What to buy with 150-200k budget?Newbie here

**mynvidia** · March 5th, 2006 03:17 AM

guys help..im planning to buy a 2nd hand car after i finish my driving lessons..

i have about 150-200k...

what is the best car that i can buy with this? with consideration to fuel consumption and the looks of the car...i want to get a civic but i dont think that
my budget will be enough though for that..im looking for a 1995 and above model at least..since i think that 2nd hand cars more than 10 years old would really be troublesome down the road..

any thoughts on a nissan sentra maybe??or lancer if i cant get the civic??

please share your opinions and suggestions...

im really boggled by all the choices here...

help would really be appreciated..thanks

**margaux** · March 5th, 2006 03:34 AM

i think you can get a lncer for 205k.... just negotiate the 5k if its fixed 200k that u can afford.

**margaux** · March 5th, 2006 03:40 AM

oops, i forgot to add something, ou can also buy a Honda Civic ESI for PhP200k or maybe less.

**mynvidia** · March 5th, 2006 03:43 AM

what lancer model would that be?glxi??

could you give the pros and cons between the lancer and the civic esi pls??

thanks for the reply by the way..im REALLY confused..hehe

**margaux** · March 5th, 2006 04:12 AM

check your PM

**number001** · March 5th, 2006 02:01 PM

With your budget definitely an EG (93-95) Civic Sedan. There are minimal price difference bet. the year models so just settle for the '95. The 1.6 ESI manual transmission is preferred (if you drive a manual, btw). Imo, the automatic transmission is a little too hesistant or slow when being floored. Try looking for an all stock unit (which is hard to find given most of these cars are turned into wanna-be race cars all the time).

The 1993-1995 Corolla 1.6 GLi is also a good choice, with its reliability and abundance of parts which makes it affordable for any unforseeable repairs.

All of the above suggested cars will probably costs Php 200,000 and made a little bit more, but its really worth it. Just learn to bargain hard and when looking at cars be sure to bring with you someone who is quite knowledgeable of the cars esp. one who used to own such car before.

**squatt3r** · March 5th, 2006 05:39 PM

i'm in the same situation as the thread starter. was initially looking for an EG hatchback but found out it doesn't have power steering, power window, etc.

**badkuk** · March 5th, 2006 06:32 PM

hmmm, pansin ko lang: parang di gaano narerecommend ung lumang city. as i recall it's a pretty decent car, especially the civic-cannibalizing vtecs B)

uy, nagkaidea tuloy ako. maybe it's high time our resident writers do a story on this, i.e. the best newbie cars under 200k B)

**jelog** · March 5th, 2006 07:10 PM

lancer and toyota coz of abundancy of parts banawe lang wag s agent my mga raket dyan direct k store..honda mahal ang parts as in ginto while nissan parang minola..s fuel lagay ka lang ng fuel savers ang laking menos mo dun...i tried it really works..

**ghosthunter** · March 5th, 2006 07:36 PM

Originally Posted by mynvidia

guys help..im planning to buy a 2nd hand car after i finish my driving lessons..

i have about 150-200k...

what is the best car that i can buy with this? with consideration to fuel consumption and the looks of the car...i want to get a civic but i dont think that
my budget will be enough though for that..im looking for a 1995 and above model at least..since i think that 2nd hand cars more than 10 years old would really be troublesome down the road..

any thoughts on a nissan sentra maybe??or lancer if i cant get the civic??

please share your opinions and suggestions...

im really boggled by all the choices here...

help would really be appreciated..thanks

Basically you would first want a car that is as new as you can afford. This will give you some degree of ease of mind. Having said that, you can compare the similarly priced Sentra & Corolla. The Sentra will generally be two to three years newer than the similarly priced Corolla.

A rough year model comparison for a P200K budget:
Toyota Corolla GLi 1.6L - 1993/1994
Nissan Sentra 1.6L - 1997/1998

This would mean you can either buy a 11 year old corolla or a 8 year old sentra for your money. Do note, those 3 years difference can add a lot of wear & tear to anything.

At around P200,000 budget, you can get a 1997/1998 Nissan Sentra 1.6L or even a slightly newer 1998/1999 Nissan Sentra 1.4L (all power).

The Sentra 1.6L will have higher fuel consumption than the Sentra 1.4L so if you value fuel economy over performance, the Sentra 1.4L might be the car for you.

At any rate, you can check price ranges by going to http://www.buyandsellph.com and typing in the car you want to search for in the box provided.

If you are worried about parts, sentra parts is almost as abundant as corolla parts and they costs similarly too.