Tips on Buying Cars: 2001 Mustang Convertible/2005 PT cruiser convertible, scion xa, mustang convertible 2005

Question
I currently own a 2001 Mustang Convertible/6 cylinders automatic trans. has 71,000 miles, a good little car, looks and drives good, it has had a few upgrades, and I am looking at a 2005 PT CRUISER convertible 4 clylinder 5 speed trans with 44,000 miles. The cruiser has alot more space in it and I have a child that is getting very cramped in the back of the mustang these days. Please give me any advice. Do the cruisers hold up pretty good or not, and if I were to resell it, where would I stand?

Answer
I personally am not a fan of the little cars... but thats just because i don't like how they look... but overall the car seems to have good reviews.. my experience inside one led me to think they magically made it larger inside (its so small outside.. but has a lot of room inside) - the non-turbo models are kinda slow - but that is for you to decide...

Resale isn't bad.. especially for a domestic vehicle - 05's seem to go for 9 to 11,000 - the higher models like the GT seem to hold resale better... If you are looking at spending ~15k, be sure to look at the honda fit - toyota yaris - scion xA and xB - as they will hold resale better purely due to namesake...  the cruiser will  probably sell for a small loss as I saw several 02-03 models asking 7 to 8000 - if you can have a car for 3 years and sell it for a 1000 dollar loss - thats a good deal... just make sure you don't pay too much for it initially....

So overall - people really like them - there are forums online dedicated to them... and the resale isn't bad - while not honda/toyota like - it seems to hold value better than most domestic vehicles... reliability has been surprisingly good too - I don't know if you can expect import like reliability.. but it is definitely recommended as a good deal by a number of publications... a good friends mother has had one since 03 - still has it... she loves it - and it hasn't given her much trouble.. but that is just one case...

I say if the price is right.. go for it.. they seem like pretty good little cars..