Reid is from Texas and had an unfortunate incident with his Focus ST. It was towed the wrong way, resulting in the car getting totaled. He took the payout and is now looking for a replacement that has manual shift and is reasonably practical. With a budget up to $25,000, what car should he buy?
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Here is the scenario.
I had a 2013 Focus ST that I LOVED, but it was towed out of a spot in reverse when I had parked it in first, and it was totaled. Didn’t have the money for an engine rebuild, and took the money from insurance. I have about $25,000 to spend on something 4 doors, preferably manual, reliable, and ideally with plenty of cargo space. I do not want any kind of project car.
Quick Facts:
Budget: up to $25,000
Location: Dallas, Texas
Daily Driver: Yes
Wants: four doors, easy to live with, ideally a manual
Doesn’t want: A fixer-upper
Expert 1: Tom McParland – Under The Radar
The Focus ST was from a fun time where automakers jostled to see who could make the best affordable hot hatchback. Unfortunately, with a shifting economy, fun and affordable rarely go together, not to mention the options for manual cars get smaller every year. But there are a few holdouts still catering to enthusiasts that don’t want a full-on sports car and need something that is usable every day.
Hyundai is one of those brands, with the Elantra that offered a manual in both the top spec N car, or the tamer N-Line. The latter had a 200 horsepower, 1.6 liter motor that is plenty punchy for around town, but also didn’t have the over-the-top styling of it’s more expensive sibling that may attract the wrong kind of attention. While the Elantra is a sedan, the rear seats are spacious, and the trunk offers a solid 14 cubic feet of space. Three-pedal versions are rare, but here is a 2021 model with about 52,ooo miles for less than $21,000.
Expert 2: Amber DaSilva – Technically four doors
Did you know that, in hatchbacks and wagons, the rear door counts towards your total? With that in mind, Reid, I present the car you really need: The Hyundai Veloster N. Tom got close with the Elantra, but trust me, you’d rather have this one.
You had a Focus ST (and you’re a Jalopnik reader) so you clearly enjoy a little performance in your hatchback. The Veloster N is actually a hatch — unlike the Elantra or Civic Si — and it’s more raucous than even the most tuned Focus. Throw it through a curvy road, feeling the front tires claw through the corners as the tailpipes pop and burble, and tell me you’d rather have an N-line. C’mon, now, you deserve the real thing.
I admit, this is smaller than your old Focus, but it still has two rows of seating and cargo room out back. you can fold down the rear seats if you really need to carry big stuff, and I assure you that you won’t miss the fourth/fifth door. How often do you have rear-seat passengers stepping out into traffic anyway? Get a Veloster N, and have more fun than that FoST ever brought you.
Expert 3: Collin Woodard – Sometimes deals find you
You know, Reid, I really wanted to find something you never would have thought to buy. A secret car that’s actually super reliable and fun to drive but flies under the radar more than, say, a WRX. You could always buy a WRX if you want. But even if that car exists, there’s also no point in recommending something that isn’t available in your area. Which meant scrolling through available listings that met your criteria until I found it. Instead, what I found is a fairly obvious car that feels like too good a deal for you to resist.
Meet your new-to-you 2022 Honda Civic Si sedan. Since it’s the newer generation, it should require less maintenance than a 10th-gen, and while the 58,266 miles on the odometer isn’t especially low, it’s no higher than you’d expect from a five-year-old car. You get your manual. You get your practicality. It should be far more fun to drive than a regular Civic. And the best part is, you get Honda’s sweet orange paint, all for $100 less than the $25,000 you said you had to spend. I like the Elantra a lot, but if it were my money, I know I’d definitely rather own the Honda.
