I'd think a last gen Ford Fusion would be pretty good. A little older than what you'd be looking for, they made them up to 2012. It had a reputation for being reliable and they should be a lot cheaper than a used Honda or Toyota.

I've heard Hyundai Sonatas hold up pretty well too and they depreciate enough to have good used prices.

A Honda Accord or Toyota Camery are great choices, but I've found that used ones can be sorta expensive.

It was actually more expensive to buy a slightly used Civic than it was to buy a new (last one of last year's model) one when we got a new car for my wife.

This is the time to buy last year's cars for cheap, right? Or is it already too late for that? (NB: everything I know about buying and selling cars I learned from one episode of This American Life.)

I've love to replace my car with a slightly used Mazda 6 when the miles eventually catch up with it (it has 205,000 miles now), but I fear it will be hard to find one at a decent price.

This is the time to buy last year's cars for cheap, right? Or is it already too late for that?

I think the best deals come in a couple months, especially with the new model year is visually distinct from the old one.

Kalshane--here is what my charming spouse said: If they're looking for a used midsized car, you can't go wrong with Toyota Camry or Honda Accord. Boring and appliance-like, but perfect for people who don't care about "performance driving" and just want reliability and safety.

There are a million questions to ask to make a better recommendation, but that's a pretty safe answer.

everything I know about buying and selling cars I learned from one episode of This American Life

Oh, I listened to that one, I think. Buy on the last day of the month!

I'm taking my 96 Jeep Cherokee for its oil change tomorrow. I am not going to ask about new shocks, I cannot afford those at the moment. I had to get four new tires earlier this year.

If they're looking for a used midsized car, you can't go wrong with Toyota Camry or Honda Accord.

Does the Corolla not qualify as midsized? (Of course, we went from an Echo [which Tim still drives to work] to the Corolla, so to me, it feels "midsized".)

I am not going to ask about new shocks, I cannot afford those at the moment.

The Echo (circa 2000) totally needs shocks, but we're not getting those right now, either. Tim just drives it 1.3 miles to work, so it's not a huge deal.

Kalshane, have you looked at Consumer Reports? I tend to buy Toyotas by default at this point (the Corolla is my third Toyota in 20 years), but the 2013 Corolla we bought last year was rated very well by CR.

I've looked some. Should probably pony up for a subscription to get the more detailed information.

Kalshane--here is what my charming spouse said: If they're looking for a used midsized car, you can't go wrong with Toyota Camry or Honda Accord. Boring and appliance-like, but perfect for people who don't care about "performance driving" and just want reliability and safety.

Thanks. I've looked at those a bit, but as Gud says, they tend to be a good deal pricier than other models used due to their reputation. Maybe I'll have to look at something a little older from them.

One thing I'm seeing on a lot of sites is reliability in recent cars is down across the board due to the car companies making a lot of new changes to their engines in order to meet the new government fuel standards. Maybe I should be looking a little older because of that.

I'm taking my 96 Jeep Cherokee for its oil change tomorrow. I am not going to ask about new shocks, I cannot afford those at the moment. I had to get four new tires earlier this year.

That's impressive. Most of my family buys Dodges or Jeeps because both my grandfather and great-grandfather worked for AMC, but their track record has been less than inspiring, in my experience. I did love our old late 80s/early 90s Cherokee when I first started driving.