Best Vehicle or brand for my buck?

I'm looking for a good first car to buy that is very dependable and will last a long time. I don't really know which would be best. What would be the best make/model around or under $30,000 that can be repaired on a tight budget?

Originally I was planning on a Nissan Pathfinder until I found out about the transmission issues it has, from there I tried very hard to find an SUV (an actual SUV and not one of those tiny crossovers) but at this point I've pretty much given up that search.

I'm looking for a car with plenty of room for 5, gets around 20 or more miles per gallon, and most importantly is very dependable.

I'd also prefer it to be have a V6 engine. Rather than 4 cylinder.

I was considering a chevy until my friend said they'd been having problems with their cars lately and he recommended Hyundai, Kia, or Honda. I'm really not a fan of Honda and Hyundai. Am currently researching Kia.

I would Just buy a cheap car like a mk1 golf, toyota conquest, hona civic or ford mondeo and then use the rest of your money to modify it, that way your car is faster and it looks better and you won't have to worry about gas because your car will run on swag, that's what me and my friends are doing to our cabs, http://instagram.com/...team_ratio.

But if you really want a reliable, fun, practical, safe, economic car for that price get a ford fiesta

Subaru's are very good reliable cars

Have you considered the Mazda 6?

DODGE

Audi A4
Toyota Camry
Toyota Corolla
Nissan Altima
Nissan Maxima