Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Personally I buy used and finance at insanely low interest rate from credit union to leave money in better investments. At 1.9% credit union rate, paying cash would be almost as foolish as buying brand new.
That's my way, too. I've had just as much trouble from new cars as used ones and with the insane depreciation of new cars, I took Click and Clack's advice years ago and started buying used. As for financing, I agree credit unions are the way to go.
Yeah, I've been known to keep vehicles 10-20 years. But I'm still not willing to eat the premium of a brand-new car. 40-50K seems to be my sweet spot. PLENTY of life left in it, but 25-50% off the cost of new.
Quote:
Originally Posted by North Beach Person
Right now out front are the following vehicles bought new: 2002 Taurus wagon, 2003 F 150, 2010 Forester, 2014 F 150. Add in my kids and you have not one but two 1995 Taurus wagons and a 2014 Fit. Tell me again how depreciation has hit me buying those new vehicles.
Simple.
You paid at least 20-30% more than if you'd gotten something with just a couple of years on it. Even assuming you had to trade them off/scrap them a couple years sooner to make up for that, the monetary difference would still be working in your favor.
Yeah, I've been known to keep vehicles 10-20 years. But I'm still not willing to eat the premium of a brand-new car. 40-50K seems to be my sweet spot. PLENTY of life left in it, but 25-50% off the cost of new.
Simple.
You paid at least 20-30% more than if you'd gotten something with just a couple of years on it. Even assuming you had to trade them off/scrap them a couple years sooner to make up for that, the monetary difference would still be working in your favor.
It's the QUALITY of those years that matters. The thing could have been driven like the Batmobile for all you know. A Carfax can only show so much.
If you buy a new car and drive it to until it dies than depreciation is the LAST thing you'd have to worry about; as the very satisfied owner of a 2007 Elantra which I purchased brand new for $11,995 plus T & L (msrp was $16,580) in May 2007 at a Hyundai dealership in Cerritos, CA and now has 92K miles on it with minimal expenses including a new battery in 2011, one four wheel brake job and a new set of tires, going into debt to buy another new car makes no sense.
A full tank of gas will get me to either Phoenix or SF, and at 6-3 & 230 the interior room is the best in its class including headroom as well as front & rear legroom.
My point was simply that new cars are not a good investment. As well as being horrendously wealthy, Buffet is first and foremost an investor.
Your first mistake is thinking of vehicles in terms of monetary investments. This is just as just as foolish as thinking of your groceries or big screen TV as one.
The "investment" of purchasing an automobile is in whether or not is is going to turn over and get you to work on a -30 January morning in the dead of a Canadian winter. For that test, I'd put my 2014 Jeep Wrangler over a 2004 Toyota Camry any day of the week.
Maybe you live in Texas or some other southern clime, but up her in Canada, a 10 or 15 year old car is going to have suffered some serious corrosion damage from the salt on our roads unless it has been sprayed for rust protection every year since new. There is simply no way around this other than storing the car from November to April every year. Salt not only corrodes the body, but over time will do damage to all metal parts of the vehicle including the electrical system. This was one of the main reasons why the 10 year old cars I drove in my youth ended up at the wreckers long before the engine and drive train came close to wearing out.
Since I purchase new vehicles with the intention of driving them literally into the ground, I get mine sprayed every year to protect against this. Most people who plan on trading the car in every 3-5 years do not.
I buy a used (4 year old) luxury car every four years. So I am always driving a very nice car that is less than 8 years old, and it doesn't cost me much.
My wife, who drives more, buys a used (1 year old) SUV every four years. Same thing...
A note about those of you who don't want to "take a hit on the depreciation" if you buy a new car. That's only relevant if you are that guy who trades every couple to four years. If you're now the typical new car buyer you keep the car long enough (average age of cars on the road now is north of 11 years old) the depreciation doesn't matter.
I just bought a 2002 Regal GS fully loaded; sun roof, power seat, self dimming mirrors etc. It had 65K on it for $4K, it was $27K in 2002. When you open the door on a hot day it even smells new. Losing $23 in ten years is lot of money especially for car that is essentially just getting broken in. I'm going to drive this car around for about five years and when I sell it I'll probably get 2 or 3 grand for it. Basically it will have cost me 1 to 2 K when it's all said and done.
I just bought a 2002 Regal GS fully loaded; sun roof, power seat, self dimming mirrors etc. It had 65K on it for $4K, it was $27K in 2002. When you open the door on a hot day it even smells new. Losing $23 in ten years is lot of money especially for car that is essentially just getting broken in. I'm going to drive this car around for about five years and when I sell it I'll probably get 2 or 3 grand for it. Basically it will have cost me 1 to 2 K when it's all said and done.
You got a car that has 1/2 the mileage on it than most would. Would it have been such a good deal if it had 130K on it?
You got a car that has 1/2 the mileage on it than most would. Would it have been such a good deal if it had 130K on it?
I would not have purchased it but it would have been less. The $4K was actually a real good deal on this car, I have it on CL for some ridiculous price. It has a supercharger so it's not exactly your average car and I may get lucky to get someone to buy it.
It wasn't the only one I found though, I mentioned previously I was looking at a '03 Century with 70K on it that was being sold for $2600. That car was in fantastic shape too but it was just a little too much "old lady" car especially the interior. Honestly it was better than the one I bought in many ways. I low balled them at $2K but they didn't take the offer.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
It has a supercharger so it's not exactly your average car and I may get lucky to get someone to buy it.
