Buying 2nd car used. Which is better? VW bug or Toyota small car?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to add, if you do want a Toyota, a used one that's 2-3 years old is going to be not much less than a brand new one. I recommend either a fairly old one at 7-10 years old, or just buy new.

People who buy 2-3 year old Toyotas are irrational.

I guess that depends on what your definition of "not much less" is. You can easily save 5k on a vehicle that only has 40k miles. They will go for at least 300k, so 40k is nothing.

+ 1 I just purchased a 2018 Camry with 14,000 miles and paid about $ 6,000 less than if I would have bought new. It’s certified pre-owned with a a 100,000 mile powertrain warranty and life time guarantee on the engine. That’s a better warranty than you’d get with a new car and it was completely worth it for me to buy used.

I doubt it is 6000 less. Provide the trim level, options and price you paid and we can figure out how much you really saved. Most likely you saved about 2k-3k at the most.

I purchased the L trim which is the bottom level. It’s nothing fancy, but has the safety features that I need. It’s a commuter car and is perfect for that purpose. I’m averaging 41 miles a gallon.

All of the new camrys that I looked at were in the $23,000 range and they weren’t willing to negotiate, which was a surprise. The used car that I purchased had been on the lot for about 6 weeks, and they kept dropping the price online by $500 each time. They knocked off another $1,500 while I was there, bringing the price down to $17,100. They gave me $2,700 more for my trade than the three other dealers I met with. 100% happy with my decision to purchase used.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to add, if you do want a Toyota, a used one that's 2-3 years old is going to be not much less than a brand new one. I recommend either a fairly old one at 7-10 years old, or just buy new.

People who buy 2-3 year old Toyotas are irrational.

I guess that depends on what your definition of "not much less" is. You can easily save 5k on a vehicle that only has 40k miles. They will go for at least 300k, so 40k is nothing.

+ 1 I just purchased a 2018 Camry with 14,000 miles and paid about $ 6,000 less than if I would have bought new. It’s certified pre-owned with a a 100,000 mile powertrain warranty and life time guarantee on the engine. That’s a better warranty than you’d get with a new car and it was completely worth it for me to buy used.

I doubt it is 6000 less. Provide the trim level, options and price you paid and we can figure out how much you really saved. Most likely you saved about 2k-3k at the most.

I purchased the L trim which is the bottom level. It’s nothing fancy, but has the safety features that I need. It’s a commuter car and is perfect for that purpose. I’m averaging 41 miles a gallon.

All of the new camrys that I looked at were in the $23,000 range and they weren’t willing to negotiate, which was a surprise. The used car that I purchased had been on the lot for about 6 weeks, and they kept dropping the price online by $500 each time. They knocked off another $1,500 while I was there, bringing the price down to $17,100. They gave me $2,700 more for my trade than the three other dealers I met with. 100% happy with my decision to purchase used.

The trade-in complicates the issue, because it's not possible to determine what was the true market value of the trade - you can try punching in the numbers of your old car in KBB and see what number comes out. You can also try getting a quote from Carvana and Vroom, both of which buy used cars for decent prices. It's not surprising for dealers to low-ball a trade, which is why I generally don't trade in cars.

The L trim is very rare as the LE is only $500 more. Generally, people are getting 18% or more off of MSRP for Camrys:

https://www.toyotanation.com/threads/what-did-you-pay-for-your-camry-gen-8.1505418/post-14170875

Here's an contemporaneous example where someone was offered a new 2018 Camry SE for $19,909, also well over 18% off:

https://amp.reddit.com/r/askcarsales/comments/871xc1/is_21800_otd_cash_for_a_new_2018_camry_se_from_a/&ved=2ahUKEwi72t7rkannAhVSg3IEHdnWAMEQFjAQegQICRAB&usg=AOvVaw12fV7yaO5RRQcGooBlyZSp

Given that the 2018 MSRP of the L trim was about $24,000, we would expect a 18%-off deal to be about 19,680 for a new one. So if we are to ignore your trade, you saved about $2580 by buying this car used, exactly as I predicted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to add, if you do want a Toyota, a used one that's 2-3 years old is going to be not much less than a brand new one. I recommend either a fairly old one at 7-10 years old, or just buy new.

People who buy 2-3 year old Toyotas are irrational.

I guess that depends on what your definition of "not much less" is. You can easily save 5k on a vehicle that only has 40k miles. They will go for at least 300k, so 40k is nothing.

+ 1 I just purchased a 2018 Camry with 14,000 miles and paid about $ 6,000 less than if I would have bought new. It’s certified pre-owned with a a 100,000 mile powertrain warranty and life time guarantee on the engine. That’s a better warranty than you’d get with a new car and it was completely worth it for me to buy used.

I doubt it is 6000 less. Provide the trim level, options and price you paid and we can figure out how much you really saved. Most likely you saved about 2k-3k at the most.

I purchased the L trim which is the bottom level. It’s nothing fancy, but has the safety features that I need. It’s a commuter car and is perfect for that purpose. I’m averaging 41 miles a gallon.

All of the new camrys that I looked at were in the $23,000 range and they weren’t willing to negotiate, which was a surprise. The used car that I purchased had been on the lot for about 6 weeks, and they kept dropping the price online by $500 each time. They knocked off another $1,500 while I was there, bringing the price down to $17,100. They gave me $2,700 more for my trade than the three other dealers I met with. 100% happy with my decision to purchase used.

The trade-in complicates the issue, because it's not possible to determine what was the true market value of the trade - you can try punching in the numbers of your old car in KBB and see what number comes out. You can also try getting a quote from Carvana and Vroom, both of which buy used cars for decent prices. It's not surprising for dealers to low-ball a trade, which is why I generally don't trade in cars.

The L trim is very rare as the LE is only $500 more. Generally, people are getting 18% or more off of MSRP for Camrys:

https://www.toyotanation.com/threads/what-did-you-pay-for-your-camry-gen-8.1505418/post-14170875

Here's an contemporaneous example where someone was offered a new 2018 Camry SE for $19,909, also well over 18% off:

https://amp.reddit.com/r/askcarsales/comments/871xc1/is_21800_otd_cash_for_a_new_2018_camry_se_from_a/&ved=2ahUKEwi72t7rkannAhVSg3IEHdnWAMEQFjAQegQICRAB&usg=AOvVaw12fV7yaO5RRQcGooBlyZSp

Given that the 2018 MSRP of the L trim was about $24,000, we would expect a 18%-off deal to be about 19,680 for a new one. So if we are to ignore your trade, you saved about $2580 by buying this car used, exactly as I predicted.

As far as my trade, I tried Carvana and craigslist. Carvana wouldn’t even give me an offer because the car had mechanical issues and couldn’t be driven more than a mile or two without overheating. The highest offer I received on Craigslist was $3000, other dealers offered around $2000. The dealer that I purchased from gave me $4,700, way over KBB. That was sight unseen and they sent a tow truck to my home a week after I bought the Camry.

I can’t speak to the 18% off MSRP. I started out looking for 2019 Camry’s because it was the end of December and I thought I would get the best deal. Surprisingly there weren’t that many 2019’s left within 100 mile radius and the ones that were available were not being discounted very much.

I used car guru for my search and the Camry that I purchased was listed as great deal, several thousand below average. That was before the dealer discounted the car further. The examples you are citing aren’t local and I know some incentives are based on region.

Either way, I’m happy with the car and the price I paid. I’m especially happy with what they gave me for my trade given that it wasn’t even drivable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Timely! We just decided between a 2010 Toyota Yaris with 62000 miles and a 2012 Beetle with 28000 miles. Got the Beetle and was unprepared to love it as much as I do. It is in pristine condition and unbeknownst to me until after we got it, came with a 9 speaker award winning Fender stereo with a subwoofer in the trunk. I have rediscovered music in this mobile sound studio and am sad when my commute to come to an end. I used to be strictly podcasts and news, now I am transported. Maybe it was the "wrong decision" but I am sure feeling joy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to add, if you do want a Toyota, a used one that's 2-3 years old is going to be not much less than a brand new one. I recommend either a fairly old one at 7-10 years old, or just buy new.

People who buy 2-3 year old Toyotas are irrational.

I guess that depends on what your definition of "not much less" is. You can easily save 5k on a vehicle that only has 40k miles. They will go for at least 300k, so 40k is nothing.

+ 1 I just purchased a 2018 Camry with 14,000 miles and paid about $ 6,000 less than if I would have bought new. It’s certified pre-owned with a a 100,000 mile powertrain warranty and life time guarantee on the engine. That’s a better warranty than you’d get with a new car and it was completely worth it for me to buy used.

I doubt it is 6000 less. Provide the trim level, options and price you paid and we can figure out how much you really saved. Most likely you saved about 2k-3k at the most.

I purchased the L trim which is the bottom level. It’s nothing fancy, but has the safety features that I need. It’s a commuter car and is perfect for that purpose. I’m averaging 41 miles a gallon.

All of the new camrys that I looked at were in the $23,000 range and they weren’t willing to negotiate, which was a surprise. The used car that I purchased had been on the lot for about 6 weeks, and they kept dropping the price online by $500 each time. They knocked off another $1,500 while I was there, bringing the price down to $17,100. They gave me $2,700 more for my trade than the three other dealers I met with. 100% happy with my decision to purchase used.

The trade-in complicates the issue, because it's not possible to determine what was the true market value of the trade - you can try punching in the numbers of your old car in KBB and see what number comes out. You can also try getting a quote from Carvana and Vroom, both of which buy used cars for decent prices. It's not surprising for dealers to low-ball a trade, which is why I generally don't trade in cars.

The L trim is very rare as the LE is only $500 more. Generally, people are getting 18% or more off of MSRP for Camrys:

https://www.toyotanation.com/threads/what-did-you-pay-for-your-camry-gen-8.1505418/post-14170875

Here's an contemporaneous example where someone was offered a new 2018 Camry SE for $19,909, also well over 18% off:

https://amp.reddit.com/r/askcarsales/comments/871xc1/is_21800_otd_cash_for_a_new_2018_camry_se_from_a/&ved=2ahUKEwi72t7rkannAhVSg3IEHdnWAMEQFjAQegQICRAB&usg=AOvVaw12fV7yaO5RRQcGooBlyZSp

Given that the 2018 MSRP of the L trim was about $24,000, we would expect a 18%-off deal to be about 19,680 for a new one. So if we are to ignore your trade, you saved about $2580 by buying this car used, exactly as I predicted.

NP. You can buy used toyotas with low mileage all day from private parties and save around 4-5k.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just for me (Mom) to commute work and back occasional pick up 2-3 teens

Have you ever tried fitting 4 people in the VW?

I was coming here to say this. 4 people plus their stuff (assume teens have backpacks) in a junky VW beetle--have you always wanted to drive a clown car since you went to the circus as a kid or something?

[Anonymous]

The VW bug is being discontinued.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to add, if you do want a Toyota, a used one that's 2-3 years old is going to be not much less than a brand new one. I recommend either a fairly old one at 7-10 years old, or just buy new.

People who buy 2-3 year old Toyotas are irrational.

I guess that depends on what your definition of "not much less" is. You can easily save 5k on a vehicle that only has 40k miles. They will go for at least 300k, so 40k is nothing.

+ 1 I just purchased a 2018 Camry with 14,000 miles and paid about $ 6,000 less than if I would have bought new. It’s certified pre-owned with a a 100,000 mile powertrain warranty and life time guarantee on the engine. That’s a better warranty than you’d get with a new car and it was completely worth it for me to buy used.

I doubt it is 6000 less. Provide the trim level, options and price you paid and we can figure out how much you really saved. Most likely you saved about 2k-3k at the most.

I purchased the L trim which is the bottom level. It’s nothing fancy, but has the safety features that I need. It’s a commuter car and is perfect for that purpose. I’m averaging 41 miles a gallon.

All of the new camrys that I looked at were in the $23,000 range and they weren’t willing to negotiate, which was a surprise. The used car that I purchased had been on the lot for about 6 weeks, and they kept dropping the price online by $500 each time. They knocked off another $1,500 while I was there, bringing the price down to $17,100. They gave me $2,700 more for my trade than the three other dealers I met with. 100% happy with my decision to purchase used.

The trade-in complicates the issue, because it's not possible to determine what was the true market value of the trade - you can try punching in the numbers of your old car in KBB and see what number comes out. You can also try getting a quote from Carvana and Vroom, both of which buy used cars for decent prices. It's not surprising for dealers to low-ball a trade, which is why I generally don't trade in cars.

The L trim is very rare as the LE is only $500 more. Generally, people are getting 18% or more off of MSRP for Camrys:

https://www.toyotanation.com/threads/what-did-you-pay-for-your-camry-gen-8.1505418/post-14170875

Here's an contemporaneous example where someone was offered a new 2018 Camry SE for $19,909, also well over 18% off:

https://amp.reddit.com/r/askcarsales/comments/871xc1/is_21800_otd_cash_for_a_new_2018_camry_se_from_a/&ved=2ahUKEwi72t7rkannAhVSg3IEHdnWAMEQFjAQegQICRAB&usg=AOvVaw12fV7yaO5RRQcGooBlyZSp

Given that the 2018 MSRP of the L trim was about $24,000, we would expect a 18%-off deal to be about 19,680 for a new one. So if we are to ignore your trade, you saved about $2580 by buying this car used, exactly as I predicted.

As far as my trade, I tried Carvana and craigslist. Carvana wouldn’t even give me an offer because the car had mechanical issues and couldn’t be driven more than a mile or two without overheating. The highest offer I received on Craigslist was $3000, other dealers offered around $2000. The dealer that I purchased from gave me $4,700, way over KBB. That was sight unseen and they sent a tow truck to my home a week after I bought the Camry.

I can’t speak to the 18% off MSRP. I started out looking for 2019 Camry’s because it was the end of December and I thought I would get the best deal. Surprisingly there weren’t that many 2019’s left within 100 mile radius and the ones that were available were not being discounted very much.

I used car guru for my search and the Camry that I purchased was listed as great deal, several thousand below average. That was before the dealer discounted the car further. The examples you are citing aren’t local and I know some incentives are based on region.

Either way, I’m happy with the car and the price I paid. I’m especially happy with what they gave me for my trade given that it wasn’t even drivable.

PP here. I'm glad you are happy with your car, that's all it counts. I am sure it will provide you with many ears of reliable service. I'm a huge fan of Toyotas. My first car was a Toyota Tercel Wagon and I drove that thing everywhere. Looking at more current reliability ratings, Honda has fallen off while Toyota continues to maintain their focus on reliability.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

NP. You can buy used toyotas with low mileage all day from private parties and save around 4-5k.

Hmmm, you'd have to show your work. Post some examples and we'll see. I am sure you can find the odd private party seller that doesn't know what their car is worth, but in the modern day, it's pretty easy to find the private party value of a car. I typically sell off my cars on Craigslist if it is in good condition and it's always pretty easy to get top dollar for a gently used 2-3 year old Honda or Toyota.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to add, if you do want a Toyota, a used one that's 2-3 years old is going to be not much less than a brand new one. I recommend either a fairly old one at 7-10 years old, or just buy new.

People who buy 2-3 year old Toyotas are irrational.

Why?

Because they hold their value so well that used ones are not that much less than a new one.

Honda civics and accords used to be like this as well.

Had this experience with my last two Accords. I'm not a big fan of new cars, but the new car incentives made buying new cheaper than the very specific car I wanted used. If you're more flexible on specs, it's probably easier to get a good deal, but I'm still seeing used versions of my car being listed for more than I paid for my new one a few months ago. You have to go to prior model to get a real break buying Corolla/Camry/Civic/Accord used, usually. I had the first Accord for 15 years with zero issues and only traded it in for updated safety features. Hopefully, the new one is just as easy/reliable.

We were able to get much better deals on a lightly-used Sienna/Odyssey than the sedans, maybe because people are anxious to get out of the minivan once their kids are out of carseats?

I have a friend who loves VWs but has had nothing but a parade of issues with them - somehow missed all the typical electrical system problems, but got the emissions problem and repeat mechanical issues with the most recent one. I've been very hesitant to consider them, given the issues I've watched them go through over the years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

NP. You can buy used toyotas with low mileage all day from private parties and save around 4-5k.

Hmmm, you'd have to show your work. Post some examples and we'll see. I am sure you can find the odd private party seller that doesn't know what their car is worth, but in the modern day, it's pretty easy to find the private party value of a car. I typically sell off my cars on Craigslist if it is in good condition and it's always pretty easy to get top dollar for a gently used 2-3 year old Honda or Toyota.

Yes, and a lot of private party sellers may still have a loan on the car and are pricing to pay that off and can't take a hit on price. We were looking at used recently, and most private party sales were in line with or above the please-get-this-off-the-lot prices at the dealership. Not to mention, private party sales can be more of a hassle and, god forbid something goes wrong, you're pretty much on your own. It's also a total hassle from the seller side, and last time we sold a used vehicle, Carmax, of all places, gave us more than private sale would have.

[Anonymous]

We have a Honda, a Subaru and a VW. I truly love all 3.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: VW Bug? What are you a time frozen 14-year-old from the 70s? Those are awful cars on so many levels I don’t know where to start.

Yes

how bout a Mini Cooper?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: VW Bug? What are you a time frozen 14-year-old from the 70s? Those are awful cars on so many levels I don’t know where to start.

Yes

how bout a Mini Cooper?

That would be infinitely better. And since someone pointed out the beetle's fender sound system, the mini cooper s has a better one by Harmon Kardon.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

NP. You can buy used toyotas with low mileage all day from private parties and save around 4-5k.

Hmmm, you'd have to show your work. Post some examples and we'll see. I am sure you can find the odd private party seller that doesn't know what their car is worth, but in the modern day, it's pretty easy to find the private party value of a car. I typically sell off my cars on Craigslist if it is in good condition and it's always pretty easy to get top dollar for a gently used 2-3 year old Honda or Toyota.

https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?listingId=541925167&referrer=%2Fcars-for-sale%2Fsearchresults.xhtml%3FsellerTypes%3Dp%26listingTypes%3DCERTIFIED%252CUSED%26startYear%3D1981%26maxMileage%3D45000%26sortBy%3DderivedpriceDESC%26incremental%3Dall%26firstRecord%3D0%26marketExtension%3Dinclude%26endYear%3D2021%26modelCodeList%3DCOROL%26makeCodeList%3DTOYOTA%26isNewSearch%3Dtrue&sellerTypes=p&listingTypes=CERTIFIED%2CUSED&startYear=1981&numRecords=25&firstRecord=0&endYear=2021&modelCodeList=COROL&makeCodeList=TOYOTA&makeCode1=TOYOTA&modelCode1=COROL&clickType=listing

The car above is going for 15k. Posters on toyota nation are saying they bought one in 2019 for 22k without taxes. It took me about 30 seconds to find this car. They are everywhere.