Toyota Corolla, anything better for commuter?

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Looks like I’m going to be taking a new job. Instead of driving a company maintained and.Fueled work truck I’m going to be buying a car.
New job is 20 miles away and I’ll be paying for my own gas. I’m looking at the price of a new vehicle combined with MPG. Kind of eyeing the 2024 Toyota Corolla.

Anything better?
 
Is new a requirement?
Besides mpg, any other requirements?
 
As I was typing, the guy above commented - yeah, it'll take a long time to recoup the costs of the new car.
Do you have a car now?
 
HMP said:
Is new a requirement?
Besides mpg, any other requirements?
Click to expand...
I’m 6’3 so smaller is not better. New is not a requirement.
 
HMP said:
As I was typing, the guy above commented - yeah, it'll take a long time to recoup the costs of the new car.
Do you have a car now?
Click to expand...
Old work truck. 11mpg though
 
Guy 1: I'm thinking of buying a new gun.
Group: absolutely, buy that gun!
Guy 1: I'm thinking of buying a new car.
Group: absolutely not, you drive what you have!

I love this place.
 
I would look for a used commuter vehicle in the 5Kish range. And remember that you must also recoup insurance and other operating expenses. My disclaimer, I’m a buy used and pay cash when all possible kinda guy.
 
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I am 6' 2 and drove a used Honda Accord 4 cylinder for over a decade and put about 30K miles a year on it (I don't commute that way any longer). Thing got great gas mileage and I never did anything to it except change the oil. Finally gave it to my daughter who also drove it a long time. I don't know how many miles was on it when we sold it (got her another Accord). Had plenty of room for me.

My brother has a Corolla and he is about a 1/2 inch taller than me and he likes it so can't go wrong with that either.
 
Think honda.
And 2 wheels.
Use old truck in bad weather.

If you must have a car I’ll point out that the “you’ll never recoup the cost” guys often fail to consider the value of the vehicle when you dispose of it.
 
I had a 04 xrs 6speed corolla with over 500,00 miles when I junked it. I’d love to have another with the same manual trans.

I have a 09 Prius now and it’s only got 215,000 so far. Hopefully it lasts as long as the the ol’rolla.

Good luck op.
 
My wife has a corolla and you can fit a ton in that thing for what it is. She got our 65" tv from best buy in it and another time she brought home the kitchen table and 4 chairs. I almost had to take the door off to get it out, but she got it in there.

She does say she wants a camry next for a little more leg room. The corolla will get it done though. Drive both and pick what you want. They are close enough in gas mileage and price that i would pick the one i felt more comfortable driving in long term rather than a couple mpg or a few grand difference.
 
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I had a 2023 corolla as a loaner back over the summer
I hated it, honestly.
I had it one day and was so happy to get rid of it
MPG was worse than my rav4

Find a used corolla or something
Or a rav4/crv. Those get decent mpg, can be had for not too much, and have some storage in them just in case
 
LazyBones said:
Guy 1: I'm thinking of buying a new gun.
Group: absolutely, buy that gun!
Guy 1: I'm thinking of buying a new car.
Group: absolutely not, you drive what you have!

I love this place.
Click to expand...
For the record, Ive advised people NOT to buy a gun before
"Bro, you want a Desert Eagle? You dont shoot now, no time to, why drop more on guns to rust in your safe?"
 
Owner of a Corolla LE 2019. Most likely going to sell it and buy a new Corolla Hybrid. Averaging about 35 miles to a gallon. My car is in excellent shape and I love it. Wife just bought a 2024 Corolla Cross Hybrid XSE edition. It has everything possible you can get. We went 3 hours down to Pinehurst. It was a an incredible comfy ride. The only reason I want a hybrid is if another democrat gets in office we may be looking at $5 plus gas again.

Coolla is the #1 sold car in the world, top 10 in customer satisfaction, and people are getting 300k out of them with proper maintenance. Toyota had 6 of the top 10 vehicles in customer satisfaction.

New Corolla LE is about $26k. One of the lowest price cars made and one of the highest quality behind Camry, Forerunner, and Rav4, all Toyotas.
 
Tough to beat a Corolla but as others have said, to make the financial justification look better, go for a used one. 100k mi is nothing if it’s been well cared for.
My youngest sister had a Corolla, my wife bought it from her and only sold it at 80k mi to buy her dream car, a 4Runner.
 
Thanks for the input fellas! The truck is an 06 2500 has close to 400k on it, it leaks oil like crazy and the transmission is going. It’s been used hard to deliver sheetrock for 12 years. Real leaf springs are shot and more stuff, but it’s time to let it die.

I’ve had nothing but bad luck with used cars so I’m leaning heavily to new.
 
Have yall priced a used corolla lately? For the 2-3k you might save for a used one. I'm buying new and not having to deal with possibly someone else's neglect or abuse. We bought a new camry last year and gave our daughter the 2014 corolla we bought new. Honestly, wife and I both prefer the corolla for parking and visibility. Camry hands down for ride quality, room (corolla fits me fine but camry is a little roomier) and in cab quietness. Gas mileage is virtually the same with the 4 cylinder in both cars but the lighter corolla wins the acceleration contest.
 
One of the members of CFF who never post has an early 2000ish Corolla that mechanically is solid. His wife bought it new more than 20 years ago. The paint looks bad on the hood but they will never sell it, even when she gets something new. That may 15 years from now given how well it’s been maintained.
 
I bought a Honda Civic to commute 122 miles each way to work back in 2013. 11 years later, still averaging about 33 mpg, now just around town, only regular maintenance done to it, with over 170K.

We prefer Honda's as we have a mechanic that we know and trust that only works on Hondas, so no dealerships.
 
A used carolla or civic is a pretty dang good buy.

Two years old or twenty years old. Those two cars are more practical than almost everything else on the road.

Personally I'd be looking for one that's 10+ years old and well kept.
 
Average Joe said:
I would look for a used commuter vehicle in the 5Kish range. And remember that you must also recoup insurance and other operating expenses. My disclaimer, I’m a buy used and pay cash when all possible kinda guy.
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I have looked at insurance on a 2020 rav4 and 2024. It's a wash.

Also used I can get new for the same if you are looking within 2 years difference.

New having warranty is a no brainer
 
I've had amazing luck with Honda vehicles.
I once was desperate for transportation and bought a 85 accord with 275,000 on it.
Paid a couple hundred and put another 30,000 on it. When a u-joint failed I left it where it died, walked down the street to a tow yard and said he could have it if he gave me a ride home. Ahhh. Youth.
The next day I bought a 1981 civic out of the news paper that was missing 3rd gear on the 4 speed manual. Drove that everywhere too!

But you get older and you want something a little nicer. Also, warranties are nice.
 
LazyBones said:
Guy 1: I'm thinking of buying a new gun.
Group: absolutely, buy that gun!
Guy 1: I'm thinking of buying a new car.
Group: absolutely not, you drive what you have!

I love this place.
Click to expand...

but oooohh, that new car smell. Most expensive fragrance on the planet. ;)
 
My advice is go with used. And not a mazda.

Gonna vent a moment: I have a Mazda CX9. Thing was wonderful. Loved the third row seating. Took it all over hunting, shooting, commuting, taking kids to school, and was just enamored with it. A few years back someone on this site posted how the engine of their CX9 blew up, the design of it lent itself to issues, and its water pump was inside the engine which was a serious issue. But I was like "Nah, mine is fine." Fast forward to last October...freakin engine blew up. Became a nightmare of epic proportions and money to finally get it back into a drivable condition. Because of that, I wont buy a mazda again because I am forever concerned that their engines have a garbage design where they work great, until they dont, and when they dont, you will be raped in the wallet.

So, I bought a 2022 Dodge 1500 and am in love with the thing.
 
SnowRooster said:
Looks like I’m going to be taking a new job. Instead of driving a company maintained and.Fueled work truck I’m going to be buying a car.
New job is 20 miles away and I’ll be paying for my own gas. I’m looking at the price of a new vehicle combined with MPG. Kind of eyeing the 2024 Toyota Corolla.

Anything better?
Click to expand...
Toyota hybrid Camry or Corolla either one great gas mileage
 
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Picked up a manual 2022 SE model about a year ago, using it specifically for commuting to keep miles off my truck. Have been super happy with it, logged 28k so far. 33mpg, relatively comfortable, and has way more bells and whistles than I’d expect for a basic commuter.

Manual even makes the commute enjoyable.
 
The Corollas are good little cars. I'm not a big fan of the CVTs that they use, but that's just about everyone in the small cars today. My wife bought one with a 6 speed stick in it in 2018. It's been a solid car. Like a lot of cars, they come with tires that have very little tread. She wore her first set out in under 20k miles. I put Pirellis on there now. I'd recommend that car to anyone interested in a solid commuter vehicle.
If you can stand getting something entirely utilitarian, and you asked about something better, get a Prius. While they have absolutely no personality, It will run forever, doesn't have a clutch, gets GREAT mileage and costs very little to maintain. They're very common, so there's a bunch of techs out there that know how to work on them, and there's great availability of parts. It's also way less likely to have been abused if you get a used one. Just vacuum the granola from the carpets, put an ozone machine in there to get rid of the body odor from those hippies that don't bathe, and you'll have a great car.

Joe
 
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