I have a 2010 Toyota Corolla. She’s been my trusty steed for the last 14 years and is in good working order. I recognize she won’t last forever, and if, god forbid (mostly for her) I get in an accident, I will need to get a new car. So what dumb cars do you drive, and what would you replace them with?
GM W-body and GMT platform cars from around 2002-2008 I’ve found to be decent. The GM 3800 V6 engine and 5.3L Vortec V8 are extremely reliable and easy to maintain yourself if you’re into that kind of thing. You can very easily replace the stock radio with an aftermarket unit that has Android auto/Apple Car play and won’t spy on you. Since it’s an American car and so many were sold in America, both new and used parts are pretty easy to find and pretty cheap. The biggest thing that kills these cars is rust, especially if you live in the salt belt, so just make sure you look underneath the car before buying.
Look for: Pontiac Grand Prix, Chevy Monte Carlo, Chevy Tahoe, Buick Regal, Chevy Avalanche/Silverado. A good example of these can be found for under $10k easily and if you look a little harder you can usually find good ones or ones that need minimal work for less than $5k.
Personally I plan on driving these cars until it becomes impossible to find them anymore. There’s a junkyard near me that specializes in GM cars where I can get parts for DIRT cheap.
Currently I have an 05 Avalanche (140k miles) and an 07 Grand Prix (165k miles). Before those I had an 05 Grand Prix which died only due to rust, engine and transmission still strong at 160k miles. They hardly ever have issues, and when they do they are typically cheap issues or issues I can easily fix myself.
Sure - they’re nothing flashy, but the cost of purchase + repairs is almost certainly less than the cost of a new or lightly used car alone. Also, minimal complicated computer systems, and no corporate spying.
Toyota all day every day. The best, most reliable car brand.
One rule of thumb; Never buy a Chevy. Absolute garbage vehicles that you will pay endless money to maintain.
Honda is a close second, I almost got the GR Corrola but my Integra has so much more space inside. I guess it makes sense seeing it’s almost the size of an accord.
Chevy trucks are good
Maybe, but their cars are pure shit
Toyota has a subscription service for remote start. https://support.toyota.com/s/article/Does-Toyota-Remote-Co-10227
My 2019 Hyundai Ioniq SEL has been incredibly reliable for the last 5 years. It’s a very boring car compared to alternative hybrids, but I save money on gas, which is what I got it for.
Whatever vehicle it is … you should get the option for rich Corinthian leather interior
Consider a kit-car.
I drive an Audi S4. It has issues. If it’s no more, I’d probably replace it with another unreliable German vehicle. I also drive an F150, and it has broken a few times. If it croaks, I’d probably replace it with another F150…
Why I do this to myself? No idea.
It’s called 21st century marketing bruv
I recommend a 2010 Toyota Corolla.
Proud owner of a 2009 Toyota Corolla. That thing is a workhorse.
Are you my doppelganger? Lol
I was just pointing out the car OP already had, which isn’t far off from the newest “dumb cars” you can get.
He’s asking what he can switch to that’s even newer than 2010, while all my cars (that I have no intention of ever replacing due to age) are already 5-15 years older than his.
This is only tangentially related, hopefully someone else here knows, are the newer fleet vehicles coming out still barebones? It might be a consideration if so
I switch back and forth between my 96 Tacoma with 250k miles and my 06 Scion xB with 190k miles. Love them both. Bury me in one of them.
“Dumb car” is kind of relative. Computer engine controls have been around since the mid 1970’s. And while the first ones were not very good, they have become pretty darned reliable over the intervening years. And as someone who has owned cars and other heavy equipment with mechanical points and down draft and up draft carburetors, you won’t ever see me willingly own a car with any of that anymore.
If you really want to minimize the electronics as much as possible, look at 1990’s to no later than 2010 models.
Though to be fair, much of the problems with cars are caused by the accessories like power windows, door locks, air conditioning, and power seats. Those are far more problematic than the basic car itself.
When people refer to “smart” vs “dumb” cars, I don’t think they’re referring to the ECU. They’re referring to internet connected vs non-internet connected cars, in which internet connectivity is still a fairly recent development.
I daily drive a vehicle with a factory tape deck and CD changer, where all the electronics work flawlessly, from the sunroof to the back window rolling down. My wife wants me to ditch it, but they’re going to have to pry the keys out of my cold, dead hands.
I think they mean all the newer techno crap that cars have like touch screens and the like not power windows, AC and engine related stuff thats been around for decades. And I agree with that. I want a car that has the basics and yeet the touch screens and other garbage no one asked for but it seems theres not really any choice anymore.
I think this thread just goes to show that ‘modern technology crap’ is relative. For some, adaptive cruise control is modern technology crap, for others, electronic fuel injection is modern technology crap. I recall when power windows were thought to be crap, because when the switch breaks, you can’t open the window any more. It’s the same with any new tech.
Those touch screens are all a part of the accessories. And I dislike them intensely also. I also find it very disheartening that in some new cars a software up date is needed to make the dock locks work. A friend had to take his mother’s Kia in to rematch the door locks to a new key. They needed to remove the door handles and plug them into a computer to do so.
The last new car I bought, (2015 Jeep Patriot), made me search EVERY car dealer in 2 states before I found one that had manual door locks and manual windows. I often haul dogs around with me and while they are quite good at locking doors and rolling up windows, they really, really suck at rolling them down or unlocking the doors. It took me a couple of months of weekly searching to finally find one for sale.
Kia are bastards when it comes to anti consumer practices, my 2012 Kia had an airbag warning light come on right before it’s MOT and my usual garage said they couldn’t read the fault code, I tried specialised diagnostic readers and even borrowed a garage spec one from a neighbour and still couldn’t get anything from it.
In the end I had to take it to Kia themselves and get them to read the fault code for £130, turns out the fault was exactly what everyone thought it was but couldn’t confirm and now they want £750 to replace a single airbag module that needs to be coded to the car once it’s installed. My car has been in their garage since the start of January and there’s still no sign of the part arriving yet but I can’t install one myself because of the fact that only Kia can recode it to match the car.
2018 Subaru Forester
It might be a bit more updated than most, but in general less smart than most cars today.
- Still have to press a button on the key to unlock the doors, or use the convenient key.
- Need to put the key into the ignition to start.
- Doors do not automatically lock out unlock.
- Manual parking break.
- Rear door is 100% manual (if you didn’t count un/lock with key fob).
- Basic Bluetooth functionality.
- Equipped with OnStar, and Sirius.
- Shipped with 3G cellular, which no longer works. They do offer a free upgrade, I never bothered.
By my own assessment, it’s the dumbest modern car you can get.
n assessment, it’s the dumbest modern car you can
Onstar tracks your driving habits and reports the data to insurers, even if you do not have Onstar actrivated.
I’ve read through your comments, and honestly, you’re just going to want to buy an old civic or another Corolla, and if you need to, swap in a new engine. You really have to choose working on an old car to keep it running, or live with even the basic standard safety features like a backup camera. Keep in mind that the new lane assist or collision avoidance stuff can be turned off in virtually all new cars. Plenty of new cars don’t have an obnoxious infotainment screen as well.
Plenty of new cars don’t have an obnoxious infotainment screen as well.
maybe list them for OP instead of hinting at their existence.
I mean, I can’t list every one of them? It all depends on if you find a 6 inch screen too big or something Tesla sized.
I know my Ford Maverick and my wife’s Kia Soul are pretty tame with the infotainment system.
just having a couple brands and models to look into is pretty helpful. I know i’m sick to death of massive screens with touchscreen buttons for everything. i drive my step mother’s recent model BMW sometimes and trying to just change the radio station is a chore that involves clicking accept on a screen with a huge disclaimer warning you not to get distracted by the touchscreen while driving before you can even operate it.
Keep in mind that the new lane assist or collision avoidance stuff can be turned off in virtually all new cars.
Manufacturers are making this more and more difficult to control by the user.
I think what is a good choice greatly depends on your location, which affects prices, availability, spare parts availability etc.
Buy another Toyota no newer than 2013 and you’ll be good.
Get something similar but cheaper. Those things spend decades in the sands and humid cimates and they’re still rolling around. That Toyota will probably outlive you and your kids if you treat it well.
They’re like those Diesel powered Mercedes from the 90s but much cheaper and easier to fix.
And not as good
That’s personal preference tbh. I’d pick a shit box I can fix in an evening if it ever needs it to a finicky machine that requires years of antiquated experience to work on. I never wanna touch a mechanical fuel injector or have to take half the car apart to change a pulley.
Then again I own a modern Honda with a turbo snaked through the engine bay.
I’ve had far more joy driving a Merc than the shitbox Corolla that got to 100k and threw it’s piston rings. I went back to the dealer to ask them if it’s normal to top up the oil in between services. They looked me straight in the eye and said it normally consumes 1litre every 6k. It failed a short time later. This was after I spent weeks fixing a water leak into the cabin.
The reliability of Toyota and many Japanese brands is inflated by these type of shenanigans.
