10 Used Cars To Consider Before Buying New

The list focuses on model year 2003 used vehicles with a Kelley Blue Book Private Party Value of less than $10,000. The vehicles listed are assumed to be in good condition with approximately 118,000 miles, as per Kelley Blue Book's mileage depreciation schedules. The list was further reduced by focusing only on those vehicles KBB expects to require minimal maintenance based on their proven reputation for reliability.

To eliminate certain redundancies, we've pared that list to 10 decade-old cars worth considering before buying new. They may have some wear on the tires, but consensus is that each of the cars on the list should be able to hit or break 200,000 miles with a minimal amount of maintenance:

10. Ford Escape
Trim: XLS four-door
Original MSRP: $20,925
KBB private party value: $3,260
Retained value 22.6%

There's no shortage of small SUVs/crossovers on this list; parents' need for a kid carrier hasn't shrunk much in the past decade.

The Escape's XLS package, however, provides a tremendous discount if you're willing to forgo some of the bells and whistles. The XLS sports a somewhat pokey 2.0-liter four-cylinder with a scant 120 horsepower and lacks the tinted glass and side airbags of the more costly Escape models. Its combined 23 miles per gallon of fuel economy is only somewhat better than the 20 miles per gallon of the XLT, but it can seat five people more comfortably than its smaller competitors from Honda and Toyota. It also offers 65 cubic feet of cargo room with the seat down.

This wasn't such a great year for the American carmakers. KBB's list is completely devoid of General Motors offerings and has just one Chrysler family vehicle among its ranks, but Ford still had a few models that could stand the test of time. Its now-discontinued Crown Victoria joined the Escape on this list by retaining 14.2% of its value for its base sedan, while the Ford Focus sedan's LX model held on to a whopping 22.6% of its value.