Depends on your use of the vehicle....
New car buying strategy
- Thread starter gfh77665
- Start date
We're getting old
This is how I feel. Except for a very few vehicles, and they are pretty much all Porsche 911 variants of some sort, no new vehicle really excites me and the lack of a manual is a large part of that. Aside from the P'cars, the only other recent fun vehicle that really appealed to me was the Golf R with the 6 speed.The "low miles...couple years old" is wise and was my strategy for the past 20+ years or so; mostly Range Rovers and MB, etc., helped by having a friend w/ a large dealer group that found me great vehicles every 4-6 years. Let someone take the initial depreciation hit, and then move on before the next cliff at ~100K or so.
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Which vehicle? And what is expensive? Some of the KISS models shouldn't have any expensive repairs(engine/transmission failures) for 20+ yrs, 2-300k miles, in your climate. Assuming you can park in the shade to keep the paint and interior from getting baked.
If you keep to brands that tend to use good quality parts, you should be able to go a long time just changing fluids, brake pads and discs, tires... IMO that means no N.A. 3 vehicles, but do your research if you want one.
Do some research on any model though and get it near the end of its 4 year cycle, to hopefully have no surprise failures, but something like a RAV4 hybrid should go a long way and time, and at 10 years you can sell it for a large percentage of its purchase price.
If you keep to brands that tend to use good quality parts, you should be able to go a long time just changing fluids, brake pads and discs, tires... IMO that means no N.A. 3 vehicles, but do your research if you want one.
Do some research on any model though and get it near the end of its 4 year cycle, to hopefully have no surprise failures, but something like a RAV4 hybrid should go a long way and time, and at 10 years you can sell it for a large percentage of its purchase price.
I think the answer you're looking for is very vehicle dependent, and not just make/model. It's how is your specific vehicle holding up? If a repair costs $3,000 and will gain you a few more years of life, that's going to be a lot less expensive than a car payment. A $600/mo payment is 5 months to break even for that repair. Plus, your ability to repair yourself vs paying a shop is going to make a huge difference. So, once things start snowballing into one repair after another, that's probably the sweet spot, but the trick is to sell it before then, which requires a crystal ball.
I had a 20 year old Regal that had ongoing issues every few years, but it was an extra vehicle with only liability insurance. So, when a window regulator would fail, for $50 and I repair it myself, that's cheap cost of ownership. The same for wheel hubs, water pump, fuel level sending unit, etc. Now, for someone to pay a shop, it may or may not be worth it once you add in cost of lost work time and possibly a rental car, plus overall aggravation of not knowing what to do or how to fix it.
I worked with a guy that had identical Audi A6's for he and his wife. One never needed anything but regular maintenance. The other was in the shop for expensive repairs every 6-9 months with one thing after another, but he loved those twin supercharged A6's. Very vehicle dependent. He eventually ended up keeping the good one and sold the other.
I had a 20 year old Regal that had ongoing issues every few years, but it was an extra vehicle with only liability insurance. So, when a window regulator would fail, for $50 and I repair it myself, that's cheap cost of ownership. The same for wheel hubs, water pump, fuel level sending unit, etc. Now, for someone to pay a shop, it may or may not be worth it once you add in cost of lost work time and possibly a rental car, plus overall aggravation of not knowing what to do or how to fix it.
I worked with a guy that had identical Audi A6's for he and his wife. One never needed anything but regular maintenance. The other was in the shop for expensive repairs every 6-9 months with one thing after another, but he loved those twin supercharged A6's. Very vehicle dependent. He eventually ended up keeping the good one and sold the other.
100K or 130K, it's a wash. There is no practical difference. Quite simply it will depreciate over the next 30K miles (which may take years) and eventually cost you some money in repairs. The value of keeping it is a small cost per mile benefit, by no more than 5c. Keep it long enough and it has no value. Just like my 2003 Jag X-Type. Yes it still drives, but it is not reliable, has no heat and no anti lock brakes.
I got my money out of the old Jag. But a replacement is super expensive now compared to 10 years ago when I should have replaced it. No net gain by keeping it so long. Again, my point is that driving costs money, and the cost per mile can be quantified.
Well there's your answer. There are plenty of people, some like myself, who like picking up a car at a "midlife crisis" point when it needs work like this. As long as the price is agreeable for all parties, it's a system that works for everyone.
I don't worry about oil. I believe any name brand, modern, mainstream API/ILSAC oil off the shelf changed at anywhere near a reasonable interval with a anywhere near reasonable filter the engine will outlast the vehicle. That does not mean ignore PM at all.
When I purchased my Ram I had a 2007 Maxima with 105k miles. The dealer told me he could give me a trade in quote but cars with over 100k went to auction and it was in my best interest to sell it privately. I would say a vehicle with 90k miles or less would be at a good point to trade in. Not sure about age.
Replace it when you feel you need to.
I drove my Honda 2010 CR-V (purchased new) for 14 years, then bought a new 2024 Toyota Rav4. I had 145K reliable miles out of the Honda and it still runs and drives great. Now my daughter is driving it and were handling the little here and there repairs. She doesn't drive much, so it should get her through the next few years.
I decided that I needed a reliable vehicle for work, so I started looking and made the purchase about 6 months later when the deals were in my favor.
I drove my Honda 2010 CR-V (purchased new) for 14 years, then bought a new 2024 Toyota Rav4. I had 145K reliable miles out of the Honda and it still runs and drives great. Now my daughter is driving it and were handling the little here and there repairs. She doesn't drive much, so it should get her through the next few years.
I decided that I needed a reliable vehicle for work, so I started looking and made the purchase about 6 months later when the deals were in my favor.
