Have you bought a new Vehicle lately? How much did it cost per pound?

[ArmchairMillionaire]

I thought I'd revisit this concept I first heard of while reading The Millionaire Next Door.

Two years ago, we picked up our brand-spankin' new 2024 Chevrolet Trax LS. It was the first new vehicle we purchased in the 20 years we've known each other. The base MSRP on a Trax LS was $21,495 including destination charges. We ordered ours with a few additional options, so our MSRP was $22,905.00. This does not include state registration or state sales tax. Just the price we paid for the vehicle.

According to GM Authority, the curb weight of our Trax LS is 3,062 pounds. Divide $22,905.00 by 3,062 and the result is $7.48 per pound.

I'm curious to what others on this site are paying for their new vehicles. By new, I mean new vehicles purchased within the last three years.

I know somebody's going to post how they bought an old used Suburban for $500 which works out to 11¢ per pound, but let's try to keep it to relatively recent new vehicle purchases for the purpose of this thread.

note: I actually did buy an old used Suburban for $500. I also once picked up a 1971 Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight Regency from a cousin for $10, so that works out to about 1/5th of a cent per pound... But that was back in around 1988 or so.

 

[Koolau]

I'll simply be interested in how many folks here have purchased new cars in the past 3 years. My last new vehicle was purchased in 1991 while my DW purchased her last new vehicle in 2001.

OP, is there anything that you find interesting or particularly useful about the metric of cost/pound? I'm trying to think whether the metric has any usefulness to anyone thinking about a car purchase. No criticism - just curiosity on my part.

 

[COcheesehead]

New in 2024. $14.18/lb

 

[ArmchairMillionaire]

I'll simply be interested in how many folks here have purchased new cars in the past 3 years. My last new vehicle was purchased in 1991 while my DW purchased her last new vehicle in 2001.

OP, is there anything that you find interesting or particularly useful about the metric of cost/pound? I'm trying to think whether the metric has any usefulness to anyone thinking about a car purchase. No criticism - just curiosity on my part.

It's just a section in TMND. In the chapter titled, "You aren't what you drive". At the end of one section, the authors have just interviewed a group of millionaires and are in the parking lot surveying all the vehicles.

They remark;
“We looked at each other; one said: “These people are not into status; they buy automobiles by the pound!”
― Thomas J. Stanley, The Millionaire Next Door

 

[marinauser]

Two new cars in 2025 - one planned to replace a 2011 and an unplanned replacement of a 2013 that developed some mechanical issues. Average cost to replace was about $14.50 per pound.

 

[Koolau]

It's just a section in TMND. In the chapter titled, "You aren't what you drive". At the end of one section, the authors have just interviewed a group of millionaires and are in the parking lot surveying all the vehicles.

They remark;
“We looked at each other; one said: “These people are not into status; they buy automobiles by the pound!”
― Thomas J. Stanley, The Millionaire Next Door

I actually do recall that statement but never associated it with any practical use in the car buying "game." Thanks for the response.

 

[tutan]

Maybe it’s a measure for sports cars like horsepowers per pound.

 

[TheWizard]

My 2024 Mustang cost about the same per pound as live lobster around here...

 

[aaronc879]

I'll simply be interested in how many folks here have purchased new cars in the past 3 years. My last new vehicle was purchased in 1991 while my DW purchased her last new vehicle in 2001.

OP, is there anything that you find interesting or particularly useful about the metric of cost/pound? I'm trying to think whether the metric has any usefulness to anyone thinking about a car purchase. No criticism - just curiosity on my part.

Just under 4 years ago for me. I bought a new car for $24K. Approx. $7.74/pound

I guessing the metric could be used to determine how frugal of a purchase it was. How economical.

 

[joesxm3]

Grok says I paid $11.45 per pound for my 2026 white Tesla Model Y LR.

 

[aja8888]

$30,890 / 3,325 lbs = ~$9.29 per pound (Note: this varies slightly based on the specific MSRP used, which can range from $29,495 to $30,890 depending on source/added features). Using the lower MSRP of $29,495 gives a cost of approximately $8.87 per pound.

 

[pb4uski]

2023 Ford Maverick XLT Hybrid out-the-door $29,571 / 3,674 lbs = $8.05/pound
2016 Subaru Outback Limited out-the-door $30,857 / 3,638 lbs = $8.48/pound

If I used MSRP it would be a tad lower due to transfer, title and sales taxes.

 

[OnTheBeach]

BMW 740i : $21.27 per pound

 

[Fermion]

How do you like that Trax LS? Compared to most cars it is really inexpensive!

 

[imjustawarrior]

Purchased in 2025 $13/lb
Purchased in 2025 $12/lb

Cheaper than a lot of steaks. Makes me feel better. The cost of steaks is my gage to determine if something is expensive.

 

[Sorcerer]

Are we comparing cars to cuts of steak now?

 

[Car-Guy]

Using the window sticker price and a curb weight of ~6400 lbs, my latest vehicle calculates out to ~17.18 lb.... Sort of meaningless but that's what it is.

 

[Diogenes]

It's just a section in TMND. In the chapter titled, "You aren't what you drive". At the end of one section, the authors have just interviewed a group of millionaires and are in the parking lot surveying all the vehicles.

They remark;
“We looked at each other; one said: “These people are not into status; they buy automobiles by the pound!”
― Thomas J. Stanley, The Millionaire Next Door

The implication is that serious people, with an eye towards judicious deployment of wealth, view cars as means-to-and-end. The most useful cars is the most capacious, with the most towing capability etc. The least useful, and also the most ostentatious, is a small costly sports car.

In a related thread today, I posted about the "dream" to buy a McMurtry Speirling. It weighs around 2100 pounds and costs around $1.2M, for a ratio of $571/pound. Is that OK? Would Stanley and Danko approve?

 

[imjustawarrior]

Are we comparing cars to cuts of streak now?

Like knowing the per pound cost of a vehicle makes sense.

 

[bloom2708]

2026 Toyota Prius LE AWD $31,600 / 3230 = $9.78

More if you include tax of 5%.

 

[Out-to-Lunch]

In a related thread today, I posted about the "dream" to buy a McMurtry Speirling. It weighs around 2100 pounds and costs around $1.2M, for a ratio of $571/pound. Is that OK? Would Stanley and Danko approve?

You could downgrade to an Ariel Atom, for about $75/lb.

 

[Flyfish1]

Did a BTD move - I always wanted a convertible. So, I finally bought one. A 2014 Jaguar F Type V8 convertible. Vicious! $31,000/3671 lb. = $8.44/lb.
Leased the 2025 Audi Q7 so that doesn't count.

 

[MC Rider]

I bought a 2021 Kia Sportage last year with < 50,00 miles on it. About $4.59/pound or $5.14 OTD.

New Suzuki MC in 2022 was $16.28/pound or $20.90 OTD.

The bike is more fun. The car more practical.

The only new 4 wheeler I ever got was a company car that I did not pay for. A 2004 Honda Civic. I just chose the color.

 

[FLSUnFIRE]

$10.5/lb 2025 hybrid
Also bought a new regular bicycle that retails for $15/lb but I only paid about $8/lb.

 

[ArmchairMillionaire]

How do you like that Trax LS? Compared to most cars it is really inexpensive!

Since you asked...

We like it a lot. We bought it primarily to use as a retirement road trip vehicle. So it's our 6th vehicle in our fleet. We've only had it for two years and two weeks. We put 2800 miles on it the first year, and almost 3000 miles on it the second year.

Here's a photo of it at the Studebaker Museum last year:

It's been really good on road trips. It's been averaging 34-ish mpg. and we can stretch a tank of gas to 450 or more miles, with 50-ish miles of range still showing on the readout. It's more of a small wagon than the SUV that GM claims it to be. It's only got a 1.2L turbo 3-cyl, and AWD is not available, but it has a traditional 6-speed transmission, which we wanted over the CVTs that most inexpensive vehicles come with nowadays. We store it for the winters, so AWD isn't a necessity for us. And even though it's a 3-cyl, it's plenty quick for us. I have to be careful pulling out of driveways or side streets as the tires will squeal a little if I give it too much gas.

It only came with cloth seats. If you want the Evotex™ seats, you have to get an LT or the 2RS, and both of those have a large screen instead of gauges for the instrument cluster, and they also have push-button start, and we did not want either of those so we had to get the (heated) cloth seats. We installed aftermarket imitation-leather seat covers to help protect the seats during those times when we're on a road-trip and we have to eat in the vehicle. They've been working well for us. We also ordered it with the Driver Confidence and LS Convenience packages, so it's got the aforementioned heated seats, keyless lock/unlock, remote start, silver aluminum wheels, and all the safety equipment like automatic emergency braking, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-keep-assist, blind-spot monitoring, automatic high-beams, following-distance sensors, and probably a few more that I can't recall off the top of my head.

We saved up and paid cash for it so we wouldn't have car payments in retirement. The stealership gave us a lifetime powertrain warranty for no cost when we bought it. We have to have the recommended service done at the dealership, but with as few miles as we put on it, the maintenance is reasonable enough.