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Your post perfectly identifies the pitfalls of buying a used car. Caveat emptor is often the word of the day -- that is, the risk is much, much higher. If you know a lot about repairing vehicles and have both the time and equipment necessary to handle the repairs, a properly researched used purchase is a very good option. Unfortunately, most people don't have any of the above at their disposal. So, in one way or another, they will wind up paying close to the same money to drive a vehicle on a monthly basis. Whatever the premium paid for a comparable new vehicle, it's usually worth it in terms of reliability and peace of mind. Even though I have the necessary knowledge, skill set and equipment to handle many auto repairs, I've bought new every 4 years for the last 17 years and will guarantee you that I'm money ahead. I have spent absolutely $0 on auto repairs outside of oil changes, brakes and tires -- all basic maintenance and able to be planned for (maybe $2000 total in 17 years). My time is worth way more than the pittance I might save over the course of 10 years by buying used vehicles. A properly researched new car purchase followed up with proper routine maintenance will cost you about the same and there will almost never be an unplanned repair required.
What about making your best deal new and then keeping it for 10 or 15 years?
Mom is doing this... bought a 2001 Corolla new... it was actually special ordered for her and we saw it being made.
Anyway... in 14 years of ownership... there have been no repairs... only maintenance such as tires, brake pads/shoes and fluid changes... correction... I was with her when a headlight went out... saw an autoparts store and had her pull in... bought the bulb for $5 and installed it right outside the store.
The OEM battery lasted 12 years... which surprised me.
I had a new Jeep, but... after listening to Dave Ramsey I thought it would be a good idea to get rid of my new car and drive a "beater" to cut down on debt. So I did.. I got my dealer to buy my Jeep back for what I owed. 11K dollars. So with that off my plate I took out a 4K loan with my credit union to buy me a cash car.
So I found a 2003 Explorer with 168K miles on it for $2100. I took a risk... only to be lied too by the people who sold it to me. here in Texas you have to get an inspection when registering it... So it passed inspection but the mechanic told me it needed a new timing chain. which it does. because there is a clicking noise underneath the hood.
I didn't hear it when I bought it... but when I drove down the road the clicking noise got worse. so now... I have a guy doing it for me for $1250. Im $3,350 into this nightmare.
I didn't wanna risk buying another cash car with the rest of the money out of the 4K. so I just decided to fix it. anyone have a similar story? this just sucks.
Don't blame Ramsey, unless he told you to go out and buy a car without having a mechanic check it out first, and without looking at a CarFax on it. You also could've bought a used car from a dealership that offers a 30 day warranty...or pay for an extended warranty, if there is one available.
I'd buy a used car only from a dealership.
The thing is....if you keep a car a long time, buying a new car is often more cost efficient. You get that several year warranty, for one thing. Repairs shouldn't start happening for years. You do have to get collision ins. in addn to liability, but you can drop it later. In the long run...a new car is best to buy. But you have to keep it a long time. More than 8 years, and preferably close to 15 years. Of course, you would do your research first and buy a car with stats that show reliability as a #1 feature. A jeep would cost you a fortune to keep for 15 years. Jeep is not cost efficient. You want a Honda, Subaru, or Toyota for that.
If you buy another used car, stick with Toyota, Honda, Subaru.
LOL I never said I blamed Dave Ramsey! don't assume something that's not true. All I EVER said is... I would never buy a car from an individual again... and Yes the Jeep already needed new brakes and a new horn. so it was already having it's own issues. I didn't get rid of the Jeep because it had problems... I did it to reduce my debt.
I will fix the Explorer and drive it for another year while paying off the loan rather quickly, and save money to buy a more reliable car from the dealership down the road.
Your post perfectly identifies the pitfalls of buying a used car. Caveat emptor is often the word of the day -- that is, the risk is much, much higher. If you know a lot about repairing vehicles and have both the time and equipment necessary to handle the repairs, a properly researched used purchase is a very good option. Unfortunately, most people don't have any of the above at their disposal. So, in one way or another, they will wind up paying close to the same money to drive a vehicle on a monthly basis. Whatever the premium paid for a comparable new vehicle, it's usually worth it in terms of reliability and peace of mind. Even though I have the necessary knowledge, skill set and equipment to handle many auto repairs, I've bought new every 4 years for the last 17 years and will guarantee you that I'm money ahead. I have spent absolutely $0 on auto repairs outside of oil changes, brakes and tires -- all basic maintenance and able to be planned for (maybe $2000 total in 17 years). My time is worth way more than the pittance I might save over the course of 10 years by buying used vehicles. A properly researched new car purchase followed up with proper routine maintenance will cost you about the same and there will almost never be an unplanned repair required.
Yeah, but can even an expert detect a head gasket leak? My car had one, but did not smoke and did not leave an oil pool. The oil just mysteriously disappeared. And how would the expert fix it?
I also question whether your expert would have discovered a brittle seal in the transmission joint. I mean come on, most people aren't professional repairmen with hydraulic lifts and diagnostic computers.
Not to be persnickety here, but regarding the notion of buying a new car every 4 years, why not every 8 years or 10 years? Most modern vehicles will run reliably for a lot longer than 4 years unless you're putting 40K a year on it. I don't see the economic sense in trading it so often.
Not to be persnickety here, but regarding the notion of buying a new car every 4 years, why not every 8 years or 10 years? Most modern vehicles will run reliably for a lot longer than 4 years unless you're putting 40K a year on it. I don't see the economic sense in trading it so often.
More and more people I know either lease or sell before the warranty is up...
Some have said they will never own a car without a warranty.
LOL I never said I blamed Dave Ramsey! don't assume something that's not true. All I EVER said is... I would never buy a car from an individual again... and Yes the Jeep already needed new brakes and a new horn. so it was already having it's own issues. I didn't get rid of the Jeep because it had problems... I did it to reduce my debt.
I will fix the Explorer and drive it for another year while paying off the loan rather quickly, and save money to buy a more reliable car from the dealership down the road.
Brakes, oil, etc are normal wear and tear items. I do not imagine the horn is an expensive item, nor a critical one.
You did not reduce your debt; your asset (the Jeep) was worth 11k, and you owed 11k. However, your Explorer is worth 2.5k, but you owe 4k; this does not take into account the interest rate difference.
I am a fan of Dave, but this is an area I have my doubts about. Maybe you shouldn't have bought the jeep, but maybe you'd have been better off just paying it off.
I bought a used car from a friend when I was a teenager. It wound up in the shop within 2 weeks. Turned our her husband had not done the fix up work correctly. Friend didn't want to hear that her husband was less than a stellar mechanic. Even when the car ran correctly after the guys at the shop repaired it.
I have always been prepared to put $2000 into any used car I buy, to get it into good running condition. People who are planning on selling a car, don't usually do a lot of repairs before selling it, unless they are really stupid.
I agree with this.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve Bagu
Never buy a car meeting someone at a gas station of Mkt parking lot...they may be a Flipper.
Who cares if they're flipping it, if it's a vehicle you want, at a good price, and you're willing to take the risk?
OP, by the way, I knew exactly what you meant by a cash sale. I just did the same thing. Paid cash to the seller, with money I will pay back to a creditor with interest. As far as the seller goes, it was a cash sale, as opposed to a dealer sale where the deal was financed from the get-go.
I just bought a 93 Nissan pickup. It has 169,000 miles on it. I buy old vehicles that are known to last 300,000 miles or more, with minimal maintenance. I don't care if they're ugly. If they're ugly, they're cheaper. I need cheap. Cheap and reliable, and that will last 5 - 6 years, or more before the body starts to fall apart around the engine. I got lucky with this one, as it's actually not too ugly, either, with just a little faded paint on the hood, and the tailgate was missing, but I was going to remove it eventually to put a camper on the truck anyway, so I didn't care. It's also dirty, but that's easily remedied.
The Nissan pickup I just bought had features I wanted, as in it's the extended cab version, and it's a rare automatic. I met the seller at his house, drove it around his town, it sounded good and they're known for being reliable. I knew he had just purchased it and was turning around and selling it again. His story why made sense, but I didn't care. I didn't even look at the engine. I've had it for 3 days and I still haven't even looked at the engine LOL.
I didn't have anyone to take with me, and I knew this truck would sell quickly, that there wouldn't be time to try and coordinate a mechanic to look at it 3 hours away in that town. So, I just snatched it up, since it ran fine and sounded good and started right up. But, if I'd ended up with a blown motor on the way home, I would have called AAA to tow it, and just had the engine rebuilt. I was okay with that possibility.
The reason is these are hard to find in my area. As it was, I had to go 3 hours away to get one. And I expect to put at least a couple grand into it. I bought it for $2,000. If I have to put $2,000 into it, I'm okay with that. For now, though, it's running fine.
For me, it's cheaper to have an older car and just deal with maintenance. I do try to buy vehicles that won't require a lot of ongoing maintenance. But, I take a risk. So far, though, since I stopped buying American made used cars and switched to Japanese used cars, they've really served me well. And I always pay for the max AAA towing membership and carry a cell phone
But, if you just hate taking the risk and dealing with maintaining an older car, then it makes more sense for you to buy new cars.
There's nothing better or worse about either approach. You choose what your priorities are, and you're entitled to them. My priorities are really cheap initial cost (which means older models with a lot of miles on them), cheap (hopefully) initial repairs, and cheap ongoing maintenance, registration and insurance.
It sounds like you would be happier spending a little more money buying a new car/truck, that's a less popular make/model that you can get a good price on, and get rid of it before it needs major repairs. There's nothing wrong with that, either.
BTW, I've been pricing new tires and you're right - you're lucky you have new tires at least!
Last edited by NoMoreSnowForMe; 09-13-2015 at 02:15 AM..
When you're spending such a small amount on a used car, you can't have your heart set on a certain model. You're going to be buying a fairly old car (12-15 years old). Do your research. Find out which vehicles have a great track record, and don't have major problems. Limit your search to those vehicles. If you find a car you like, do a quick search on it to find what it's weak points are. When you go to look at the car, you can keep an eye out for problems in those areas. For example, old Buick LeSabres are great cars, but GM cars of that size, from that era can have rust issues with their subframe. That is the first thing I would look at if I were buying one. You paid $1,200 to change a timing chain, that seems a bit pricey. Did you go to a dealer? If you are going to be driving older cars, the best thing you can do is find a couple of privately owned repair places with good reputations. Having a couple of mechanics you trust is indispensable when you have an older car. Never go to a dealer with an old car if you can avoid it. This will save you tons of money. Stay away from places like Midas as well.
Five yrs ago bought a 1966 VW bug that had a engine fire and the OP spent $1200 for another rebuilt engine and a cheapo paint job, new front axle, complete all New brakes, two new front German drums but needed the interior done.
I paid $1600 for the car "as is"......NO PROBLEM for me being a former VW mechanic/business owner and retired knew what I was getting into. Found all his receipts in the glove box so in essence he sold the car for $400 to me.
So I pull this thrown together Rebuilt? engine that sounded good considering the parts that were installed.
I had a HP Turbo engine sitting waiting for the right car. Installed it with a New clutch, had the interior completely redone and I'm a happy camper.
The car has NOT depreciated but as it increases in age the Value also slowly goes up.
I had over $4k in the engine to start with and is now over 20 yrs old and still ticking with about 3k a yr in driving.
With minor tune ups, oil changes, incidental repairs etc that are normal for any car figure that a car paymt of about $300 a month for 2-3-4 yrs I am WAY ahead in the game.
I remember as a little boy having to help my mom dry the dishes and learn to make my own bed as she said that she was not going to be around forever and I would have to make my own bed, get married, or pay someone to do it for me.
The same thinking was told to me by my dad who was a mechanic/business owner......they both taught me well.
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