automatics first, never got to learn to drive manuals.
those who learned to drive with manual transmission, found it easy to drive automatics.

**niky** · March 20th, 2013 11:51 PM

If you're never going to buy another manual, no point in buying one now.

Decide first what exactly you need from the car and what your priorities are. The list you gave is too diverse and not targetted specifically at your needs, just yet.

With a three year old, trunk space for a stroller and diaper bags is no longer an issue, but you might find it tight with a booster seat in the rear. The City and Accent are probably your best bets from among your choices for rear seat safety for the kid... important because it is now illegal to let the kid ride in front in QC... if you ever have to drive there. The Accent, go for diesel or go elsewhere.

If the space is okay with you, the Mirage GLS offers the cheapest decent automatic transmission with good fuel economy out there. And it should hold its value very well over time. It's also the easiest of your choices to drive through traffic. While a kid's school bag will fit easily in the trunk, don't plan on carting balikbayan boxes around.

The Avanza is very practical, but feels a bit dated. Also, it's a tall and narrow car, and directional stability on the highway is questionable in crosswinds. You'll want a variant with back-up sensors, because you can't really see much out the rear hatch with all the seats up. It's a practical city car, but fuel economy isn't great with an automatic or in traffic. I mean, it's good for a car that can carry so many people, but not as good as a good five seater with the same engine.

Lots of other choices out there. If you don't mind driving a stick, the Honda Jazz 1.3 MT is just about perfect. Large interior, lots of cargo space, very easy to drive and economical... Then there's the basic Elantra or Lancer 1.6s, which both have lots of space and decent fuel economy for full-sized C-Class cars. The Lancer is more loaded, but the Elantra has more rear seat and trunk room.... better for a growing family.

Better if you have a car type and a list of priorities set first, then go look at everything that might fit your criteria.

**1D4LV** · March 21st, 2013 10:58 AM

Originally Posted by mommy

hi! i don't know how to drive, turn on the engine, atras abante sa garage namin ang alam ko palang gawin. my hubby and i thinks that it's abt time we buy a car. we're choosing from honda city, hyundai accent, mitsubishi mirage and toyota avanza. which would you recommend considering we have a kid. actually, dahil din sa kanya kaya kami bibili kasi he'll start pre-school in june.

btw, i'll be the one driving it most of the time.

imho, tama sila. get an automatic.
my choices (based on your choices) in order of priority are:

a) City
b) Accent
c) Avanza
d) Mirage

**GTi** · March 21st, 2013 05:49 PM

You do atras abante in the garage? What car/cars do you currently have? For your purposes, I recommend you consider the Avanza. I bought a backup mirror for just 600 pesos. Makes a large car a trifle to park even in the tightest parallel parking slots. Bigger cargo space is a boon for out of town trips, trips to Macro or S&R

or for transporting new appliances or furniture. Additional seating capacity is always an added plus for family vehicles. And then again, the Avanza is based on a more rugged rear wheel drive platform which enables it to take more abuse than a regular sedan.

**ghosthunter** · March 21st, 2013 05:55 PM

Originally Posted by mommy

hi! i don't know how to drive, turn on the engine, atras abante sa garage namin ang alam ko palang gawin. my hubby and i thinks that it's abt time we buy a car. we're choosing from honda city, hyundai accent, mitsubishi mirage and toyota avanza. which would you recommend considering we have a kid. actually, dahil din sa kanya kaya kami bibili kasi he'll start pre-school in june.

btw, i'll be the one driving it most of the time.

I could suggest for you to look into hatchbacks as these would offer better flexibility in the amount of stuff you can put inside the car. One of the best options (although pricey) is the Honda Jazz 1.3L.

Other options:
Hyundai Accent CRDi hatchback - diesel might help you have on cost of fuel.
Mitsubishi Mirage - one of the most affordable and fits five people. One of the better "cheap" cars you can buy today. Basically a commuter car with small cargo area. If you don't need to bring too many stuff with you when you go out with your kid, this can be an option.
Kia Picanto - basically the same issues of space with the Mirage except this car fits four people in comfort.