Budget Friendly Cars for 2011
Everyone knows that the economy isn’t exactly booming but what do you do if you need a new car? Although some people are holding off on making big purchases like a car there are also times in life when you have no other choice but to take the plunge financially. Usually this happens when your current ride gives up the ghost alongside the freeway during your rush hour commute.
But this doesn’t mean you have to spend the rest of your life in debt because there are plenty of terrific new car options that are affordable, efficient and should prove to be eminently reliable. Because what use is a car if you can’t rely on it to take you where you want to go? That kind of misses the point of owning one.
2011 Mazda2—This tiny Mazda is new for 2011 and has a base MSRP of just a little over $14,000 which is amazing considering it comes with air conditioning, power everything, a decent CD stereo, a spunky 1.5 liter 100 horsepower engine and plenty of “Zoom-Zoom” spirit.
2011 Honda Fit—The base Fit also starts at under $15,000 and offers van-like cargo hauling capabilities to all prospective buyers. Thanks to clever placement of the gas tank under the front seats the 2011 Fit features a cargo hold big enough to hold a mountain bike. Impressive.
2011 VW Jetta—The all new for 2011 VW Jetta has seriously come down in price ($15,995 to start) to compete with the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic. Sure, the base model isn’t very well equipped but if you can swing the $18,995 SE version you will find all of the goodies new car buyers want.
2011 Hyundai Elantra—Completely redesigned from the ground up for model year 2011, the Hyundai Elantra bids farewell to its reputation as a second rate alternative to Civic or Corolla. With prices ranging from $15,000 to $22,000 for fully loaded models with goodies like navigation and leather, the 2011 Hyundai Elantra may no longer be the cheapest compact sedan out there but it desperately wants to be the most desirable.
2011 Scion tC—The all-new 2011 Scion tC starts at just $18,995 and comes with air conditioning, power everything, an excellent audio system, USB/iPod connectivity, panoramic sunroof and actual room for four adults. A great buy.
2011 Ford Fiesta—Not as cheap as the Mazda2 but is available with lots more appealing options like Sync, leather seats, a dual clutch six-speed automatic and it also returns 41 miles per gallon highway.
2011 Nissan Versa—It may not be exciting but it sure is affordable. Be sure to buy the hatchback as it is far more reliable than the sedan for some reason.
2011 Toyota Matrix—Very utilitarian and decent fun to drive, the2011 Toyota Matrix rarely crosses the $20,000 mark and makes for a very sound buy.
2011 VW Golf—Two door models start under $18,000 and all versions come with 3 years of free scheduled maintenance.
2011 Kia Forte—For 2011 there is an all-new five door hatchback variant of the Forte and all models now come with six-speed transmissions. This goes for both the automatic or manual variants which leads me to hope that the Forte Koup SX’s grabby clutch issues are a thing of the past.
So if you have a budget roughly under $20,000 don’t despair and assume that you have to buy someone else’s poorly maintained cast-off! You really can afford a nice new car in 2011 that is efficient, fun to drive, inexpensive to maintain and most importantly keeps you within your budget.
