WTB: High mileage 2009 Vibe (1.8 automatic)

[Caretaker]

I am helping to find an old lady the last car she will likely drive (her words). She knows nothing about cars and I know lots. In educating her, I kept her choices to a simple two: the Vibe, first or second generation, and the Honda Fit. She has only $8000 to spend and is now driving a 1995 Toyota Corolla which is on its last legs. Scouring cars.com, craigslist, and cargurus, I see that some 2009's can be had in that price range with mileage between 110,000 and 135,000. I am trying to keep her below 150,000. I had her test drive my Fit and Vibe the other day. I made some observations that she might not have thought of otherwise, which leads me to want to find her a 2009 Vibe first if possible. The 2009 Vibe is easier to get in/out of compared to the Fit. The Vibe has a seat height adjustment for short old ladies. The Fit does not. The Vibe's seats are also more supportive. Having owned both versions of the Vibe, I am trying to not stick her with the inevitable costs/nuisance of the first generation's radio, clicking plastic vents and other things. So while a good car and easy to get in her price range, I am going to try my best to get her a second generation Vibe or a second generation Fit, now that the Fit's third generation is out and people will be trading in their old ones. The first gen Vibe will be a backup should our search stall in the coming months.
I have seen several second gen Vibes available in the Baltimore to north Philly area, but have not heard back from the owners/dealers.
This one in particular seems to be a steal, and I have inquired as to why it is $2000 below everybody else's deal aside from the manual windows and high mileage. Anyone in the Philly area have any thoughts?: http://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detai ... /overview/
Soooo, if you happen to live within 200 miles or so of DC and know someone who wants to offload their 2009 Vibe with the corolla engine and automatic tranny, (roll down windows are fine), I'd be grateful if you would pass the word along in case I don't get an automated message from cargurus or cars.com.

[jeffro57]

Look at my listing I just put up, a 2006 Vibe with 224,000 miles. It is in perfect condition, AWD, has been well taken care of, driven mainly highway miles. I am in Downingtown, PA. Call me with questions at 610-639-9985.
Thanks, Jeff

[joatmon]

This one in Hagerstown also seems to meet your criteria.

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale ... =380123618" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Not that it matters beyond trivia, but I bought my first Vibe in Hagerstown.

Edit - well, almost meets your criteria. listing says it has a 5 speed automatic, so I think that means it has the 2.4 engine. Not badged as a GT though. If it matters, you should be able to tell from the VIN somehow

[vibenvy]

Edit - well, almost meets your criteria. listing says it has a 5 speed automatic, so I think that means it has the 2.4 engine. Not badged as a GT though. If it matters, you should be able to tell from the VIN somehow

You are correct... 2009-2010 5-speed automatic = 2.4L - either a Base, AWD or GT

Any 2009-2010 1.8L will either have a 4-speed automatic or 5-speed manual.

[Caretaker]

thanks neighbor joatmon. I actually found the lady a 2009 Honda Fit Sport down in southern Virginia last week. With the incentive of free tickets to Mt. Vernon and a train ride home, the owner is driving the car the 3 hours to deliver it next week. I'm guessing the car is as advertised since he wouldn't take such a risk of driving 6 hours for nothing. While he tours the estate, we'll have a local mechanic look it over. I tried to talk "my client" into a second generation Vibe, and we even went and test drove a first gen Matrix out at Dulles. However, she did not like the truncated windows and blind spots the Vibe/Trix presented and instead wanted the excellent visibility of a Fit.
Thank you very much for taking your time to search for her. We did our best to avoid dealerships and buy from an individual instead. When I look at the 2009 Vibe up in Hagerstown for such an artificially low price, I see that the steelies are all rusted and I think flood car right off the bat. We actually found a Fit at Dulles with navigation sold by a highly acclaimed used car dealer. After I drove out there and inspected the car, I saw an engine full of rust and decay, and even rust spots underneath the Fit's magic seats. I began yelling at the owner and his wife, again, highly rated dealers in the Dulles area, as I shamed them for selling a flood car. They repeatedly said that it was not a flood car and that it was illegal to sell flood cars at auction. I then told him that even a monkey could see that this was a flood car and that whomever grabbed this car at auction needs to find a new line of work. As Archie Bunker used to say: "I'll just whistle in the direction of the person I'm talking about."

[joatmon]

Glad you found something for her, and good for you for helping her out.

Doesn't particularly matter, but my first 03, bought brand spanking new from a dealership and never flooded, had rusty steelies and rust on the front seat frames within five years.