for your price range u could get a fairly nice car but since you are after an auto performance shouldnt be a top priority for u, its nice to have that extra power on the highways but stretching out for a good engine on an auto is probably not a good idea,

for your specs i think u should it be best for you to look for a 98-00 CXI/GLI both wouldnt be a problem but if your really after the coupe then probably a 97-99 VTI, GLI would have the same nice opts like a VTI(power etc) but if your after a handy car and still want to have the extra cash for light mods/repairs after i think you should really think of getting a CXI/GLI instead of the VTI