FIRE Car

[ferco]

What type/model car do most FIRE folks purchase/drive ? Just wondering, since besides a fashion statement and comfort a car's only purpose is to take you safety and in reasonable comfort from point A to point B.

You can get a year old Toyota Camry for 13-14k !

An old, financially well off, friend who drives a Toyota Corolla wtih 175k miles says if he "needs" a fancy car for long trip or "special " occasion he just goes and rents one for 1-5 days...........he doesn't have to work, but does so more as a hobby and when he wants to, he takes off for 4-5 months.

I recently met a lady at a restaurant who works there because she was laid off from the local Lincoln Mercury dealership as the Finance coordinator. She said even with the drop in prices and incentives people aren't buying high end vehicles and salesmen aren't selling ANY cars !!!

 

[crazy connie]

Hopefully a reliable car they can afford! Your friend has a good plan for him. And I think the lady in the restaurant is wrong unless it is an isolated area. My 25 year old daughter bought a new jeep SUV last month. When I went to the dealership with her, there were what appeared to be a few other purchasers there at a Chrylser Jeep dealership that was losing their franchise. Later on today I am in for a service job and warranty check at Cadillac and will let you know what is happening.

 

[Rambler]

Gonna use the same cars we have now...probably drive them into the ground. 1) honda odyssey, 2) Toyota Tundra. When they die, we'll decide on a new one, probably something like a Honda Fit for local and long distance driving, and a Tundra or equivalent for trailering and work around the house.

R

 

[FinanceDude]

Get a used Hyundai, warranty almost forever........

 

[FUEGO]

We have a pair of hondas (civic and accord). 9 yrs old, we bought them new though. Will probably replace them with similar cars sometime in the near future.

 

[IndependentlyPoor]

We have a 2007 Honda Civic, and it has served us well: we have driven it to Sarasota and Vancouver with nary a problem. It looks pitiful now after a hail storm, like a madman attacked it with a ball-peen hammer. Our high-deductible insurance didn't begin to cover the cost of repair, so we just cashed the check.
Now it languishes in its parking place. We live within walking distance of the grocery store, post office, and library, so we often go for days without even starting it.
We just paid off its loan. We decided to finance its purchase because we are planning/hoping to buy a condo and needed to get back on the credit agencies radar screens. They don't like it when you haven't borrowed any money in more than 10 years.

Here is a photo in Capitol Gorge, Utah.

Capitol Reef National Park, Utah

 

[calmloki]

The Nissan Cube is attractive to me - like it's headroom, it's shorter than a Mazda Miata, good fuel economy. Went out and flogged it's CVT transmission and am not sure there's enough oomph for my taste. BMW does offer a nice balance of fuel economy and power and a used Bimmer can be had with a bunch more bells and whistles for a 1/3 the cost of a new Cube (about 20k after addons). Course new = warranty...

 

[Life_is_Good]

We have the same cars that we were driving during my working years.

I've been considering trading in and using the "cash for clunkers" program. The government sees my Camaro Z28 as a clunker. On the hwy (using cruise control), I can get over 25 mpg. In my eyes, it's anything but a clunker!

I can't see trading in my fun car for an underpowered boxy looking car. I just don't think I can do it.

 

[JOHNNIE36]

I keep my wife in the new car (2008 Saturn Vue) and I drive a 1997 Ford Escort. The Saturn gets 20 mpg in town but it doesn't make too much difference since we don't put that many miles on the car to worry about gas prices. We've had it 1 1/2 years and it has 6800 miles on the odometer. It's been a great SUV so far and I'm thinking about buying it when the lease is up for the $12000 risidual value. Depends on what Kelly Blue Book says it's worth at the end of the lease. I always want her in a nice car that won't give out on her in the middle of I-75 ar some God forsaken place. I'd like to get her the new style Cadillac CTS since I still get an employee discount: but I'm still too angry with GM and might buy a new Hyundai Genesis. Beautiful looking car and rated high by Consumer Reports.

 

[Khan]

I drove a Ford Festiva from '89 to '07; traded it in for a '05 Kia Rio because it was the smallest car they had on the lot.

 

[73ss454]

5 years ago I purchased a 1998 ford taurus for 4K. I retired almost 3 years ago and continue to drive the taurus. As long as it keeps going I will keep it. I maintain it myself mostly and it runs great.

 

[W2R]

In retirement I could stick with the same type of car as when I was working, along the lines of a Camry or else a Honda Accord coupe.

Or, I could get something that would be more convenient for carrying stuff instead of people, like a Highlander.

I could afford a luxury car like a Cadillac, Lincoln, or Mercedes, and I do love my luxury. On the other hand, I don't plan to drive very much in retirement and a little Corolla would be convenient and just as nice for short trips to the store.

Decisions, decisions. Only one thing is for sure: whatever car I purchase will have a sunroof/moonroof. That just has to happen.

 

[Nords]

n old, financially well off, friend who drives a Toyota Corolla wtih 175k miles says if he "needs" a fancy car for long trip or "special " occasion he just goes and rents one for 1-5 days...........he doesn't have to work, but does so more as a hobby and when he wants to, he takes off for 4-5 months.

Same here. When our kid goes off to college (391 days!) we're going to donate the '97 Altima to charity and drive the '06 Prius. That'll save $400/year of insurance premiums, another $175/year of inspections/registration, and probably $500-$1000/year in repairs/maintenance. That's at least three weeks of rentals around here.

5 years ago I purchased a 1998 ford taurus for 4K. I retired almost 3 years ago and continue to drive the taurus. As long as it keeps going I will keep it. I maintain it myself mostly and it runs great.

Our '94 Taurus wagon had great hauling volume but the gradual rotting & crumbling of the interior trim & plastic sure was discouraging.

 

[73ss454]

We live in the Florida sun and I haven't had any problem with the interior trim. My 98 taurus lays out in the sun and is not garaged. I use protectant 303 on all the interior plastic and the dash and it looks brand new.

 

[cardude]

When I quit the car biz I bought a 2003 Suburban LT, leathered up, DVD player and all that with 82K miles. Bought if from a wholesaler-buddy of mine for $7150. It's a gas hog at 18 mpg on the hwy (if I go 65), but it pulls the boat and is great for vacations, and I know how to work on it (most things) if it breaks so that's why I need to stick with what I know.

Wife drives the same 2006 Chrysler 300 she did when we owned the place. She is not all caught up on cars, and neither am I. Since I was around them all the time they just because a way to get around and nothing else.

 

[FIREd]

Right now I have a VW Jetta 1.8T, but it is very expensive to maintain. My next car will be Japanese. Right now I could be tempted by the Camary or the Mazda 3/6. My wife has a Miata and will replace it in 2011 with another Miata.

 

[Trek]

I'm still driving my 2004 diesel Ford Mondeo Estate currently with 204,000 km (126K miles) on it. Runs like new. Wife has an interest in learning to drive, so I'd be looking at a used Hyundai Getz for her possibly in the future.

 

[NYEXPAT]

97 Toyota Caldina station wagon (converted to natural gas/converted to left hand drive) only 65,000 miles (I can walk to everything and taxis are $1.00/buses $.30 around town). Insurance runs about $30.00/year and maintenence another $100-$200. My wife wants to learn how to drive (but I do not think it would be socially responsible)!

I have always been a "car freak" but there is no point in a new car (down here) and used cars are plentiful and cheap.

If I bought new it would be a Hyundai H-1 van or maybe one of the new Chinese brands that are all the rage.

 

[Walt34]

DW put off buying a new car while she was still working (didn't want it beat up in the parking garage) and we bought her a new '03 Buick Century when we moved. Six months later we bought a new '03 GMC Sierra 4WD pickup to replace the '85 Chevy pickup. We intend to keep both until parts availability or reliability become issues. Both are garaged and meticulously maintained so hopefully they'll be around a while.

Last December I bought an '08 Suzuki C90T touring motorcycle. It came with saddlebags, and I'm thinking of getting a sissy bar bag too. 49.95 mpg and weather/load permitting I ride that whenever possible instead of the pickup. If I go to the store for a prescription or small shopping errand I take the bike.

 

[Buckeye]

Anyone buy a Smart Car yet?

 

[FUEGO]

Anyone buy a Smart Car yet?

No way. I'd rather get a small Toyota, Honda, Nissan or maybe domestic model that costs about the same (or sometimes less) and gets just a little worse gas mileage. Better options, better performance, more cargo room, 4-5 seats, more versatility, better network of dealerships and qualified independent mechanics, etc. I have 2 kids, so the Fortwo is just not an option.

The Smart Fortwo seems like a fashion statement at this point. Although I do see a fair number of them on the road. If the prices come way down and the gas mileage goes way up, it might have more mass appeal beyond a novelty item. I don't want to start something ( ) but the Smartcar kind of reminds me of Macs (or other Apple products). A shiny nice product that costs a lot relative to what you get (versus similar items).

 

[W2R]

We see a lot of smart cars on the lot, but not so many on the road around here (maybe one a week?).

I don't like them. They don't look very safe or sturdy, and they are too small for my tastes.

 

[Moemg]

Since we finally have the time for lots of road trips I think when I get rid of my car I'll get a small SUV . We already have a dodge durango but it is a gas guzzler .

 

[Buckeye]

Fuego - I agree with you but they are so cute! I wondered if anyone had actually purchased one and what they had to say about it. I think they are quite safe but they sure are small.

From the smart fortwo website:

The smart fortwo meets or exceeds all federal government crash test standards, including a 5-star side crash rating and the highest scores for front and side crashes from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. In addition, the vehicle’s safety management system is equipped with advanced crash avoidance (active safety) and crash protection (passive safety) systems that come standard on all models.

 

[FUEGO]

Fuego - I agree with you but they are so cute! I wondered if anyone had actually purchased one and what they had to say about it. I think they are quite safe but they sure are small.

Yes, I see what you mean. One can't refute the "they are so cute" argument by citing superior competing works of engineering. Personally I don't find them that attractive aesthetically, but they do have that novelty and uniqueness quality to them (like mini coopers had, and hybrids once had years ago).