I see very little mention of Mazda here. 2014+ Mazda 6 or more recent 3 or cx3 are great looking and aren't all out on tech that would drive you nuts. And much more fun to drive than Toyota. Give those a look.

Is the Holden/Vauxhall/Opel/Chevrolet Astra available in your country? I had one for a few years, tidy little car, built well, runs well. When it was written off I bought another, very happy with it.

Subaru Crosstrek remains about as analog as a car can be these days. Otherwise, you have to get a Chevrolet pickup truck or something.

I think what is a good choice greatly depends on your location, which affects prices, availability, spare parts availability etc.

Consider a kit-car.

Just switched from a 2015 Corolla S to a 2014 RAV4 Limited, absolutely love the feel and I don't imagine I'm ever going to leave the brand honestly. Toyota just makes damn good cars and they last forever. Look for good used RAV4s or 4Runners in your area pre-2016. My mechanic has swore by the engine Toyota used from 2008-2016, he says it's probably their best engine they made, and after that they changed styles.

I switch back and forth between my 96 Tacoma with 250k miles and my 06 Scion xB with 190k miles. Love them both. Bury me in one of them.

Your best bet would be to go for something used in good condition before 2014 that's when cars started being internet connected and having controls being software buttons in screens and the like. If you have a bunch of money you could try to import something but the 25 year rule is an issue if you live in the US

GM W-body and GMT platform cars from around 2002-2008 I've found to be decent. The GM 3800 V6 engine and 5.3L Vortec V8 are extremely reliable and easy to maintain yourself if you're into that kind of thing. You can very easily replace the stock radio with an aftermarket unit that has Android auto/Apple Car play and won't spy on you. Since it's an American car and so many were sold in America, both new and used parts are pretty easy to find and pretty cheap. The biggest thing that kills these cars is rust, especially if you live in the salt belt, so just make sure you look underneath the car before buying.

Look for: Pontiac Grand Prix, Chevy Monte Carlo, Chevy Tahoe, Buick Regal, Chevy Avalanche/Silverado. A good example of these can be found for under $10k easily and if you look a little harder you can usually find good ones or ones that need minimal work for less than $5k.

Personally I plan on driving these cars until it becomes impossible to find them anymore. There's a junkyard near me that specializes in GM cars where I can get parts for DIRT cheap.

Currently I have an 05 Avalanche (140k miles) and an 07 Grand Prix (165k miles). Before those I had an 05 Grand Prix which died only due to rust, engine and transmission still strong at 160k miles. They hardly ever have issues, and when they do they are typically cheap issues or issues I can easily fix myself.

Sure - they're nothing flashy, but the cost of purchase + repairs is almost certainly less than the cost of a new or lightly used car alone. Also, minimal complicated computer systems, and no corporate spying.

How dumb do you need it? Old used BMWs are supprisingly cheap right now, and BMW was pretty late to adopt "smart" car technology. They also have a reputation for not breaking. For these reasons, I am considering buying one for my first car (uni!), but it sounds like it could work for you, too.