$10k for used car for college kid?
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Anonymous
Can you explain more about this? Are you saying that in older cars the airbags might not work in a crash? Or are you saying that older cars might not have some kinds of airbags that newer cars have? |
Anonymous
DP. Airbags deployed just fine in mine 15 yo car but it didn’t have side or knee airbags. I’d try to avoid used cars that were in prior accidents though. |
Anonymous
It's a male in college not an old lady driving to the Giant. |
Anonymous
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Japanese cars are not a great purchase used.
Depreciation is your friend in used market. Which is why some Japanese cars not worth buying used at all. Don’t laughter but a 2008-2014 Cadillac or Buick are great choices in 10k range. Amazing in an accident. Reliable but depreciation gets you new and less miles same age Japanese car |
Anonymous
this one is gone - what were you recommending? |
Anonymous
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OK, after looking at prices models online, I have more questions - many of the cars have pretty high mileage. My own car is 125K. Until this car, I never kept a car so long. A few years back I had to have all the brake hoses replaced because it was old enough that they were getting cracked and dry. Obvs one option is to take my own 125k mileage car to a mechanic and have him thoroughly check it out and sink whatever money in to getting that into top safety shape.
The other option is sinking that money (a couple thousand?) into buying another used car which is 3-4 years newer and 90-100k miles. Not sure how great a trade off that is - my main worry is - how do I know that I’m not buying another car with a potentially catastrophic failure? What am I looking for in an older car with high miles? certain things replaced recently? tires? brakes? what else? thoughts? |
Anonymous
| A catastrophic failure would be an airbag blowing up and killing you like in some 20 year old cars that didn’t complete a recall. If you buy from a reputable dealer like carmax you should be fine. You can take it to an independent mechanic for a second opinion. But why bother? You are not going to get anything better than your own Hyundai |
Anonymous
Maybe I should have clarified - when I said “sinking that money (a couple thousand?)” - I meant using the 2-3K I would have used to super fix up the car I have to instead pay towards another used $10K car. |
Anonymous
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This is a good guide
https://www.iihs.org/ratings/safe-vehicles-for-teens |
Anonymous
| We got DS a 2009 RAV4. As soon as we got it DH showed DS how to replace the battery, spark plugs, change the oil, and they detailed it. Got new tires a few months later. |
Anonymous
| I’d give him your car and get yourself a new car. 125k isn’t that much mileage. |
Anonymous
How many miles did it have. if you don’t mind my asking? |
Anonymous
| Serious question, why not buy a new civic and then sell it in a few years. It will cost less than $10k that way and be a lot safer for your child. |
Anonymous
This is what I’d do. I wouldn’t be comfortable with my child driving an old car with outdated safety features that may or may not be reliable and last more than a couple of years. |