Hey Reddit, I need some help deciding on my tirst car, and I figured you guys would have some solid advice. I'm about to finish high school and will be going to college, I will be paying like 2000 a year for college. I work as a line cook and make 20/hr and I've been I've been working 28-38 hours a week each week. Here are my options.

Option 1: 2018 Ford Focus ST - $15,432, 92k miles. Option 2: 2021 Honda Civic Sport Manual - $24k, 63k miles. Option 3: 2025 Honda Civic Sport (brand new) - $30k. Option 4: Buy a car outright in cash (I have 5k to spend)

Some background: I'm 18 years old and this would be my first car. I want to drive manual, literally everyone in my family does it, and I want to as well. I'd put $4-5k down on the car and my mom would co-sign for the loan (her credit score is 694). I'm paying for everything. (insurance, gas, repairs, etc.) I love cars and would love something I can work on and mod down the road but I don't want to dump a bunch of money into a car yet either. The Focus ST seems like a fun option for the price, but 92k miles has me worried about potential maintenance costs. The 2021 Civic Sport Manual is newer and seems more reliable, but it's quite a bit more expensive. The 2025 Civic Sport is brand new, but $30k feels like a lot for a first car, and l'd rather not be stuck with huge payments. Buying a car outright with cash is tempting because I'd avoid payments, but I don't want a cheap car that I won't enjoy driving. What would you guys do in my position? Shouk prioritize reliability, fun, or avoiding debt altogether? Any advice will be appreciated!

Ps: I went to go see the civics today and they were really nice, I’d spend about 750 a month on the 2025, insurance quoted me at 250 and car payment was at 500 for 72 months with a 6% interest rate