My Dad should sell/trade in his Korean car to buy a...?

[john14]

Basically, my Dad owns a Korean made 1997 Hyundai Lantra Sportswagon (he owned a white Hyundai Lantra before he bought this car 9 years ago ) and he wants to buy either a $20,990 (Australian dollars) 2005 Ford Focus 2.0 CL or a $25,000 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer LS.

In your opinion, which car should he buy and why?

Thank you.

[STREETFIRE]

Depends whether he wants a hatch or a medium sized sedan.

[Ingolstadt]

Focus. Hatch are more practical than sedans.

[STREETFIRE]

You would want room, which you can get from a sedan, but the Focus is cheaper for that reason - less room.
What makes them more practical?

[IBrake4Rainbows]

the focus is cheaper because it's older.

regardless, Focus > Lancer in all areas.

[syko]

the focus is cheaper because it's older.

regardless, Focus > Lancer in all areas.

and it comes in a sedan and hatch, where as you only have the choice of sedan with the lancer.

[motorsportnerd]

And Lancer is one of the worst cars I've had the displeasure of driving in recent years. Substandard dynamics, poor equipment levels, uncomfortable, harsh and overpriced.
Get the Focus. Older car in years, much newer/better car in design. Even the old shape Focus is much, much better to drive than the Lancer. Haven't driven the new shape, but it will be better again.

[2ndclasscitizen]

CE2 Lancer FTW! Past that they're pretty shite. Hence why the EVO isn't built off the current Lancer bodyshell.

[Drift Illusion]

The Focus is best if you are looking for practicallity.

[john14]

Thank you for the advice. Our first non-Asian car has made an appearance in our garage (note: I love most Asian cars).

My Dad bought a white 2006 Ford Focus CL hatchback (manual). He loves the car and says he loves driving it, according to my father the ride/drive is great. I love the car as well. The Focus has much more space than my 1983 Honda Civic.

My Dad owned two Korean made Hyundai Lantra's and two old Japanese cars (a whiite Nissan Pintara and a blue Datsun 120Y) before he bought the new Focus ... he bought the Koreans cars new and the Japanes cars used.

He got $6,500 Australian dollars for our 1997 Hyundai Lantra Sportswagon SE . Well, to be honest it was a very good car... by Korean car standards.

Perhaps, I will egg-nog the Ford Focus and my baby... a 1982 Honda Civic.

[IBrake4Rainbows]

You do realise the Pintara was made in Australia, right?

[HSVLVR]

The only reason I would say the Focus is because it's cheaper. But I would prefer the Lancer

[PerfAdv]

'82 or '83 Civic? '83 was the model change year. Love those old Hondas that refuse to die...

[john14]

Originally Posted by PerfAdv
'82 or '83 Civic? '83 was the model change year. Love those old Hondas that refuse to die...

PerfAdv, I love my Honda and other old Hondas (and some new Hondas as well). My car is a 1982 Honda Civic, I will take some photographs of my car and post them soon but until then I found two pictures of the same 1982 Honda Civic on the internet (the Civic in the first picture is the same colour as my Civic).

Originally Posted by IBrake4Rainbows
You do realise the Pintara was made in Australia, right?

Well, you learn something new every day. Thank you for the information, IBrake4Rainbows. In 1995 or 1996, we (nearly) drove around Australia in our old Nissan Pintara (we drove through South Australia, Northern Territory, Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria).

Was the Pintara designed and engineered in Australia or Japan?

[IBrake4Rainbows]

It depends on which model Pintara you have.

The Ford Corsair/Nissan Pintara were based off a Japanese Design, but engineered and built in Australia, for the most part.

They bombed, rather terribly, bringing an end to Nissans' local manufacturing.