What Car Should I Get?

People ask me all the time what kind of car they should get. Usually they want something on a reasonable budget that is reliable and low maintenance. Sometimes they are also focused on camping.

So I am going to give you some information to help you make your own decisions.

I’ll start with the most simple criteria:

The Most Reliable Options

Toyota and Lexus

If you want simply Reliable and Low Maintenance, then get Almost Any Toyota/Lexus.You still should look for common problems like any car, but most of these cars will survive 15k mile oil changes (if they have to).

Avoid any Toyota with the 3.0 V6 motor (3VZ-E/FE). These motors frequently have head issues, and eventually crank issues too.

In general avoid any Toyota with a JZ variant motor in it unless you’re getting it for specific reasons, or the car has been well treated. These motors are often sought after for sports and can be pretty hammered on. These motors also came in some Lexus models like the IS200.

Honda and Acura

There’s really only one thing to say about Honda/Acura: The automatic transmissions are their number 1 issue. I would not consider this a deal breaker, it is simply the only reason I recommend Honda/Acura After Toyota/Lexus.
I don’t think Honda has ever made a motor with issues, or I haven’t heard about it yet.

I Need a Truck

So first things first: Toyota.
If it’s a general do everything truck that you’re also just going to drive around and don’t need to do big jobs, little Toyota Trucks and Tacomas are by far the easiest and best solution.

I need to do bigger things

Uuhm. Toyota. But also…
Get a Chevy V8. I will talk about this again later, but Generally avoid small engines from American manufacturers: They don’t put much thought into them and they often have repeat issues.
The Chevy V8 is tried and true, it doesn’t get great gas mileage but where you might see 20 from a 1500 you might see 24 from a Toyota 3.4 V6.

Camping, Fire Roads, Snow

This is often the very next question I get after plain reliability. “What about Subaru?”

If you’re not considering Subaru you can skip this section.

I understand the draw towards Subaru: They are goofy looking, AWD (Truly one of if not The Best AWD system that has ever been made), they handle fantastically, and they have weird motors.

But that damn Subaru Boxer motor man: These motors are not simple to work on.

Where a V shaped motor makes things a little more complicated, the flat motor makes it almost impossible to do simple maintenance. Spark Plugs, Valve Cover Gaskets, and Heads are All against the wheel wells.
Oftentimes you might just end up pulling the whole motor out. If you need machine work done the block has to be setup perfectly for both sides to be bored, the crank has one of the smallest journal length (this means they have to switch grinding wheels to resurface for new bearings), and the valve springs are on so tight you need special tools to get them apart to be machined. Besides the extra time this will take, machine shops usually charge a premium for this work.
If you’ve made it this far you have to put it back together which sometimes requires special tools.

And, primarily because of how difficult and sometimes problematic these motors can be, I do not recommend Subaru.

Toyota Again, Mostly…

If your goal is light offroad to the point of needing some form of 4WD then Toyota/Lexus is your answer.

From Rav4 to Tacoma and everything in between, you really can’t go wrong with a Toyota or Lexus. Their light AWD systems are stout and capable. Their heavy 4WD systems are the best out there, and with a lot of aftermarket support.

There are a few others to talk about though. One of my personal favorites:
The Suzuki Sidekick!
This car/truck/thing/little-guy is truly So Underrated. It was made only for America because we didn’t trust the Suzuki Samurai, which is also a great option if you don’t mind a pretty dated vehicle.
They have ladder frames, linked rear axles, Independent Front Suspension, and a fantastic 4WD system on par with Toyota. They have a little 1.6L 4 Cylinder engine that will get decent gas mileage (25MPG+) and the 4 door models have enough space for most camping trips or day trips with friends.
They were also white labeled by other brands as the Geo tracker, Chevy Tracker, and Suzuki Vitara/Grand Vitara. Love these little vehicles.

And I can’t finish this section without mentioning the legendary Toyota Tercel.

Last comment, you’d be surprised how well you can get through a dirt road with a normal car. 4WD is not always a must for general camping and fire roads.

I Wanna Have Fun

If you want something a little more fun… Well first I’d consider getting a Toyota. Or a Lexus. Or a Honda or an Acura. But after those…

Well if you’ve read more of my blog, the answer is of course the BMW E36.
This cars biggest problem is cooling and it does not respond well to overheating. This is one of the biggest reasons they were originally considered unreliable and expensive, because they would inevitably overheat at a young age and crack the head, leading to expensive repairs.
Make sure to go through the cooling system and replace known bad components.
These cars are also stupid easy to work on, even compared to their Toyota and Honda counterparts.

Another great alternative to Toyota/Honda etc is Mazda Miata and even NA (Naturally Aspirated, non-turbo) Mazda 3’s are fantastic little cars.
I did have to change an alternator on a Miata once and it was kind of awful. I had to take off a few parts just to get to it and once I did the bolt was ridiculously tight. I read up that this is not uncommon for these cars. With that in mind I still can’t help but recommend them for their general reliability and they are just so much fun.

With that in mind, here are some more thoughts on brands you might be considering:

VW is just German Honda. They drive phenomenally, especially for a FWD, and they are generally a fairly reliable car. If you get a turbo model expect more maintenance, and do more research when buying used.
Most BMW‘s made before 2005 are OK. In general I only recommend the 90’s models for their reliability and simplicity. They are basically just RWD German Honda. Anything made after 2005 I generally consider just a luxury/messy. But I’d still have one over a Subaru.
There aren’t very many Mercedes I’d recommend. Although the classic Diesel cars are absolute tanks and can also fairly easily be converted to vegetable oil. Beyond exceptions like this, Mercedes is well engineered but not simple to work on.
I have never recommended an Audi. I know some of them share components with VW after they merged or whatever, but I have only seen enthusiasts enjoy these cars. Folks that have them as basic cars seem to have issues with basic components like engine mounts and control arms.
Volvo I describe very much like Mercedes. Old school Volvo is unbreakable. Newer Volvo is just problems.

What Not to Buy

For my closing comments, I will list some simple and easy things to avoid:
Ford.
Sorry not to sorry to any Ford fans. They got that one V8 that they made for the police so it was actually okay. I’m sorry but I’ve seen too many of their engines and they so frequently put the cam on ears in the head, I know it isn’t strictly that bad, but I have seen them broken several times.
Beyond that all you really have to understand about Ford is this: They make as many cars as possible. They don’t and have never truly cared if the cars they make are Good, only that they made a bigger profit this year than the last.
Love the Mustangs and Broncos and the GT is just ridiculous. But if you need a reliable car, please don’t.

Anything British. Except… Lotus did start putting Toyota motors in some of their cars. Those ones are good.
Same generally goes for Italian. Fiats are fine. Until you have to fix one. Smart too, found one with a flooded battery tray the other day.

I mentioned this under trucks, but it’s worth mentioning here as well: American made Small Cars. I so often see an absolute lack of engineering or thoughtfulness when working on some of these cars. Maintenance is difficult, many bolts are torque to yield for seemingly no other reason other than being cheaper to make, America likes to make big cars and they seem to skimp on their smaller selection. Be weary.