Which damn car to buy for high-ish weekly K's?

[hymath123]

I have a slight conundrum. We recently landed back in NZ, and have purchased an Outback as our family car. It's fantastic for my wife and kids to potter about in, and for longer trips as a family.

However, we're currently based in Warkworth, and I will likely need to commute into Auckland Central 2 / 3 days a week for a new job - which makes for a round trip of about 125km a day. I'm looking for a second car, but stumped as to what to get. My requirements are:

• Max budget is $16k, but the less I can spend the better.
• Fuel economy is my key concern, the less I can spend on gas the better
• Comfort is an important consideration given the distance, and also need to consider that I'm 6'3" with long legs - so small cabins are less than ideal
• Something that can fit a couple of car seats in the back in a pinch is a bonus

Would love to know how someone else in a similar situation solved this! Or anyone who purchased and had some regret about what they bought. Thank you!

 

[csa_ap_hill]

@hymath123 I run a 2010 Camry hybrid, I do a smidgen over 200km daily. It returns 6L/100km reliably. I paid 3k for it in 2020. It has required a top engine mount replacement $50 and 5 minutes)
I have been doing conditional oil changes every 15-20km because it seems to keep oil very clean and doesn't burn any.
Tyres are lasting upwards of 70km and are cheap.
It now has 520k on the clock and I may consider replacing it with a 2015+ Corolla wagon soon.
A toyota or honda is usually a good place to look for dependable cars, learned that pretty quickly in my years as a mechanic
Edit: can run a rear facing seat on passenger side, but definitely only forward facing behind driver especially at your generous height

 

[tessy40]

@csa_ap_hill You paid 3k for a 10 year old Camry?

 

[iwaslostbutnow]

@tessy40 Bargain for a 10yo car these days

 

[tessy40]

@iwaslostbutnow Bargain any day

 

[csa_ap_hill]

@tessy40 Yeah

 

[bpplee]

@tessy40 You mean nearly 15 haha

 

[tessy40]

@bpplee He bought it when it was 10 years old.

 

[hymath123]

@csa_ap_hill I was wondering about the hybrid options in terms of how they operate at motorway speeds - do you get any benefit when not just puttering about town?

 

[csa_ap_hill]

@hymath123 We have a non hybrid camry at work, so can compare happily. Work Camry does around 8/100km on my commute (open road 100%), my Camry does 5.9/100km open road.
Work camry does around 11-12/100km in town, my camry does 6.1/100km in town.

 

[marimarida]

@csa_ap_hill We have a new yaris as company car and it gets about 4L per 100km on long trips. Thats a $28k car new, but there are a tonne of options for under $16k with a handful of kms on the clock.

 

[resjudicata]

@csa_ap_hill We had a 2.5V6 Camry. Do not get one of those, unless it is free and comes with a $1500 fuel voucher! It was absolutely reliable over the fifteen years it was in the family, but migod it was hard on gas around town.

 

[sobbret]

@hymath123 Toyota uses an Atkinson cycle engine. They tradeoff power for economy. So even running on ICE only, you are using less fuel than a traditional Otto cycle engine.