Car Value Vs Net Worth

[ChpBstrd]

2012 Honda Fit base, manual, 110k miles, VG: $6,220
2011 Toyota Corolla LE, auto, 128k miles, G: $5,323
Sum of cars:                                          $11,543

NW (without cars): $1.3M

Car/NW ratio: 0.89%

And no, I won't sell you either teenage car. They're both insured liability-only, get oil changes as soon as the little light comes on, and are dead-ass reliable. In the event of a serious wreck, I'll shop for a Corolla hybrid, Prius, or similar.

[Turtle]

Mine is currently about 1% of my net worth. 

[Dave1442397]

My car/net worth ratio is 0.5%.

I still find myself amazed at how much I like my car, having had it for almost eight years now. It'll be fifteen years old in December, and the only non-maintenance item so far has been the thermostat, which I fixed myself for $57 and 45 minutes of my time.

[Dicey]

I love to see old threads revived!

Three years since I last posted, we're still driving the same vehicless. The 2002 F150 has 110k miles. The 2014 Toyota just reached 90k, and 2012 Leisure Travel Sprinter RV crossed 55,555 earlier this week. DH still does all the repairs and they're all going strong. DH is FIRE now, and our TNW has continued to grow handsomely. I can't be bothered to do the math, but the number has to be miniscule.

I've forgotten. What's the point of this exercise?

[GilesMM]

After some egregious spending on overpowered toys our figure has soared to nearly 1.5%.  But it's summer, the weather is great, and a friend and I have autocrossed four different vehicles at six courses since March.

[2Birds1Stone]

Fun thread, now relevant again.

DW and I are about to purchase a vehicle worth somewhere between $40-50k so we'll be at 2.1-2.6% after not owning a vehicle for the past 5.5 years.

[SpareChange]

KBB says the private party value of my 2007 Focus hatchback is $2,456. Seems high, but I'll take it :). That puts it at 0.48% of NW.

Same car. KBB now says $2,825. Strange world we live in.

.38% of NW.

Same car. Down to 0.23% of NW.

[AccidentialMustache]

0.55% of our NW. Single 8 year old reliable mmm-approved car.

0.76%. Still have that old reliable Fit, but added a Mach E a few years ago. Also, accumulation.

[GuitarStv]

Our 2005 Corolla is still going strong . . . so based on the local value of a replacement it's around 0.14% net worth.

But I just had to replace the starter on it, and the alternator is acting up.  I think her future years are numbered unfortunately.

[PoutineLover]

We upgraded to our 2018 corolla when our 2011 hatchback couldn't fit both rear facing car seats so our percentage has gone up quite a bit. 4.4% but we hope to keep it for a good long time.

[JupiterGreen]

We have two newish toyotas that are worth about 2% of our NW maybe a little less. We both drove very old cars before we had to get new ones within the past five years, so this just happens to be the time in the cycle where our cars are relatively new so 2% car value to net worth is def our top.

[Wolfpack Mustachian]

Our 2005 Corolla is still going strong . . . so based on the local value of a replacement it's around 0.14% net worth.

But I just had to replace the starter on it, and the alternator is acting up.  I think her future years are numbered unfortunately.

Gonna buy a brand new one or used?

[GuitarStv]

Our 2005 Corolla is still going strong . . . so based on the local value of a replacement it's around 0.14% net worth.

But I just had to replace the starter on it, and the alternator is acting up.  I think her future years are numbered unfortunately.

Gonna buy a brand new one or used?

I've been kicking around the idea of getting a used car as they're quite a bit cheaper . . . although don't think we ended up losing any money buying the Corolla new, so who knows.

[Wolfpack Mustachian]

Our 2005 Corolla is still going strong . . . so based on the local value of a replacement it's around 0.14% net worth.

But I just had to replace the starter on it, and the alternator is acting up.  I think her future years are numbered unfortunately.

Gonna buy a brand new one or used?

I've been kicking around the idea of getting a used car as they're quite a bit cheaper . . . although don't think we ended up losing any money buying the Corolla new, so who knows.

I was curious because of a discussion awhile back where you mentioned the economics of how you bought new and it turned out to be a good deal.

[GuitarStv]

Our 2005 Corolla is still going strong . . . so based on the local value of a replacement it's around 0.14% net worth.

But I just had to replace the starter on it, and the alternator is acting up.  I think her future years are numbered unfortunately.

Gonna buy a brand new one or used?

I've been kicking around the idea of getting a used car as they're quite a bit cheaper . . . although don't think we ended up losing any money buying the Corolla new, so who knows.

I was curious because of a discussion awhile back where you mentioned the economics of how you bought new and it turned out to be a good deal.

Yeah, I'm still of the opinion that if you buy a new car and drive it into the ground it's probably about the same as buying used.  There's less money tied up into the car when you buy used, but the tradeoff is the need to spend the time necessary to find another car much sooner.  Since I'm going to be retired whenever the next car dies, I should have more time free than I do when working which changes my outlook on the problem.

[ChpBstrd]

Yeah, I'm still of the opinion that if you buy a new car and drive it into the ground it's probably about the same as buying used. There's less money tied up into the car when you buy used, but the tradeoff is the need to spend the time necessary to find another car much sooner.  Since I'm going to be retired whenever the next car dies, I should have more time free than I do when working which changes my outlook on the problem.

The thing is, "the ground" is much closer for some vehicles than it is for others. Talking about driving a Toyota or Honda into the ground (e.g. 300k miles, over 20 years) is an entirely different prospect than talking about driving a Kia/Hyundai, Ford, Chevy, Dodge/Chrysler/Fiat, Mercedes, Nissan, or for f***'s sake a Jeep.

We should all know that a brand new fully-loaded Camry or Civic, bought at a price that reflects poor negotiating skills, will subtract a lot less from your bank account over ten years of ownership than a slightly used Jeep or GMC truck purchased from a private party, for example.

[GuitarStv]

Yeah, I'm still of the opinion that if you buy a new car and drive it into the ground it's probably about the same as buying used. There's less money tied up into the car when you buy used, but the tradeoff is the need to spend the time necessary to find another car much sooner.  Since I'm going to be retired whenever the next car dies, I should have more time free than I do when working which changes my outlook on the problem.

The thing is, "the ground" is much closer for some vehicles than it is for others. Talking about driving a Toyota or Honda into the ground (e.g. 300k miles, over 20 years) is an entirely different prospect than talking about driving a Kia/Hyundai, Ford, Chevy, Dodge/Chrysler/Fiat, Mercedes, Nissan, or for f***'s sake a Jeep.

We should all know that a brand new fully-loaded Camry or Civic, bought at a price that reflects poor negotiating skills, will subtract a lot less from your bank account over ten years of ownership than a slightly used Jeep or GMC truck purchased from a private party, for example.

Well, yeah.  I'd argue that Kia, Hyundai, and Mazda all produce some pretty reliable cars as well as Toyota and Honda.  For whatever reason, luxury brands tend to be less reliable and poor bang for your buck.

Large vehicles usually get worse mileage too, so cost more to run over your lifetime.  They are heavier, so burn through brakes faster.  Larger tires are more expensive than smaller tires when you need to replace them.  Unless you have a darned good reason to own one, a big vehicle is sub-optimal.

[windytrail]

Early 1990s Specialized Allez road bike (primary commuter): ~ $300
2020 Specialized Rockhopper mountain bike (recreation): ~$1200
No car

Net worth is $228k

= 0.65% of net worth

Bikes make you feel like a millionaire :)

4-year update:
The beautiful specialized allez got stolen, unfortunately, but now I have three bikes:
- 2005 Jamis Coda Comp - city bike ($300)
- Montague Highline - foldable MTB (~$1,800)
- GT Grade Carbon - gravel bike ($2,000)
- No car

total: $4,100

Net worth is $765,000

= 0.53% of net worth