1 very best used car under $10,000 in 2025: experts

I still remember buying my first used car like it was yesterday.

What a piece of crap.

I’m sure the 90s-era maroon Ford Escort was a fine vehicle in its younger days, but by the time I got it around 2003, it was on life support.

I remember my sister came to visit shortly after I bought it and, on our very first ride, she tried to open the glove box and the whole thing fell into her lap.

“Ah, it’s just a glove box James, big deal!”

How about this: it was an automatic, but when you put it into gear you had to quickly feather the gas and get going or it would immediately stall.

She lasted about a year, her lifespan ending when she couldn’t operate without emitting an intense burning smell.

I feel like I did some research and the Escorts of the time were supposed to be decent used cars, but I guess by “used” the rating meant 3–5 years, not 10+.

I’m not in the market for a vehicle replacement right at the moment, but if I were, I feel like I would do a little more digging for the right option.

And one of the first places I would look is Consumer Reports.

I recently picked up their annual Top Picks of the Year issue on a trip to Costco and, out of sheer interest, flipped immediately to the section promising to reveal the very best picks for used vehicles.