new vs. used car?

[bigjl]

For long term ownership, say 10yrs maybe more then I would buy new.

Shorter term ownerships of say 2/3 years I would buy used at 3yrs old. But depreciation may be slightly different in the U.K., 3 years is the sweet spot over here.

 

[Wolf359]

Originally Posted By: Robertslowpoke
great discussion! just what I was looking for. I found one web site claiming in the first 3 years, a car depreciates 47%, and 17% in the next 3.

OK, my plan was to BUY (cash) a 3 yr old, certified, LOW miles caddy from a dealer with warranty. DRIVE 3 years, trade in, BUY for cash, another 3 yr old one.
Broc Luno- I DO agree, in general, used cars are cheaper to own, long term

Wolf- 2 friends ONLY lease cars, never have to fix them, BUT they argue VIGOROUSLY over the down payment and the terms. I will check out lease hacker.

I respect the opinions of EVERYONE!

I live in Massachusetts, the rust here is incredible. getting a southern/western car may be smart! 3 people here did! bob


It's incredible if you don't wash the car and get the salt off it. Never did any rust proofing and the last car I had was over 16 years old. It did ok, there was some surface rust, but it didn't all end up rusting away. Regular undercarriage washes helped. For some reason, American cars are better than foreign ones when it comes to rust. The site is leasehackr.com. They list a Toyota Highlander for $275 a month and an Acura TLX for $245/month. They had a BMW 528i for $398/month, but that deal has expired.

 

[AZjeff]

Having moved from Rustolvania to Aridzona I can say guys in the east can't comprehend rust-free used cars, it just doesn't compute. And SW guys don't realize how lucky they are. Owning a car out to 10 years in salt states is depressing as you watch it rust away. The OP should consider the fly/buy route, just not sure how the certified used works when you live 2500 miles from the dealer. A SW car could be worth more in NH at trade-in time.

 

[Wolf359]

Certified is usually done at manufacturer level so any dealer should be able to service it, same as getting an extended factory warranty. Of course there are some dealer that just say it's certified, but not by the manufacturer so that would just be a local dealer only type warranty.

Only thing is that I've noticed the greatest depreciation happens to be in the northeast for luxury cars, specifically the NY/NJ area. I just picked up a 5 year old MB E350 and didn't notice much rust on it. Then again, certain body panels are aluminum.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted By: AZjeff
Having moved from Rustolvania to Aridzona I can say guys in the east can't comprehend rust-free used cars, it just doesn't compute. And SW guys don't realize how lucky they are. Owning a car out to 10 years in salt states is depressing as you watch it rust away. The OP should consider the fly/buy route, just not sure how the certified used works when you live 2500 miles from the dealer. A SW car could be worth more in NH at trade-in time.


I just picked up my '99 Camry, supposedly it's only been in NH for the last 5 years; before that in AZ. It's crazy how nice it is underneath--but it's definitely a problem I need to stay on top of.

I think it sat on CL 'cuz the pics looked bad. The clearcoat is gone. The seller didn't put in the bit about AZ, just that it needed tires and paint. When I got under the car and noticed how good it was, was when I asked--and I 'bout bought (without a test drive) when I heard about its past!

 

[stephen9666]

Buying new can make sense if you're considering models that have super low depreciation. That's because the used models sometimes are a small savings compared to new. You seemingly can get more for your dollar with new in some cases vs. a lightly used version of the same model.

Buying used can make sense if you're considering vehicles with big depreciation. That's because you let the original owner take a big depreciation hit.

In the case of Cadillac, it 100% makes sense to buy used because they depreciate like crazy.

I'm not knocking Cadillac for that. I used that strategy when I bought my Cruze. I got a pretty clean used CPO Cruze with 40k miles for about half of the new MSRP.

 

[Robertslowpoke]

thanks guys!

wolf: what was the new sticker price of your E 350? what did you pay now? if you don't mind!

supton: my daughter JUST traded her 99 camry in. we paid about $3200 in 2009, drove it to now, for free!! great car!

Stephen: YES! caddies DO depreciate a LOT! absolutely! that is WHY I would get a low mileage, CADILLAC CERTIFIED 3 year old one, for cash, drive 3 yrs, trade in. I think I would have good luck with it.

I may say about rust. I wash my 2008 DTS so often, people made fun of me, and hand wax, do undercarriage wash. last year, found rust at bottom of ALL 4 doors. fixed it quite well, one week and $900. cars DO rust here, even when washed EVERY WEEK! ugh!

from a local dealer. new caddy CTS $54,000
2014 with 28,000 miles. $29,000. THIS is what I am counting on. certified, WITH warranty from Cadillac, not just the dealer!

 

[Robertslowpoke]

I would say my goal is NOT the newest and best car. my goal is a car that needs NO maintenance, at a reasonable price. best,
bob

 

[Rolla07]

The only way I would buy used, is if you plan to ditch the car as soon as the warranty runs out... I assume you had good luck with your 2008 Caddy or you would likely not be considering another... but if you end up buying a used luxury car, I would expect it was previously a lease and beaten on..people who have leased cars do not take good care of them (in my experience). Dont get stuck with a used luxury car with no warranty, from a few friends of mine who went the used luxury route, they got stuck with alot of expensive repairs, so much so, that they wish they never bought a luxury model in the first place. Calculate your cost of a buying used now and the estimated cost of maintenance, and figure out its resale value in 3 years and calculate the difference.. It will tell you if leasing is the best option.. if leasing is cheaper and you plan to dump the car every 3 years anyways why bother owning? Include that you would need to resell the car in 3 years might be more difficult than dropping off a lease. Typically I am anti-lease but I keep cars as long as possible so I would never lease but I do think there are a few reasons why leasing is not a bad idea. Just thought of something else you need to consider... cost of insurance on a new lease vs buying used.. that might make another difference in support of buying used... alot of things to consider and compare...

 

[Robertslowpoke]

THANKS Rolla! did you buy your car new?

there IS an argument for me to drive my 2008 until it drops. actually, I have no problem with that. I LIKE my car, it is GOOOD enough. very comfortable. I just drive 7 miles to work, if it breaks down, someone can come get me.
then, I could buy another NEW caddy, I got this one new.

then, I KNOW who did what, when. I have RELIGIOUSLY changed the oil with mobil one every 3-5000 miles AND got oil analysis done lots of times. trans. fluid twice, all fluids LOTS of times, fixed all rust. I am quite happy to drive it right now

I must say, cars today are WAY better than the seventies.
do you think people beat on a new caddy leased???? it is not a Camaro, etc!
I do not think I will ever lease a car.
best regards.
bob

 

[Wolf359]

Originally Posted By: Robertslowpoke
thanks guys!

wolf: what was the new sticker price of your E 350? what did you pay now? if you don't mind!


Well I'm guessing at the sticker but I think it was around $65k as it had 10k worth of options that most cars didn't have, it was close to fully loaded. It was 18.5k and about 6 years old when I got it, had 49k on it.

The only good thing is that everyone has some horror story of how much they've spent to maintain a luxury car, but I have a cheap indy and I don't think I've spent more than 1k in the past 2 years to maintain it. So far almost the same as a regular car, even cheaper actually as a spent a ton of money on the my last car (Taurus) before finally giving up and getting rid of it. So that just contributes to the depreciation.

 

[Donald]

A slightly used car may be the best value. A new car is almost always the most trouble free and has full warranty. If $$ was not a real issue then new.

My wife is an AAG (asst attorney general) and she likes new cars so that what she gets. Not going to try and talk to her about best car value.

For some vehicles that really hold their value, a new is a better value than a 1 yr old one.

 

[fdcg27]

Since you've really gone above and beyond in taking care of your current car, why not just plan on running it out to its design life of 150K+?
There are also effective anti-rust treatments that you could look into to prevent future rust.
Use and enjoy the car. It has many miles of reliable future use left.
If you want to sell it, PM me.
Anyone who would spend $900.00 to fix what must have been very minor rust at the door bottoms is my kind of PO.

 

[Cujet]

Again, do a "cost per mile" calculation. Include all costs of ownership, fuel, insurance, repairs, normal maintenance such as tires and brakes, etc. New vehicles are nearly always more fuel efficient too. Used vehicles generally don't come with new tires, brakes and batteries.

A well purchased new vehicle (such as a leftover) , retained over it's practical lifespan is generally no more than 3 to 5 cents per mile more expensive than a well purchased used vehicle. Must be same class of vehicle though. Don't, for example, compare a full sized pickup truck to an inexpensive Hyundai.

For many vehicles, capital costs (the purchase cost) are less than the other costs, per mile.

Also remember that full coverage insurance is often higher on slightly used vehicles.

When true ownership costs are often 50 cents per mile, a difference of 3 cents per mile is not really much.

 

[sciphi]

I'd keep the current Caddy. 71k miles is pretty young. You know the car, its maintenance history, and its little quirks. Plus the little rust on it has been fixed.

The current crop of Caddys are probably a bit sportier than your DTS. Unless you go with the front wheel drive/all wheel drive XTS, which is the cushiest of the current car lineup.

 

[Robertslowpoke]

thanks guys! i plan to keep my car!

FDCG 27: go Indians! i am from Cleveland.

which rust preventer do you recommend? like Ohio, lots of rust in Massachusetts! when i read about rustproofing, i just got confused!

my daughter just got a Forester! nice little car!
bob

 

[eljefino]

For lackadasical rustproofing on a car that's already seen life I'd go with an oil product. Aerosol cans of "fluid film" are good. Find stuff like fender liners where you get plastic overlapping metal and spray it in the crevices there. If you have drain holes in subframes or rocker panels, same thing. Send it in where trouble comes out.

 

[Wolf359]

Originally Posted By: Robertslowpoke
thanks guys! i plan to keep my car!

FDCG 27: go Indians! i am from Cleveland.

which rust preventer do you recommend? like Ohio, lots of rust in Massachusetts! when i read about rustproofing, i just got confused!

my daughter just got a Forester! nice little car!
bob


I've never bothered with any rust inhibitor in MA. Unless you plan to keep the car for 20+ years, I don't think you really need it and I'm in MA near the water. Mechanics are also always commenting on how rusty various bolts are, rust proofing doesn't do anything for the bolts under the hood. I just run the car through a car wash at least once a month to keep it clean and after a snow storm to keep the salt off.

 

[Rolla07]

I just read an article that shows the Cadillac CTS has very high depreciation.. see: http://www.msn.com/en-ca/autos/research/...cid=mailsignout

Since you dont want to lease, I would consider either new or used depending on what makes the most financial sense considering you will re-sell it after or if money aint a problem, you could just go new..

To answer your question, no I purchased my car used in 2010 with 53k miles on it. I had it inspected to make sure it was good and has no bells or whistles.. this car is very barebones.. I mean roll up windows and no A/C, LOL.. The reason I echo the idea of being leary of buying used, is I have a few close friends who went the used route for higher end cars, and all of them had serious issues with them... not to say that experience is experienced by all though..