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A few months ago I bought a base model Honda Civic LX coupe. It has all the options I need. The next level up had things I just didnt want or need, like a large touch screen on the center console. And other things I didnt want. I just dont want or need a touch screen in my vehicle. I was actually surprised the options it has being a base LX level.
Yeah. To an extent these guys talking about rubber floors and non-padded bench seats are stuck in the 1950s/early 60s. Having said that, my F150s have had rubber, or rather probably vinyl, floors because that's what I wanted. I'm OCD enough that tracking mud and slop onto carpet, even with very good mats, would have driven me crazy.
I don't think that was ever true, and the adage depends on your philosophy. For instance, if you're looking for the best car for your dollar, one would consider an affordable car that has a low 10-year cost to operate (fuel, maintenance, repairs, insurance). If you one was looking for luxury and performance, their criteria would be based on features and lap times. It also depends on what you mean by step-down or step-up model...do you mean trim level or actual model? Like DX vs EX or Camry vs Avalon.
The last 4 cars I've purchased have been used. They were near fully loaded with features and at least 60% off their original MSRP. Generally the price difference on a percentage basis favors buying a lower trim model when buying new, and buying a higher trim model has a lower delta when buying used.
For example:
2018 Honda CR-V Lx is $23,850 new
2018 Honda CR-V Ex-L (loaded) is $38K new
That's a $14,150 difference or 59% more for the fully loaded version.
2015 Honda CR-V Lx is $16,588 CPO with 52K miles
2015 Honda CR-V Ex-L is $19,784 CPO with 54K miles
That's a $3,196 difference or 19% more for the fully loaded version. Another way of looking at it is that the lower trim holds about 70% of its value, but the higher trim only holds 52% over ~54K miles/3 years.
Of course this only applies if you plan to sell your vehicle at some point and/or consider buying a used car.
Base models have less needless, useless gadgets that are prone to break later on.
Heated seats, heated steering wheels, GPS, Bluetooth, cup holder cooler or heater. An average guy like me and most people could do without these "luxuries". A buddy of mine has his wife's car at the dealership every other month for heated seat malfunction. Problem is, and he knows it, his dear wife is about double the size of an average woman. So the dealership is making money off him every time he brings her car in for repair. Without the heated seats, the car has given them no problems that I know of. If it didn't have them heated seats, the dealership wouldnt be making any money off their product.
The above is just one example of useless add ons IMO
We all have our likes. I just bought the new vehicle I did because of the heated seats, heated steering wheel, and remote start!
My wife has these options on her car and she gets to park in the garage. Mine is too big so I park outside and I've decided that I deserve better when I shuffle off to work at 0 dark thirty everyday.
My own preference is to buy the model-variant with the biggest engine but the lowest amount of "features".
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Originally Posted by sean1the1
I hate base model, its like they purposely make then look bad on purpose! Very few cars look good in the base model. Just check out a Camry LE, and compare to the SE winch is the main seller, and costs less than $2k more.
I’d opine in the opposite direction. For all of its faults, the Camry has the inestimable advantage, of being offered with the V6 in the “base” model… the one with the minimum of frills, and presumably the lightest weight. It’s one of the lowest-cost ways of getting into a big, torquey V6, that runs comfortably under 15.0 in the quarter-mile.
Quote:
Originally Posted by joee5
Base models have less needless, useless gadgets that are prone to break later on. ...
Quote:
Originally Posted by somebodyfromnc
No, it was never true. The argument is the resale will be better on the higher optioned car, which is true, but you have to pay more for it in the first place. So it ends up evening out.
Amongst performance cars, some of the most valuable are the “stripper” models. An example is the Mazda Miata, first-generation. Most prized are models without air conditioning, without power steering, without antilock brakes, and with manual-windows. Why? They’re the “purest”, and the lightest. For the E36 BMW M3, the most prized is the “factory lightweight” version, which deleted the sunroof and a bunch of sound-deadening material. And need I mention that the most valuable American muscle-cars are the lightest and simplest models, with the biggest engine?
Another factor is age. For a 5-year-old used car, perhaps having been equipped with the latest gadgetry and options, is a selling-point. But for a 50-year-old used car, buyers will care about the fundamentals (body, suspension, engine, transmission) - not the interior-trim or hydraulic/electric widgets.
I have never heard that, and don’t think it applies. What I do believe is “never buy the first year of a new model.”
This I agree with. With a new model, there are always issues on the assembly line, especially early on. There are also unanticipated issues that require modifications. The one time that I did buy a first year new model, I had to make several trips to the dealership to fix things, about half the time things that were assembly issues (like a rattling back glass).
There was once an adage that is very much worth the difference to spring for the model of car that is a step above entry level, even if it means moving down a notch in brand.. Is this still true, or was it ever true?
Most anything above the base is like "furniture" - you can buy a $800 sofa or a $10,000 one and the differences are not that vast.
What car companies do is appeal - just like in the old days - to our egos. Back then, my dad said they'd sell you a car and then have another guy come in and say "Are you really going to drive your wife and kids around on THOSE tires?" and tell you how dangerous they are.
Today they are more sophisticated methods. The "feel" of a quicker engine, fancier interior and other options appeals to our emotions.
Also, things are packaged so that some of the safety "must haves" are only available in higher trim models - blind spot monitors, for example...or adaptive cruise control or adaptive headlights. Sometime Sirius Radio is only available in higher trims!
So you end up spending 6-10K more if you want all the bells and whistles.
To their credit, some companies are starting to put most of the safety stuff in all models - especially Honda and Toyota. Still (and we are out looking), you usually have to go with the top trim to get everything you might want.
If we were broke we'd definitely buy a bottom level civic or camry, etc...with no hesitation. As others have said, it's the same basic car just without all the furnishings.
I have never heard that, and don’t think it applies. What I do believe is “never buy the first year of a new model.”
New model worries are not consistent, especially if they carryover the technology from the year before. If the motor/trans are tried and true and now it has new fenders/headlights I wouldn't worry.
All new car like the mid-engine Corvette.......yeah, I'd skip that one for the first year.
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