Posted on 08/31/2007 10:27:15 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
By keeping your car for 15 years, or 225,000 miles of driving, you could save nearly $31,000, according to Consumer Reports magazine. That's compared to the cost of buying an identical model every five years, which is roughly the rate at which most car owners trade in their vehicles.
In its annual national auto survey, the magazine found 6,769 readers who had logged more than 200,000 miles on their cars. Their cars included a 1990 Lexus LS400 with 332,000 miles and a 1994 Ford Ranger pick-up that had gone 488,000 miles.
Consumer Reports calls the Honda Civic a "Good bet" to make it to 200,000 miles.
Calculating the costs involved in buying a new Honda Civic EX every five years for 15 years - including depreciation, taxes, fees and insurance - the magazine estimated it would cost $20,500 more than it would have cost to simply maintain one car for the same period.
Added to that, the magazine factored in $10,300 in interest that could have been earned on that money, assuming a five percent interest rate and a three percent inflation rate, over that time.
The magazine found similar savings with other models.
To have much hope of making it to 200,000 miles, a car has to be well maintained, of course. The magazine recommends several steps to help your car see it through.
Follow the maintenance guide in your owner's manual and make needed repairs promptly.
Use only the recommended types of fluids, including oil and transmission fluids.
Check under the hood regularly. Listen for strange sounds, sniff for odd smells and look for fraying or bulges in pipes or belts. Also, get a vehicle service manual. They're available at most auto parts stores or your dealership.
(Excerpt) Read more at money.cnn.com ...
Yep, Hondas and Toyotas are just about unkillable. I love my Supra for a lot of reasons, but the biggest is the inline six / rear wheel drive drivetrain. It’s fun to drive and easy to work on. I keep expecting it to break down but it doesn’t. You might try eBay for older Hondas.
My next car, though, is going to be a late-80s Porsche 944. These were usually bought as second cars for driving to the golf course on weekends rather than as grocery haulers or daily commuters, and as a result they tend to have relatively low mileage. They also tended to have relatively wealthy owners, so it’s not uncommon that they will have been garaged their whole lives and maintained well. The result is that there are quite a few 944s out there that are great bargains. After two decades of depreciation they’re dirt cheap, but their condition is much better than you’d expect in a 20 year old car. You can find beautiful examples with mileage in the 100k range for around $6k.
Wow, those are nice. Makes me want one. I think I’d get a 5 series though. A little smaller and probably easier to find with a stick shift.
BTW, what do you think of the 6 series cars from that era? I’ve always thought they looked sooo cool and have always wanted one. Are they reasonably reliable and is it possible to find parts for them?
I would have kept the 90 Corolla, but it didn't make sense. As luck would have it, a bunch of things needed to be replaced, all at the same time from simple wear and tear. New tires, brakes, clutch, exaust, front end (all the adjustable parts had all the adjustment taken out by that time), shocks and struts, and time for a major service. It was going to cost several thousand dollars for the work, and it didn't make sense to put that much money into a 10 year old car. But the car was running great. Burned less than a quart of oil every 3000 miles, and no rust on the body.
Mark
Agree and disagree. Our Acura's going strong; great car, etc.........we agree there. As far as Jiffy Lube's go, it ALL depends entirely on where you go. Many of them are totally worthless, but we have one very close to our home that is unreal good. The manager is a true pro and runs a tight ship. Their workmanship is flawless and they're incredibly thorough; they define "customer service". It's no wonder they do huge repeat business, including my family's cars.
My step mother had a Datsun B210 that she drove for more than 20 years. I don't think that it ever had more than 100,000 miles on it, because she lived in NY, and most of her driving was to and from the train station, where she would commute to work. But by the time she got rid of it, the floor had rusted out to the point where if she wasn't careful, she could put her feet down on the pavement through the floor, or at least, where the floor was supposed to be. Although they did replace the floor, the last straw was when she was sitting at a stop light, and one side of her seat dropped about 3 inches when one of the supports gave out. Frankly she was lucky she wasn't moving. She could have been killed.
Mark
Nonsense and balderdash. My '93 can probably run any vehicle you drive into the ground. Huge, damned fast, runs like a watch......even at its age, with both A/C units running, and despite nearly 200K miles on it. It's all in how you take care of it. The only thing that isn't working properly on that vehicle today are the stereo system speakers.
I went through the stage in life where we were swapping out cars on a regular basis. No more. I realized just how much I hate having a car payment. :)
Same here. I got to the point where if I cannot afford to pay cash for it, I don’t buy it.
We have a 92 Toyota truck with 70k, a 98 Toyota Avalon with 75k, and in 2004 we paid cash for a 2001 Jag (from a wholesaler).
We have not had a car payment since 1996! We are gonna keep it that way. ;)
What about your satellite communication system? What about your parking object avoidance system? What about your active stability control system? Get a modern vehicle; you’ll have to anyway when we go all-electric or all-hydrogen or whatever our Masters have planned for us.
I’ll climb into a beater Subaru, not a Civic. I prefer the 4WD over FWD.
My cars have been, over the last 25 years, starting now:
2001 Ford Taurus
1988 Olds Cutlass Ciera
1982 Olds Cutlass Ciera
1976 Plymouth Volare
1968 Chevy Nova
The Taurus is the first car I’ve owned made in the same decade that I bought it.
Best buy I ever made was a three year old Lexus 300 coming off a lease with a shade under 40,000 miles. Still running like new after 250,000 miles. Although has had a couple expensive repairs, it still has been cheap at the price and remains a fine car.
ping
I tend to buy cars in good condition that are 1 to 3 years old, then drive until they require work that would exceed their current market value
Weel, that's the point of the thread, isn't it?
(See headline)
1997 Nissan Hardbody just hit 180K.
I guess you're right.... just goes to show I never had a car payment. And hopefully I never will.
What is the monthly payment on a new GM or Ford pickup or SUV? Just trying to see how money can be saved.
we don’t have payments and havn’t for some time, and we run our cars a long, long time.....but just try selling a car with lots of miles....nobody will even look at it.....
My younger and much richer cousin got stuck with a late 1970s Toyota.
After about 2 decades of service, and seeing the darned thing wouldn’t die...
he simply rolled it into a river to get rid of it.
Sure, not the best disposal method, but I guess it seemed like a good
idea to him at the time.
I am currently using US 528 wheels, but have the original Euro sized factory rims for the M5 - 205 60 390.
The car should sit only about 3” above the ground. Even though that front air dam is virtually irreplaceable, I want the car to run lower the way it is supposed to. It makes a big difference at 180 mph (on the track, of course).
I can always keep the 528 wheels on or get newer model BMW wheels and go with 205 55 16, 215 55 16, or 225 55 16s.
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