new car vs used?....

[Flatbroke1]

Opinions please! Are we better off buying a brand new car or a used car? I am not looking at the aspect of depreciation. My question is simply geared toward "something new" where I have a warranty and don't have to worry as much about breakdowns or repair, or something used (low mileage) (but less expensive) where I will always wonder if something could happen. As a good friend said years ago "you are either looking at paying monthly payments or repairs". So what do all the good BK forum people think? Payments or repairs?

[keepmine]

Opinions please! Are we better off buying a brand new car or a used car? I am not looking at the aspect of depreciation. My question is simply geared toward "something new" where I have a warranty and don't have to worry as much about breakdowns or repair, or something used (low mileage) (but less expensive) where I will always wonder if something could happen. As a good friend said years ago "you are either looking at paying monthly payments or repairs". So what do all the good BK forum people think? Payments or repairs?

Actually, you can get both.
In 07, my wifes car just died. An 89 Cutlas with 141K miles.
We went to a Hertz dealership and bought a fleet car. An 06 Nissan Sentra 1.8 with 18K miles. It was priced at $11,999 which was bluebook. That included the sales tax and transfer fee. They gave us $250 for the cutlass. The balance of the warranty transfered. We got 2 years of the bumper to bumper warranty {36 months/30K miles} and 3 years of the powertrain {60 months/50K miles}. So far so good.We were notifed of a recall on a fuel regulator that the dealership replaced. We've done normal maintenace and it's still doing well.
Just something to consider.

[dspii]

Good question....the trade-off is not only in repair costs but financing costs as well. Typically, used cars have a higher interest rate and shorter term. If your paying cash, a good used car may yield the best value. If you set your monthly cap on your payments, research and research some more, you can find some really good deals out there that won't leave you with buyers remorse the day after.

In the new car arena, utilizing family and friends discounts or other discount structures, high rebates currently being offered on 2010's, you can get into a new American car for about $250 a month. But remember to add your increased insurance costs into your monthly number. I see Kia advertising cars for under $10k, can't comment on that one, I didn't go see the fine print, but they are known as throw-away cars after years of service.

Consumer Reports listed the best used cars a couple of issues ago, I was shocked to see some of the not-so familiar cars at the top of the list, like a Mazda 626 and of course the popular Honda's and Toyota's, but for much less. If you "own" your car and have no payments, you can bank the money for needed repairs, but this takes discipline, easier to do after BK, at least for me.

In my situation, I was just plain tired of fixing our van, she had been a good one for 13 years and 160,000 miles, but I was done with the busted knuckles and gotta fix it today scenario. I researched and researched, calculated my maximum monthly payment with insurance, utilized a Ford A-Z plan and rebates. Knowing the cost I could expect and my financing already done (Capital One), I picked a car and options that fit my monthly payment after the rebates. We went to the dealer, did the test drive and the once over and then told the saleman exactly what we wanted in color and options, with emphasis on "we knew exactly what we wanted". He scoured the area for three days before we got the call that he found one. I went in, looked over, signed a few papers, wrote a check and into the sunset we went.

Bottomline, with the research and preparation, I was an informed buyer that got the best bang for my buck, a new car, a ridiculously low payment and my knuckles have healed while the stress of a busted car is nothing but a memory. Everyone's situation is different, some should not look at more payments out of BK, some can handle it. I have paid off and retained every car I purchased for the last 25 years only to sell them after we maximized the usage.

[Flatbroke1]

We are window shopping for a 2011 Ford Fiesta Hatchback. They seem to run about $15000 (not negotiated yet). Our second choice was an HHR with low mileage 2008 or 2009 for about $13000 from Carmax or Enterprise. I like Enterprise, because for used cars, they seem to offer the best warranty and a 7 day return. I know Ford is BK friendly, but I don't know yet if Enterprise is. We have Roadloans approved but Enterprise is not one of their dealers. Anyone have experiences with Fiestas and HHR's?

[LSUTiger32]

Hopefully it is OK for me to post my opinion on this...........

Go with a used car if you can. You can likely find something that you can probably even pay cash for. I found a very nice used car (clunker to some) that I paid $2,500 for. I drive 80 miles per day, five times a week to work. I am close to starting my third year with that car. Let's see $2,500 plus $500 for new tires and maintenance when I bought it, divided by the 20 months I have had it equals about $150 a month and ZERO to a bank for interest. Of course, if you subtract the $3,530 that the car is worth on KBB for a Private Party sale then I have driven for the past 20 months for free and I actually made $530.

To me, if you can find a good used car......there is no comparison.

[dspii]

To me, if you can find a good used car......there is no comparison.

Ditto...the best option, just be careful you don't inherit someone elses problem child. Research and research...then network to find the best car.

[LSUTiger32]

Ditto...the best option, just be careful you don't inherit someone elses problem child. Research and research...then network to find the best car.

Could not agree more. I got mine from a person at my brother's work. Put the word out there that you are looking. I defintely got the car for less than it was worth because it was one of my brother's good friends.

[kartoons19]

Buying a used car doesn't always equal more repairs. I have owned only 2 cars during the past 21 years and they have both been Hondas. The first one lasted 13 years, I bought it new. The second one is now 11 years old and I bought it used. It has fairly low mileage and is in great shape. While repairs for both cars have been minimal, I actually spent more on repairs on the first car than I have on the second. So if my current car last another 2-3 years, then I figure even if I have a few repairs, it has been well worth it.