BehindBlueI's
Grandmaster
- Oct 3, 2012
- 26,608
- 113
I always assume private sale used price
Why would you assume that in a thread where the OP is asking if he should buy a new car?
2012 Ford Explorer XLT, $22,997 - Cars.com
only 51,000 miles. Easy.
Tons of used vehicles out there, much better value than buying new.
Yup. Head on over to PA and pick it up. Save $8750, and if you drive 10k a year, need a new car 5 years earlier.
Over 30 years:
Used car every 5 years: About $138k. New car every 10 years: About $99k.
Alternately, if total cash outlay is the only thing that's important, buy a bicycle and a bus pass. Save $22,697 over the used Explorer.
1) Nobody is arguing you can't save money buying a used car.
2) The idea of buying a 3 year old car with average miles in like new condition vs buying a new car isn't as financially savvy as it was pre-Great Recession, particularly in the truck/SUV market. Gas prices drove manufacturers to lower prices and offer rebates to keep them moving off the lots, people with less disposable income became more price fixated, used car market in this segment went up.
3) Averages are irrelevant to the specific car in question. Grab a pencil and paper and work the math out for yourself.
4) Financial impact is also changed dramatically by length of ownership. If you only keep cars short term, depreciation is more of a concern. There's a lot more difference between a 2 year old car vs a 5 year old car then there is between a 10 year old car vs a 13 year old car isn't nearly as pronounced.
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