The few people that I lunch have all had numerous brand new vehicles.

I buy new and run them 10 years or more.

I haven't purchased a used car in the last 25 years, but only because the price difference between the new and used cars I was looking at didn't justify buying used. I've purchased used boats, motorcycles, jetskis, and a zero turn lawn mower, so I'm not afraid of used vehicles.

My father never bought a new car until he retired.

I'm not quite 60 and have never bought a new car. Closest I came was a lease vehicle in 2008, but I gave it back.

quote:

Originally posted by trapper189:
I haven't purchased a used car in the last 25 years, but only because the price difference between the new and used cars I was looking at didn't justify buying used. I've purchased used boats, motorcycles, jetskis, and a zero turn lawn mower, so I'm not afraid of used vehicles.

Maybe you should have been looking at the less than two years old, less than 20K miles used cars. There has always been a HUGE depreciation associated with driving a new car off the lot, and a major cost savings to buying said cars used. This of course excludes the 'global supply chain issues', etc due to .gov policies that fucked up the economy/COVID, but presumably things will return to 'normal' at some point and those savings will be available in the used car market once again. Honestly that price disparity/huge savings is what made CPO vehicles so attractive. You could a car w/ 20K miles on it, get the original Bumper to Bumper Warranty extended to 100K miles, AND save a ton of money!

I bought used when my wife and I were first married, but new since then. I've never leased.
Two used, seven new. I usually keep them for 6-8 years.
Probably will buy a new car next year.

quote:

Originally posted by nhracecraft:
Maybe you should have been looking at the less than two years old, less than 20K miles used cars. There has always been a HUGE depreciation associated with driving a new car off the lot, and a major cost savings to buying said cars used...

Two years old under 30,000 miles is what I would look at and I couldn't find vehicles priced such that new didn't make more sense. I'd buy last year's model and get what I thought were good deals. For example, I bought my 2015 F350, Lariat, crew cab, long bed, diesel with about $2,000 in options for $54,000 out the door in 2016. Really I should add the $200 for plane tickets for me and my then 6 year old son, $50 for the car seat my wife made me buy, $100 for the motel room, and $100 for fuel to drive it 1,000 miles home, so $54,450. MSRP on the truck was $62,000 and I couldn't find a used one for under $45k before taxes and fees. It's got 155,000 miles on it now.

Admittedly, a few of the vehicles I couldn't find used ones because I wanted something fairly specific. The 2001 Dodge Dakota Sport with the 4.7 V8 and a 5sp manual comes to mind. That was $20,000 OTD. It had 142,000 on it when I sold it.

Buying a new car only makes money sense if you keep it a long time. I learned in the military that I needed reliable transportation for long trips. We buy new vehicle and keep them an average of 12 years. I know guys who change vehicles like I change my socks and if you are doing that with new cars you are burning money.

quote:

Originally posted by Fredward:
I buy new and run them 10 years or more.

Same here.

Haven't had many cars over the years but most all new, run them a long time.
Had two used both with very low mileage and still have one today (from 1978).
My current truck will be twenty next year, last one was fifteen when I traded it in on my current truck.

no

Maintenance costs are minimal below 100k miles. Above 100k miles the maintenance goes way up. Typically, if the plan is to drive the vehicle for 100k miles after I buy it, there is no savings to buy used. The reputation for reliability is factored into the used prices.

quote:

Originally posted by Fredward:
I buy new and run them 10 years or more.

Same here.

I’m not 60 yet but no, I’ve never owned a new vehicle. I never saw the advantage of paying for the bragging rights. It’s a much better deal if you wait 2-3 years.

No

quote:

Originally posted by trapper189:
I haven't purchased a used car in the last 25 years, but only because the price difference between the new and used cars I was looking at didn't justify buying used. I've purchased used boats, motorcycles, jetskis, and a zero turn lawn mower, so I'm not afraid of used vehicles.

I find this to be true as well. I can't believe how much they are asking for 2-4 year old vehicles and most of them with stupid high miles.

In 2018 when I was looking at small cars Civics, Mazda 3, Corolla, Focus, etc. most that were 2 years old were $20K and the 4-5 year old ones were $14-15K. It only made sense to buy a new Corolla HB for just under $19K.

Then when covid came, if you were willing to wait, one could often buy new for *less* than used.

I'm 69, and haven't bought a used vehicle in 51 years.

I buy new and sell about the time the factory warranty runs out. If I really like the ride, I will keep it and buy an extended warranty for it.

I've bought 23 new cars in my 55 years of driving. I'm careful to buy stuff that I believe will depreciate at a lower rate and sell them privately when I'm ready to move on. I lived in Montana during most of my life where there is no sales tax - a huge deal obviously. I generally know the owner of the dealership so I buy at close to dealer invoice and watch incentives. I stay away from boring colors, keep them garaged and shined and track my maintenance.

For example, Ford once ran a 23 month lease program for their Taurus and Sable products at $199 a month. They did this over about 10 years to stay #1 in car sales. I did 4 of these over 8 years. Right before the end of the lease I would sell them outright and generally pickup about $2,000 in profit. That would take my monthly cost down to about $100 per month. Where can you drive a new car, under warranty, for that price.

No, you are not.

I have bought many new and have some used cars sprinkled in the mix as well. I am careful about pricing on most and have been running cars out over many years with a few going beyond 10 years. Once a vehicle starts to accumulate maintenance costs that approach a monthly car payment, I dump the vehicle. I’ve had some cars new that had some serious problems during the warranty period and almost always have dumped them as the warranty was expiring.

12 New / 8 used