Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Let me explain it as my auto shop teacher explained Japanese vs American cars.
He said yes many Japanese cars are a bit better made and a bit more reliable and can run a bit longer than American cars.
But the laws of physics can not be ignored. Metal rubbing against metal in engine and tranny will eventually wear down and break down.
He has seen folks but 140k miles used Camrys for high prices under theory they last forever. But metal rubbing against metal will eventually cause a break down.
A 2015 Chevy Malibu with 55k miles vs a 2015 Camry with 100k miles may sell same price used. The Toyota depreciates less. I know my auto shop teacher would see but the Malibu.
Brand new work day buy the Camry.
Obviously your auto shop teacher didn't teach you the differences between normal wear and tear/maintenance vs. break downs.
Anonymous wrote:The two or three year old ones don't cost much less than a new one. So what is the sweet spot? 45,000 miles for $17K or 75,000 miles for $12K?
Not a big driver here, just to work and once in a while a 650 mile trip.
Anonymous wrote:Let me explain it as my auto shop teacher explained Japanese vs American cars.
He said yes many Japanese cars are a bit better made and a bit more reliable and can run a bit longer than American cars.
But the laws of physics can not be ignored. Metal rubbing against metal in engine and tranny will eventually wear down and break down.
He has seen folks but 140k miles used Camrys for high prices under theory they last forever. But metal rubbing against metal will eventually cause a break down.
A 2015 Chevy Malibu with 55k miles vs a 2015 Camry with 100k miles may sell same price used. The Toyota depreciates less. I know my auto shop teacher would see but the Malibu.
Brand new work day buy the Camry.
Anonymous wrote:If you want to save money on used, you need to go older than 3 years/36k miles. They want an obscene amount for anything used less than that and it’s not worth it.
Anonymous wrote:You seem to have identified what I've observed as a very interesting aspect of used car pricing. Depreciation is mostly linear, as a function of a car's total service life. Long gone are the days of "it loses half its value once you drive it off the lot!"
So, in that sense, and in the current environment of low interest rates, I don't know that it is necessarily a wise or even a frugal choice to buy used. It just comes down to how much you want to spend, how much capital you want to put forward now.
There's no bad choice here. You're going to get a good car. Maybe you consider a new hybrid version? Look at what it will save you in gasoline over the period of time you anticipate owning it -- I found when I bought that I would recover the small hybrid premium in two or three years.
Anonymous wrote:Let me explain it as my auto shop teacher explained Japanese vs American cars.
He said yes many Japanese cars are a bit better made and a bit more reliable and can run a bit longer than American cars.
But the laws of physics can not be ignored. Metal rubbing against metal in engine and tranny will eventually wear down and break down.
He has seen folks but 140k miles used Camrys for high prices under theory they last forever. But metal rubbing against metal will eventually cause a break down.
A 2015 Chevy Malibu with 55k miles vs a 2015 Camry with 100k miles may sell same price used. The Toyota depreciates less. I know my auto shop teacher would see but the Malibu.
Brand new work day buy the Camry.