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My first new car was a Honda Prelude in 1985 when I was just out of school, working in Hartford as an actuarial trainee (pre-associate). I bought the car then 6 months later took a job on Wall St. I sold the car for more than I paid for it. It was hard to part with that car.
I’ve always driven what I called “embarrassing cars” but never got ahead because I always spent what I saved on travel. I’m not sorry tho because I’ve been to some amazing places.
If you had bought fancy cars you would have missed out on some great experiences. Good on you for enjoying your life!
The most we’ve paid for a new car was about $27k out the door. The Premium trim level Subaru Legacy we got in 2016 was $25k out the door and it remains a very pleasant daily driver even if it’s not super quick for 0-60
You get a lot for your money buying mid-sized sedans right now because ‘everyone wants a SUV/CUV’ and since we’re buy and hold buyers depreciation isn’t an issue
In my zip code, a 2016 premium trim level Outback with Eyesight had $25k as the street price. 8% off MSRP. Plus sales tax and title & registration fees. That has always been the best value. In the snow belt, it’s a competitive price and you get AWD thrown in for free.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mysticaltyger
That sounds like a lot to me.
The average new car price in 2018 according to KBB was $37,577. My first new car was $2,500 in 1973, but then I paid $25,000 for a Bronco in 1993, the most I had spent until 2017, lots of others in between, $6-15k then the last three before the F150 were in the $23k range.
I’ll top my high with my next car. While technically I could afford a new one, I just can’t bring myself to spend that much. I’ll get a newer and nicer, but it will be used.
It's not a competition to see who can spend the least
But a friend of mine told me he wished I'd gone to a private person instead of buying a used rental. He told me I would've saved a lot of money. So I felt positively profligate for buying the first car I saw and just writing a check. (BTW, he's also pretty well off. He likes to spend money, but not on cars. He's never bought a new one and he's 66 years old, which is just as well because he drives like a maniac).
I'm the same as you. I could also technically afford to pay cash for a new (economy) car. Maybe when I hit $1M net worth, I'll do so.
I’m in the blow the dough phase, I want an SUV, at this age, the car goes before us in an accident. No more small car. Otherwise, it would be a Honda Accord, max price was $22k. Apparently my daughter said the same thing. This is the kid who is making lots of money for being 23 years, she said her next new car will also be a Honda Accord. She’s driving our old one.
Good for you. Nothing wrong with that if you can easily afford it. I don't think I'll ever want an SUV, but everyone wants different things.
The average new car price in 2018 according to KBB was $37,577. My first new car was $2,500 in 1973, but then I paid $25,000 for a Bronco in 1993, the most I had spent until 2017, lots of others in between, $6-15k then the last three before the F150 were in the $23k range.
Holy cow, that still sounds like a lot. You can pay a lot less than the average for a new car, though, and still have something decent. Maybe the 12.7k I paid for my 2 year old Toyota Corolla in 2016 wasn't a bad price after all.
I get a new car about every 15 years or so and don't really sweat it. You have to enjoy your money at least somewhat. If you want to buy a new car and can afford it nothing wrong with it, it's certainly not setting money on fire, that is a silly way to look at it. If that was the case you can say that of many things - eating out, travel, going to sporting events, indulging in your game of golf etc. etc. why not just stay in your house face the wall, eat Ramen noodles and save loads of cash in the process? What a life! LMAO!
One makes money to enjoy life, that is the whole point, and that involves getting a new car from time to time if that is what floats your boat IF you can afford it.
Everyone has their own things they value and different financial situations, I agree k374. The rules of what to spend on a car just don't apply to people with plenty of money, they're not the ones endangering their finances. It's more like what I'd see in L.A. quite a lot actually, dude renting a $2,000/month apartment driving a $75-100K car, WAY nicer than me, and that guy has a net worth somewhere around $0 and thinks he's a Big Shot for his car. That's... hard to respect, as much as I love amazing cars, it's such a poor financial decision it's a real face palm from me. But if someone has millions of dollars, and they love cars, why not buy an awesome car?! Some people value cars more, some vacations, some (like me) killer home theater setups, it's all just personal preference and I don't judge how anyone wants to spend their money provided they have enough of it to be doing so.
I just am more baffled when people lease a car they really can't afford and by leasing that car, they're choosing then not to put any money into a retirement fund, or choosing to have no emergency fund, things like that. Those are poor financial decisions that catch up with a person. Buy what you can afford and what you're going to enjoy, but be smart about it because cars are not an "investment" 99.9% of the time (classic cars aside).
I’ll pay a little extra for reliability/durability, but I care for little beyond that—besides heated seats—I’m a sucker for those.
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