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I'm trying to make a list of possible cars to buy in case my current one dies (it's very old but I still prefer to get the last mile out of it first.)
My #1 priority is:
I want to spend as little money as possible every month on gas, insurance, and maintenance for the next 10 years!
I don't care if the car doesn't look good, doesn't have power, etc. It needs to cost me as little as possible per month and last a long time.
I'm willing to put up more money for an initial purchase but nothing too unreasonable. $15,000 is my max budget.
I also need good resale value in case I need to move overseas and ditch the car (there's a real possibility of that in the next few years.)
My #2 priority is:
Reasonable safety.. which means no mini-sized cars from the 1970s-1980s that get 40+ mpg but will be crushed if it gets hit by anything.
Also, no electric, natural gas, or other alternative fuel cars.. I don't have the infrastructure for that (live in apartment.)
Your current car is not going to "die" suddenly and without warning - assuming it can pass Cali smog, the engine is in at least decent shape. If it gets decent mileage, and otherwise meets your needs, keeping it tuned up and maintained in your non-rusting environment should be all you have to do.
Keep in mind that Prii don't respond well to being driven only occasionally, you need to run it almost daily for best life on the "big" propulsion battery. They perform best in an urban driving cycle, on the open freeway they are not that much better than non-hybrid cars.
If you buy something late model and sell it in 2-4 years, you will almost certainly take a depreciation hit.
You could almost certainly find a Toy Celica with a 5-speed that would be a much more appealing car for way less than $15K, it would hold value better and would be less geeky for a young guy.
You would have to drive a lot, and gas would have to stay around $4 or go higher, for the Prius to make back the extra money you spend on it over an older and simpler car. Figure the depreciation on the Prius and see if you expect it to save you enough on gas to pay for itself.
A used Prius is almost never the best choice. Their price is high and if the previous owner abused it then the headaches could be numerous. With your budget you can buy a lot of smaller sedans. If you want good resale then look at Toyota & Honda. Should be able to get a Corolla or Yaris or Civic or Fit for that money. More fun car would be Mazda 3.
A used Prius is almost never the best choice. Their price is high and if the previous owner abused it then the headaches could be numerous. With your budget you can buy a lot of smaller sedans. If you want good resale then look at Toyota & Honda. Should be able to get a Corolla or Yaris or Civic or Fit for that money. More fun car would be Mazda 3.
Ok, the main point to consider is that I do not wish to spend much on gas, insurance, or maintenance in the next 10 years. I don't know what gas prices will be but let's assume they average $4 and I drive 13,000 miles a year (I averaged a little more than 1000mi/month last few years.) Gas is already averaging about $3.8 Southern CA (and with inflation, $4 average next 10 years is pretty conservative.)
Yearly gas cost = 4*13000/MPG
50 MPG car (Prius): $1040/yr on gas
45 MPG car: 1155.6, about $100/yr more compared to Prius, $1000 more over 10 years.
40 MPG car: 1300, about $260/yr more, $2600 more over 10 years.
35 MPG car: 1485.7, about $440/yr more, $4400 more over 10 years.
30 MPG car: 1733.3, about $700/yr more, $7000 more over 10 years.
Remember, my budget is about $15,000 for a Prius
Knock that down to $12,500 for a 40 MPG car.
For a 35 MPG car, that goes down to $10,000
And $8000 for a 30 MPG car.
The more fuel-efficient cars seem to hold value better if gas prices stay high.. however, if gas prices go down, their value goes down but it'll be made up by savings at the pump. There's a small possibility that I may need to temporarily relocate overseas in the near future but hopefully my '99 Civic can last until then when I ditch it and buy something new (not sure if storing a Civic a few years without driving it will kill it.)
Btw, my Gf has a used 2001 Prius, bought for $7500 with 100K miles.. drove it for 10K miles without any major issues (and hope it stays that way.)
Last edited by ragnarkar; 11-08-2011 at 10:46 AM..
Your problem is you are thinking about it backwards. Your goal is to drive as cheaply as possible. Buying ANYTHING at the price range you are looking at will never be better than simply buying the cheapest thing you can find that is still in running condition or simply continuing to invest in the maintenance of your Civic.
Given your stated priorities, I do think a Prius would be a good choice. They get great fuel economy, are very reliable, don't cost more than any other vehicle to maintain, are cheap to insure and hold their value very well. As a double bonus, being that you live in CA, as long as the Prius you buy was originally sold and registered in CA, then you maintain the CARB hybrid warranty which covers all aspects of the hybrid system and battery for 10 years and 150k miles. So, say you bought a 2006 with 70k miles on it, you would be covered until ~2015 and another 80k miles on the hybrid system.
Ok, the main point to consider is that I do not wish to spend much on gas, insurance, or maintenance in the next 10 years. I don't know what gas prices will be but let's assume they average $4 and I drive 13,000 miles a year (I averaged a little more than 1000mi/month last few years.) Gas is already averaging about $3.8 Southern CA (and with inflation, $4 average next 10 years is pretty conservative.)
Yearly gas cost = 4*13000/MPG
50 MPG car (Prius): $1040/yr on gas
45 MPG car: 1155.6, about $100/yr more compared to Prius, $1000 more over 10 years.
40 MPG car: 1300, about $260/yr more, $2600 more over 10 years.
35 MPG car: 1485.7, about $440/yr more, $4400 more over 10 years.
30 MPG car: 1733.3, about $700/yr more, $7000 more over 10 years.
Remember, my budget is about $15,000 for a Prius
Knock that down to $12,500 for a 40 MPG car.
For a 35 MPG car, that goes down to $10,000
And $8000 for a 30 MPG car.
The more fuel-efficient cars seem to hold value better if gas prices stay high.. however, if gas prices go down, their value goes down but it'll be made up by savings at the pump. There's a small possibility that I may need to temporarily relocate overseas in the near future but hopefully my '99 Civic can last until then when I ditch it and buy something new (not sure if storing a Civic a few years without driving it will kill it.)
Btw, my Gf has a used 2001 Prius, bought for $7500 with 100K miles.. drove it for 10K miles without any major issues (and hope it stays that way.)
Comments:
1) Does your gf REALLY get 50mpg with a Prius? I've heard results can really vary.
2) Prius has an 8yr/100k mile warranty for the hybrid related components. Keep in mind that a battery or alternator problem will set you back a couple thousand if I recall correctly. With that said, you MIGHT want to do some research on how their resale might take a big hit once that line is crossed? Normally for a toyota 5 years old you are already out of warranty and so the resale goes into a gradual decline with age and miles.
3) Storing a car worth even 5k for a year or two at even $75 a month doesn't make much sense financially. I'd sell it if you are going to be gone more than 6 months or so.
Your problem is you are thinking about it backwards. Your goal is to drive as cheaply as possible. Buying ANYTHING at the price range you are looking at will never be better than simply buying the cheapest thing you can find that is still in running condition or simply continuing to invest in the maintenance of your Civic.
Given your stated priorities, I do think a Prius would be a good choice. They get great fuel economy, are very reliable, don't cost more than any other vehicle to maintain, are cheap to insure and hold their value very well. As a double bonus, being that you live in CA, as long as the Prius you buy was originally sold and registered in CA, then you maintain the CARB hybrid warranty which covers all aspects of the hybrid system and battery for 10 years and 150k miles. So, say you bought a 2006 with 70k miles on it, you would be covered until ~2015 and another 80k miles on the hybrid system.
Cool. I was unaware of the CA specific additional warranty.
Cool. I was unaware of the CA specific additional warranty.
It's not just CA, it's any state that uses the CARB standards. It can vary a little bit because it doesn't apply until the state actually adopted the standards. For instance, Connecticut adopted them in 2008, so a hybrid sold in 2007 is not covered, while one sold in 2008 is. You need to do a little research to determine whether a car you are looking at is covered. If you were to buy new, here are the current CARB states:
California, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.
It's not just CA, it's any state that uses the CARB standards. It can vary a little bit because it doesn't apply until the state actually adopted the standards. For instance, Connecticut adopted them in 2008, so a hybrid sold in 2007 is not covered, while one sold in 2008 is. You need to do a little research to determine whether a car you are looking at is covered. If you were to buy new, here are the current CARB states:
California, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.
Thanks!
Just curious as to WHOM covers the claims when they fall under the CARB period but after the manufacturer's warranty has ended.
Does the state force the manufacturer to offer it or do they provide coverage or do they do something like pay some 3rd party insurance company to provide the coverage?
Just curious as to WHOM covers the claims when they fall under the CARB period but after the manufacturer's warranty has ended.
Does the state force the manufacturer to offer it or do they provide coverage or do they do something like pay some 3rd party insurance company to provide the coverage?
It's like any other federal or state mandated warranty, it must be covered by the manufacturer. If you buy a Prius (or any other hybrid/electric) in CA (or other CARB state), there is actually a supplement in the owners manual explaining the coverage. If you have a problem, you go to the Toyota (or whatever other manufacturer) dealer and they have to cover it 100%.
The general requirement for the warranty to be in effect is that the vehicle must have been purchased and registered in a CARB state. You can't be from a non-CARB state, go to a CARB state, buy the vehicle and get the warranty. Likewise you can't purchase the vehicle in a non-CARB state, then register it in a CARB state and get the warranty.
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With that said, you MIGHT want to do some research on how their resale might take a big hit once that line is crossed? Normally for a toyota 5 years old you are already out of warranty and so the resale goes into a gradual decline with age and miles.
