Buying 1st used Car in Colombia
Hey Scotty, I have been watching your channel for a while and are now looking for a used car. I Live in Medellin, Colombia and have started looking for some 2005 - 2007 Toyota Corollas (1.8l Automatic or manual tranny). It is a decent car, I live in the suburbs and would drive it around 200-250 miles per week. Need something dependable and preferably not very thirsty.
I have also been offered a 36000 miles 2011 Volvo S60 t4 automatic (with the 1.6t engine). It is a very nice car and low milage. I do not know if it is worth it spending a bit more and how is it like to maintain.
I'll be eager to listen to your comments about both options and your advise for other models to buy.
Regards
I’d probably get the Toyota as it’s cheaper to maintain. The Volvo is still fine, but it’ll cost more. As far as how the transmissions go in the Corolla, they’re both relatively solid.
Thanks Matt,
The first option is the Corolla, although the Volvo is in amazing shape and it could be quite a blast. I do worry about reliability, maintenance and it is not a ver popular vehicle in Colombia, meaning spare parts could get had to attain and can be much more expensive.
Avoid the Corolla if it has the 2AZ-FE engine, as they were notorious for burning oil.
No matter which car you buy, have it thoroughly inspected by a trusted mechanic, before purchase.
What are some of the other popular cars in your region?
Hey!,
Thanks for the information regarding the Corolla.
Other popular cars are smaller vehicles of a different segment such as the Nissan March, VW Gol and various Chevy models.
I do want to get something bigger than that since my commute requires hight elevation gain with slopes in which smaller cars feel like power is not enough to climb. This is why I do not consider the Corolla 1.6l engine.
Another option could be getting a low millage Honda Civic or even a CR-V. I bet the CRV would have a significant higher fuel consumption. These could be around 2005-2007 models.
With a 2.4L CR-V, expect to get not more than 8-9 km/L in the mountains. Out of all those, I’d pick a Civic if you wanted to zip around, at altitude. The CR-V has acres of space when compared to an equivalent Civic/Corolla. And feels like a house when compared to the Micra. The Golf will probably be even less spacious than the Micra (March). It might be a good idea to test drive a lot of vehicles and then make a shortlist of about 2-3 vehicles which suit your requirements. All the best!