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What I haven't figured out is who buys from Carmax and alike? Their 3-year old cars with 30K on the clock are barely a few grand less than brand new with no new incentives that come with the new cars.
Because they are open later than most dealerships, and open on sunday when all the other dealerships are closed. convenient for those who cant afford to take a day off work.
Used cars are a better value. I'm done with new cars. They lose 25% of their value once you drive off the lot with one. You can find very cool cars that are used that have everything you need in them and on them. I'm done buying new cars.
I just watched a video where the couple bought a nice used 42 foot luxury 350 or 400 hp diesel RV and a new Jeep to tow behind it. They said the Jeep cost more.
When my truck was new, it cost more than my brother's first two houses - combined.
I have seen luxury diesel pick ups hit and exceed $80K. You can buy a pretty nice house for that in many places.
Loans have grown with prices. 72 months seems to have become the standard and a friend of one of my kids just bought a new car with a 96 month loan.
Back in 2001, I could've bought a Civic SI hatch for $18k. That car today is $25k . Honda Accord DX starts at $18k and loaded EX-L costs only $23k back then. Today that EX-L can set you back $30k.
While we complain about the price of inflation but the reality is that wages have not gone up as much as everything else has and that's the big problem.
$30,000 today is about $21,000 in 2001 dollars. So it's a couple grand cheaper, safer, more features, more interior room, better safety, better performance. Sounds cheaper to me.
Average price is up, of course, as people are buying fancier cars. If you look at about as apples to apples as you can get, a 2000ish Accord vs a 2018 Accord, you just get more car for less money. Plus the base model 1.5 is faster than the old V6. Not bad at all.
Used/new just depends. Last two cars were bought new, but they were economy cars with big discounts. A 4-year-old car with 100,000 miles was tough to find for 6,000 less than I paid for a new one with 0% financing. No brainer there to buy new.
I'm keeping an eye out for a "cream puff" older sedan or used local police cruiser. My requirement is that it has a front bench seat. It would be a work/ beater car or long haul highway cruiser. Nobody's made such a car for at least 5 years, probably it would be at least 10 years old. Police auctions have them but cab companies fight you for them.
Our last new car was 4 years ago( base automatic Kia Soul) and cost just over 16K plus taxes and tags. Its an economy car but had great value for the money, is very practical and has been extremely reliable. I think the new car prices have gone up maybe a thousand, an extra loaded model with bigger engine would cost over 27K. That's a lot of money for an economy car and what I would expect to pay for a mid size or full size sedan like a Malibu or Impala. But those cars go for 30K when equipped.
I'm not going to subscribe the the wsj so I haven't read the article. What does $39.2m represent? since i'm sure it doesn't include private party sales I'm not sure it means anything...
It's true that some people finance used cars, my point is that it's very rare for new vehicle buyers to pay cash but very common for used car buyers to pay cash. The assumption that new car buyers can afford more than used car buyers made by an earlier poster is a very weak one. Most new car buyers just look at monthly payments. In most cases buying a new vehicle is a terrible financial mistake due to the depreciation losses. The only thing it says to me about their financial wealth is they can afford that $400/mo payment, nothing else.
I just googled 2017 used car sales figures. The first site that pops up doesn't have a pay wall and it's a credible website. I do agree with you on the above.
What’s new are idiots financing them for 6-7+ years and dealerships peddling this trash.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Peregrine
Sigh... been burned a few times? It's not cheap to run a car dealership.
Sigh.. Do you run a car dealership? The amount of worthless new car add ons plus nickel and diming they conduct is off the charts.
- document fee
- extended warranty for a new car that already has a factory warranty
- marked up prices for used cars on the lot
- crappy trade in value for your car
- “dealer prep fee”
- insane cost to get your car serviced at the dealership compared to a local mechanic
- admin fee
- fuel charge fee
- destination fee
- fabric protection add on
- paint protection add on https://money.usnews.com/money/blogs...vices-to-avoid
You have to conduct high stakes negotiations just to get something that’s been marked up back down to a fair price. New and used.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Peregrine
The righteousness is what's out of control.
A fool and his money are soon parted.
You enjoy being nickel and dimed to death under the ignorance of thinking car dealerships would wither away and die without such fees and add-ons, the rest of us will enjoy the money in our pocket by understanding the games car dealership play for customers like you.
You can get a new 2018 Toyota RAV4 for $24,000 or a new 2018 Nissan Versa for $12,000.
But many want to keep up with the Jones and get the extra stuff or options on vehicles. Either for safety reasons or just for bragging reasons.
Most people have a difficulty separating needs from wants.
Yep and the new electronics and doo-dads add up! I just traded in my Accord sedan for an Outback. Why? Because once I get on the interstates I feel vulnerable ..safety-wise...driving next to all of the LARGER vehicles and the semis. Loved my accord but this issue weighed on me. Yep..lost my shirt in the trade in ..buy new transaction. No one gets rich buying and trading vehicles. This is my drive for ten years car now.......the most expensive one I ever purchased even at $30k. And it is a base model!
Because they are open later than most dealerships, and open on sunday when all the other dealerships are closed. convenient for those who cant afford to take a day off work.
The CarMax in my city is closed Sundays. Their Monday-Saturday hours are about the same as most other mainstream new-car dealers in the area.
Quote:
Originally Posted by elkotronics
Used cars are a better value. I'm done with new cars. They lose 25% of their value once you drive off the lot with one. You can find very cool cars that are used that have everything you need in them and on them. I'm done buying new cars.
You can't apply the 25% instant depreciation across the board, though. Remember, you're going to take a hit on anything you turn around and trade in, but to buy a previously-titled current model year vehicle with ten miles on the odometer from a dealer, it will likely cost a buyer virtually the same as new.
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