Author Topic: Should I trade in the car?  (Read 2780 times)

Ezzo

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Should I trade in the car?
« on: April 10, 2017, 07:52:18 AM »
I currently have a car.  I'm happy with it and it runs well (after finally getting an issue fixed this year).  But it is coming up to 100,000 km.  I've heard that after this point resale value goes down as soon as it hits that milestone.  Additionally, the maintenance costs go up.

I've checked out the second hand value of my car.  Around $14,000.  I was debating trading in for another that has done 20,000-40,000 km, which I could do without tipping in too much for a hybrid or probably break even or come out ahead on another straight petrol car.  Electrics are not feasible here as yet, but I'm hoping another 5 years will bring them in so they are cheaper.

My other option is to essentially run the car into the ground.  But my fear is, that if I do that, not only do I have the increased maintenance to deal with, but also have to stump up quite a bit to get the "new" car as the old one would essentially be worthless.

I'm not trying to convince myself to buy a "newer" car. I'm not a car person.  But am wondering what the best course of action would be. 
Ta

neo von retorch

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Re: Should I trade in the car?
« Reply #1 on: April 10, 2017, 08:10:45 AM »
Look for local cars for sale (online if possible) that are ~1-2 years older than yours, and 120,000 - 140,000 km. What are they selling for? Is it a drastic drop off in price? More likely, it's a small drop off, no more drastic than the dropoff at 80,000 km.

marielle

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Re: Should I trade in the car?
« Reply #2 on: April 10, 2017, 08:17:54 AM »
It is almost always cheaper to drive the older car and pay for the maintenance than to drive a new/newer car. Depending on how frugal you want to be, you'd come out ahead money-wise if you sold this car for $14,000 and bought a car for around $5000. You'll have cheaper insurance, cheaper property taxes, and very little depreciation. If you're concerned with the condition of the car at that low of a price, pay a mechanic $50 to do a pre-purchase inspection and you'll know exactly what maintenance would be required in the future.

But if you're willing to pay more for the fancy new features and not having to deal with maintenance, then keep the car. I don't really see the point of trading it in, you're going to lose money on that transaction guaranteed without really gaining anything. You've already paid for a majority of the depreciation from 0-100k km. The depreciation is going to slow down from here. With the newer car, you're paying more in depreciation and insurance each month than you ever would on maintenance.

Le Barbu

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Re: Should I trade in the car?
« Reply #3 on: April 10, 2017, 08:32:30 AM »
I currently have a car.  I'm happy with it and it runs well

I'm not trying to convince myself to buy a "newer" car

Yes you are, read the first sentence of your post, you got your own answer there.

How many mils/year? Less than 10k miles? Then you are set for another 5-10 years. More than 10k miles? Then, the problem is not the car...

Lews Therin

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Re: Should I trade in the car?
« Reply #4 on: April 10, 2017, 08:51:55 AM »
Sell your car, buy a cheaper one that is older, but with better KM and better gas mileage. If you cannot find a car like that, keep yours.

Le Barbu

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Re: Should I trade in the car?
« Reply #5 on: April 10, 2017, 08:55:58 AM »
Sell your car, buy a cheaper one that is older, but with better KM and better gas mileage. If you cannot find a car like that, keep yours.

Well said Ben, I ususaly give this exact answer!

Ezzo

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Re: Should I trade in the car?
« Reply #6 on: April 11, 2017, 04:41:25 AM »
Look for local cars for sale (online if possible) that are ~1-2 years older than yours, and 120,000 - 140,000 km. What are they selling for? Is it a drastic drop off in price? More likely, it's a small drop off, no more drastic than the dropoff at 80,000 km.

Thanks for the reminder.  I should have actually done this from the outset.  Having another look at carsales in the area, there is an overall slight drop off, i would say of about $1000, if that (there is a significant range). 

 
I currently have a car.  I'm happy with it and it runs well

I'm not trying to convince myself to buy a "newer" car

Yes you are, read the first sentence of your post, you got your own answer there.

How many mils/year? Less than 10k miles? Then you are set for another 5-10 years. More than 10k miles? Then, the problem is not the car...

<10k miles.  And actually I'm not trying to convince myself.  What I "want" to do, is not to do anything.  Keep driving my current car.  Forget about the hassles of switching over.  But I'm worried it isn't the most cost efficient option, hence the question. 

I have pondered the other option.  Selling the car and getting something cheaper.  I will think some more on that.  My car does have great mileage. 
Trading the car attracts government charges, so I also need to take that into consideration for any trade (up or down)
 

use2betrix

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Re: Should I trade in the car?
« Reply #7 on: April 11, 2017, 06:00:24 AM »
What make/model is it? If it's a reasonably reliable and fuel efficient vehicle just drive it into the ground. Beings you have owned it a while you know how it's been taken care of (hopefully well).

Getting something older with higher mileage you always run the risk of getting something that never had its oil changed or was just poorly taken care of. Routine maintenance is easy and goes a long way for reliability, yet some people can't fathom that.