How often do you trade cars or trucks?

[scrinch]

Last 3 vehicles were bought new and used for 13, 16, and 14 years. We still have the last one and use it in California on summer and Christmas vacations. Oh, and we also bought a used Volvo from a friend for the kids to learn to drive in. Boy was the interior of that car a mess after three teens got finished with it! [emoji79]

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[harley]

Newer cars do have better safety features, and that's worth considering, but I just don't put enough time behind the wheel to make the safety issue quite as important as when I drove more.

Plus, since you're getting older you're probably causing other younger drivers to use their safety features, as opposed to needing them yourself.

We've got a 2002 TDI Beetle (105K) and a 2004 Toyota Highlander (168K). I keep thinking of getting something new to replace the Highlander, but it still runs and looks great. Also we can't decide between a diesel pickup or a diesel Jeep Grand Cherokee or another Highlander. We need space to carry the dogs/kennels (inside the vehicle), and towing capacity to tow the VW on the snowbird trips between FL and MD. I might wait until VW comes out with their diesel/electric hybrid SUV, see what it can do.

 

[RetireAge50]

We buy new and keep until it starts breaking down frequently. We do no maintenance (except oil changes) unless something fails. Current car is Honda Pilot 12 years old 170,000 miles (and still runs like new).

 

[VFK57]

My SUV (4Runner) is 12 yo with 93K miles, will keep it until it starts to give me frequent problems. I red somewhere that money wise purchase vs lease scale goes strongly toward first one when you keep a car / truck for 8 years or longer.

 

[braumeister]

As mentioned elsewhere recently, I get a new car about every 5 years or so. That's about 150,000 miles for me, which is as long as I'm comfortable keeping a vehicle.

It's the mileage that matters for me, not the years.

 

[frayne]

Buy new, maintain and don't get rid of them until they get to the nickel and dime stage, usually 100K+ milage wise. I hate spending the money for a new car or for that matter anything more than oil/filter/tires.

Motorcycles, always buy used and maintain myself.

 

[samclem]

Plus, since you're getting older you're probably causing other younger drivers to use their safety features, as opposed to needing them yourself.

Hey, it gets better the older my jalopy gets. Nobody contests the right-of-way with you when you've got a 15 year old car that looks like the driver probably doesn't have insurance.

 

[RetiredGypsy]

I found this site called the Long-Term Quality Index for reliability of used vehicles. It's interesting comparing data from the site to this thread.

 

[UnrealizedPotential]

My current car is a Honda civic I bought in 2008. It has over 102,000 miles on it now and it had 35,000 miles when I got it. It runs great. I just had the oil changed today for it. I hate car payments so I plan on keeping this one as long as I can. When I got rid of the car payment a few years back it really helped me add to my savings. A car payment can really be a drag.

 

[Ronnieboy]

I'm surprised by the amount of buy new cars here too. I figured the vast majority 95% would be buy 2-3 years old and keep forever. I always thought that how long your car lasts is based on how well you took care of it in the first few years, break-in, etc. if you bought used, you have no idea how the car was treated those first crucial years. Unless you have an outlier who keeps a detailed diary and receipts of their oil changes, fill ups, mileage, etc.

You may have bought the one that Jerry Seinfeld got the extra insurance for when he rented it at the airport .

I buy new keep till the repair expense and time to get fixed aren't worth it anymore. I am currently seeing that with a 2002 Toyota suv with 213k on it.

I am not sure the first few years are as important anymore with today's modern cars but I plan on following utrechts car retirement schedule


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[NC 57]

1999 Mercedes ML 320 purchased new, now 125000 miles, wife's daily driver.
1997 Mercedes SL500 purchased when 3 years old at 18000 mlies. 76,000 miles on odometer today. My daily driver. Got an incredible deal on it.
2011 F250 pickup 45,000 miles. Tows our travel trailer. Purchased with trailer for retirement travel. Hope to keep for at least 300,000 miles.

We are indifferent between used and new. Depends on the deal. However we like to keep vehicles as long as we can. We maintain them extremely well. We'll sell if repairs start becoming frequent and costly. We like to keep a vehicle for 20 years if it is safe, reliable, and relatively low cost to maintain.


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[hnzw_rui]

I'm surprised by the amount of buy new cars here too. I figured the vast majority 95% would be buy 2-3 years old and keep forever. I always thought that how long your car lasts is based on how well you took care of it in the first few years, break-in, etc. if you bought used, you have no idea how the car was treated those first crucial years. Unless you have an outlier who keeps a detailed diary and receipts of their oil changes, fill ups, mileage, etc.

Yup, that's the thing. Certified pre-owned for 2-3 year old vehicles are just a couple thousand cheaper than new so I'm not really seeing the drastic depreciation often cited. Heck, even private sale is just a thousand or so less. Maybe if you drive a Mercedes or BMW, you'd see a bigger discount. On Toyotas and Hondas? Not so much.

I figure I can probably keep using the brand new car for 3 years more than used which would more than offset the $2-3K price difference. I'm hoping self-driving cars will be the norm by the time the cars need replacing because I hate driving (well, more like I hate driving in LA traffic).

 

[folivier]

Just bought a 2014 Mustang convertible, certified preowned with 25,000 miles, factory + CPO extended warranty and paid 0.567% of list price when new. Plan to keep it until I can't get in and out of it.
Bought a 2011 Tahoe in March with 80,000 miles. Also plan to keep that for at least 5 years.

 

[Independent]

Actual 45 year history:
1970 Maverick - 14 years
1978 Malibu - - - 11 years
1984 Colt Vista - 17 years
1989 Maxima - - - 9 years
1998 Maxima - - 10 years
2001 Echo - - -- 14 years so far, with no end in sight
2005 Murano - - 10 years so far

I believe in "buy new, drive it till you can't trust it". I figure every time I sell/buy I incur a big transaction cost.

 

[imoldernu]

Didja ever figure your cost per year per car... exclusive insurance, fuel, normal maintenance (tires, oil changes etc.)? Major repairs should be included.

So, like if you buy new for $25K and trade in 5 years then buy new again with a net trade cost of $10K ... in 10 years your total cost would be $45K minus the trade value of 15K.... This would give a total cost of 30K, or $3000/year.

Might be a way of budgeting, and calculating actual costs. The real trick is to figure out values buying new vs. buying used... and to determine how the dealership margin affects the net cost. Resale values from Kelly Blue book, or from consumer magazines can be a major consideration for buying for us frugaleers.

My Studebaker Starlight is worth more now, than when it was new.

 

[BBQ-Nut]

Didja ever figure your cost per year per car... exclusive insurance, fuel, normal maintenance (tires, oil changes etc.)? Major repairs should be included.

So, like if you buy new for $25K and trade in 5 years then buy new again with a net trade cost of $10K ... in 10 years your total cost would be $45K minus the trade value of 15K.... This would give a total cost of 30K, or $3000/year.

Might be a way of budgeting, and calculating actual costs. The real trick is to figure out values buying new vs. buying used... and to determine how the dealership margin affects the net cost. Resale values from Kelly Blue book, or from consumer magazines can be a major consideration for buying for us frugaleers.

My Studebaker Starlight is worth more now, than when it was new.

Just curious as to why insurance would not be included in a total cost of ownership comparison between new & used?

That and DMV registration fees.

Insurance on new vehicles (when electing to take collision esp) and DMV fees can add up to substantial costs.

 

[travelover]

...........
Insurance on new vehicles (when electing to take collision esp) and DMV fees can add up to substantial costs.

Last year DW sold her 2004 Taurus and Bought a new Honda CRV. Insurance changed about $10, with full coverage on both. DMV fees went up a bit, but less than $100 for sure.

 

[BBQ-Nut]

Last year DW sold her 2004 Taurus and Bought a new Honda CRV. Insurance changed about $10, with full coverage on both. DMV fees went up a bit, but less than $100 for sure.

Were you carrying collision on the 2004 Taurus?

Collision is where the cost delta would be.

In the past, after about 6-8 years from 'new', I've dropped collision.

 

[travelover]

Last year DW sold her 2004 Taurus and Bought a new Honda CRV. Insurance changed about $10, with full coverage on both. DMV fees went up a bit, but less than $100 for sure.

Were you carrying collision on the 2004 Taurus?

Collision is where the cost delta would be.

In the past, after about 6-8 years from 'new', I've dropped collision.

Yes, same coverage. When I asked the AAA agent why, he just said the majority of the insurance cost is for insuring against personal injury, not hardware.

 

[antmary]

My '98 Honda Civic has 217,000 miles; I purchased it new, and is still in good condition for around town. I'm thinking about buying a new (used) car - cash - because we are planning some trips.

 

[RAE]

I've bought plenty of used cars in my life, and most have served me well, considering what I paid for them. But my last 3-4 vehicles have been bought new, and that's probably what I will continue doing for the rest of my lifetime. I try to get 10 years or more out of a new vehicle (or until I feel they are starting to become unreliable, or annoy me with too many unexpected repair bills). I had a 2004 Chev. Silverado pickup that I had to trade in after only 8 years, as it had numerous problems and was starting to cost me way more $$ in repair bills than it should have, considering the mileage on the truck was not that high. The two vehicles I have now (Jeep Wrangler and Toyota Tundra pickup) have both been great, and I should be able to get 10+ years out of each of them, I hope. One problem up here in the north country is rust, which is unavoidable if you put the vehicle on the road during the winter months (the roads are heavily salted).

 

[Katsmeow]

It depends. I do buy new. I'm not against buying used and always check, but quite often a newer used car is not appreciably less money than simply buying new. Also, sometimes I can't find the exact mix of features that I want on a used car.

As to how often -- it depends. I don't like to keep vehicles for a super long time as I think that many of the newer safety features are really important. Even with DH retired and me working very part-time from home we still drive a lot.

The car I currently drive (Ford Explorer) I've had for 4 years. It has good safety features (I particularly like adaptive cruise control). It has a little over 50k miles on it. It is larger than we currently need and in a way I would like to replace it. But, it is in good condition so I'm not in any real hurry. Probably in a few years.

I would guess we end up keeping most cars about 7 or 8 years.

Exceptions: Cars we gave our kids. For example, DS got my Prius when it was about 4 years old. Also, once about 20 years ago I had a minivan that just had lots of problems and I traded it in when it was 2 or 3 years old.

 

[Eagle43]

My 1997 F-150 bought in 1999. Paid off in early 2004. No car payments since then. But, as I said in another post, RMD beckons. Gotta spend it on something, so why not a shiny new ride.

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[Walt34]

But, as I said in another post, RMD beckons. Gotta spend it on something, so why not a shiny new ride.

There is that, and I might do something similar. When DW reaches FRA we'll have more money than we know what to do with and might be looking for ways to spend it. Sure hope it's not on medical care....

 

[UpAnchor]

My past cars have been ~15 years old when they are sold or traded in (or donated). I buy new, from the dealer, with excellent dealer financing (0%, .9%, etc.)

We've done largely the same up to this point. I suspect, however, we'll start placing more of a priority on safety/reliability as we age. Vehicle problems weren't all that much fun, even in our youth. But a breakdown on a rural MN road in the middle of winter for an older couple takes it to another level entirely.


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