[amistod]

My current ride has oil in the pistons and I am burning through $5 a week. I estimate I could trade it in for $1500.

What do you guys suggest? I feel like buying a new car would be foolish, but it would pretty much last me my next 10 years. I am looking at cars in the $25-$30k range.

I am not looking to go location independent for at least 10 more years, due to family business.

I just want to make sure I do the smartest thing.

[el mechanico]

(09-13-2011 08:52 AM)amistod Wrote:  

My current ride has oil in the pistons and I am burning through $5 a week. I estimate I could trade it in for $1500.

What do you guys suggest? I feel like buying a new car would be foolish, but it would pretty much last me my next 10 years. I am looking at cars in the $25-$30k range.

I am not looking to go location independent for at least 10 more years, due to family business.

I just want to make sure I do the smartest thing.

What is it? If you want to fix it I can tell you a painless way.
If you are sick of it and just want something newer there's a formula for that as well.

[amistod]

Well, my mechanic told me it would require major engine work and i don't really care to do that on a car with over 150k miles. I don't want to put $1k in to it..

There also is peace of mind.. every day i wonder if it's going to blow up or what that new smell is..

[chefedemaquina]

You can get a decent used car for a good price, I bought a second vehicle for the family last year, it is a 2005 caddy. had 36000 miles and the body was in excellent shape. The price was right so I had to jump on it. There are good deals everywhere just got to look

[el mechanico]

(09-13-2011 09:02 AM)amistod Wrote:  

Well, my mechanic told me it would require major engine work and i don't really care to do that on a car with over 150k miles. I don't want to put $1k in to it..

There also is peace of mind.. every day i wonder if it's going to blow up or what that new smell is..

Ok so what do you want? I have found that most cars have a hard depreciation that levels out at a certain point and they stay steady for a couple years.

[amistod]

I am looking at a 2011 Honda Accord 2 door coupe right now.. Great gas mileage, looks like a bmw... At my current driving rate, if this car lasts 200k miles.. that would last me well over 12 years.

[el mechanico]

(09-13-2011 09:31 AM)amistod Wrote:  

I am looking at a 2011 Honda Accord 2 door coupe right now.. Great gas mileage, looks like a bmw... At my current driving rate, if this car lasts 200k miles.. that would last me well over 12 years.

Thats a almost new car with warranty, whats the concern?

[amistod]

Just wanting to make sure blowing 30k on a new car is a reasonable idea.

[el mechanico]

(09-13-2011 10:06 AM)amistod Wrote:  

Just wanting to make sure blowing 30k on a new car is a reasonable idea.

Brand new? Financed? The interest is lower on new cars if you want something that new why not.
Just do your homework and play all of the Honda dealers against eachother pricewise.
The finance dept at the dealer makes more money if they sell you higher interest so shop that too.
Another game they play is after the deal is done they call and say that the loan was not approved and they want more interest. Watch that.

If you go used make sure the dealer looks at what you buy. Tell them to pick it apart and make sure the carfax is clean.

[Pete]

1. If you're going to buy a honda for $30,000 because it looks like a bmw, just buy the real deal. A bmw 128i I think starts at $31,000. I don't know but I bet the honda is FWD while the bmw is RWD. In my experience rwd vehicles are much more durable than fwd ones.

2. If you want low interest check out penfed.org . If you do the loan paperwork online you can get an even lower rate. I got a tacoma that I bought for about 25-26k and it only pays about 400 with no money upfront.

[Smitty]

If you want to keep the car for 12 years/200,000 miles, then you should buy new. Honda Accord is a great choice, but $30,000 is too much. I wouldn't pay more than $25k for a coupe. Get the 4cyl over the 6cyl if you have to in order to shave off the money. While 6cyl is nice, I have a 4cyl honda and the VTEC engine gives me the boost I need to get up and go. $25k out the door -- maximum.

[Chad Daring]

I get called a pussy everytime I say this, but if I was in your shoes and had that cash amount to burn, go green, get a Prius. Its no a swag ass manly car, but getting double the MPG of most other cars in the price range, take that to the bank. I test drove a 2011 Prius and they're nice inside, all the comforts, bells, and whistles you could want.

[rudebwoy]

A car is not an investment, I have driven Hondas but I would never buy one new. That is alot of money you are spending when quite frankly you do not need too. I like the Prius option, you could pull some serious tail with that save the environment car. lol

[wi30]

Buying a new car is one of the biggest financial mistakes one can make. You instantly loose a couple grand the second you drive it off the lot. I recommend looking at certified pre-owned vehicles since you save 20-40% off the initial cost due to the couple years of depreciation. Many of them also are fully covered with warranties and have gone through every inspection. Find one with low miles and only a year or two old. They hardly change anything between model years so a buying a '09 wouldn't be much different than the '11 model.

I recently upgraded from a run down '02 Dodge Neon to an '07 Ford Taurus. It wasn't certified pre-owned though and has had a couple owners but the dealer took care of everything. I couldn't be happier with it.

There is no need to buy a brand new car unless you have a massive bankroll or you are going through a mid-life crisis.

[Basil Ransom]

(09-14-2011 07:14 PM)wi30 Wrote:  

Buying a new car is one of the biggest financial mistakes one can make. You instantly loose a couple grand the second you drive it off the lot. I recommend looking at certified pre-owned vehicles since you save 20-40% off the initial cost due to the couple years of depreciation. Many of them also are fully covered with warranties and have gone through every inspection. Find one with low miles and only a year or two old. They hardly change anything between model years so a buying a '09 wouldn't be much different than the '11 model.

I recently upgraded from a run down '02 Dodge Neon to an '07 Ford Taurus. It wasn't certified pre-owned though and has had a couple owners but the dealer took care of everything. I couldn't be happier with it.

There is no need to buy a brand new car unless you have a massive bankroll or you are going through a mid-life crisis.

Most of the time, you'd be right, but many used cars are overpriced right now. Cash for Clunkers took a lot of used cars off the market. I bought a car 5 months ago, and in doing my research, I read reports of cars that had actually gone up in price. That means, say a 2008 Ford Explorer cost more in 2011 than it did in 2010! That's crazy. Plus financing on new cars is often better.

If you buy a car that's several years old, then you'll still save a lot of money. I'm gonna pimp my car, a late model Lexus LS 400. One of the most reliable luxury cars ever made. You can hardly tell it's moving.



Would you rather have an old plush leather chair, or a new shitty plastic one from Ikea? That's the choice you have when buying cars, given the same budget. For me it's a no brainer, I'll always take the plush chair. As long as the car runs, the car's age is completely irrelevant. I was just getting a haircut, and a fellow patron said he bought a Rolls new 37 years ago, and is still driving it. All I could think was, damn, what a G.

Used Jags are amazingly cheap, but expensive to maintain. A used Cadillac DTS is another good option - more reliable than Jags, and depreciate about as fast. For reliability and higher used prices, there's Lexus, Acura and Infiniti.

[Aliblahba]

(09-13-2011 09:02 AM)amistod Wrote:  

Well, my mechanic told me it would require major engine work and i don't really care to do that on a car with over 150k miles. I don't want to put $1k in to it..

There also is peace of mind.. every day i wonder if it's going to blow up or what that new smell is..

Stop worrying about piece of mind and more on a piece of pussy. Keep that car running and save your money for an overseas sex tour. A 5 year car payment will keep you stateside FOREVER!!!!!

[Chad Daring]

(09-14-2011 07:47 PM)Aliblahba Wrote:  

(09-13-2011 09:02 AM)amistod Wrote:  

Well, my mechanic told me it would require major engine work and i don't really care to do that on a car with over 150k miles. I don't want to put $1k in to it..

There also is peace of mind.. every day i wonder if it's going to blow up or what that new smell is..

Stop worrying about piece of mind and more on a piece of pussy. Keep that car running and save your money for an overseas sex tour. A 5 year car payment will keep you stateside FOREVER!!!!!

Depends on the car you get, a 30k car will, but I make dick for money and manage a car payment because at the end of the day I only financed 9k. My car is small, but it gets good mileage and for being a little Jap car its roomy as hell inside.

[La Familia]

I'm in the same boat as you; new cars have less of an appeal to me, while used cars become a hassle when it comes to making a purchase. You can negotiate for both; so to me, I'm leaning towards buying used/reasonably priced and will last me for 5-7 years. Just remember to consult a trustworthy mechanic before making any purchase so you don't end up with a lemon. And if you're looking at financing a new car, credit unions usually have the better deals for finance plans.

[UrbanNerd]

Well....

If dude concentrates on making enough money, he can get a new car for $30,000 and STILL travel.

Now if you ARE gonna blow $30,000...might as well get that C-Class Benz or that 3-Series BMW. I don't know about $30K on an American vehicle unless you are going to get an American truck (Tahoe, etc).

[Brian]

i'd never buy a new vehicle unless i had like $5M in the bank. if you want a nice car like a BMW buy one thats 2 years old and has less then 25/30k miles. it will still be warrantied for 2 years and as long as you get it checked out before or buy CPO you are getting much more car for the money. also it will hold its value much better so if you want to sell it in 3 years you can still get a good percentage of your money back. many years ago i bought a 330ci that i absolutely loved used, 23k miles, for 31k. i totaled it 3 years later and my insurance company gave me 23k. i had a car that i loved for 3 years and only took a small hit in depreciation.

[Screwston]

Get an older Lexus ES. I'll never buy something besides a Lexus after getting my 02. Lexus LS are clean as hell but good luck with that gas. They're horrible with it.

[amistod]

Really glad that this thread took off. This is why I read this forum! Here is a local 2010 Prius in ATL:
Price: $19,998.00
Year: 2010
Make: Toyota
Model: Prius
Body style: 5 Dr Hatchback
Mileage: 42,868
Engine: 4 Cyl. 1.8L
Trans: Automatic
Exterior Color: Winter Gray Metallic
Interior Color: Dark Gray
Stock: 9116
VIN: JTDKN3DU5A0062469

Pretty sick when putting ~$7k down. I estimate that I am spending over $50 a week on gas and my estimated fuel economy on my current ride is 16 (with out engine problems.) The prius is 50!! I could fill up once a month!

[el mechanico]

Prius? C'mon don't do that.
[attachment=3109]
That ride is the butt of most car jokes
This is funny
http://www.hybridcars.com/news/evil-prius-ads.html

[tenderman100]

For the last 15 years, I have bought nothing but Hondas. I currently am riding a 5-speed 2009 Accord, 4 cylinder, gun metal gray, leather interior, XM radio. I can -- and have --cruised at 100 mph.

I have a German born mechanic who has been in the business for 30 years, and is an expert at repairing all the German cars. He tells me he would never buy a used BMW, Porsche, or Benz. Repair costs are through the roof.

He tells all his customers on the prowl for a car to go Japanese.

[el mechanico]

(09-15-2011 12:08 PM)tenderman100 Wrote:  

For the last 15 years, I have bought nothing but Hondas. I currently am riding a 5-speed 2009 Accord, 4 cylinder, gun metal gray, leather interior, XM radio. I can -- and have --cruised at 100 mph.

I have a German born mechanic who has been in the business for 30 years, and is an expert at repairing all the German cars. He tells me he would never buy a used BMW, Porsche, or Benz. Repair costs are through the roof.

He tells all his customers on the prowl for a car to go Japanese.

I own an Import shop. This is true. Bmw being the best of the three.
I just can't drive one(Honda) because I like the feel of the way a BMW is built.

The same things go bad on everyone of them at about the same time(BMW) you could actually fix them before they ever break.

Newer Benz? O lawd! You have no idea how pissed most people who have them are.

Porsche/Audi/Vw? Same shit.