I was reading about that Malibu in Car and Driver. I read it was very good. Congrats!!!! I was thinking about leasing a few years ago, but could not pass up a deal on the truck I got. The old man drove this 2002 Dodge for a total of 27K miles. Here we are in 2005 and all he had put on it was 27K miles. The thing was still under warranty. It was/is 4x4 and fully loaded with a tonneau cover. He was already asking under blue book value and I offered 1500 less. He accepted. I could not pass it up.
Three years later, I have put about 29K miles on it and it still runs like a champ.
I agree with leasing if you're the kind of person that wants to drive something for 8-10 years into its death. You just need to be realistic on the mileage and be prepared to eat some money down with imperfect credit. In some cases the amount required down is outrageous so beware of certain lease programs.
I've sworn off buying new because you lose so much just driving it off the lot. I'm looking at a 2004 Accord, low miles, V6 260hp, moonroof, auto everything for 15k, a 2003 CTS V6 90k miles for 16k, 2003 325 16k. We have a Sentra already but it's too small what with a baby seat in it.
Oh and a 2007 Sonata V6 with 15k miles for about 14k.
I'd go with that Honda. Honda's don't lose that much value. I'd look for a vehicle for more than a week. Some of the best deals are from private sellers. A lot of them just don't want the payment and sell and don't really want a profit.
alright, my dad owns a car dealership here in Ohio...don't buy that CTS. He has a 2004 Navy Blue one sitting right here with everything for 18k with 43k miles. Here is the link
http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...ice=&cardist=1
I'll have him ship it to you for like $500 bucks
edit: alright I talked to his sales manager and they would sell that for $16500, a year newer and less miles. So that should give you an idea of what to look for with CTSs
Last edited by Thunder Dan; 02-26-2008 at 03:28 PM.
Will he throw in the undercoating
haha he doesn't do that kind of stuff. I just know about that particular car because I almost bought it last week but got a Malibu instead. But when he saif 90k miles for $16,000 I was like hold on there a second, don't get ripped offWill he throw in the undercoating
Oh and the Accord currently belongs to my parents so I've driven it, I know how it's been driven and I really like it. It's got plenty of power, I just don't know how serious they are about selling it to me. It would be great if they could just let me take over payments. We'll see.
I must have fudged the numbers.....looking at carmax, there's a 2004 cts with 59k miles for 15,995.
unless you drive some 40k miles a year.
GAP insurance is like 300 bucks anyway.
make craigslist your best friend
GAP insurance is good because if you owe 35k on a car thats worth 25 after you drive it off the lot you don't take a 10k hit after you wreck it or something happens to it....easily worth the 4 bucks a month added to your payment
ya i know. hence the its only like 300 bucks comment. I think that was the cost of it when i bought my car a couple of years back.
i should be seeing it hit 100k sometime this summer, not bad for a 2006 model.
damn that's alot of miles in 2 years!
With respect to the original question, I don't think there's any one answer as to whether it's better to buy an older luxury car or a newer mid-range car, without knowing the makes and models. I think you have to compare specific car to specific car. Some older cars are terrific and really hold their value, some don't. Some may have had recalls, some may have been significantly redesigned which might suggest customer unhappiness with an older design.
Interesting comment upthread about Chevelles. My husband recently got his 1968 Chevelle back from the body shop, where he had the body totally smoothed out and repainted, and it looks gorgeous (silver with blue stripes, which he's worried about because he's a Packers fan, not a Cowboys fan, lol). He built this car literally from parts and it's his baby. The car hates me, unfortunately, once refusing to go into gear, any gear at all on a busy street in Baton Rouge--finally it agreed to go into fourth gear which I had to stay in all the way home. Anyway, I agree that muscle cars aren't necessarily expensive to maintain or repair, but the body styles are definitely distinctive and I can see why people wouldn't like them. Plus they're not exactly fuel efficient.
Fuel efficiency largely depends on engine size, tuning and so forth. My Corvette gets nearly 21 MPG on a small block 350. Sometimes its all relative I spend on average about 900 bucks a year in repairs big or small on my 97 F150 and I won't spend nearly that much on the Vette however I put pricier gas in the Vette because the timing is bumped, that extra expense may even out.
As it stands right now you could get a mid 60's Caddy that drives like a champ.....clean inside and out for mid to upper teens. It won't be a show car but it'd be a of nice ride and far more valuable long term than any newer modern junk. Something breaks it'll be a cheap fix that most backyard joes could handle.
Anyhow I'm a fan of the BMW's even a few years older, I think those are good buys.
i bought it in november 05.
i'm at 80 something K right now.
I'm a firm believer in buying the exact vehicle that you like brand new and then taking care of it and driving it. Theres no reason most modern cars won't go 200,000 miles without major problems IF you take care of the routine maintenance. I buy hard loaded trucks (currently in a hard loaded chevy 2500 4X4) that I order exactly the way I want if I can't find one already on a lot. I drive about 20K a year so I usually sell them when they are about 10 years old (for about 20% of what I paid for them) and get another one. My net cost including maintenance is about $250 a month to drive exactly what I like. I don't buy into the "leasing is cheaper" thing...it's only cheaper if you are one of those compulsive people that HAS to have a new car every 2-3 years...
Pass on the CTS and look for a CTS-V, or just get an Acura TL.
If you read the entire thread, you'll see where I've asked about certain models.
Oh and I already have a project vehicle. A 1972 K5 CST Blazer. I'm looking for more of a family car, the Sentra is just too small.
If I we're you, I'd just lease an Audi A6.
I'm with you. It's the old school approach.
I couldn't imagine having a revolving monthly car payment for the rest of my life.
I did read the entire thread--my response related to the original question, which I thought was more general. I'm sorry if I misunderstood you. As for the specific cars you selected, I'd probably be more interested in the lower mileage cars, and probably specifically the Accord.
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