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Nocheez
Sep 5, 2000

Can you spare a little cheddar?
Nap Ghost
Man, that's crazy. Change the thread title to DO NEVER COSIGN.

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T0MSERV0
Jul 24, 2007

You shouldn't expect to defeat him, he is designed to be a war machine.

Nocheez posted:

Man, that's crazy. Change the subforum title to Business, Finance, and Careers - DO NEVER COSIGN.

Fixed that for you - why keep it limited to the cars thread?

As for the grandfather, would it be possible for his kids to step in and intervene on behalf of their daughter? Maybe no one person has 12 grand lying around, but perhaps they could collectively come up with it.

mcpringles
Jan 26, 2004

Does anyone have any experience refinancing an auto loan? Is it even worth doing? My girlfriend was asking me if I think she should do it, but honestly I didn't know you could refinance an auto loan until now.

She has a 2008 VW Rabbit with around 40K miles. Her interest rate is 8% and has either 2 or 3 years left on the loan for around $8,000. A quick search shows rates around 2.5% - 4% for a refinance loan.

Zeta Taskforce
Jun 27, 2002

ZeroAX posted:

Does anyone have any experience refinancing an auto loan? Is it even worth doing? My girlfriend was asking me if I think she should do it, but honestly I didn't know you could refinance an auto loan until now.

She has a 2008 VW Rabbit with around 40K miles. Her interest rate is 8% and has either 2 or 3 years left on the loan for around $8,000. A quick search shows rates around 2.5% - 4% for a refinance loan.

I help people refinance cars all the time. It's not very hard to do. We ask for proof of income, the registration, payoff amount from the other bank, and an insurance binder with us as loss payee. To get the binder you can just call your insurance company and tell them to fax one to us. You could gather everything in a hour if you wanted.

It's worth trying, but you do want to have realistic expectations about the result. Even assuming her credit is top notch and she gets 3% or 4%, her payment will probably come down by around $8 or so. Of course that is still a couple hundred dollars over the course of the loan, but its not like it will revolutionize her life.

You didn't ask, but it goes without saying that if her credit is rough and yours is excellent, YOU DON'T COSIGN!

mcpringles
Jan 26, 2004

So assuming her credit is good, is it worth doing then? There aren't any fees or anything that they tack on to the loan balance?

Her credit is pretty good and could probably qualify, and I wont cosign. I know the interest savings wouldn't be huge, but she has other debt and is a little tight on money right now, so any savings would definitely help.

Zeta Taskforce
Jun 27, 2002

ZeroAX posted:

So assuming her credit is good, is it worth doing then? There aren't any fees or anything that they tack on to the loan balance?

Her credit is pretty good and could probably qualify, and I wont cosign. I know the interest savings wouldn't be huge, but she has other debt and is a little tight on money right now, so any savings would definitely help.

Yeah, its worth doing. We charge a $25 fee to retitle the car. I doubt she would pay much more than that. Most loans don't have prepayment penalties. Even if the savings are not dramatic, it is still savings.

Sephiroth_IRA
Mar 31, 2010
drat. I'm assuming "Why are you selling the car?" is a perfectly fair question to ask someone when you're purchasing a vehicle because so far I've only found one person that took offense to it.

"Why am I selling the car? Why are you BUYING the car? Mind your own business, I don't like that question I'm not going to answer it."

The reason why I ask is simply because it gives some insight into the possibility of reducing the price. If the seller says "My wife and I just got pregnant" chances are they'll be willing to reduce the price if they need the money in a hurry; if the seller says "My 16 year old daughter needs a car and she's not interested in driving a sedan" I can assume he'd be less willing to sell the car below it's actual value.

Impulse post but I'm also re-posting age old advice I received from the Millionaire Next Door.

The Welper
Nov 27, 2007
Don't... Touch... The Case.

Orange_Lazarus posted:

drat. I'm assuming "Why are you selling the car?" is a perfectly fair question to ask someone when you're purchasing a vehicle because so far I've only found one person that took offense to it.

"Why am I selling the car? Why are you BUYING the car? Mind your own business, I don't like that question I'm not going to answer it."

TBH, I think any reluctance to answer this question is a giant red flag. Sirens going off... Maybe someone is offended that you're trying to pry into their personal life, but in all honesty that is a legitimate question that one should EXPECT when selling a used high-value item like a vehicle.

If someone responded with that attitude when buying a used firearm you would certainly second-guess the situation.

Sephiroth_IRA
Mar 31, 2010
Yeah speaking of which I just got off the phone with a guy selling a used 2000 Prizm. Asked the same question and basically got his life-story about how he's a foreign exchange student and that he'll be returning to his home country in a few months.

Stats on the Car:
2000 Chevrolet Prizm
4D Sedan
Engine: 1.8 L 4 cylinder
Mileage: 155.000
Transmission: Automatic
Exterior Color: White
Cruise Control
New Tires purchased in 2010.

Initial Price 3100; stated he was open to negotiation.

I found a similar Prizm for sale that's going for 3400 from a dealer w 115000 miles. I'll probably be bringing that ad with me. Also a print-out of the kbb value.

Edit: Also I've heard that Prizms are basically Corollas so why is there such a kbb price difference between the two? Is it simply brand recognition?

Also going to admit I'm new to the whole car haggling thing. How much do you think I should expect to lower the price of the above car? What strategies should I implement?

Leperflesh
May 17, 2007

Orange_Lazarus posted:

Edit: Also I've heard that Prizms are basically Corollas so why is there such a kbb price difference between the two? Is it simply brand recognition?

Correct. Specifically, Toyotas and Hondas have a reputation for reliability that causes their used resale prices to be somewhat inflated. Buying a Prizm instead of a Corolla is an excellent opportunity to get a Toyota without paying that premium.

As to your other questions, I don't know much about that particular car's resale value - it's going to vary by area and (hugely) condition of the car.

I suggest you look over the car yourself, and if you're still interested, have it inspected by a mechanic. You can use any condition or mechanical issues you discover as haggling points.

One thing in particular to look for is when the timing belt was last changed, as this is a relatively expensive but absolutely necessary maintenance task.

IOwnCalculus
Apr 2, 2003





The Welper posted:

TBH, I think any reluctance to answer this question is a giant red flag. Sirens going off... Maybe someone is offended that you're trying to pry into their personal life, but in all honesty that is a legitimate question that one should EXPECT when selling a used high-value item like a vehicle.

Completely agreed. Strangely, it's also a question that seems to indicate a buyer's seriousness in the matter - I don't think anyone who just emailed me over and over without ever wanting to come look at it ever asked me that when I was selling my mother-in-law's Camry, but the two people who actually came out and looked at it did. Both got a kick out of the story (Camry's master cylinder failed, I lent her my Miata while I fixed her Camry, she fell in love with the Miata) and the second guy bought the car.

Guinness
Sep 15, 2004

It's definitely a valid question to ask, and anyone who hesitates to answer it (or worse, gets offended by it) is likely trying to cover something up. Of course, it's easy to lie about your reasons, but that's at least better than getting up in arms over it.

asmallrabbit
Dec 15, 2005
It's a valid question to ask but I can see how some people could get offended by it. If it's for financial reasons or something personal that they don't want to talk about they have a right to their privacy, maybe they got laid off or got a divorce/broke up and need the cash or just don't want to keep it around. That has no effect on the car but theres no reason they should have to tell anyone that if they don't want too.

Now if they refuse to answer a question about the car that's different, but in some cases it really isn't any of your business why they are selling it.

Zeta Taskforce
Jun 27, 2002

Not only is it a valid question, asking it should be part of a buyer’s due diligence. There is no way you can tell with 100% certainty that the seller isn’t lying through their teeth, but the reason becomes part of a narrative. If they say they are downsizing and becoming a 1 car family, that might make sense if they live next to public transportation or they are empty nesters. It would make less sense if you go there and you see they have 4 kids of different ages running around and you google the seller’s name and it’s associated with a company that is 50 miles away.

People who sell their cars in private party sales do it so they can get more money than the trade in values from the dealer. This is the benefit. But like anything you do in life, there are costs. In this case the costs are in time and loss of privacy.

Guinness
Sep 15, 2004

Zeta Taskforce posted:

the reason becomes part of a narrative.

This is a great way to put it. The biggest advantage of buying private party versus a dealer is that you get to meet face to face with the actual owner of the car. You get a chance to read their personality, how responsible/trustworthy you think they are, and try to piece together the story of why they bought the car, how long they owned it, how they treated it, and finally why they are selling it. It's by no means a sure-fire way to tell if you're getting a good car, but it's a great tool.

For instance, say you're looking at something like an entry-level luxury compact or a sports coupe (e.g., 3-series, A4, C-class, G-series, etc.). You find a private party guy who is 31, bought the car 6 years ago to commute with to his professional job, has otherwise loved and maintained the car, but now has to get something bigger because he has a baby on the way and you just met his pregnant wife in the process of checking out the car. Seems like a pretty legit story, and that makes me comfortable as a buyer.

Or, conversely, you go to look at the same car and it's being sold by an idiot teenager with a rich daddy. The kid bought it 8 months ago, can't give any evidence of even simple maintenance (like, did you change the oil since you've owned it?), and wants to get rid of it because he's going to buy a WRX STi and mod it. I'd run far away from that car.

If the seller is hesitant to tell me a bit about the history of the car and their relationship with it, I'm going to automatically place them in a similar category as the idiot teenager, whether that's true or not. Maybe that's unfair, but as a used car buyer you can't be too careful.

On a used auto lot, you get no chance to get the story whether it's good or bad and rarely do they come with maintenance records, so you just have to gamble on it. And the dealer probably won't go as low as a private seller, either.

Guinness fucked around with this message at 17:41 on May 12, 2011

Leperflesh
May 17, 2007

I think it's reasonable to expect that if someone has personal reasons for selling the car that they don't want to tell you, they can just summarize that fact without taking offense.

Like, "we're having a family emergency and we need the money" or whatever. It's not like you have to divulge intimate details of your life to give a vague but reasonably accurate reason for selling. You don't have to say you need money for bail or your daughter is having an abortion you need to pay for or you need to put back the money you embezzled before the FBI figures it out.

If someone takes offense and refuses to say, I'm going to assume the reason is something like "the mechanic said it would cost $2500 to replace the engine" or "I need money for crack" or "I'm selling my boyfriend's car without his knowledge because he's a cheatin' bastard" or something equally unpleasant that I will reject the purchase over regardless.

Earth
Nov 6, 2009
I WOULD RATHER INSERT A $20 LEGO SET'S WORTH OF PLASTIC BRICKS INTO MY URETHRA THAN STOP TALKING ABOUT BEING A SCALPER.
College Slice
I hate car shopping. I hated it when I was buying my first car January of 2005, and now that I'm in the process again six and a half years later I hate it again. The necessary evils that we have to go through. A little background. I'm a fully employed engineer, and next fall I plan on going back to college to do a graduate degree. The college is very expensive, and while I hope to attain funding, there is no guarantee. So I've got to be financially savvy with my choice.

To start things off, I'm really interested in a Subaru. For some reason I just love these cars. The look, the locations that they're popular, I hear they are super reliable from friends that own them. I want BFCs opinion on these guys. Also, right now Subaru has special offers going on: http://www.subaru.com/special-offers/index.html. If anyone has any experience with Subarus I would love to hear about it.

Throatwarbler
Nov 17, 2008

by vyelkin

Earth posted:

I hate car shopping. I hated it when I was buying my first car January of 2005, and now that I'm in the process again six and a half years later I hate it again. The necessary evils that we have to go through. A little background. I'm a fully employed engineer, and next fall I plan on going back to college to do a graduate degree. The college is very expensive, and while I hope to attain funding, there is no guarantee. So I've got to be financially savvy with my choice.

To start things off, I'm really interested in a Subaru. For some reason I just love these cars. The look, the locations that they're popular, I hear they are super reliable from friends that own them. I want BFCs opinion on these guys. Also, right now Subaru has special offers going on: http://www.subaru.com/special-offers/index.html. If anyone has any experience with Subarus I would love to hear about it.

Your link doesn't work for me, but which model are you looking at? The Impreza is going to a new body style next year so there would be discounts on the current body style.

BigHead
Jul 25, 2003
Huh?


Nap Ghost
Sorry if this has been asked, but the last ten or twelve pages haven't had it.

I found a used car I want to buy but haven't a clue how far above blue book I should be willing to go. It's a nice car, recent year, lots of perks, exactly what I was looking for. Blue book is $16,100. The dealer had it stickered at $22 (lol) and before me even asking, the salesman offered to go down to $19,700 (lol).

Question is this: Is the blue book the price I should be aiming towards, or is that like the base, where they wouldn't be making any profit? Should I split the difference and offer him $17 cash, aiming for like $17.5? Or should I just say "I blue booked it at $16.1, I'm offering $16.1 cash?"

BigHead fucked around with this message at 04:25 on May 13, 2011

kimbo305
Jun 9, 2007

actually, yeah, I am a little mad

Earth posted:

The college is very expensive, and while I hope to attain funding, there is no guarantee. So I've got to be financially savvy with my choice.

To start things off, I'm really interested in a Subaru. If anyone has any experience with Subarus I would love to hear about it.

The reliable years / dollar metric implies that financial savvy is not to buy new. Is that feasible for your situation?

Earth
Nov 6, 2009
I WOULD RATHER INSERT A $20 LEGO SET'S WORTH OF PLASTIC BRICKS INTO MY URETHRA THAN STOP TALKING ABOUT BEING A SCALPER.
College Slice

Throatwarbler posted:

Your link doesn't work for me, but which model are you looking at? The Impreza is going to a new body style next year so there would be discounts on the current body style.

That's strange, I tried the link and it doesn't work for me either. Google "Subaru Special Offers" and it's the first link with the same URL as I posted.

I'm interested in test driving out the manual Legacy and Impreza . Quick numbers tells me that it comes out to $250 per month. Which is more than manageable throughout the next year of work and then the year to year and a half of college.

kimbo305 posted:

The reliable years / dollar metric implies that financial savvy is not to buy new. Is that feasible for your situation?

I wish. Right now my current car is having potentially serious motor problems. Taking it to the shop on Wednesday (couldn't get it in sooner). Between my job and my family I need to have something I can rely on for 5-10 hour drives several times a year and getting me to and from work every day for the next year. Also during college I will get a summer internship if the college isn't funding me and that can send me from one side of the U.S. to the other and back in the summer of 2013. My current car will not be able to handle that. Hell, my current car I hope during the drive to and from work that it doesn't die on me.

The reason I'm interested in new is because when I look at a few years old Subaru the price hovers around 16k and a new one is hovering around 20-22k. Those 4-6k dollars difference seems to me to actually be worth the no milage and warranty that comes with a new car.

Leperflesh
May 17, 2007

Where do you live, Earth? I just hit my local Craigslist for 2005 subaru legacy, and I'm seeing plenty of hits for $12-14k. (The ones at $10k and lower seem to be mostly salvage titles which of course you'd avoid).

for example

Given that I'm in the Bay Area, where prices tend to be high, I'm wondering if perhaps you're either in an area where subarus fetch a premium (alaska), or if you're not looking in the right places (craigslist, autotrader, local dealerships, etc.)

Keep in mind that a dealership-advertised price for a used car is a hilarious "suggestion" that you should never pay. I would generally assume I can get at least 20% off the price on the sticker.

Throatwarbler
Nov 17, 2008

by vyelkin

Earth posted:

That's strange, I tried the link and it doesn't work for me either. Google "Subaru Special Offers" and it's the first link with the same URL as I posted.

I'm interested in test driving out the manual Legacy and Impreza . Quick numbers tells me that it comes out to $250 per month. Which is more than manageable throughout the next year of work and then the year to year and a half of college.


Are you absolutely set on the manual? The CVT Legacy gets significantly better fuel economy due to its CVT and more efficient part time AWD. I've driven it and its perfectly adequate, and this was with the smaller 2.0l 170hp engine (not sold in the US). It should also be cheaper too.

Don Lapre
Mar 28, 2001

If you're having problems you're either holding the phone wrong or you have tiny girl hands.

Throatwarbler posted:

Are you absolutely set on the manual? The CVT Legacy gets significantly better fuel economy due to its CVT and more efficient part time AWD. I've driven it and its perfectly adequate, and this was with the smaller 2.0l 170hp engine (not sold in the US). It should also be cheaper too.

I love the CVT in our 2010 outback and im normally a 5spd driver.

Arzakon
Nov 24, 2002

"I hereby retire from Mafia"
Please turbo me if you catch me in a game.

Leperflesh posted:

I just hit my local Craigslist for 2005 subaru legacy

6 years old and 100K miles is starting to get into "old car" territory and not "a few years old" like he was looking for and finding minimal price difference.

NOTinuyasha
Oct 17, 2006

 
The Great Twist
Almost a month ago I bought a used Mercedes-Benz C300 from a CPO dealer. The financing was preety good, 1.9%/66 months through MB financial.

Anyway this monday will be one month from officially driving the car off the lot and I have yet to receive a bill, I called the financing dept at the dealer up last week, left a message and never got a call back. I called the salesman up on Fri who said he'd look into it, but he has yet to follow up as well.

Who should I be contacting? MB financial in California, or the dealer? Who's actually supposed to be sending me the bill? How can I cover my rear end if the first payment is missed over this?

Saltin
Aug 20, 2003
Don't touch
Dealers don't handle financing. MB financial.

Congrats on the amortization period. You should have bought a Kia :P

inklesspen
Oct 17, 2007

Here I am coming, with the good news of me, and you hate it. You can think only of the bell and how much I have it, and you are never the goose. I will run around with my bell as much as I want and you will make despair.
Buglord
I have an 09 Corolla, financed through Toyota Financial Services at APR of 4.25%. The current payoff amount is $14,521. My payments are quite affordable, but I got a flyer from my credit union that says I can refinance through them into a 3.24% APR, no application fee and no loan transfer fee. Oh, and they'll give me $200 cash to do it. That interest rate is for a 60-month loan, but since I'm a year into paying off I'm hoping they'll still give me the 3.24 APR for a 48-month one.

If my math is right, that comes out to saving $340 in interest over the life of the loan, plus the free $200 cash, plus giving my business to a credit union instead of a bank.

Any reason I shouldn't do this?

Edit: Also I guess I'm worried this might ding my credit; it already took a slight beating when I got the car in the first place.

inklesspen fucked around with this message at 09:08 on May 15, 2011

FISHMANPET
Mar 3, 2007

Sweet 'N Sour
Can't
Melt
Steel Beams

inklesspen posted:

I have an 09 Corolla, financed through Toyota Financial Services at APR of 4.25%. The current payoff amount is $14,521. My payments are quite affordable, but I got a flyer from my credit union that says I can refinance through them into a 3.24% APR, no application fee and no loan transfer fee. Oh, and they'll give me $200 cash to do it. That interest rate is for a 60-month loan, but since I'm a year into paying off I'm hoping they'll still give me the 3.24 APR for a 48-month one.

If my math is right, that comes out to saving $340 in interest over the life of the loan, plus the free $200 cash, plus giving my business to a credit union instead of a bank.

Any reason I shouldn't do this?

Edit: Also I guess I'm worried this might ding my credit; it already took a slight beating when I got the car in the first place.

If they won't knock down the loan period (my guess would be that they won't) see if there are pre payment penalties, so yoyeu can just pay it as a 48 month loan even though they'll be billing you for a 60 month loan.

BigHead
Jul 25, 2003
Huh?


Nap Ghost

BigHead posted:

Question is this: Is the blue book $16.1 the price I should be aiming towards, or is that like the base, where they wouldn't be making any profit? Should I split the difference and offer him $17 cash, aiming for like $17.5? Or should I just say "I blue booked it at $16.1, I'm offering $16.1 cash?"

Quoting myself from a week ago to repeat the question. I gotta pull the trigger soon.

kimbo305
Jun 9, 2007

actually, yeah, I am a little mad

BigHead posted:

Quoting myself from a week ago to repeat the question. I gotta pull the trigger soon.

Start your bargaining below what you'd be willing to buy at. And don't be afraid to walk if they refuse to see it at your price. Of course, it seems like you're coming up against a deadline, which is going to screw you in terms of finding a deal. Have you looked at any other cars, or is this the only one?

BigHead
Jul 25, 2003
Huh?


Nap Ghost

kimbo305 posted:

Start your bargaining below what you'd be willing to buy at. And don't be afraid to walk if they refuse to see it at your price. Of course, it seems like you're coming up against a deadline, which is going to screw you in terms of finding a deal. Have you looked at any other cars, or is this the only one?

Oh, I've looked at several cars at several different places. I have found two I really like that are great deals (the blue book is right on budget), and a few that would be fine. I just want to know how much I can rely on the blue book when I negotiate. I've never negotiated for a car before. Do the dealers expect to get the exact blue book price? Does the blue book have nothing to do with it?

Konstantin
Jun 20, 2005
And the Lord said, "Look, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them.

BigHead posted:

Oh, I've looked at several cars at several different places. I have found two I really like that are great deals (the blue book is right on budget), and a few that would be fine. I just want to know how much I can rely on the blue book when I negotiate. I've never negotiated for a car before. Do the dealers expect to get the exact blue book price? Does the blue book have nothing to do with it?

It depends on the market. For a slightly used Japanese car with good gas mileage, I'm willing to bet that they want more than blue book for it. Wouldn't hurt to make an offer, but don't hold your breath, there are a lot of people who will pay a premium for that car type right now.

dreesemonkey
May 14, 2008
Pillbug
Not exactly a car recommendation, more of a general "how much should spend" question.

My wife and I are looking for another 4-door car since we're going to be having our first child. We're not really in any hurry (although it would be nice to have something with working AC here soon) and going to pay cash.

Ideally I'd love to find a boring rear end camry/accord, but there seems to be two levels of cars with very little in between:

- $4-6k with 130k+ on them, approximately 8-12 years old
- $9-14k with sub-80k miles, approximately 5-9 years old

Part of the problem is I don't live in a huge area so the market for private party cars isn't enormous as it is, and typically when I do find something it's beat on with high miles or someone who can't afford their car and wants payoff for their upside down rear end. So basically we have to travel 1-2 hours to be in a decent market.

I'm just not sure what I really want to spend. We can't comfortably drop $10k+ right now, but we could if wait a few months, but I'm not sure if I even want to spend that much anyway.

The best two cars I've found so far have both been camrys, both 2 hours from here:

$5700 - 2001, 4cyl, 118k miles, owner claims it's pristine in/out, never driven in snow, garage kept, etc.

$9500 - 2005, 6cyl(?), 5spd, ~80k miles, a few options.

The cheapness if coming out in me and saying that the 2001 is the way to go (less initial investment, claims of well maintained), though I would feel better buying something with less than 80k on it. Opinions on getting the most bang for my buck?

gvibes
Jan 18, 2010

Leading us to the promised land (i.e., one tournament win in five years)

dreesemonkey posted:

$5700 - 2001, 4cyl, 118k miles, owner claims it's pristine in/out, never driven in snow, garage kept, etc.

$9500 - 2005, 6cyl(?), 5spd, ~80k miles, a few options.

The cheapness if coming out in me and saying that the 2001 is the way to go (less initial investment, claims of well maintained), though I would feel better buying something with less than 80k on it. Opinions on getting the most bang for my buck?
Tip on buying Toyotas that I found out. If you go to the Toyota owners page, you can enter the VIN number of the car, and if it was maintained at a Toyota dealership, you can see the full service records.

I just sold a 2005 camry, and that certainly seems like a really good price. It was a four cylinder with 60k, and we gave my sister (what I thought was) a deal for $9k.

Throatwarbler
Nov 17, 2008

by vyelkin
If you are looking for a "bang for the buck" used car, there is no reason to even consider either the Camry or Accord.

dreesemonkey
May 14, 2008
Pillbug

Throatwarbler posted:

If you are looking for a "bang for the buck" used car, there is no reason to even consider either the Camry or Accord.

Accords/Camrys have a few things that put them at the top of the list:

1. They sell in such huge quantities you're going to have a good market to choose from.
2. I'm at the point where I think a reputation of building a really solid and dependable car model over a 30 year period is worth a price increase.
3. Generally speaking the honda/toyota cars have a big leg up in build quality. They're not fancy luxury cars, but they are built well (I wouldn't even consider a dodge/chrysler vehicle in the year range we could afford). As a whole Honda and Toyota make some incredibly reliable cars with very few "lemon" models. Where as to pick on Dodge for instance, LOL headgaskets, LOL fwd transmissions across many models in their line over the years.
4. Japanese manufacturers have always done pretty well with engineering/r&d/economy. It's only been the last 5-7 years for domestics to wake up and say "oh poo poo, our lovely cars can't compete" and start to make better cars. The new nice cars are still probably at the top of my price range, and I may (illogically?) considering them to be "too new" to wonder how dependable they are.

I understand the bang 4 buck. We have a '99 Cavalier now with almost 170k miles on it that still runs very well (and we're going to keep it until it dies), but it's unrefined and almost literally falling apart. When we replace that I think I'll be more willing to "risk it" and get something else cheap, but a primary family car should be one I don't have to lose sleep over.

gvibes
Jan 18, 2010

Leading us to the promised land (i.e., one tournament win in five years)
I think perceived quality difference > actual quality difference, so pay more of a premium than you need to.

How about a mid-decade Mazda 6 or Impreza? Also Japanese.

Throatwarbler
Nov 17, 2008

by vyelkin

dreesemonkey posted:

Accords/Camrys have a few things that put them at the top of the list:

1. They sell in such huge quantities you're going to have a good market to choose from.


All midsize cars sell in quantities enough. None of them are particularly rare.

quote:

2. I'm at the point where I think a reputation of building a really solid and dependable car model over a 30 year period is worth a price increase.

Nothing I say will convince you otherwise, but as long as you understand that you're essentially basing yout $10k purchase purely on superstition.

quote:

3. Generally speaking the honda/toyota cars have a big leg up in build quality. They're not fancy luxury cars, but they are built well (I wouldn't even consider a dodge/chrysler vehicle in the year range we could afford). As a whole Honda and Toyota make some incredibly reliable cars with very few "lemon" models. Where as to pick on Dodge for instance, LOL headgaskets, LOL fwd transmissions across many models in their line over the years.

You are not buying the entire Toyota model lineup, you are just buying one car. For example, the 2005 6 cyl Camry you list is well known for having massive problems with engine sludge. When the engine fails, it will be little consolation to you that Toyota's other models are very reliable. I would pretty much *only* consider Chrysler and Dodge vehicles in the price ranges you list, since for the same price, you can get a much newer, lower mileage Dodge or Chrysler. Do I recommend ALL Chrysler products? Nope. It may even be true that across the entire model line, Chrysler makes more "bad" cars than Toyota does, but I am not buying Chrysler's entire model line. There are resources online to help you determine which models are lemons and which are not.

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4. Japanese manufacturers have always done pretty well with engineering/r&d/economy. It's only been the last 5-7 years for domestics to wake up and say "oh poo poo, our lovely cars can't compete" and start to make better cars. The new nice cars are still probably at the top of my price range, and I may (illogically?) considering them to be "too new" to wonder how dependable they are.

Not that I even agree with any of this, but for the price range you speak of, you can buy plenty of domestics built within the last 5-7 years anyway.

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sanchez
Feb 26, 2003
What mid-late 00's midsize Chrysler/Dodge sedan wasn't a piece of poo poo? He should get that 01 Camry or something similar (stick with the 4cyl) and drive it forever.

sanchez fucked around with this message at 20:34 on May 20, 2011

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