Do we have any car experts here, specifically, knowledge of model reliability?

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

I sold my Grand Prix after leaving for San Diego, but obviously being back in Jersey necessitates a vehicle.  I'm looking to spend $2000 on a Japanese economy car that'll last as long as I keep up with the basic maintenance.  I'm well aware of the reputations of models like the Camry, Civic, Corolla, etc., but are there any other brands that are known to have really reliable engines?  All I'm looking for is that prototypical beater to get me from A to B that'll run forever. 

[dead0man]

$2000 is actually a pretty good price point to be buying a good used car.  Especially if you're just getting it for a beater (I love beaters).  Really almost any small car made since the late 90s would be fine as long as everything is in good order.  (except Chryslers, but that should go without saying)  Worry less about millage (I'd stay away from something with 300k+) and more about oil changes and general upkeep.  You're already on right track to look for Toyotas and Hondas (though I've had bad luck twice now with Hondas).  I'm a Mazda guy, but they aren't as reliable as the better Toyotas, especially at the age you'll be looking at.  Subarus make great beaters too.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

$2000 is actually a pretty good price point to be buying a good used car.  Especially if you're just getting it for a beater (I love beaters).  Really almost any small car made since the late 90s would be fine as long as everything is in good order.  (except Chryslers, but that should go without saying)  Worry less about millage (I'd stay away from something with 300k+) and more about oil changes and general upkeep.  You're already on right track to look for Toyotas and Hondas (though I've had bad luck twice now with Hondas).  I'm a Mazda guy, but they aren't as reliable as the better Toyotas, especially at the age you'll be looking at.  Subarus are make great beaters too.

I'm not going American after my Grand Prix.  I liked the car, yea, but it just nickel and dimed me on every little thing.  Power windows, CD player, AC, etc. 

I've heard good things about Nissans.  What say you? 

[dead0man]

You know how Chevy guys hate Ford guys and Ford guys hate Pontiac guys and everybody hates Dodge guys?  I'm a Mazda guy, so I hate Nissans.  I did like the early 90s Sentra SE-Rs and the Maximas of the same era aren't bad....otherwise I think they're all boring junk.  Sure Toyotas are boring too, but at least they are durable.

The first wife did trick me into getting a brand new 1996 Sentra (when we weren't making enough money to really afford it...I was an E-2 in tech school and she was working at a Blockbuster), it wasn't garbage, but it was just so freaking boring.  We sold it and the beater (1985 Chevy Sprint...now THAT was a beater!  A million times more fun to drive than the Sentra.) I was driving when we moved to Omaha.  My favorite beater of all time was an 1989 Subaru Justy that I owned from 99-01.  3 cyl, 5 spd, true 4wd (not AWD), 4 door hatch, no radio.  GREAT winter car what with the skinny tires and the 4wd, just cut through the snow.  I drove it from Omaha to Johnstown PA and back to bang a chick and even managed a speeding ticket in Ohio.  I owned 2 RX7s at the time, a beater 82 and a SWEET 87 Turbo.  So I had 7 combustion chambers and 8 powered wheels spread over three cars.  I eventually blew the good 7 up by trying to make it home on a road trip from St.Louis with it overheating (rotaries don't like to overheat) and the beater 7 just got to unsafe to drive.

[dead0man]

Sorry for the ramblings....I'm 37% drunk.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

Sorry for the ramblings....I'm 37% drunk.

That's good.  I know you're being honest then.

[Bacon King]

while you're here, car experts, could you also tell me how to determine whether a 99 Taurus Ford has a A4XS transmission or an A4XN transmission

[Indy Texas]

One overlooked American car that seems to be surprisingly durable is the 2000-2007 generation Ford Taurus. I see those things everywhere. They don't have the assumption of reliability that keeps prices for used Hondas and Toyotas relatively high. And they have a bland, rental car image that makes them less desirable. There's also its twin the Mercury Sable, which I think is slightly better-looking, but also harder to come by.

[MadmanMotley]

I personally own a 2001 Chevy Malibu, which while boring as all get out, is super reliable. Only thing I've had wrong with it was my fault (left the lights on, battery ran out). Never let me down and gets mid-to-high 20's MPG.

[Bacon King]

while you're here, car experts, could you also tell me how to determine whether a 99 Taurus Ford has a A4XS transmission or an A4XN transmission

this is actually a genuine question for fixing my girlfriend's car because I don't know which part to order and anything I've looked up online for how to tell the difference between the two hasn't been helpful at all

[dead0man]

apparently you can look at the driverside door and it's got the info on it....and the VIN will have an X in it if it's got the X one and the S ones will have an L in the VIN.

[Bacon King]

apparently you can look at the driverside door and it's got the info on it....and the VIN will have an X in it if it's got the X one and the S ones will have an L in the VIN.

driverside door has no info panel, which was most of the problem, but thank you so so so much for the VIN# tip

[dead0man]

Ford VIN decoder might help too.