i have 6k for a new car.....

[Delfuego]

I drove mine for 90K miles with almost no issues. I spent less money and time on that vehicle then I did on my wifes Chevy.

Your the lucky one then, I will never ever ever buy a VW again. And Chevy is not a super reliable vehicle either...

Once you go Jap, you'll never go back! Toyota's and Honda's for me and mine...

Friends don't let friend buy Volkswagen!

[spqrzilla]

$6K is a problematic price level in my opinion. Not quite enough money for a good reliable used car useful in Colorado and too much money to be able to pull off the plates and toss a can of gas & match over it on the side of the road when it blows an engine.

[sniper7]

Don't buy a VW!!!! I speak from experience!

I have a buddy who is a Toyota Master Mechanic that is selling his GS300 for about that price. It is in really great shape and has always been meticulously maintained.

Shoot me a PM if you interested.

I had good luck with my VW passat. It was a 99, my first car that I bought on my own. drove it until 170K, then sold it and got my 03 silverado.
only thing that ever happened to it was the ignition system started to go bad at 150K. regular MX, timing belt. not much else required.

oh...and it did 129 mph

[tmleadr03]

Your the lucky one then, I will never ever ever buy a VW again. And Chevy is not a super reliable vehicle either...

Once you go Jap, you'll never go back! Toyota's and Honda's for me and mine...

Friends don't let friend buy Volkswagen!

Meh. Don't buy the gas motors or the autos and you are good to go with VW.

[Danimal]

Your the lucky one then, I will never ever ever buy a VW again. And Chevy is not a super reliable vehicle either...

Once you go Jap, you'll never go back! Toyota's and Honda's for me and mine...

Friends don't let friend buy Volkswagen!

Most cars can be reliable if they are maintained and driven responsibly. So if you find one that has been taken care of, chances are it will be a pretty good car. The problem that I have with any popular small cars, Golf's, Jetta's, Preludes, Camry's, etc... is that chances are they were driven by some high school aged brain-dead fast and furious kid that drove it everywhere at 6000 rpm on a 10,000 mile oil change interval. Brand does not matter if it has not been taken care of. It will fail then it comes down to the cost of repairs and the cost of insurance to determine its cost of ownership.

Buy something that a teen-aged kid would hate and buy it private sale form someone who knows what a maintenance interval is and can tell you where and when the last service was performed per the periodicity chart in the owners manual. It will rule out about 80% of the cars on craigslist but you will end up with a good car. I also use consumer reviews to rule out years where certain cars had too many issues. A little research and being selective saves a lot of money in the long run.

[Colorado_Outback]

Meh. Don't buy the gas motors or the autos and you are good to go with VW.

LOL thats like 95% of them

[T-Giv]

You need to buy a supermoto and then a $500 beater to drive in the snow. Problem solved!

[brutal]

Another vote for Subaru. We've had one or more in the family for 20+ years.

I love driving my 8 year old Audi A6, but it's kind of a money pit on maintenance. I spent more than your budget to replace turbos on it last year. Old A4's can be had on the cheap, but also $$ to maintain even using a (certified) indy like I do.

Damn hard to beat a Suby for 4x4 capability, decent mileage, and reliability.

[spyder]

what should i get??my only requirements are.....reliability and gas mileage in that order. i would go for a vw diesel but somethiing is always breaking or just about to break on a german car.

i have been looking at the prius but battery replacement is pricey and the ones that i can afford look to be right at the age that there going to need that soon....the wife likes the chevy aveo cause we can get a 2009-2010 but there reviews are awful.

im not willing to finance so its gotta be something you can find on craigslist for 6k or less

I found my Volvo for $4200 on Craigslist in Oklahoma City. Volvo's are Swiss, and are friggen tanks (really, I totaled an Audi on mine and just bolted the bumper back on). The engine and tranny parts are treated with nitrocarburizing (like Glocks, Hk's, and M&P's). Subaru's are awesome cars also, those boxer engines are bullet proof.

[Clint45]

Honda Civic, Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, and Toyota Corolla all have very high reliability ratings. You should be able to get one that is over 5 years old with roughly 100K miles on it for under 6K. Your best bet is to buy from a private party off craigslist rather than a dealership. Just look it over really well, check the transmission fluid, check the codes for free at an auto parts store, and have your mechanic put it on the lift to see underneath. If it wasn't owned by a teenager or a blonde, and if there is a stack of maintenance receipts showing regular oil changes and a new timing belt, you are good to go. Take care of a car like that and don't beat on it, and you can get 300K out of it.