On top of that I have always had a fondness for diesel engines. I normally got around 50 mpg combined in my Rabbit and I just plain loved that car. I traded it in for a 5 Liter Capri Black Magic when I graduated from college.
THe reason I brought up the Metro was that I just bought three for $800, sold two to realtives and kept the third—all run, still, even if they look a little rough from sitting under some trees for a few years. With new batteries, hatch struts, fluids and tires, each ran about $800, road ready. I just got it to bomb around town on errands (actually, it was a package deal and I was trying to get two relatives into affordable cars without spending a mint so they could save for something bigger. God smiled on me when the third one ran—it wasn’t supposed to).