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Our 2003 Toyota Camry is an awesome
commuter car. Super comfy and great gas mileage.

Good luck!

We are a Toyota family. But even Toyotas can get expensive. My husband's Camry was bought new but it was over $25K. My parents have a Hyundai Sonata and they LOVE it. I've driven it and it really is an awesome car. Nice looking, great gas mileage. I bet you could get a used one for a pretty decent price.

I agree, you can't go wrong with Toyota or Honda, but I have never had one because they are always out of my price range. I've now had 2 Nissans (a Sentra and a Rogue) and LOVED them. The Sentra got incredible gas mileage, and it was AWD to boot (not sure that that matters for you, though, weather-wise). The only reason I sold the Sentra in the first place was because I was living in the city and didn't need a car. Once I moved back to the suburbs, I considered a Toyota Rav-4, but it was so much more money than the Rogue, I just couldn't justify it.

I have a Toyota Matrix. They are great.. my previous card was the Toyota Echo, and it was a 2001 that lasted me until 2011.

I'm hoping to get the same kind of length from my Matrix.

Good luck!

@eiko2010: I second Nissan. I have a Rogue as my mommy car, but the Sentra is a great little car. Most of their smaller cars/suv's have a CVT transmission and that equals incredible gas mileage. I lurrrrrve my Rogue, and Nissan has been awesome.

@prettylizy: Yes, forgot about the CVT. Love the CVT. Makes for such a smooth ride, and like you said, great gas mileage.

I totally second a Toyota as those seem to hold up in the long run. Hubby's 4-runner had over 150,000 miles on it and was running strong!

Unfortunately, I don't think there's any recourse against a dealer for a bad car. That's why I always recommend taking the car to an independent mechanic for an honest assessment of any issues it might have. You'll get a better price on a Honda going through a private seller, but it is more of a hassle. I bought my 2004 CR-V in 2010 for around $12,000. It had 65,000 miles on it, no issues. I love it, but it took me a long time to find something like that in that price range from a dealer!

Definitely check out edmunds.com to compare cars and also see how much they are selling for in your area. Be as informed as possible to make sure you are getting a good price. Honda and Toyota cars have a great resale value and also very dependable. When looking for used cars you can also check out the Kelley Blue Book value. If you are looking at new cars, you can ask for a dealer quote online through edmunds. That's how I bought my last car, and the online quote was far better than any other quote I received in person. Great price and no haggling involved.

I have an '06 Mazda 3. I bought it for 12k back in 2008 when it had 22k miles. I absolutely love my car. It gets great gas mileage, has a roomy trunk, and it's a little sporty.

I also have to second @chopsuey119 and say check out your local Carmax. We've had great experiences buying and selling with them.

We recently bought a commuter car for DH. '01 Civic for less than $5k. It's a no frills stick-shift, but exactly what he wanted.

@April_Showers: Must be different according to the state because the link I posted said that used cars are covered by the Lemon Law if they are still under warranty.

I agree with everyone on going with either a Toyota or Honda. Although, pricey, you'll get more reliability. I've always driven a European car and there's always something. My husband has always driven an Acura (Honda owned) and has had very little issues with it.

I just looked at consumer reports for you and the Subaru Impreza Premium and Toyota Corolla (both in the $16-$22k price range) are two of the small 4-door sedan cars that have really good ratings in terms of reliability, owner satisfaction, and accidental avoidance. Subaru was on top. The corolla has better gas mileage at 32 mpg versus Subaru's 27 mpg. Also, check out Edmunds as well. Hope that helps!

I loved my 2007 Hyundai Elantra. It got amazing gas mileage, looked nice, and served me really well.
The warranty was amazing - 10 years! But I never needed to use it.
When it was totaled last year, I replaced it with a Kia Forte. Supposedly comparable cars. The Kia's gas mileage sucks compared to the Hyundai.

Hyundai all the way!

@MamaMoose: Ah, yeah. Florida's lemon law only applies to new cars. It's still really hard to prove (like others have mentioned) so I wouldn't rely on it when deciding where to purchase. Just me though!

Do u have a carmax near u? No haggle.

DH has a long commute & we were looking for the same thing as you since I drive a Pacifica & we didn't want 2 car payments. His is just for commuting. We bought a used corolla (2001 I think, not positive though!). it looks old & blah, but it's more enjoyable to drive than I would have expected! And the almost 40 mpg is AWESOME! I know when he's ready to upgrade we can sell it for about what we paid for it since it's a Toyota, crazy how they hold their value! Especially the corollas, around here at least the used corolla & camery end up the same $$ since there's such a market for the corollas. I'd totally recommend one for a good commuter car. Also look at Chevy prizm, they are the same car as the corolla but a little less $$ because they don't have the Toyota name.

I am a big fan of the Ford Escape. You can probably get one used for a good price, and we've had nothing but good luck with them. I have a new one right now, but my best friend just had to get rid of hers because it was pushing 300,000 miles and she just wanted something new for her baby. If you really want a sedan, I second the Fusion. A friend has one and drives A LOT and it has been fantastic, both on gas and reliability. She used to drive an SUV, so she continually marvels over the awesome gas mileage.