newk5driver
Registered Member
like my title said what are the advantages of a used car over a new one i need this for a paper i'
m writing for college.
m writing for college.CK5
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what are the advantages of buying a used car
- Thread starter newk5driver
- Start date
Almost ALL cars depreciate in value the minute you drive them off the lot so a used car can be had alot cheaper than buying it "new" off a car lot.
Bang for the buck. Get something 4 years old, and it'll have a ton of trouble free driving left in it, yet will cost you at least 40-50% less than new price. If you do your homework, you can really save a boatload of cash and still be driving a pretty new vehicle at all times.
Another advantage is you've had those three or four years to see recalls and weak points of the various models come up. Much easier to buy a proven performer when you've let someone else be the guinea pig so to speak.
Con...you gotta do your homework. Carfax and others all help. There are a lot of salvage title 3 and 4 year old cars floating around out there being sold by dishonest lots.
Another advantage is you've had those three or four years to see recalls and weak points of the various models come up. Much easier to buy a proven performer when you've let someone else be the guinea pig so to speak.
Con...you gotta do your homework. Carfax and others all help. There are a lot of salvage title 3 and 4 year old cars floating around out there being sold by dishonest lots.
No sleep lost over the "first dent" or rust bubble too...
I'd say the advantage of buying new would be you get to order it exactly how you want it.
Cons are the extra cost and depreciation of it very fast.
I'm looking for a new car, sonic hatchback.
I was dead set on new, to order exactly what I want. But the sticker was 19k for the turbo model with the auto.
Found one today with 15k miles on it and one year old for 13.5k. That's a big price difference for very few miles... And it has almost every extra I wanted...
Cons are the extra cost and depreciation of it very fast.
I'm looking for a new car, sonic hatchback.
I was dead set on new, to order exactly what I want. But the sticker was 19k for the turbo model with the auto.
Found one today with 15k miles on it and one year old for 13.5k. That's a big price difference for very few miles... And it has almost every extra I wanted...
I'm glad to see your coming to your senses Adam....and its never to soon to start saving for retirement! 10K at your age could equal 150K by retirement.
wage92
1/2 ton status
I will never buy new unless i can pay cash up front for one reason...monthly payments.
72blazerguy
3/4 ton status
Interest paid to a bank is wasted money.
On the flip side payments build credit for later on purchases like houses or business stuff etc..
If I made more money I would definitely buy new.Just to get what I want exactly, and the extra payment is worth it to me to get in the car and not have to worry. And even if it does break, it's not my responsibility to fix it. But I still want play money so I don't think I'm going to.
Also if people don't buy new, then your options of good newer used cars fall. So it is necessary for people to buy new, so I wouldn't say its stupid to do it, as the used market depends on it.
like my title said what are the advantages of a used car over a new one i need this for a paper i'
I liked the idea of driving a $100,000 car for $40,000.
That "new car smell" isn't worth that kind of premium to me.
-G
Its stupid to do it
Just throw 25% right out the window when you drive off the lot
Buying used allows you to go through the aggravation of troubleshooting a growling noise in the drivetrain too!
xenomarine
1/2 ton status
ekajkrats
1/2 ton status
Not sure a car payment is necessary for credit building, it is one way though. I never had a car payment before I bought a house. I just paid off credit card each month in full and carried some student loans.
I think what each of these guys are saying carries weight:
-New car depreciates quickly
-Used car can save you money in long run
-Used puts you in a nicer bracket of cars, luxury vs compact
-With carmax or other companies, you can now get the exact options in a used car you want
-That first ding in the door is taken care of
It's okay, they make air fresheners for that!
....and plenty of them!
Ultimately, no matter what you buy (new or used) you ARE going to lose money due to depreciation. I can't stand it when people describe a car as an "investment" or even a "personal asset". It's neither.
The best you can do is figure out how much money you are comfortable throwing away for the convenience of owning a car. If you want to buy "new" you will throw away a TON of money right away with instantaneous depreciation.... and if you are financing that car, you are making monthly payments (with interest) on value that's already been lost forever.
The amount of money you lose can be mitigated by buying used. The depreciation curve is steep initially (first 3 years or so) and then starts to level-out. Most cars are worth around 50% of their original value after only 3 years.... some do better, others do worse.
Keep in mind, there can be some false economy in buying a used car too. Without a warranty, the economics can change dramatically. Even an inexpensive car becomes VERY expensive if you need to constantly spend out-of-pocket money on repairs.... I believe this happens when people try to go too far down the depreciation scale (beyond say 5 years) to get a really expensive car for VERY cheap money. The end result is a low monthly payment (assuming the car is financed) coupled with a constant monthly outlay of maintenance expenses..... the net result is that average monthly car expenditures are just as high as if they had bought say, a 3-year old car for a higher price and got a CPO warranty.
Lots to consider, but in the simplest terms I'm a big believer in the "buy used and pay cash" philosophy. It's really important to break the cycle of financing something expensive that becomes worthless before the payment book is even empty.... it's just bad economics.
-G
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wage92
1/2 ton status
all valid points, i just dont like having more payments than i need. I would much rather have a car that isnt exactly what i want but i paid much less for it.
These days, cars can go 100k+ without needing anything but oil change and tires, i just dont see the point of buying new if you can get it used for a fraction of the price. Just my opinion though
all valid points, i just dont like having more payments than i need. I would much rather have a car that isnt exactly what i want but i paid much less for it.
These days, cars can go 100k+ without needing anything but oil change and tires, i just dont see the point of buying new if you can get it used for a fraction of the price. Just my opinion though
Definitely. And after looking into I'm on the same page.
But I figure if the op is writing a paper, he will need to know the plus sides of new so he can prepare for arguments against his points. As every college paper I wrote always turned into debates etc after they were presented.
wage92
1/2 ton status
meanboyjr
1/2 ton status
Don't forget the eco-friendly reason: buying used = RECYCLING.
like my title said what are the advantages of a used car over a new one i need this for a paper i'
What have you come up with on your own? I'm not implying that you have not, but by college, you should develop your critical thinking and debate skills to formulate your topic. This is a fairly narrow topic, so I can not imagine the paper needs to be too long.
What do you see as advantages of used over new and vice versa?
