Prices won't be dropping because automakers aren't in a situation of having excess capacity which is so typical with the early stages of a recession.
Car buying strategy
- Thread starter supton
- Start date
Things have been kinda wonky for, oh, 2 years now?
2 years ago I had 3 vehicles for 2 drivers, which seemed safe. Then had a 4th given to us for an upcoming driver, so still good. 2 months ago I totaled one vehicle. So I’ve got no spare now for the three drivers, while the new driver will start her learning next month, and is apt to have her license come next spring.
So now would have been the time to deal with this, even w/o the ongoing mess.
2005 Grand Marquis, the BITOG favorite
Dang, totally up my alley. I might have to check that out.
One point to think about, and now I see where you are coming from. I’ve always waffled between “just what we need,” and “fun/spare.” lean and mean has fewer monthly costs like insurance and tags, and the fact that something is always aging in the driveway unused. But, spares are helpful when something breaks.
our spares have been a result of me wanting something else. For instance, the truck is a must-have, but I really like having a small car alternative. So the “spare“ ends up being a smaller car, which for me then gets about half of my driving. If something breaks, we shuffle cars around depending on who needs what. So, is there a possible vehicle type which adds utility to your family while also serving as a spare?
in your case I see practical reasons beyond just fear of unavailability. I see the question of how long would it take you to restore it to some level of reliability, AND THEN by the time you’ve done that, will you have wasted time and money at the point when it’s ready, compared to the rest of the market.
My impression from other chat boards is that new RAV4 Hybrids are in extremely short supply, often with a market adjustment added to MSRP.
Cars and trucks will go down in price since everything is crazy expensive right now. This vehicle market is something I have never witnessed in my lifetime. I am chomping at the bit to buy a C7 Z-06 Corvette but I am not paying $70,000 or more for a 2015 to 2019 Corvette. Patience is your friend especially when the times are getting a little tougher. I am retired and in no big hurry since I have plenty of toys in the fleet. Cars are not an investment for the most part. Once these auto chips start coming in there will probably be lots of new vehicles for sale at greatly reduced prices. Market fluctuations will always occur in the car market.
I have been thinking about this. You have Ford and GM with tens of thousands of trucks not completed sitting in fields. The question is do I want a new vehicle that I know ill need paint correction at a minimum and who knows what else underneath? And as seen on the Internet some of the fields they are sitting in are the absolute worse conditions. $5,000.00 off sticker isn't going to do it for me. I will order one first.
I have a crystal ball but it currently has a recall and the new microchip it needs is on backorder...
And the quality - ugh. Everything is built like a Hyundia these days.
I'm in the same situation. I drive a beater I don't want to pass to my kid, and our "extra" vehicle is an Expedition which is not an ideal first car either. I really need to buy a 5th vehicle but I'm not going to pay twice what something is worth. Five years ago I could have gotten a nice used vehicle for $6,000. Now it's 200k miles in that price range. At 200k miles, if you didn't do the maintenance you have to assume the drivetrain is toast. Absolutely nothing with that many miles is low risk.
My dad has been waiting on his diesel Tahoe for about 10 months or so. The diesel apparently makes it tricky, but anyone can see just how empty a GM dealer is nowadays.
He ended up test driving exactly what he wanted, but with a 6.2 over the weekend. As nice as it was, he ended up passing.
I don’t see things getting better any time soon. If you think you’ll need something, I’d start looking and ordering now. Just be prepared for an early delivery too.
He ended up test driving exactly what he wanted, but with a 6.2 over the weekend. As nice as it was, he ended up passing.
I don’t see things getting better any time soon. If you think you’ll need something, I’d start looking and ordering now. Just be prepared for an early delivery too.
The level of the event we are still recovering from and its effects has not happened since WWII (captain obvious statement, LOL)
Last edited:
I'm seeing price drops on overpriced beaters. Cars that were $1000 - -$1500 pre-pandemic had asking prices of $3500 were slashed to $2500.
You want a spare however at what point in time are all four driven concurrently.
In our family a car goes down we find the one sitting and typically use our 16 year olds and give her a ride.
It’s just too expensive IMHO to buy cars currently.
In our family a car goes down we find the one sitting and typically use our 16 year olds and give her a ride.
It’s just too expensive IMHO to buy cars currently.
Hard to say, a year from now. Any given day of the week, all four of us could be leaving at 7? hard to say who could ride share.
Shel_B
Site Donor 2023
- Joined
- Aug 7, 2020
- Messages
- 5,167
Thank you for posting that information. Very useful.
