Reducing number of autos

[rk911]

…It got me started thinking about a 2nd car. Not really a good reason for a second car, but hey, I HAVE been trying to adopt more of a BTD attitude and the experience gave me a shove in that direction. Now hoping my friend sells me the 2nd car instead of giving it to charity.

BTD attitude??

 

[Aerides]

BTD attitude??

BTD = Blow That Dough

 

[djsander]

I had a company vehicle since 2003. For personal vehicles we had a truck and a car. The truck started sitting in the drive way more and more and then in 2019 it finally needed alot of work. After much discussion we took my truck and her car and traded them in. We had the company vehicle for a back up in an an emergency, but never used it except for my work then I retired in early 2021. We have only the one vehicle now. We are ok with that. There are only a few places either of us goes without the other. When we go the other stays home. We aren’t usually gone along time so it’s not a big deal. It works pretty good so far. We don’t really see the need for two cars.

 

[RockyMtn]

when we were spending 6 months snow birding we would take just one car south. Worked fine and if for some reason two cars were needed on a specific day one of us would use Uber/Lyft.

Now that we are full time in one location, we have two cars but will probably go down to one at some point and revert to the Uber/Lyft plan again.

 

[Romer]

We could get by on two cars. Our hobbies and friends take us to different places so one car wouldn't work

We have 4 cars though. Well I have 3 and she has 1

She has an RX450H

I have a 1973 Land Cruiser I restored, a 2014 Land Cruiser I use to go off roading and a 2019 BMW Z4 I got when I was still working as it is fun and gets better gas mileage

I could go down to just the 2014 Land Cruiser and have thought about it. All 3 vehicles are fun to drive and I have 6 garage spaces to hold them and my Camper.

I am not driving much, but still don't want to downsize, at least not yet. Between Insurance and Registration fees I could save $1000 a year most likely by getting rid of two

Cars are one of my hobbies. I work on them myself and I belong to clubs. The Land Cruisers take me to places for days at a time that most people dont get to see

 

[ponyboy]

Everyone should own a truck, plain and simple. Couldnt imagine not having one. Then again, im pretty self sufficient and rarely rely on other people to do things for me.

We've always been a 3 car family. Space isnt an issue, money isnt an issue. Always have 1 truck on hand and an suv and sedan. Like others have stated, once a vehicle is paid off, its cheap to keep. Simple as that.

 

[rk911]

BTD = Blow That Dough

of course
thanks

 

[retire48in2018]

We had 2 vehicles for us until retirement. (In last year, company had a company car for us, and we sold our 2nd personal car. With supply shortage - we did not get 2nd one. We therefore went down to 1 - but not by planIt’s been a year, and only a few times inconvenient.

 

[Walt34]

Everyone should own a truck, plain and simple. Couldnt imagine not having one.

Same here.

I first decided I wanted a pickup truck as a second vehicle in the early 1980's. Where we lived at the time we had a next-door neighbor who was very generous about loaning his, one of the early Toyota pickups. I think the only option on it was an AM radio. "Just bring it back with a full tank" was his only request and that was certainly reasonable.

During my divorce from wife #1 my 1970 Plymouth Duster finally gave out and I (foolishly, in hindsight) bought a brand new 1985 Chevy 4WD pickup truck.

One of the guys at work asked "You're going to go out on dates in a pickup truck?"

"Sure. And if some girl doesn't want to go out with me because I drive a pickup that's fine. It'll save us both a lot of bother."

As it turned out, DW-to-be thought the pickup truck was great. It had A/C and her car didn't so that was luxury living to her.

Turns out there's some truth in the song:

 

[jpeter1093]

We went from 2 cars to 1 at retirement and haven't had any issues; so far. We live right in the city so many things (Dentist, for example) are walkable. We also have bikes, trains, buses, and Uber/Lyft for transport options. I don't miss 2 car payments and insurance on them both

 

[Dynaflash]

Yes that’s not going to work for me. We have 5 between me and my wife......well she has one and I have 4. New Ram truck for pulling the camper, 1930 Model A Ford, 1967 Camaro Convertible and 1957 Chevrolet. Don’t believe I can do without any of them. ��

 

[Koolau]

Yes that’s not going to work for me. We have 5 between me and my wife......well she has one and I have 4. New Ram truck for pulling the camper, 1930 Model A Ford, 1967 Camaro Convertible and 1957 Chevrolet. Don’t believe I can do without any of them. ��

That's a BIG garage! (Or a lot of car covers.) Always wanted a Jay Leno sized garage, but I'm making due with my 2 spaces in our parking structure. No car collection for me without my own garage. YMMV

 

[GaryInCO]

My car is a 20-yr-old Saab 9-5 Aero. It was only the 2nd NEW car I ever owned, and it's been a fun ride. I didn't intend to buy another one new, but the Saab is overdue for retirement.

Then Covid and cancer came along and put a dent in my retirement travel plans, especially as I'm now immune-challenged. So since airplanes are off the menu for now, and even hotels/restaurants are iffy, I decided to get a Tesla Model Y. I was planning a bunch of road-trips and car-camping for this summer.

Then SHTF in Ukraine and elsewhere, and the car that was supposed to arrive 2 weeks ago is now scheduled for Sept-Oct. Sigh. First-world problems.

 

[ArmchairMillionaire23]

So I've been turning this over and over in my head for a couple of years... now that retirement is coming later this year, should DW and I narrow the investment in autos down to one that we share?

Anyone go down this path and willing to share their thinking and outcomes?

DW & I have 5 vehicles that we share. Her car is a 2015 Chevrolet, my truck is a 2010 GMC. We also have a 2003 GMC SUV that we have as a back-up vehicle for emergencies or if our daily driver needs service. In addition to those, I have a 1979 Chevrolet El Camino and she has a 1977 MGB convertible just for fun and to bring to car shows in the summers. All are fully paid for.

I also had a 1957 pickup but I sold that 9 or 10 years ago to "narrow our investment in autos down" to only 5 vehicles.

 

[marion10]

We have only one car- occasionally, if I go out of town, I rent one. We used to belong to zip car, but didn’t use it enough to to justify the membership fee. We live in an inner ring suburb of a Chicago with good public transportation- if we are going downtown, take the el. Otherwise, I decent weather, we can walk to church, library and shopping. Or take a cab or Uber. We have two parking spaces with our condo, but rent one out. Covers the property tax for the space.

 

[meleana]

So I've been turning this over and over in my head for a couple of years... now that retirement is coming later this year, should DW and I narrow the investment in autos down to one that we share?

These last 5 years, even prior to COVID but including it, DW has been primarily volunteering in our town one or two days per week with an on and off side job every so often for 'mad money'. I've been primarily a work @ home professional for > 20 years prior to COVID and it's been even more since the pandemic hit.

Our current vehicles are aging (2010 Honda and 2015 BMW) to the point where they both need some attention and don't have some of the more recent safety features DW really likes (cameras all around, heads-up-display, lane departure warnings, etc.). I've been thinking about selling both and getting something newer we share and wanted to know what others have done. I figure the insurance, maintenance and headache of on-street parking would be the benefits vs. the rare times we BOTH need a vehicle - which is extremely rare, maybe 6 times per year since late 2017.

Anyone go down this path and willing to share their thinking and outcomes?

Everyone’s lifestyle is different but I’d say generally no. Two cars. 2013 and 2016 SUVs- a must in New England. Mileage not bad- kind of low. We are in our 60’s.

Example: my husband goes fishing. I go out shopping. He has a doctors appt. I have a hair appt and lunch date with the girls.. One car breaks down and is in the shop. Then what?

We have neighbors our age who had one car for a number of years and after it was in the shop for repairs they decided they needed a second car.

But we do have a few other neighbors that only have one car. But they do everything together all the time.
One of those couples gets a new car like every couple of years. I think they lease- not sure.

Then again there are some others that have 3 or more, some including a pick up truck and motorcycle and a classic car.

 

[WWDog]

Wife and I have had one vehicle for several years in retirement. We have planned our days around use of the car between us and it is second nature now. By the way, THE car is a 2010 and is doing fine with not as many miles put on it every year. Given the cost of new cars now days, we will opt to drive this one for a while longer until the cost of upkeep forces us to get a new car.

 

[GATime]

We are over 5 years of single car ownership. Now the caveat is that I alway have one or two motorcycles in the garage, so the bikes are my personal transportation. Living in the south, I ride year round. Never have we had the need for 2 cars and doubt we ever will. For several years when we did have 2 cars, one was always electric, so hoping to move to a single electric vehicle in a couple years. Second bonus is we live near a town square so can walk to almost everything we need, except for groceries.

 

[pjigar]

Yes that’s not going to work for me. We have 5 between me and my wife......well she has one and I have 4. New Ram truck for pulling the camper, 1930 Model A Ford, 1967 Camaro Convertible and 1957 Chevrolet. Don’t believe I can do without any of them. ��

I get it! We have 4 SUVs between 2 of us.
* One for dog/junk/dirty/beekeeping work.
* One for me
* One for DW
* and last one is a backup when one of the other 3 is down! I do my own repairs so it can take days or weeks to finish the work that is started.


We have an acreage so parking is not a problem.


BTW I want a truck but I have to wait for one of the car to die before I pull the plug.


PS: The newest is 2014 and the oldest is 2006.

 

[ncbill]

6 vehicles for our household...most free from relatives who either died or stopped driving.

Hoping to transfer a couple into the kids' names this year since they're now (or soon will be) on their own.

 

[samcat]

We just semi-retired 12/31/21. We have two cars. A 2010 Mazda 3 and a 2008 Honda Odyssey. A new car would be nice but we are not ready and both of our cars have low mileage. We are a mile from any shopping center so can walk it but would not want to have to walk it all the time.

The Mazda is our main car and we rarely drive the Odyssey but it is paid off and runs fine. I think we both like the option of being able to drive a car when we need it and would be stressed trying to figure out transportation if we only had one car. Retirement would not be fun.

I think we will always have two cars until the time that one of us can't drive anymore.

I say keep an old one and get one new one that is the main car you drive.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

We have never owned a truck and most likely never will. Home Depot Rents them really cheap if we need one. Same argument as those who use Lyft and Uber in lieu of a 2nd car. I can count on one hand when we ever really needed one, in all cases a friend helped out or we made 2 trips.

 

[Sunset]

Yes that’s not going to work for me. We have 5 between me and my wife......well she has one and I have 4. New Ram truck for pulling the camper, 1930 Model A Ford, 1967 Camaro Convertible and 1957 Chevrolet. Don’t believe I can do without any of them. ��

You win for keeping the a car the longest

If DW sees this, she will want to hold onto her 25 yr old Camry another 25 yrs

 

[38Chevy454]

You win for keeping the a car the longest

I've had my 68 Pontiac GTO for 42 years now, just as a comment related to long term ownership.

 

[Koolau]

You win for keeping the a car the longest

If DW sees this, she will want to hold onto her 25 yr old Camry another 25 yrs

And why not? One of my direct reports had her Toyota mini-truck reach half a million miles. She used it on her horse farm and to run back and forth to town. Looked like cwap but everything worked. Not sure how old it was but I'm betting it was approaching 40 years. YMMV