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View Poll Results: What care to buy?
Pontiac G6 3 7.69%
Hyundai Sonata 20 51.28%
Pontiac Vibe 9 23.08%
Hyundai Elantra 7 17.95%
Voters: 39. You may not vote on this poll

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Buying a car... what do you think...
Old 07-20-2009, 02:15 PM   #1
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Buying a car... what do you think...

OK.... I am a cash for clunker buyer... taking a look at what is out there with cash back etc.... I have narrowed it down to 4 cars..

I decided to get the groups opinions on what you think...

The 4 choices are (price is with all rebates including the clunker rebatw):

Pontiac G6 with sport package (6 speed 4 cyl, plus power options) $14,700

Hyundai Sonata GLS with power options (5 sp, 4 cyl) $13,700

Pontiac Vibe (1.8 4 cyl with 4 speed, also power option) $12,000

Hyundai Elantra GLS with power options(4 speed, 4 cyl) $11,000


The Vibe is just like a Toyota Matrix...

I can not see buying a Honda or Toyota as they do not seem to be discounting them... I am talking to the credit union people, so not a normal salesman.. I will not buy a Ford as I have had major problems with them and just dropped $1700 on our Exporer on a known defect that Ford does not care to fix... plus the bad experience with my 85 Cougar...
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Old 07-20-2009, 02:48 PM   #2
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I voted for the Sonata. It's a legit competitor to the Camry/Accord, and is arguably the nicest and most spacious of the cars you mentioned. Hyundai also has a great warranty. I'd be a little leery of Pontiac, personally, just because that nameplate is reportedly going away. That will probably affect the future resale of those cars (if you care about resale).
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Old 07-20-2009, 02:58 PM   #3
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I like the Hundai Sonata best of the choices you presented. Nice car at a good price. I must confess I would buy another Subaru Forrester if I was in the market. I love my Suby!
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Old 07-20-2009, 03:04 PM   #4
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If it's just you or you and one other person in the car 90%+ of the time then i'd go with the Elantra. If you need seating for 3 or 4 then go with the larger Sonata.
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Old 07-20-2009, 03:31 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by aaronc879 View Post
If it's just you or you and one other person in the car 90%+ of the time then i'd go with the Elantra. If you need seating for 3 or 4 then go with the larger Sonata.
I will probably be the only one in the car most of the time... this will become my 'beater' car... until my 11 yo gets old enough to drive and then I think I will lose it...


I am not worried about Pontiac going away... GM is backing the car, not Pontiac... the dealer I buy the car from is also a Buick and GMC dealer so he is not going away... resale is not an issue except if it gets totaled... I am trading in a 95 on it...


OHHH forgot to say all are 2009 models...
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Old 07-20-2009, 03:39 PM   #6
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Others in my family have had trouble with Hyundai (broken crankshaft, just how does that happen). I think overall the quality of Detroit is still not there, so I voted for the Vibe. Being the same as the Toyota Matrix, built on a Corolla platform (one of the most successful and reliable cars in the world), at a plant (NUMMI) that Toyota pretty much supervises, at that price, I don't know how you'd go wrong.

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Old 07-20-2009, 04:33 PM   #7
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I wouldn't buy any of them even at half price, but YMMV.
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Old 07-20-2009, 04:36 PM   #8
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I'd go with the G6 with sport package myself but only because of my preference for sporty cars...
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Old 07-20-2009, 04:46 PM   #9
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From Consumer Reports (Car, Reliability, Satisfaction)

Pontiac G6 - Worse than average, worse than averate
Hyundai Sonata - better than avg. Average. Recommended
Pontiac Vibe - Much better than avg, Better than average. Recommended
Hyundai Elantra - Much better than average, average. Recommended
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Old 07-20-2009, 05:17 PM   #10
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Originally Posted by TromboneAl View Post
From Consumer Reports (Car, Reliability, Satisfaction)

Pontiac G6 - Worse than average, worse than averate
Hyundai Sonata - better than avg. Average. Recommended
Pontiac Vibe - Much better than avg, Better than average. Recommended
Hyundai Elantra - Much better than average, average. Recommended
I've always looked at Consumer Reports for car purchases T-Al. Haven't led me wrong yet...
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Old 07-20-2009, 07:08 PM   #11
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They just rated the Elantra best small car. The Sonata is much bigger than the elantra, sort of like an Accord vs a Civic.
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Old 07-21-2009, 10:08 PM   #12
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Parents just traded in a 99 F150 for an Elantra 3 months ago, my father is a frugal man, and he shopped around for a while before deciding. He likes what he's got (the surprise was they really liked the bluetooth interface, but I had to set it up for them). I've driven a few G6 and G5 rental cars, they have the sports car feel, but don't think they are worth it, and my favorite car will always be a 70 Pontiac GTO.
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Old 07-22-2009, 08:04 AM   #13
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Go with a Hyundai if for no other reason than the warranty
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Old 07-22-2009, 08:30 AM   #14
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Get the Sonata, in the end, it has good room and is almost as fuel efficient as the Elantra. My neighbor has a Vibe and loves it, no problems...........
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Old 07-22-2009, 08:37 AM   #15
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I'm happy with my Matrix, so I'd pick the Vibe since it's mostly the same thing. Pontiac may be going away but they'll have plenty of parts and service available for a long time. Plus, if you can find a good closeout deal on Pontiac models you may be able to drive (no pun intended) a decent deal in the process.
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Old 07-22-2009, 08:52 AM   #16
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Go with a Hyundai if for no other reason than the warranty
The Pontiac warranty is not bad... it has a 5 yr, 100K miles powertrain also..
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Old 07-22-2009, 08:56 AM   #17
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The Pontiac warranty is not bad... it has a 5 yr, 100K miles powertrain also..
Hyundai is 10 year, 100,000 miles. At this point in time, Hyundai has better reliability than Pontiac. I have a lot of experience with Pontiac, most of it not good..........
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Old 07-22-2009, 08:58 AM   #18
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Hyundai is 10 year, 100,000 miles. At this point in time, Hyundai has better reliability than Pontiac. I have a lot of experience with Pontiac, most of it not good..........
Remember, though, that the Vibe is more Toyota than Pontiac for practical "under the hood" purposes.
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Old 07-22-2009, 09:01 AM   #19
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I'd pick the Vibe, since it would more useful for my purposes. I'd pick the Sonata if I wanted a sedan...
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Old 07-22-2009, 09:03 AM   #20
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Remember, though, that the Vibe is more Toyota than Pontiac for practical "under the hood" purposes.
I was referring to the G6, STAY AWAY!! Anyone remember the Geo Prizm? Those cars had Toyota engines, and run forever. I have no problem with Toyota and GM join ventures, particularly if the powertrain is by Toyota.......
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