- I'm 19 and I'm buying my first car with a budget of 8 grand. I occasionally drive on the highway, but a majority of my driving will be in the city or unpaved dirt roads. I've been looking for Toyotas, Hondas, Mazdas and Fords for about a month with little luck. However, I found a low mileage early 2000s Chevrolet Malibu and I would like to know if it's something I should pursue. The car is a single-owner 2001 Chevy Malibu with 45k miles, and the Carfax service records seem to corroborate the milage. My parents used to own a Chevy Malibu of the same year and it lasted up to 260k miles. Are the older model Malibus reliable?
- Secondly, are there any safe-to-buy-used car brands I've overlooked?
- The Malibu has less than 50k miles, is it still safe to change the transmission fluid? The automatic transmission was the one thing my folks had to replace in the Malibu and I would rather avoid such an expensive repair.
The Malibu is not known for reliability and that one is 22 years old, already well beyond its expected service life. The mileage claim of the seller is very suspect and would need to be confirmed. For information on changing transmission fluid see the FAQ. I'd keep looking.
https://www.carcomplaints.com/Chevrolet/Malibu/2001/
Welcome first time poster!
1) Any car in your price range will have a flaw (which is why they are selling it) - find it.
2) Budget a couple hundred bucks for a proper prepurchase inspection. Either they will save you from buying a bad car, find fixable issues to help your price negotiation, or give you peace of mind that the car is ok.
budget of 8 grand (...) I found a low mileage early 2000s Chevrolet Malibu
Hopefully that Malibu ain't even close to 8k.
45k miles
no way, seems like fake millage unless the owner has proof of millage for at least 8-10 years back.
Are the older model Malibus reliable?
At 22 years old? no.
Secondly, are there any safe-to-buy-used car brands I've overlooked?
I'd say Ford and Mazda are not safe to buy AT that budget.
Consider the Pontiac Vibe - it's a corolla, without the Toyota badge so usually they're somewhat inexpensive.
