Why (some) GM products suck

[glatt]

Shawnee, it's hard for me to give advice. All I can do is say what I would do in a situation. I would buy a used car if I couldn't afford to pay cash for a new one, but I know a lot of people who would disagree with me.

I'd go for a hatchback made by Honda or Toyota (or their subsidiary Scion.) I would haggle with a private owner based on research I would do to learn blue book values etc. I recognize that you hate haggling, so you should check out what Carmax has to offer. I personally think Carmax prices are too high, but they do clean the cars up really well, and offer warranties and a fixed price. The used cars at Carmax seem like new cars, they are so nice.

But first, I'd go to the bookstore and get the Consumer Reports used car buying guide and read the front sections in their entirety and then the specific sections about hatchbacks.