In the long run, is it more beneficial to buy a new car, and drive it till it dies?

Question

I always buy used cars, because it isn't going to depreciate as much as a new car. But some people say they like buying a new car, and they will drive it till it dies. What is the most efficient way to buy and own a car?

Answer 1

Leasing

Answer 2

It's not leasing or buying new. Leasing is probably the most LEAST efficient.
I buy only low mileage 2-3 year old vehicles and hold on to them for about 4 years. That may not be the most efficient, however. I just need reliable transportation and don't want to deal with repair shops every month. To me, time is money! Once a car gets over 100K miles, the repairs and wasted time often cost more than buying another good used car.

Answer 3

From someone who knows: Think it was consumer magazine.
can't remember. It said :
Buy a car 2 years old, the first two years they don't hurt it and thats the biggest depreciation. Drive it till it is 10 years old that is when it starts to break you with repair bills. To rebuild a car from scratch the parts alone would cost a million dollars.
Don't ever use it as a trade in. They won't give you anything.
they say they do, but they don't. They have to make money by selling your older car. Sell it yourself and rent a car if you have to.
Then buy another car 2 years old and keep doing that.
that's the best way.

Answer 4

I know some people who buy new cars and trade them in in 5 years (before the value really drops). The only type of car you can hardly ever buy used is Subaru those things keep going and going!!! Even the really old ones still drive like champs. With used cars you are possibly buying something that will only last a year so you might as well just buy one really good car with a ten year warranty that way you are guaranteed a car for the next ten years.

Answer 5

Efficient as in financially...
You are doing it right.
New cars are going to depreciate the second you buy them.

Leasing is a good idea if you regularly change cars every 2 years and prefer to drive new cars. With a lease, you only have to worry about monthly payments and mileage limits.

Buy a used car, easy to pay off. Don't worry about impressing the neighbors with the latest thing. Then drive it as long and as far as you want to... It's yours.

Answer 6

Buy a used car that hasn't seen much wear and tear and buy it till it drops. They are out there. I got a used car that had < 2,000 miles on it. It was 7k less than what it would have cost on the dealer's lot. Don't buy a used car with 70k miles on it and expect to get much ROI. You will be putting money into any car once it gets up to a 100k miles.

Answer 7

Depends on your standards. If you don't mind driving a really, really crappy car you can buy one for under $2,000 and probably only spend $500 a year in maintenance on it.

Leasing is a good way to go if you want a late model though, although you realize you will never own anything, just borrowing it.

Answer 8

I buy used cars less than 2 years old with less than 20,000miles.

I keep them 10 years or 200,000 miles , whichever comes first.

most depreciation in first two years, after 10 years parts start running out.

Answer 9

The most cost effective:

Buy the cheapest piece of crap you can find (that still runs), get minimum liability insurance, drive it until it dies, and then sell it for parts.

As for me, although it is more expensive I'll pay a bit more for the luxury of a somewhat less crappy vehicle.

Answer 10

the best purchase you can make is a used car 1 year or less old with 10,000 or less miles. they usually lose 20% of the new price tag, and are still practically new.
P.S. DONT LISTEN TO ANYONE WHO SAYS LEASING THAT IS THE BIGGEST WASTE OF MONEY IN MY OPINION