Top five cars under $5000 that make you look ‘rich’

Not everyone is loaded with cash; that’s why Australia has a thriving used car market. But what if you want to trade in that economy hatchback for something a little more luxurious without breaking the bank? Well here are five cars under $5000 so you can 'ball on a budget'.

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Luckily for you, there are actually quite a few cars that have the brand cache behind them and have been smashed by depreciation over their lifetime.

A word to the wise, however. Keep in mind that buying an old luxury car can often result in heartbreak and expensive repair costs. There is a reason these cars are cheap, and it pays to do outside research before buying a once high-end car that now only costs $5000. We strongly recommend an independent inspection before handing over your hard-earned five grand.

That said, this list has been compiled based on the private used market on trading platforms such as Gumtree and Facebook marketplace.

These are the top five cars under $5000 that will make it seem like you have more in the bank than you really do.

The Lexus LS400 is one of the best cars you can buy to make people wonder how much you paid.

Starting on the used market at around $3500 for a rough one and going up to around the $8000 mark for a nicer example, they’re quite a good option if you don’t mind compromising on some superficial damage to get this tank-sized luxo-barge on the cheap.

Powered by the 4.0-litre quad overhead cam Lexus powerplant, they’re known to last well into the half-million-kilometre range. Usually, if you can find one with under 300,000km, you’re doing quite well, but the engines are considered bulletproof if they have been serviced close to the recommended service intervals.

Remember that these cars cost a whopping $110,000 when they first came out in 1991 and climbed to over $160,000 in 2000. That’s mighty fine for a car that will cost you around the $5000 mark today.

It’s pretty obvious why the LS400 was so expensive when it came out. It had about 100 cows’ worth of leather inside, a million option buttons, some came with air suspension, and in rare cases, you can find a factory-fitted car phone.

They only came out in automatic because automatic is the pinnacle of luxury, and they’re one of those cars best enjoyed from the back seat with your own personal driver.

Beware: These absolutely chew through fuel, so you may be saving on the purchase price, but you will definitely feel the pinch at the petrol station. Nevertheless, the LS400 is one of the best cars under $5000

If you’re after a newer-style luxury Japanese barge, the Lexus GS300 is the way to go.

It follows similar interior styling cues as the LS400 but with an updated look. It’s yet another car that is best enjoyed from the rear seat with a personal driver.

Everything inside the car is covered in either woodgrain and a choice between a grey or black leather. Being the pinnacle of luxury in the early 2000s, you have a futuristic looking dash, electric adjustable seats and some models even came factory-fitted with a display screen above the cassette tape player.

You have a nice big sunroof and ashtrays in just about every corner of the car. Being a chauffeur car, there is split climate control air conditioning with rear vents, too.

Powered by a VVTI naturally aspirated 2JZ-GE 3.0-litre inline-six that drives the rear wheels, you have a decent amount of torque and an engine that will last for an eternity.

These only came in automatic, but they’re awesome cars that bounced around in price during Covid-19 but have now settled into the $3000-$7000 category for a stock example. That’s a far cry from the $90,000 they were when new in 1997.

The BMW E46 is another one of those cars that has been hit by enormous amounts of deprecation. You have the choice of a sedan or a coupe and multiple different engine sizes.

With a $5000 budget, you would probably be looking more at 320i sedans, although the odd 323 and 325 coupe have been known to pop up within that price range.

All engines are within the M52 and M54 family with only changes to the displacement as the model size increases, they’re a relatively popular engine and one of the last BMW straight-sixes before they got too complicated to work on.

If you're really strapped for cash, you can also choose a 318i. These can be as low as $2000 on the used market, but they have the ultra-sluggish 1.9L (1998-2001) and 2.0L (2001-2005) four-cylinder engines.

The interior is quite swish; the BMW E46s have plenty of sound deadening to make the car feel sturdy, and there is plenty of leather with a luxury interior to make you feel like you’re driving a car worth tenfold.

The engines have been known to have head gasket and overheating issues. However, you should be relatively safe diving into an E46 with minor mechanical knowledge if you opt for one that has been looked after and has done under 200,000km.

Parts are very easy to find, and with a set of aftermarket wheels and some lowered suspension, you may just be able to tell your lesser-knowledgeable car friends that you actually have a rare, high-end, European car.

You also have the choice between an automatic, which will typically be the cheaper option, or a manual gearbox for this rear-wheel drive machine.

Getting one cars for under $5000 is a steal, considering they started at over $60,000 when they were brand new and ranged up to $106,000 for the convertible 330ci.

Not into sedans or coupes? It turns out you can pick up an early Audi Q7 SUV for sub-$5000 if you’re willing to opt for a rougher example.

Your choices are limited to the 3.0L diesel V6, year model between 2006-2009 and essentially nothing else, but you’re still getting a very good car for the money you’re paying.

We wouldn’t recommend getting into one of these unless you are mechanically minded, as they can be a handful and very expensive to fix when things go wrong.

Regardless, if you want to take the risk of having an expensive-looking SUV with a luxurious interior and a big V6 diesel, then the Q7 fits the bill. With Audi's quattro all-wheel-drive setup mated to a six-speed automatic transmission, it’s actually an enjoyable car to drive with enough space for the whole family.

The electronics and the optional air suspension are the two things that commonly fail on these cars, so, if you’re out test driving make sure that the air suspension hasn’t collapsed and all of the buttons throughout the car work properly.

You can get lucky and get this near-$90,000 when new SUV for under $5000 at times but they typically hover between $4000-$8000 on the private used market.

Quite possibly one of the biggest depreciating cars on the market, today the Mercedes-Benz C-Class range has a variety of examples for under $5000.

If you’re looking within that $5000 range, then you will most likely be opting for a 1995-2006 model in either 1.8L and 2L four-cylinder naturally-aspirated options. And you can occasionally find a supercharged example quite cheaply, too.

Again, this isn’t bad if you’re willing to compromise on horsepower for a luxury interior and some added reliability. The simplicity of the four-cylinder models means that you only need some basic mechanical knowledge to keep up with an older C-Class model.

In typical early-2000s Mercedes-Benz fashion, you have the choice between a grey or black leather interior accented with plenty of woodgrain and the finest AM/FM radio that money could buy back in the day.

They started at $50,000 when new but they’re still an awesome option that look like they cost way more on the used market then they do. Plus, if you go for a model from 2000 or older, they’re already starting to look like a classic car.

You can sometimes find a very rare optioned manual, but the majority of them are automatic and hover around the $2500-$5000 mark for a running and registered example.