I bought in the middle of 2021, right when things were starting to get crazy. I ended up getting a great deal on a car with very light cosmetic damage from a storm (along the lines of a tree branch falling and grazing one side).

*sticker price was 12,000

I've done it -- in 2007, I bought a 2005 Toyota Corolla for $9000 (sticker price was $1200 but my Dad was with me and he is an INCREDIBLE haggler). I think it had less than 20,000 miles.

We bought it at a Toyota dealership -- someone had brought it in (maybe belonged to an old lady who passed?)

In the year 2023, it is still with me and is still running strong. I keep waiting for it to die a natural death so I can get another car, but it won't! I love it so much. 120,000 miles now. I went to a dealership the other day, and they offer $3000 as a trade-in price. So i essentially spent $6000 (plus insurance) to drive this car for 16 years.

I have bought a few used cars and use Car Guru as a guide. The best cars are often those coming off a three year lease and then get certified by a dealer along with an extended warranty. The sweet spot are cars with less than 25,000 miles.

The used car market is very difficult now, OP. We have always bought used cars and had great success with them, keeping them for 10 years or more. In a recent search for a used car we found most of them to be high in mileage, dirty, and not much less expensive than a new one and ended up buying new. The price of the new car was about 3-4k more than comparable used ones with 50k miles on them. We're talking about a vehicle that is about 28k new.

I've purchased my last two (both SUVs) via cargurus.com. I used the search engine to narrow the options to a price range and low-mileage range. I'd still be driving the first one (2012 Honda Pilot ... bought in 2016, I think) had the 2019 derecho decided to not throw a tree at me while driving. Current is a 2016 GMC Acadia bought in 2019 for the previously-stated reason. In each case, there were under 20K miles when I bought them. Paid cash.

I bought a 2018 Mazda 3 in February with just under 20K miles for for $16K. Price wise it was lower than others that had double that mileage and the car looked new, so I drove there and picked it up that night. Simple.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why on Earth is Jeep on your list? It's one of the least reliable brands in the US. Definitely not a good choice for a used purchase.

As are Hondas.

My 2011 Pilot with 245,000+ miles would disagree. This thing has been a tank!

The newer Honda Pilots feel so much smaller than mine. I looked at getting a newer model in 2022 but never pulled the trigger.

My DD just got a KIA Seltos for under $30k. She really likes it and I have to admit, for a base model, it has a lot of bells and whistles that you'd pay for in other brands.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why on Earth is Jeep on your list? It's one of the least reliable brands in the US. Definitely not a good choice for a used purchase.

Plus they are silly vehicles.

I hope things get better for you, dear.

Anonymous wrote:Why on Earth is Jeep on your list? It's one of the least reliable brands in the US. Definitely not a good choice for a used purchase.

I specifically waited until gas prices spiked in ‘21 to look for a used Jeep. Traded a ‘16 Subaru Crosstrek with 55k miles (crap car, btw- will never own another Subaru) and got $1700 over top blue book trade value for it. I was looking for a very specific model (‘16-17 Rubicon Hard Rock w/6spd manual) and had zero negotiation leverage because of that. High gas prices were the only thing that allowed me to find one at a fair price. Found a ‘16 with 37k miles for $48k and that was an almost unheard of deal, because gas prices were high. When it was new it stickered for $53k. In four and a half years and 37,000 miles it only lost $5k in value. Let’s compare that to what the average Benz or BMW or other luxury import loses in 4 years, and get back to me!

You might not like Jeeps, but they hold their value like almost no other vehicle.