How long do you plan to keep your car?

[indiajust]

I have only purchased 2 cars in my life, both VW's, an 86 GTI and a 98 Jetta. I got 250k and 15 years from the GTI, 270k and 21 years and counting from the Jetta.


I have a 94 Mazda truck with 160k on it.

[PointBreeze]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Music Lover It's a combination of economics, reliability, and just "wanting" something else. For me, the sweet spot is buying a good 3 year old car and keeping it for 6 or 7 years.

I buy 3-year-old cars and keep them 8-9 years. Acura or Honda. As a previous poster mentioned, when the electronics start to go, I lose my patience and it's time for something new.


Last car I bought was a 3-year-old Acura with only 9,000 miles. It's now 5 years old and has 25,000 miles. Should last me quite a while.

[84Targa50]

I used to think the best approach was to buy new and keep until vehicle mileage approached or slightly exceeded 100,000 miles.

Now I think the best approach is to lease and keep for the term of the lease.

Why the change? Well, it’s not about the money. It’s about safety. Is the extra safety worth the extra cost? To answer I will quote a friend who answers questions like that by saying “I have fire insurance on my house. I don’t ever expect to need it. But if I do, it will be worth its weight in gold.”

A quick internet search found this information that I cut and pasted from a much longer post:

“So do all these bells and whistles really work? They do. The IIHS has conducted studies on accident prevention and found that the safety features and warning systems really do work. Some of their findings:
• Collision avoidance technology cuts the rates of injury crashes by 21%
• Front crash prevention with auto brake cuts the rate of front-to-rear crashes in half
• If all passenger vehicles had been equipped with lane departure warning systems in 2015, more than 55,000 injuries would have been prevented”

[S103462]

My wife and I just bought new cars. Our previous cars -- mine a 2002 Chevy Trailblazer w/200,000 miles, hers a 2003 Acura TL-S w/ 105,000 miles -- started costing as much to maintain as new car payments. I bought another SUV; she bought a hybrid. The technology in today's vehicles is far ahead of our previous vehicles. We'll keep these new ones for (hopefully) a decade or more.

[SmallCityDave]

Quote:

Originally Posted by 84Targa50 I used to think the best approach was to buy new and keep until vehicle mileage approached or slightly exceeded 100,000 miles. Now I think the best approach is to lease and keep for the term of the lease. Why the change? Well, it’s not about the money. It’s about safety. Is the extra safety worth the extra cost? To answer I will quote a friend who answers questions like that by saying “I have fire insurance on my house. I don’t ever expect to need it. But if I do, it will be worth its weight in gold.” A quick internet search found this information that I cut and pasted from a much longer post: “So do all these bells and whistles really work? They do. The IIHS has conducted studies on accident prevention and found that the safety features and warning systems really do work. Some of their findings: • Collision avoidance technology cuts the rates of injury crashes by 21% • Front crash prevention with auto brake cuts the rate of front-to-rear crashes in half • If all passenger vehicles had been equipped with lane departure warning systems in 2015, more than 55,000 injuries would have been prevented”

Interesting way of looking at it but my question would be where does it end?



Do you only lease a car for a year because technology and safety are moving quickly, which vehicle do you get? The safety features on a Toyota Corolla are great especially compared to a 5 year old Corolla but are they as good as what's on a high end Mercedes? Perhaps we drive less...



I remember when airbags first came out, there was a study on the number of accidents, people with airbags were (statistically) in more accidents (and they concluded) because they felt safer.

[panhead]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SmallCityDave I live in one of those dry climates and rust is the last thing we worry about. Yesterday I sold my 20 year old truck that had almost 200k miles on it, I sold it for almost 20% more than we bought it for 5 years ago and we didn't do any upgrades. The bad part is that 20% more than very little is still very little

I remember driving a couple of hundred miles with my truck for work. One of my coworkers was there (who lives in California) couldn't believe that I would put that much wear and tear on my own vehicle, and why didn't I rent one instead? I told her that I want to get as many miles out of my truck that I could before it dissolved beneath me. She didn't get it.

Motors, transmissions, differentials, transfer cases, ball joints, brakes, computers, etc, etc, are all relatively cheap to replace if you are doing it yourself. Once you have a problem with structural rust, its just not worth repairing anymore. I've welded a few frames to keep a vehicle going for a few more years, but this is where I draw the line on keeping a vehicle.

[Koolau]

I had to replace my 2000 last year when the transmission failed. The repair would have cost more than the car was worth. I suppose that's as good a method to decide when to replace as is total milage or age. Between our three cars, we rarely exceed 10,000 miles total in a year. Therefore, we think they should last quite a long time, even though we bought them with significant mileage on them.

A real advantage to older cars is that one can drop collision coverage and self insure for that. In one state, the tags cost less than $60/year due to the age.

So now we have a '99, '00 and '12. Average miles per vehicle is 110K. YMMV

[rick55]

I bought a 2017 Canyon last year, and I hope to make this my last vehicle. DW has a 2007 accord with 63k miles that had been flawless until the battery died. Then the check engine light came on after the new battery, and it had to go in to the shop a couple times to ultimately fix it. She now has her eye on the new Honda Passport coming out, and we will probably make a purchase in a year or so.

[Breedlove]

I drive a 2006 Honda Ridgeline DW drives 2018 Kia Soul . The Honda has 160K on it . Last oil change I was looking at something better ( could not find it ) But I seen a Honda CVCC on display with 420K miles on it . I think every car will go the miles it is the small things that fail and for that reason you need to maintain your car ...beyond just an oil change.

[davemartin88]

We have two cars and typically replace one of them when the combined mileage gets to around 125,000. My truck is at around 90,000 now and our Highlander is at about 12,000 so will be a while before we make any changes.

[Andre1969]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Koolau I had to replace my 2000 last year when the transmission failed. The repair would have cost more than the car was worth. I suppose that's as good a method to decide when to replace as is total milage or age. Between our three cars, we rarely exceed 10,000 miles total in a year. Therefore, we think they should last quite a long time, even though we bought them with significant mileage on them. A real advantage to older cars is that one can drop collision coverage and self insure for that. In one state, the tags cost less than $60/year due to the age. So now we have a '99, '00 and '12. Average miles per vehicle is 110K. YMMV

One of the quickest ways for me to start thinking about a new car is if the current one starts getting unreliable and leaves me stranded on a regular basis, or starts going into the shop frequently...even if the repair costs aren't *too* horrible.


I also have a mental hurdle of roughly $350/mo...basically, whatever the cost ends up being, I think of how many months I'd have to go for that repair to amortize down to $350/mo. That figure sticks with me, most likely, because the only two car payments I ever had were about that much...$347/mo for a 2000 Intrepid, and $358/mo for a 2012 Ram.


One thing that sometimes holds me back, too, is the "startup" costs of a new car. I had always figured that, if the transmission ever went out on my 2003 Regal, that would be the last straw, but I haven't priced them lately. I remember about 7-8 years ago, the local repair shop said a rebuilt transmission for a 2000 Park Ave Ultra would be around $1800. The Regal is similar, just less beefy, so it might be similar. Anyway, here in Maryland, just the sales tax on, say, a $20,000 car, would be $1200. And, $20K isn't much of a car nowadays, at least not on the brand-new front.

[Reese]

Hope I'm not hijacking the thread - if so, my apologies. I have a 2010 4Runner that I keep the maintenance up on with the dealer. The body is in very good shape and I currently have 98k miles on it. Think I can go to 200+ miles? Thanks for any responses.

[38Chevy454]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reese Hope I'm not hijacking the thread - if so, my apologies. I have a 2010 4Runner that I keep the maintenance up on with the dealer. The body is in very good shape and I currently have 98k miles on it. Think I can go to 200+ miles? Thanks for any responses.

No reason it should not if you keep up on preventative maintenance.


BTW, welcome to the forum, post an intro in the "Hi, I am..." so you can get more involved.

[Andre1969]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reese Hope I'm not hijacking the thread - if so, my apologies. I have a 2010 4Runner that I keep the maintenance up on with the dealer. The body is in very good shape and I currently have 98k miles on it. Think I can go to 200+ miles? Thanks for any responses.

As long as you take care of it, it should. However, considering your mileage, I have a feeling you could start running into "old age" type issues. A lot of plastic stuff will start to get brittle, and fail. And I'm not talking just trim pieces, but stuff like radiators, intake manifolds, brake calipers, etc, all have plastic in them these days, in the interests of keeping costs down. And, often when they fail, you have to replace the whole part, rather than just fix it.


For instance, years ago I had a 1968 Dodge Dart, and a seal started leaking, at the top of the radiator. For around $100 I think, my mechanic pulled it out of the car, sent it off to a specialist, who took the top off, cleaned the radiator out real good, re-soldered it, sent it back to my mechanic, and he put it back in. Now granted, this was the 1990's, so with inflation factored in, that would probably equate to around $175 these days.


But, just a few months ago, a friend of mine had the same problem with his 2006 Xterra. Only problem here, is that I believe it's a metal top that's crimped, somehow, onto plastic radiator coils, and you don't fix it; you replace it. I want to say that was around $800.


You'll probably also run into other "old age" issues such as electrical/computer problems, sensors going bad, emissions controls, etc. For the most part, they're pretty good these days about keeping the cars looking nice, shiny, and rust-free, and engines and drivetrains are pretty good. But, electronics and plastics tend to be the achilles heel, I think. That, and labor rates just keep going up.

[Reese]

Thanks for your response. Not sure how long I'm keeping it. The dealer said I could keep it longer than 200k (he said he's had customers with 4runners with 500k on them) but I am a bit suspicious of good response. Not sure this is a fair question but maybe a better question to ask is how long should it be kept before it becomes a safety issue and maintenance costs start to mount. I do like the vehicle, no family, I do take care of it and I'm between jobs right now. Thanks again.

[Major Tom]

I have only owned 2 cars in my lifetime - both of them used. For a while, I rode a Vespa, then for 6 1/2 years, a motorcycle. The last car I owned was a 1988 Volvo 240DL wagon, which I sold in February 2002. Since then, my primary transport has been a bicycle, with walking and public transport thrown in for good measure.

When it comes to bicycles, all of them in my adult life, except one, have been purchased used. A couple were lost to theft, and one was sold because of a move. I plan to keep the current bicycle (a $100 purchase from Craigslist) until it either gets really old and rickity, or is stolen, or no longer appeals to me for some other reason.

Clearly, this thread wasn't intended for the likes of me

[Lawrencewendall]

I recently was told that a fair amount of wiring harnesses and other parts are now soy- based instead of petroleum-based. Built in shelf life as they decay not to mention that critters like to chew on soy-based stuff. Go green!

[The Cosmic Avenger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andre1969 I also have a mental hurdle of roughly $350/mo...basically, whatever the cost ends up being, I think of how many months I'd have to go for that repair to amortize down to $350/mo. That figure sticks with me, most likely, because the only two car payments I ever had were about that much...$347/mo for a 2000 Intrepid, and $358/mo for a 2012 Ram.

Same here! We started out saving $350/mo. towards a new car. We figured that was about $26K every 5 years, a decent amount for a new car or a really nice slightly used one, and with two cars that would be enough to replace each one every 10 years. (We were actually paying something like $385, but as I always try to do, I put aside about 90% of any "found money" and allow myself 10% just for fun, so that saving feels more rewarding instead of stressful.)

[coveredbridge]

My interest in new cars/trucks has been dampened recently by what I believe are gimmicks used by auto makers to pump up fuel mileage to meet standards at the expense of reliability and convenience. When helping DD shop for a car recently, we found that many new cars/trucks have an auto stop/start feature that shuts the engine off at stoppages when the brake pedal is depressed and restarts the engine when brake pedal is released. So what happens when you're in traffic and the engine doesn't restart?


Another trend is to place undersized turbocharged engines in larger cars/trucks, again to game the fuel mileage standards. While many claim turbocharger technology has evolved, I am skeptical and view the turbo as just another expensive item to eventually need fixed as well as overtaxing the motor.

[travelover]

Quote:

Originally Posted by coveredbridge ......... When helping DD shop for a car recently, we found that many new cars/trucks have an auto stop/start feature that shuts the engine off at stoppages when the brake pedal is depressed and restarts the engine when brake pedal is released. So what happens when you're in traffic and the engine doesn't restart? ...........

Yea, my Highlander has this "feature". It has a button to turn it off, but I installed an electronic after market device to turn it off automatically. On many cars you can also turn it off by driving the automatic transmission in "manual " mode.