Where's the sweet spot on a car

[pb4uski]

Actually I don't need to follow the thread; doing that is optional.



My point is that when one compares buying a car from a private party to buying a car from a dealer, one consideration -- in SOME states -- is that if you buy a car from a private party, you will pay tax on the full purchase price, when you go to register that car, whereas if you buy a car from a dealer, and trade your old car into that dealer, you will pay tax only on the "net" purchase price (that is, the price of the new car less the value given for the trade). This is not the case in every state. And there may be countervailing considerations that suggest it is better to buy privately. But in at least some states, it is a potentially relevant consideration.

I agree that if one is in a state that does not allow a credit against the tax on the replacement car for a car that you sold rather than traded that it would be a consideration... I'm not sure how many states to that... it seems a bot onerous but the auto dealers are politically powerful and I can se it would be in their interest to have such a process.

 

[FUEGO]

You did well. I believe that van has a Camry engine in it.

I like to think so. Very clean inside and under the hood. My independent toyota/honda mechanic said these years of Toyota siennas hold up well (and he recommended the toyota over the honda due to better transmissions). We took it on a 2400 mile road trip this summer with zero problems (well, a piece of plastic came slightly loose and it's still hanging there - probably missing a bolt or something).

 

[daylatedollarshort]

We've had similar experiences and conclusions to others in this thread. Subarus in our local area are usually too expensive to buy used. It makes more sense to buy new than to pay almost the same price for a car with 25K miles. For other reliable models, ~ 2 years old with one year under warranty left has worked out well.

 

[Sunset]

We went with a 7 year old minivan that had slightly above average miles (112k) for $8200. We also drive very little, so didn't mind the higher mileage to start with. It's a toyota, so should still run pretty well in 10 years and we still won't have 200k miles on it, so might be able to sell it for several thousand dollars.

.....

Check the oil line, some of these older toyota vans have a tiny rubber pipe that joins 2 metal pipes which carries oil.

The rubber on the original one will rot away in a number of years and suddenly you can be driving a vehicle without oil.

My buddy told me about this, as it happened to him.

 

[Sunset]

..... Not Mr. Money tight, but certainly not a new car every couple years. That's partly why the cost accountant in me keeps coming back to a cost per mile. But I do understand that with retirement and the change in driving (mileage) the formula changes.

I always think of my cars in cost per year. Mostly because if I don't drive them the cost is still there.

So if I drive say 12K - 15K per year, it could/should last me 10 years, which if I paid 30K for it, means it costs 3K/yr.

Now that I drive 5K per year, it should last 20 yrs, so it costs 1.5K/yr.

My previous car cost 1.1K / yr, but I feel richer now, so I upgraded

 

[racy]

... I liked driving new cars and having virtually no repairs. ... now I'm moving into retirement ...

You're retired now. Time to reward yourself with a new one!