Freaking out over new car costs

[Anonymous]

I last paid $28K new for a VW in 2017. I am flipping out thinking about what it will cost to replace eventually. I plan to drive into the ground (at 87K miles now) now just bc it seems like a new car will cost a ton when the time comes.

[Anonymous]

Thank your president! Elections have consequences.

[Anonymous]

We’re still driving our 2009 Honda CRV. I’m not replacing this until I absolutely have to.

[Anonymous]

You don't have to buy a "new" one... Also, we have kept ours going to 200K-300K miles. Yours is a baby at 87K.

[Anonymous]

What kind of vw are we talking about? You can still get a new Jetta for $23k. Probably can get a killer deal on id4. And your salary is a lot higher now than in 2017. No need to freak out

[Anonymous]

Plenty of good quality reliable new cars available for near 30k.

[Anonymous]

It's so weird to "flip out" about what a new car will cost you, OP. You don't need one right now. By the time you do, you don't know who is going to be in office and whether tariffs will still be in place.

But you can always count on inflation, for everything, so what's certain is that you'll pay more for all types of goods than you paid previously. But you know that, right?

Seems like a very random post, honestly. We were talking about tariffs and car prices months ago. Did you just wake up from a living under a rock?

[Anonymous]

Don't "freak out", start saving. If you put $200 in a HYSA every month you'll be able to pay in cash the next time you need a car. If you can do $500, even better. Once you hit $30k in there, ease off on contributing and just let it sit there gaining interest until you need a new car. Then you'll have choices.

But this is also why I'd never buy a Kia and would instead buy mid-range Hondas/Toyotas.

[Anonymous]

You can get a used Audi EV for $30K with less than 30K miles. Used Subarus are even cheaper, in great shape.

Don't buy new, they are way overpriced.

Subaru is the best value IMHO - most of their vehicles are sub-$40K brand new with premium trim lines and packed with safety tech.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I last paid $28K new for a VW in 2017. I am flipping out thinking about what it will cost to replace eventually. I plan to drive into the ground (at 87K miles now) now just bc it seems like a new car will cost a ton when the time comes.

If you are "freaking out" about new car costs, than you cannot afford a new car. Maintain what you currently have.

[Anonymous]

Just keep driving it, and maintain it well.

My DH's car is so old I don't even know for sure how old it is. I think 18 years old? Maybe 19? It's a Chevy Blazer, and he hauls a lot of stuff around in it so it's fine it isn't new.

I have a Subaru Forrester that is about 9 years old -- about as old as your car? It was my first brand-new car (my other cars were new-to-me from CarMax) so even though it is almost 10 years old, it still feels kind of "new" to me lol. When DH's car dies, he'll take my Forrester and I'll get a new car.

We are UMC and could afford newer cars, we just aren't going to spend on them when these cars are fine. I will say I don't begrudge people in this area their luxury vehicles given how much time we are all spending in our cars with long commutes. But that isn't the choice we make. If you are concerned, just keep driving what you have. We need to stop throwing perfectly good stuff away anyway, the consume! consume! consume! culture is awful in virtually countless ways. Be proud of your older car and take good care of it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can get a used Audi EV for $30K with less than 30K miles. Used Subarus are even cheaper, in great shape.

Don't buy new, they are way overpriced.

Subaru is the best value IMHO - most of their vehicles are sub-$40K brand new with premium trim lines and packed with safety tech.

This is what everyone assumes, so it has created a lot of demand for used cars, making them almost as expensive as a new car.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can get a used Audi EV for $30K with less than 30K miles. Used Subarus are even cheaper, in great shape.

Don't buy new, they are way overpriced.

Subaru is the best value IMHO - most of their vehicles are sub-$40K brand new with premium trim lines and packed with safety tech.

This is what everyone assumes, so it has created a lot of demand for used cars, making them almost as expensive as a new car.

No, that was the chip shortage during the pandemic. It’s over, used car prices have gone down again.

[Anonymous]

I wish our crv 2010 with 150k last longer for us. We paid 21k in 2010. But it can die anytime. We are the only owner and take good care of it. But we don't think it last much longer.

[Anonymous]

Somewhere in my 30s I drifted from the class of people who buy new cars to the slightly lower class that can only buy used. It's OK; new cars are really expensive and used cars have never been better. My last three cars all had 100k+ miles when I bought them and they have been great.

Don't get me wrong, new cars are awesome and quiet and loaded with features. At 87k miles you should be done paying for your VW so it is time to start putting monthly "car payments" into an account for when you buy your next car - hopefully several years down the road.