[DaveC113]

It depends on the car... German cars I'd lease. Others with significant depreciation I'd look for used. My last 4 Subaru Imprezas I've purchased though, and cost of ownership has been a lot less vs leasing as the resale value on these cars in the Boulder, CO area is ridiculous.

My previous car, a '14 WRX, I owned for 3 years. It got totaled about 6 mo ago by a lady running a red light and I got back more than I paid for the car as hatchbacks were discontinued and the car's value was about what it was new.

Before that my '10 WRX was 4 y/o and 68k miles when I traded it in for $3k less than I paid for it after taking into account adjustments for hail damage.

[Elizabeth]

I buy new.
One reason is used needs repairs. Being female means all sorts of problems getting cars fixed.
I like buying new and having the extended warranty.
Even buying new...
I have a dozen Ford dealers in my metro area. I would buy a car from, and have it serviced.. at only TWO of all those dealers. The rest.... no way.

In my lifetime I have only tried getting my older. out of warranty car fixed someplace not a dealer. Each time a total damn failure. The repair usually failed in a month. Or a few months.
So I stick to dealers.

I always hear guys saying: "go to MY repair guy" no damn way. The minute that guy sees a woman, all he is doing is putzing, No respect.
And even most dealer repair shops do the same thing... Except a few. Which see this person as a repeat new car customer, and worth treating with some decency.

[mcgsxr]

I have used the same mechanic for getting on 20 years now.  We played hockey together in grade school, and my wife went to high school with him.  Many of my family and friends now use him too.  Great guy, and can look after anything from our late model Acura, right through the ~47 year old T Bird. 

[sebrof]

I buy new and keep for 8 - 10 years. This offsets the full price, so if I pay $5k or $10k more it works out to around $1K/year. And as was mentioned earlier in the thread, the prices between new and used seems to be converging somewhat.

[Armaegis]

When I was shopping around a few years ago, the prices on used cars was not that much better than new. Factor in that new needs less maintenance and that they offer 7 years 0% financing on new vs 4-5% on the used... I did some hodge podge calculating and the new car was actually cheaper in the long run.

[Wayner]

New. I'm a Ford guy and have bought many. Current is a Ford F150XLT (loaded) and a brand new Fusion Titanium (also loaded). I trade in for new every 4 years. With the truck, its usually been $10,000 to boot for another new one, that makes it about $2,500 a year to own new. The car has a little more cost, usually $12,000 to boot on trade, bring that cost to around $3,000 a year. Our average mileage is around 5,000 miles per vehicle so we get top trade-in value.

[zybar]

When I was shopping around a few years ago, the prices on used cars was not that much better than new. Factor in that new needs less maintenance and that they offer 7 years 0% financing on new vs 4-5% on the used... I did some hodge podge calculating and the new car was actually cheaper in the long run.

What kind of cars?

All of my used cars of recent vintage have depreciated substantially vs. new.

Also my used car loans have been under 2%. 

While that isn't 0%, it isn't too bad.

George

[nature boy]

I have bought both used and new cars.  Last few have been new Subaru's.  I maintain them in accordance with the service manual, nothing but the best synthetic oil, filters, brake pads, etc.  We run them for 190-200K miles to get our money's worth.  We have a great, reliable mechanic nearby when repairs are needed.  Never use the dealership for repairs.

NB

[sebrof]

I have bought both used and new cars.  Last few have been new Subaru's.  I maintain them in accordance with the service manual, nothing but the best synthetic oil, filters, brake pads, etc.  We run them for 190-200K miles to get our money's worth.  We have a great, reliable mechanic nearby when repairs are needed.  Never use the dealership for repairs.

NB

Not to sidetrack too much, but my last 2 cars have been new Subarus. These are the first 2 Subarus I ever bought.
One of them had transmission trouble at ~75K miles...bad news.
But I called Subaru and asked them to help with the cost of repairs and they covered the whole cost...good news.

Every manufacturer has some cars that will have a failure so just my bad luck (I only buy cars with excellent reliability ratings), but I really appreciated them not charging me anything.

[bummrush]

Bought used for many years.Freakin Chevette that just ran perfect and scooted everywhere . Then yrs later,15? eent to nrew,,Ford Escorts,2004 Mustang, now Ford Escape

[raddar]

I owned Toyotas, Hondas, VW, Fords, Chrysler, GM cars and now a BMW that I purchased new in 2005. The BMW is by far the best, most solid and believe it or not most reliable of all the cars I owned. The worst were the VW Passat and Pontiac Bonneville. The Toyotas and Hondas were good but were boring after a few years. The BMW is as enjoyable to drive today as it was 12 years ago. 

[drphoto]

All used for me except for an Accord sedan I got when I was in grad school in mid 80's. Maybe I've been lucky as none of the used cars turned out to have any major issues.

[HsvHeelFan]

I look for used lease or 1 owner cars.

Typically I'm looking for a used car that's 2 - 3 years old with 35K or fewer miles.   I make sure that the car has a clean CarFax and then,  I take the car to a local body shop, slip the guy there a 20 for his time and have him come out and look at the paint and body work.  Good paint and body guys can tell in a few minutes if the car has had body damage.  If that checks out, along with the CarFax,  I make an offer.  I don't ever  pay whats on the sticker.

I let the first owner take the big depreciation hit.

HsvHeelFan

[Armaegis]

What kind of cars?
All of my used cars of recent vintage have depreciated substantially vs. new.
Also my used car loans have been under 2%. 
While that isn't 0%, it isn't too bad.

George

When I was shopping around a few years ago, I was looking mostly at Nissan, Honda, Mitsubishi, and VW. Used car prices were/are lousy here. You'll get nothing at the dealer because our winters have so much salt on the roads that chew up the cars, but buying used and they'll jack up the prices. If the new car was 25k, the two year old used model is 20 grand and will have 50k mileage on it.

[rockadanny]

Used, just like most of my audio equipment.    I want the best but typically cannot afford it, so I seek out the best I can within my budget, which, for cars is always used. For audio equipment it is usually used/demo/closeout/etc.

[Bob Stark]

Used.  Near my area in the SW suburbs of Chicago we have a place called College Cars Chicago.com.  They are located where no one would ever just walk in for a look--well behind a long row of buildings and businesses on a dead end small street.  You then have to turn right and go about a block to another dead end where their building is.  They have a large 2 building wide indoor facility with about 65 used cars that are all in CHERRY condition.  Their prices are fantastic, they carry cars, SUVS, minivans, and occasional trucks that are most wanted by their potential customers.  They stand behind their cars IF something should go wrong.  I bought a 2006 Nissen Altima and one year later my brakes needed work.  Zack (the owner) told me to come in and they did a whole brake job replacing the pads, rotors, on all 4 wheels and he charged me $50 so he could help pay he worker.  All the cars have brand new tires and most have brand new brakes and rotors.  My last car, a Ford Escape, had new Michelins on it.  They also have a Car Fax on each windshield along with their price for the vehicle.  The 3 salesmen WILL NOT bother you in the car warehouse unless you have a question and you are free to browse and sit in any vehicle.  When you want a test drive, they allow you to take it out for a drive BY YOURSELF and bring it back when you are  done.  It is an amazing experience!!  Most of their customers will never go anywhere else.  If you are interested in a certain vehicle they aren't currently carrying, they will have several the next time you go.  All on word-of mouth advertising and an out-of-date internet ad.  They sell over 2000 cars a year.

[this_is_vv]

I know this thread is for buying a vehicle. I just want to put what I am doing for last couple of years and this may be helpful to few.



In simple words I just lease. Again this is what I do . Why I do

I drive less then 13000 miles a year.
I like my car running great and if something is a problem just take it to the dealer
Third and main point it's so freaking cheap...e.g. My precious lease was check spark ev which I got for 35$ a month for 10,000 miles a year it was a great commute car. Drives 90 miles in charges .

You can get real cheap leases under 100$ or even under 50$ per month just go to leasehackr.com

Last this saves me money to putt on audio relaxly.

[zybar]

New. I'm a Ford guy and have bought many. Current is a Ford F150XLT (loaded) and a brand new Fusion Titanium (also loaded). I trade in for new every 4 years. With the truck, its usually been $10,000 to boot for another new one, that makes it about $2,500 a year to own new. The car has a little more cost, usually $12,000 to boot on trade, bring that cost to around $3,000 a year. Our average mileage is around 5,000 miles per vehicle so we get top trade-in value.

Wayner,

I want to understand your process, so I have a few questions:

1.  When you say it costs $10k to boot for another one, what does that mean?  Are you saying that you can sell your vehicle for only $10k less than what you paid after 4 years of use?
2.  When you buy your next vehicle, are you saying it is roughly $12k more for the new car compared to what you paid new four years ago?

George

[JakeJ]

Leasing would not work for me.  I drive over 25K/yr just to and from work.  Typically 40K or more per year.

[Wayner]

Wayner,

I want to understand your process, so I have a few questions:

1.  When you say it costs $10k to boot for another one, what does that mean?  Are you saying that you can sell your vehicle for only $10k less than what you paid after 4 years of use?
2.  When you buy your next vehicle, are you saying it is roughly $12k more for the new car compared to what you paid new four years ago?

George

I trade them (usually with the dealer I bought them from) and they offer me a "to boot" offer taking my car or truck in on trade and I just pay the offset amount. I hope that explains it. In fact the last F150 I had for 5 years and to step into a brand new one only cost me $10K (that particular deal was pretty good). I always look at cost per year. I use to pay cash for them, but now with new rebates, you must finance thru (in this case, Ford) for at least 3 months, usually at 7-8% interest. You also should buy when the auto show is going on (in the spring) and there are usually even more discounts on the new vehicle. Without the factory rebates, it would have cost around $17,000 to boot (that would be bad). I usually just make payments because I have no other expenses and I need to have some kind of credit rating. Car and truck are traded in, alternating ever 2 years, so I have to finish paying one off before I buy another. So (if that wasn't clear) every 2 years I buy a new vehicle, but I keep them for 4 (sometimes 5). (car-truck-car-truck.........)

My latest Fusion was $14K to boot, but this car had navigation and a bunch of other goodies that my trade in did not have, so it was a step up (vehicle wise) but also a step up price wise. They however, gave me a 6 year warranty.

Bottom line is that you have to take advantage of the rebates (which you can apply as a discount to the sticker price).

'ner